The next morning we achieved a perfect 3-for-3 for exiting our tents to awesome weather at the start of the day.

Our last-morning breakfast was a quick get-away meal of instant oatmeal before striking camp one more time. Once loaded up, it was only a 20-minute paddle to our final portage and the planned pickup from our outfitter. This last portage was the one trail that had any significant length of the whole adventure. On this return trip it was not bad at all! The trail was in drier condition than when we entered and we were more seasoned now, operating as the team we'd become. Our driver from CCO was there right on time for our pickup and the soft seats of his air-conditioned van made for a really relaxing ride back to town.

Once we were done loading up for the trip home and got cleaned up with some showers that felt little short of miraculous, we ended things in Ely with a tasty lunch at the Frisky Otter.

Upon returning home that evening, I think we were all saying our goodbyes with a new level of friendship and a new bond from what we'd experienced as a group. That's part of what I like most about taking these trips: bringing people together in a new way and watching the group chemistry develop over the course of just a few days in the outdoors. I would have to say that I saw that happen with this group as much as any when the veterans stepped up with their experience and the newbies quickly adapted, jumping right in as well.

A successful trip like this sure makes me want to go again and the thoughts of "next time" are already coming together!