DAY 1 Saturday August 10th. It was a long drive from the Armpit of America otherwise known as Indiana. I arrived at the Tofte Ranger Station around 4pm to pick up my permit talk to Sue who was very nice and helpful at answering my questions. Permit in hand, I was hungry so I stopped at the Blue Fin restaurant for dinner. After dinner I headed up the Sawbill trail to the Sawbill campground where I would spend the night there before entering the BW. Campsite #2 was my site for the night. I spent the remainder of the evening going thru gear took a long walk around the campground, bought some merchandise from their gift shop and played with their miniature Ausie. As night settled I entered my tent for a relaxing sleep.

Day 2 Sunday August 11th Plunge day. After a great night’s sleep I awoke at 6am, I had breakfast, drove to the dock and unloaded my Rav4. I am a fairly organized person and went thru things one more time making sure that I was not forgetting anything. Parked the car used the “facilities” one more time, then made my way to the dock where my gear and Magic were. There were two young people fishing, young to me any way. We chatted for a bit then I was off. It felt good to be on the water paddling my Magic, what a boat! I had 2 number 3 Duluth packs and my ditch bag. The boat was trimmed perfect, the water was glass. The sun was out. Who could ask for a more perfect day. The planned goal was to head to Phoebe. However, there was still some questions in my head, I thought about just going to Wonder lake, or maybe Beth or just stay on Alton. After the 30 rod portage into Alton I was still questioning my plan, then a Bald Eagle flew from right to left right in front of my boat, and I said if the Eagle goes in the direction of Phoebe that’s where I’ll go. Sure enough it headed in the direction of Phoebe and my next portage of 140 rods. This bird became my Spirit Bird for the trip. Alton is such a gorgeous lake, especially the south end with the islands. The water was surprisingly clear, almost as clear as Knife Lake. I did the 140 rod portage with ease. I double portage and actually enjoy portages. There was no one on the water on Alton or Beth lakes. It felt as if I had the whole Boundary Waters to myself. I paddled across Beth and made it to the 287 rod portage. Strapped on my pack and loaded my boat onto my shoulders and I was off. This portage being of some length I decided to do the 1 ½ portage trick. Worked well. I will do that again. Went back for my other pack and ditch bag, took some pictures and had a nice walk in the woods. After completing the portage I was on Grace. It would be a short paddle to my next set of portages. Two 15 rod portages a 5 rod portage then finally a 85 rod portage that would place me on Phoebe lake. I did the first portage with ease. The second portage I was able to float my loaded canoe to the next open stretch of water. This felt great as the air temperature was starting to get warm. I paddled to the short 5 rod portage. This one being so short was actually a real pain. I followed the portage and found that there were 2 trees that had blown down and people were using an “alternative” route to get around them. I did inform the Forest Service about this after exiting. Next was the 85 rod portage and on to Phoebe. Once on Phoebe my goal was the far southeastern campsite. It was away from the other sites and close to an area that I suspected was good fishing. The wind was starting to pick up from the northwest which aided my travel however the waves were also starting to build. I made it to my desired campsite and it was open. All totaled it took me 5 1/2 hours travel time. Not bad for an old fart. Once on shore I explored the site. It was small, but I was solo, so that was fine. I knew this this was my sight because I had found an Eagle feather on the ground, like the Eagle that pointed which direction to go this was a sign to stay. Unfortunately someone had thought in their very little brain it would be a good idea to trash the fire grate and seating area. It made me sad that people do this. I assessed the situation and decided to fix the damage that was done and make this my home for the next few days. The seating logs were thrown into the bush and the rocks that made up the chimney were scattered about. There were partial burnt 8 inch diameter logs in the fire grate and someone cut down a very large pine tree that fell into the lake partially obstructing the view. They axe cut the wedge cut then flush cut the back cut. I thought that maybe a CO or the Forest Service had done this to create habitat in the lake for some of the fry, but then thought that there were plenty of other spots on the lake for this to be done and quickly dismissed that idea. There was nothing I could do about the tree, but made quick work of restoring the seating area and fixing the fire grate. After this was done I felt a sense of thanks from the campsite and that made it all worth while. By now the wind had really picked up and there were white caps on the lake, I was and the end of that long fetch and the waves were really building. So I was wind bound. I did have to retrieve some lake water for my gravity filter, which I did and safely made it back to camp. I spent the rest of the day unpacking and setting up camp. Dinner tonight was foil chicken and noodles. After cleaning dinner I sat overlooking the lake to the north and just relaxing. Night came and after a full day I was beat and went to bed.

