Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Reports :: Trip Report - First Solo, Knife Lake
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ottoparts |
Thanks Kanoes. I find myself looking forward to another solo sometime despite the note to myself about never doing it again. Maybe it's the cabin fever! I want to apologize to all for the lack of Photos (no digital camera and no scanner). I always like to see others photos in their trip reports. |
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RoJoYo |
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ottoparts |
Trip Name: First Solo, Knife Lake. Entry Point: 25 Click Here to View Trip Report |
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stonecutter |
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ottoparts |
I learned a lot from that first solo. First and most important is that I could do it. But as to the trip planning, the biggest lesson I think was next time don't stay in one spot. I was worried that on a solo, all the work in camp obviously would have to be done by myself. I found that I got camp set up, fire wood collection.... all the camp chores done much more quickly than I anticipated. I do find myself thinking about the next solo, and traveling every day will be a top priority in planning the next trip. |
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kanoes |
nice honesty in your report. thanks. |
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Bannock |
Next time try 5 days. I bet you'll feel differently. You were probably just beginning to get into the swing of things when you left. I agree - try to travel everyday. Taking down and setting up camp takes sometime and helps to eliminate the boredum. Even a short distance helps, though I bet you'll travel further than you planned. |
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Winemaker |
On my first solo, a river here in indiana, I ran into some of the same problems. No one to talk to, share with, do some of the dirty work for me, that kinda put me off a little. Then I decided to try again, and I laid out three things each day I would accomplish to keep me busy: (1) I will explore the area (weather permitting); I will paddle at least 30 minutes away from camp looking for wildlife, points of interest, and get a good sense of the surrounding landscape. This has worked well, even in a few cases where I ended up doing it on foot if paddling was not a good option. (2) I will take at least ten pictures a day after setting up camp; this helps me overcome an odd problem I encountered after one solo trip, I never took one photo! So i shot the campsite, the surrounding area, I look for close-ups of trees, plants, etc. This has worked very well and now that I am all digital, I try to shoot 25 pic's instead of ten. (3) I will read for at least 90 minutes; This has turned into a big help, although some will say books are too heavy, I find them indispenable on my solo trips and usually read for two to three hours, generally in 30-minute segments. Since I started this method, I have not found myself nervous, anxious, or bored on my solo trips. Sorry, I don't fish... hummm... |
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TomT |
It's weird, when I finish a solo I always say to myself that I won't ever do it again, but inevitably I always can't wait for another. Better luck next time. Thanks for reporting. |