The BWCA

We kicked off our delayed summer with a quick trip to the Boundary Waters for the Memorial Day weekend. Following some much needed pre-planning and knot-tying tricks from Marlene and Andy, we loaded up the Lumina and secured our beast of a canoe to the roof for the five hour drive up north. 

And since we were already running late, we decided to swing into Split Rock Lighthouse. It's not everyday you can be tourists in your own backyard.

The weekend was cool and spring had barely reached the North Shore, but we avoided the rain and overcast skies consuming the Cities. It was a clear, full moon weekend. Highs were in the mid-60s, lows in the high 30s. Perfect for Adam, a touch chilly for Nicole, who immediately wished she had packed more wool socks and fewer tank tops.

Our entry point was Bearskin Lake, off the Gunflint Trail about 30 minutes outside of Grand Marais. We had one short portage (60 rods) into Daniels Lake, where we camped for two nights. 

This was my first trip to the BWCA in over 10 years, and Adam's first trip since his bachelor party in 2006. We may have been a little rusty, but if that baby could do it (see canoe, below), well, then, we were going to try. (Bonus FYI: only one of us was crying all the way out of the BWCA two days later, and it was not me!)

Still trying to secure the food bag out of the bears' reach.
This took multiple tries, and by multiple, I mean more than 50, probably.

We found an axe in the water and plenty of chopped wood at camp. More time for relaxing!

My two requests were to see the Northern Lights and to hear the loons. We 110% succeeded on the latter. I was thrilled. Loons are fascinating. Especially this one.

Fishing for lake trout.

Being more of a literate fisherwoman, I read the entire Minnesota fishing regulations guide and left the physical aspects of the sport up to the others.

However, I was more than happy to share in their catch! 

Our second day in the BWCA proved even sunnier than the first.

The breakfast of champions: blueberry oatmeal and polish sausage.

Taking a break from fishing, we decided to hike to Canada.

And not surprising, we discovered hidden remnants of snow.

(Though not enough to keep Adam out of international waters.)

Day Two's catch. Honestly, I never ate as well as I did on this camping trip. We had enough food and whiskey for a small, drunken army.

Our final morning was crisp and cool, like the others. Adam was the resident fire-builder, while I helped to pick up sticks. A side effect of the late spring meant no mosquitoes and fewer ticks, which is a pretty good trade-off for the cooler weather.

A four-fleece chilly morning. 

I wish I could say I didn't wear these (all of these) all weekend, but I would be lying.

I also wore three pairs of pants, two pairs of socks, a winter hat, mittens, and hand warmers to bed.

The air is so still in the mornings that the lakes are like glass. The winds usually pick up just as soon as we put the canoes in to head out fishing.

  

It wouldn't be a road trip without a frisbee throw.

Just shy of 18 weeks pregnant. The layers hide a lot.

We hope to return again just as soon as we can. We're so fortunate in Minnesota to have such an abundance and diversity of natural areas. I'm glad we were able to take advantage of the beautiful weekend, especially since it was a needed break from projects at home. We'll be back. I still need to see those Northern Lights.