Day 3 August 12th After a somewhat restful sleep I awoke to a foggy landscape. The lake was glass and it was time to go fishing. Doing some research at home I knew that there was a 20 ft hole close by and that was my target area for the morning. It did not disappoint. I took several nice size walleye and a few small mouth bass from that hole. All released. There would be no eating of fish on the trip only catch and release. After satisfying my fishing itch I went back to camp for brunch. On the menu was Ovaeasy scrambled eggs and bacon on a Bagel. I forgot the cheese. Yummy. Finished that off with a Larabar and fruit snack and it was time to go back on the water. I wanted to explore the bay area and possibly Poet lake. I fished the narrows into the bay and caught several SM bass, entering the bay I could see where Poet lake was thru the tree line and made my way in that direction. I navigated the small twisting creek with my Magic, I really like that type of travel. A little more than half way down the creek I came upon an obstacle, a beaver dam. Who would have thought. I looked over the area and decided since I was solo that I would stop there and turn around. Yes I could have continued, I’ve crossed over many beaver dams in the past, but because I was solo I decided to stop there. I turned around and started making my way back to camp. Once back at camp I needed to relax the sun was out and the wind calm, it was hot! I found my camp chair calling my name. Tomorrow would be a travel day so I wanted to be rested. Dinner time came, foil Tuna and noodles on tortillas. Some Pringles for a snack. Sitting in my chair eating dinner and overlooking the lake I noticed two objects swimming in the lake. Diving down then surfacing eating something in the front paws. I am assuming River Otters. It was fun watching them. As stated earlier I am a pretty organized person. So tomorrow being a travel day I wanted to start cleaning up camp and doing as much packing as I could, so in the morning it would take minimal time to get on the water. I cut up some firewood and made a fire starting kit for the next camper who came to this site. Hopefully they pass that gift along to campers after them. Night fell and I went to bed.

Day 4 August 13th For reasons I will not disclose a special day for me. I woke up around 6am to another beautiful sunrise. The sky filled with smoke from the wildfires in Canada provided some fantastic sunrises with colors of pink and peach. After breakfast and finishing packing and loading the canoe I did my usual predeparture camp inspection. Upon completion of the inspection I was off. Destination was either Grace or Beth. After doing the series of short portages leading to Grace, I was able to float the one portage again, and I did find a short cut to the 5 rod portage that made even quicker work of travel, I was on Grace. I was hoping for a site close to the portage I had just completed but after rounding the corner the site I wanted there were people in a canoe. So I headed to the north to check out the next closest site it too was occupied so I turned around and headed east towards the 287 rod portage that would take me into Beth. To my utter surprise the people in the canoe had left and that site that I was hoping for was open. It was now 10am and I was at my new home for the day and night. This was an amazing sight, I had such good vibes from this site. There were plenty of tent pads the docking area was good. The seating area and fire grate area were perfect. The previous campers left fire starting material like I had left at my last site. Thank you. It was still there for the next campers when I left. I did not have any campfires this trip. The only fires I had were in my Twig stove when I cooked a meal. After setting up camp it was time to explore the lake. I was running low on water as well so I headed to the northern part of the lake, deeper water to fill up my dirty water bag of my gravity filter and do some fishing. By this time it was around 1200 the sun was high in the sky and the wind was almost calm, I knew this was not the ideal time to fish, and I was not real successful, I managed a few SM bass and that was it. Oddly enough I never caught a Pike on this trip. You almost always catch Pike even when trolling. Weird…I went back to camp had lunch of peanut butter and honey on a cinnamon raison Bagel a Larabar and some fruit snacks. By this time it was mid afternoon the clouds were building. I turned on the radio and tuned in the weather band station. The forecast was for scattered thunderstorms. The forecast was correct around 5pm I had a storm roll thru. Rain thunder no wind. After the storm I was exploring camp and came across what looked like a child’s play area. It had two buildings at the base of a large white pine made of sticks, enough for a child’s imagination to run wild. In June I did a group trip with a friend and his son. On one of the sites we stayed at he found green army guys. So on the site I found their HQ. I listened to the weather forecast again and the long range forecast for my exit day was not good. I did not want to be stuck away from my exit and over 450 rods of portaging with bad weather in the forecast so I decided that tomorrow would be a travel day to Beth or Alton. I wanted to at least get the 287 rod portage out of the way. Dinner was had of Scrambled eggs and bacon on bagels. There was a nice area to sit by the water and watch the day come to an end. During these times I take time to reflect. Think about past trips, the adventures of the past with my trip mates, endless games of euchre, sitting by the campfire solving the worlds problems, staying up all night looking at the stars, speaking; yet not saying a word, and of trip mates that have passed or are too old and ill to come to this beautiful place. I had lost both my parents within the last 2 years so there was time to reflect on their passing and everything they had done for me. I have been very fortunate in this life to have such good family and friends. The day was at an end, tomorrow would be another travel day and so reluctantly I went to bed.

