(Gillis Lake, Crooked Lake, Owl Lake, Tuscarora Lake, Hubbub Lake, Copper Lake, Noname Lake, Noname Lake, Noname Lake, Sora Lake, Din Lake, Mass Lake)

We didn’t hurry too much this morning as we worked our way across Gillis Lake. The fishing wasn’t as hot under the bright sun and there was a bit of chop on the water. A few fish were caught as we crossed the lake. We portaged on to Crooked Lake and fished some more trolling on the “scenic rout” around the lake to the portage to Owl Lake. I caught one laker before we reached the portage but let it go. We made short work across Owl Lake and portaged into Tuscarora Lake. 

On Tuscarora we made plans to fish until lunch time and meet at a campsite for lunch. Greg and I trolled lures around an island and over deep water but we couldn’t manage to find any fish till we were just about to the campsite/lunchsite. Greg hooked into a laker and got it into the boat. Of course we had to fish over that hole again but were unable to get any more fish for lunch. 

After lunch we headed toward the portage to Hubbub Lake. Again, Greg lost the rock-paper-scissors so he had to carry the boat. We had been on this portage before and dreaded the boardwalk across the dry “Howl Lake” in the middle of it. If you had the canoe while crossing the boardwalk in the past, it was a real treat, especially if there was a good wind. Well, it turns out, the boardwalk is now underwater and it appears that beavers made this stretch navigable with the canoe. Greg was sure to point out that it was officially a new portage when we reached the other side so I got to carry the boat.

We crossed Hubbub Lake and portaged into Copper Lake. On Copper Lake we took our time to investigate the rock face on the north shore. Soon we spotted the blue of copper in the rocks and could see evidence of primitive mining activities. We snapped a couple of pictures and headed off to the south. 

We had reserved a PMA (Primitive Management Area) permit for the “Hairy Lake PMA zone 2” for our next bushwhack. We turned due south and found the stream that marked where we were to start our bushwhack. To our surprise there was an old portage there. The bushwhack to the first noname lake was an easy one. The trail was pretty easy to follow except for a few downed trees here and there. On the other end of the first lake we were able to find the start of another old portage. Unfortunately the condition of these old portages started to rapidly deteriorate. After a while the portages all but disappeared and it was usually in a thicket of nearly impassable saplings and the very determined little pines. The saplings will usually push out of the way but those little pine trees typically push back with enough force to stop you in your tracks! By the time we reached the third noname lake our spirits were getting beat and the lake wasn’t worthy of putting a canoe into, so we simply walked around it. I believe it was around here the Chad made the profound statement, “Here, portage is more a verb than a noun.” Maybe you had to be there for it to be funny, but we got a good laugh out of it. The brushcrash into Sora Lake was full of all the bad stuff you come to appreciate during a bushwhack. The hills and valleys to go over that never help the orienteer leading the group. Thick patches of tag alder surrounded by ankle sucking muck filled the valleys and the hills were a mix of fallen trees, thick pine saplings, and enough ground cover that you couldn’t really see where your feet were going. To top it off the mosquitoes had found us and there was no escape. It was here I started talking to the bugs, Chad was haphazardly spraying DEET into the air around him, but Greg and Mike seemed to be hiding their bug insanity pretty well.

Sora Lake was a long and beautiful lake. There was no wind, no people, and no noise. We took our time making our way down the lake being sure to take the bends slow and quiet to see if there was any surprises around the next corner. By the end of the lake my spirit had been lifted and I was ready, willing, and able to take the next bushwhack into Din Lake. Din Lake and Mass Lake are connected by a short stream and it was there that we saw a fire ring. It didn’t look like much of a campsite so we paddled around Mass Lake looking for a suitable spot. After about an hour of checking different bays and rock outcroppings and not finding anything that looked like a good campsite we decided to head back to the fire ring. There wasn’t much for a flat spot to put a tent but we made due and cleared a small area. We fixed the fire ring, made dinner, and were basically delirious till we finally hit the sack.