Sunday, September 08, 2024 Actually planned to go into Homer on Saturday and stay at one of the two campsites outside the bwca. Last minute my youngest son had to back out because of a new job he started. My buddy Carl bailed us out by bringing a Wenonah Wilderness solo along with the Champlain that I had bought off him. By the time we drove up from Illinois and got the boats it was starting to get dark. We loaded up the canoes and set off for the campsites. Alas, I should have listened to the advice of this board. Both sites were full! We contemplated pushing on to the third site which is in the park but our conscience wouldn't allow it since our permit was for Sunday, not Saturday. We paddled back to the entry point in the dark, drug our canoes up, unloaded and spent a few hours trying to sleep in the van. Not a very restful evening! 6:00 a.m. we are up bright and early and set of in search of a campsite. Arriving at the third campsite on the lake, we indeed find that it was open. Not knowing what our day held we chose to unload and establish a camp in case nothing ese was open. My wife gave me stern instructions that I was to return with a photo we could make into a canvas to sit next to the one we had made from a photo that Gary Hamer graciously allowed me to use. Ten minutes after landing, my son-in-law (Paul) said he thought he had the picture. Ended up taking a beautiful picture of the sunrise on Homer. After dumping our gear we set off to see what we might find in way of other places to camp. Unloaded, we took the few short portages into the Pipe/ Vern area. I remember from years past that this route was to be preferred over the route through Whack lake. We met a couple of couples coming out of Pipe and had a nice chat with them. One of the fellows heard of our plans and warned us about the last portage into Vern. His advice was to keep right and be careful, that it had become a muddy slog. I thought he had confused this portage with the ones going through Whack. Sadly, he had not. We found the final portage nothing but a mud bog and it looked like it could go on for several hundred yards. We abandoned the pursuit and set out to return to Homer. Upon arriving back on Homer I suggested o the boys that I return to camp and that they take a quick peek at the Whack route and if passable, to check the sites on Vern. An hour later and they were back with reports that The way was doable and that the far site on Vern was open. With this news in hand, we quickly packed up and headed to Vern to claim the site that would be home for a few days. The site on Vern is a great site. Probably a 4 1/2 if not for the absolutely awful canoe landing. Lots of shade for the afternoon, plenty of places to hang a hammock, and a couple good tent pads. It was getting late so after we set up camp we decided to fix dinner. I sliced up the frozen steak we had brought, through in some onions and peppers I had prepared and ate with shredded cheese and sour cream on fajita shells. Awesome first dinner in the boundary waters. After dinner we went out fishing until dark and then retired exhausted from a long 24 hours.