Day 5 August 14th I woke up to another beautiful morning. August can mean some fantastic weather. Cloudless sky’s and calm winds. So I set off to Beth or Alton. The 287 rod portage was easy, by this time I was really dialed in. The 1 ½ portage technique was used again. I made it into Beth and all the sights were full so it was on to Alton. I had heard that Beth and Alton fill up quickly so I had prepared myself mentally that if Alton was full I would exit that day and not risk traveling on a day with storms forecast and 25-30 mph gusty winds. I paddled thru Beth in about 15 minutes loaded a pack on my back and canoe on my shoulders. About halfway thru the 140 rod portage I hear what sounds like women singing, sure enough 4 women singing they had no packs nor canoes, we stopped and chatted for about 10 minutes they were all friendly they said they stached their canoes in the woods and were just out for a hike. I asked if they happen to notice any open campsites on Alton, to my amazement they said all the campsites on the south end were open. I thanked them and wished them happy travels and continued on my way. I made it to the end of the portage and went back for my second load and all 4 ladies were gone. I expected to see them at the end of the portage but they were not to be found. With the winds forecast to be out of the east southeast I wanted a site on the east side of Alton. I found a site that was open just as the Forest Pixies said. The site was first very promising with a granite staircase that lead up about 30 ft. to the campsite. This site unfortunately had been well used even abused. I decided to stay anyway. As I would only be there 1 night. There was debris everywhere. It was obviously a party site. There was no trash around the site just very un kept. I proceeded to set up my last camp for this trip. I scouted around for a level tent pad looking for and widow makers. Initially not seeing any I selected a place to set up my tent. After almost completely setting up the tent I looked up and saw that the cedar tree next to my tent was split. Sigh, I looked around and selected another spot. I was able to lift my assembled tent to the new location and that job was completed. Next it was time to hang the food bag. I have hung 100’s of food bags over the years, but this site would prove to almost get the better of me when it came to the food pack. Over and over I would try unsuccessfully to hang the pack different trees were used different methods of hanging but all failed. After a while I got the real feeling that something did not want me to hang my food pack at this site. I took a break had some lunch and water got my fishing gear ready then went back to the project at hand. Finally and several more attempts I was able to get the food hung, it wasn’t the best job, but I had had enough of that silliness. Looking around at the damage on some of the trees that other campers had done with their axes and knifes it was no wonder that the forest didn’t want me to hang my packs in it’s trees. After this I needed to cool off. So I went for a swim in the lake. What an amazingly clear lake. The water was a perfect temperature to go for a swim. After my swim I sat in my camp chair by the water after a while I noticed motion at the waters edge and what appeared to be a Fisher. I grabbed my camera and got a quick photo. It was around 5pm and time for dinner. I was feeling refreshed after my swim and sit by the waters edge. Chicken and Spanish Rice on Tortillas. Hit the spot. Since the weatherman was still calling for bad weather the following day I made the decision to exit the next morning. I had put the longer portages behind me and only the 30 rod portage between Alton and Sawbill remained It was looking like tonight’s sunset would be good and I wanted to fish so I packed up camp and headed out to fish. I trolled around using various lures cast towards shore fished in bays and to my amazement got skunked. That doesn’t happen very often. Sunset was fast approaching now so I made my way back to camp to hopefully capture some good sunset shots. I was not disappointed Night fell and I was going to be up early before sunrise so I went to bed.

Day 6 August 15th Exit day. Well the weatherman was slightly off with his forecast. The day started calm with a high thin overcast. I passed on breakfast as I knew I would be back at the Sawbill landing in short order. I loaded the canoe and bid farewell to this site and whoever was guarding it. On the water Alton was glass there was no wind and I made quick work getting to the portage. Crossing the portage into Sawbill as I started to paddle my once nimble Bell Magic it was slowed. With each stroke of the paddle I could feel something tugging at my canoe, purposely slowing my exit, as the paddle stokes became harder I felt a sense of sadness for I knew this was my last trip of the year. I told the lake that I would be back. And I will.