Embarking on our Frost River Expedition
6/25
We returned to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) for a third time. This time we spiced things up by bringing The Monster (Birch) and The Beast (Cedar). We chose to pack our own food. We also decided to see if we could stay out a little longer than we have in the past.
We arrived at Hungry Jack Outfitters off of the Gunflint Trail late Friday night after stopping in Grand Marais for some of the best pizza around, at Sven & Oles, and taking the dogs on a beautiful sunset walk along the round pebble beaches of the Great Lake, Superior. I couldn't help but skip a few ;) And even catching some live music!
We parked and unloaded our packs into the bunk house and tried to relax and get our bearings. The next day we would be taking a big risk with B-Monster, it being his first time and all, and having enough food for our extended stay.
We woke up to a thunderstorm, pouring buckets with no sign of relief. We were hesitant to start loading up and planning the trip at the risk of starting such a long trip wet didn't feel right. But after around 10, with no stopping in sight, it was time to set forth on our adventure. We got quite wet loading up the Escape and making our way to the office.
Once in the office, we got to speak with Dave and Nancy, the couple who own the fine establishment, about our route and renting what we needed. For this trip all we needed were the canoe, paddles, life jackets, and packs. We each got a Duluth #4 pack and we got one food cooler pack.
Dave runs us through our route on the map, pointing out features he knows we'll like. Waterfalls, rocks, trees, beaver dams, and potential moose areas. He lets us know most people do this route in about 5 days, so we should have plenty of time to day hike and paddle out in to the great wilderness.
We loaded up the canoe and the mutts and headed out to the put in access point near Hamm Lake. There's a waterfall near a portage on Hamm Lake that was used in Hamm's moving waterfall bar lights made back in the 70's. We did not make it past Hamm since we put in later in the day and the weather was turning. Sure enough we ended up spending the whole night in our tent, reading and resting.