Saturday, August 30, 2025: Kawnipi, Keewatin, no name, and Agnes Lakes. 12.2 miles (11.5 canoe, 0.7 portage). Three portages (360, 330, and 310 meters).

We slept great last night—our REI Helix insulated sleeping pads and 20* Big Agnes Greystone down bags have served us well. We were up at 6:00 for another long day. We had a light breeze during breakfast, and were concerned that it might become afternoon winds before we got off the big water of Kawnipi. Our plan was to travel to the southwest corner of Kawnipi and drop into Agnes. We were on the water at 8:30, and as we paddled west we saw eagles, swans, and ospreys. Around 11:15 we stopped for an early lunch on a small island below Rose Island. We had done no portages this morning and wanted to be well-fueled before hitting the three portages into Agnes.

All three portages were challenging, with some marginal landings and some slick boulders to rock-hop across. The portage into Keewatin had huge blow-downs, and we were very thankful for the work of the portage crews. Without their efforts the portage would have been impassable. Keewatin has a nice pictograph site with thunderbirds, moose, stick figures, and abstracts. Visiting them made us think about checking out more pictograph sites and a petroglyph site on Agnes. The third portage had a few smaller trees blocking canoe clearance that we were able to trim back with our hand saw.

On a rocky point near the portage into Reid Lake from Agnes is one of my favorite campsites in Quetico, and (because we're still seeing almost no one in the Park) it was available for the night. We were there around 3:30, and before setting up camp we rinsed off in the lake. The site has a big patch of sweet fern, and Tia made an afternoon tea with a few leaves. Even brushing against the plant when walking through the campsite filled the air with its scent. Tia caught up her journal entries for the day.

It had been a beautiful day, but with the compromised tent fly, we set up ridge lines for the dining fly in both the cooking area and over the tent. Smart move—as we finished dinner cleanup, we started hearing thunder to the north and clouds started moving in. We moved the dining fly to the ridgeline over the tent, then played Farkle on a big rock with eastern views until a flash of lightning encouraged us to move into the tent. Eventually a gentle rain came, but moved past the site around 9:30. And it's been another private day in the Park.