Monday, May 17, 2021 Day three was the last that would go more or less according to our initial plan. We made the portage a little while after sunup before heading straight down the ridge to Ottertrack. I guided the group through to Benny’s Cliff and we stopped off to visit his former homesite. What a place to lead a life! We followed the border and took some time getting over Monument. There was another group on the boardwalk so we waited our turn. Then it was east over the swamp portage to Sag. It was funny, in a way, to have paddled from Ely to Sag since I had spent the previous summer running some towboat routes there. To cross the span by canoe is a bit of a space warp considering how far a distance it feels by car. The lake was pretty calm this day as we made our way towards American Point. We stopped for awhile on the point to enjoy the light breeze and a snack before heading down Red Rock Bay. The portage to Red Rock is an easy one and we made decent time weaving through Red Rock and Alpine. By the time we made Jasper, it was obvious that the group dynamic was souring some. T definitely didn’t appreciate the length of the days. The paddle on Saganaga to get from Swamp to Red Rock is a long one and the pace we had set the first three days didn’t feel sustainable to her. The more considerate members of the group were intended to agree. I was, as established, antsy about stopping and antsy about the potential for not getting where we were going. We were aiming to swing as far south as Fishdance to see the pictos since the fourth member of our crew (C) really loves them and Fishdance the surrounding area is one of my favorites. Since my grumpiness was showing, I decided to go for some extracurriculars. I paddled over to the rock face just north of camp (in the bay by the Kingfisher portage.) I hiked up around the face and bushwhacked between high points enjoying view after view of the setting sun. After my hike, I still was feeling way too much energy for the day we had, so I took a lap out around our part of the lake and returned to camp in the dark. It was a good night’s sleep as we thought about how the remainder of the trip would go. ~Gijikiki Lake, Ottertrack Lake, Swamp Lake, Saganaga Lake, Red Rock Lake, Alpine Lake, Jasper Lake