Boundary Waters, Trip Reports, BWCA, Stories

From A Father to A Son
by Buck47

Trip Type: Paddling Canoe
Entry Date: 06/26/2006
Entry & Exit Point: Sawbill Lake (EP 38)
Number of Days: 4
Group Size: 2
Day 4 of 4
Thursday, June 29, 2006

Sawbill and Home

8:00 AM awake and ready for oatmeal, and peanut butter on soft shells. Sprinkled in the night but the morning is beautiful. On the water by 10:00 AM, pumped water and saw our first people since South Temperance as we finished our first portage into Kelly Lake, a young family with two canoes. I was a little worried about the dreaded 230r. portage into Burnt Lake with a tired boy. It was not a bad portage. Jr. handled it great. It was busy with people and I think that kept his spirits up. We had to paddle into the wind on Burnt and the 90r. portage was good. Burnt and Smoke Lake were very crowded. The 90r. portage out of Smoke was tricky to find. It is a dock and boardwalk crossing the bog. We made it to Sawbill and back to the truck by 2:30 PM.

We loaded the truck and then stopped at Sawbill Outfitters for some treats. A t-shirt, Gatorade, and ice cream for Jr. and a Killian’s Red for Dad. We stopped at the Two Harbors Pizza Hut and were home by 8:00 PM. We had another great day together and even though Jr. was tired, just knowing it was time to head home kept him moving. I believe the trip was just the right length for his age.

Conclusion.

I received a lot of good advice from the Internet and people that have taken young children into the BWCA. I believe the two most important things to remember is that plan the trip like it is a solo trip, because you are not going to get much help. The second thing is to think of the trip as the their trip, not your trip. By keeping these two things in mind, the trip was a very positive experience for both of us. We never needed the whistle but I was glad he had it and it was a security blanket for him when we were out of sight of each other. One time he accidentally put it in his pack and he had to unpack and find it before he was ready to leave. Next year I am going to have him pick out his own fishing lures, help me shop for groceries and we are going to stay two nights on one lake, hopefully we can catch some fish. I was very hesitant at first bringing him on a trip like this. When he was seven we took an over night trip down the St. Croix River and he loved it. He has recently asked to do that trip again this summer as well as the BWCA. He loves the sand bars on the river. We brought an old football to play catch with and he could get out and walk in the shallows. The river offers a different experience but very similar.