It was a colder night than expected, woke at first light with a migraine, took some good meds, then noticed the silence :)! No wind, no rain, and clear skies! After breakfast, coffee, and dividing rations for the day, we said some prayers then paddled out the glassy cove that provided us much needed protection. Within minutes of paddling SW down a smooth Sag, a bald eagle flew over us, and we knew this is what we had come all this way for! We passed a few wearly travelers who I hoped were not returning a day late to worried loved ones. The water clarity was amazing and as we stopped for a snack to take it all in, my oldest son (who has a degree in W&FS with an emphasis in fisheries, aquaculture, and aquatic sciences) just could not stand how fishy everything looked so he rigged up a weightless fluke. Within a few casts he landed a nice smallmouth...naturally, we followed suit and quickly landed our first fish. We could have fished the narrow passes from Sag into Swamp all day, but decided we would stop anytime something looked too good - which was often as we caught fish regularly. We arrived at Monument Portage - be careful on that dock as one of them flips up when stepped on. We had decided to single portage the entire trip so this was a good test - it was pretty cool walking in Canada, but longer than we thought it would be. Ottertrack was beautiful and we caught more nice smallies on the way to the portage to Ester. Part of us wanted to continue down Ottertrack and into Knife, but Ester was calling. So, we loaded up and took off UP the portage into Ester - WOW...that was a portage. As one of my boys remarked at the end, "Dad, you sure can pick the portages! Those two were probably worse than any I did my first time here. I never thought we would stop going up." Arriving in Ester was amazing though - high cliffs, clear water, laydowns everywhere! The wind was just starting to pick up which made us nervous after yesterday's humbling experience. So we decided to push hard and hope the island campsite 2009 was open...much to our delight it was! This was an awesome site with amazing 180 degree views northward of Ester, and good spots for a hammock and tent. We made the decision to camp two nights here, and only one on SAK. We set up, ate snacks, hung a clothes line to dry our clothes/gear from yesterday, and then the boys headed out for fishing (the wind stayed light). I decided to enjoy the quiet views and take it all in doing a little fishing from the bank. We caught a lot more fish and filleted some for dinner! The evening was capped with a great fire (of which a snake tried to make its home), smores again, Old Fashioneds, and a DMC! This was a pretty perfect day! ~Saganaga Lake, Swamp Lake, Ottertrack Lake, Ester Lake