Boundary Waters/Quetico Trip for 2001
June 8th-17th, 2001
Day 4:
Monday ,June 11th, 2001The Split
Monday ,June 11th, 2001The Split GadgetMan and I decided to catch up on some much needed sleep.we would not be going out at 5:30am this morning. We were exhausted, and really could not muster up the strength to tackle Saganagons.
Around 9:00am we awoke. Paul and Alan were still fishing, and we had no idea which way they headed, or what time they would be back, but figured they would return around noon for lunch.
After eating another breakfast of nasty gourmet oatmeal (which I will never purchase again), we decided that our best chances of catching fish would be to find smaller bodies of water that had good spawning areas. Areas that we knew we could catch numbers and larger fish.
GadgetMan and I are starting to question our ability to catch smallmouth on Saganagons. The fish are here because Alan, and Paul had caught them the night before, but we cannot seem to put together a pattern to effectively target the fish. We decide we would break our camp, and head to Jasper, a lake that we had really good luck at last year. We should also be able to determine if our patterns of catching fish would hold true.
GadgetMan and I break camp, and wait until 12:30 for the other 2 in our party to arrive. When it is apparent that they are still catching fish, and will probably not be back for a while, we decide to leave them a note, explaining that we were going to Jasper, and we would see them there.
Now before you tear me to shreds about leaving 2 of our group at Saganagons, and going onto Jasper without them, here is a little history. We travel as a group of 4. Within this group of 4, there are 2 completely independent groups. By this I mean each 2 man team can travel independent of the other. Duplicate stoves, duplicate food, duplicate filtration, duplicate everything. I know this makes for heavier packs, but it also allows for maximum flexibility. With this flexibility, it is assumed, and sometimes expected for the groups to scout out new territory. After all, 2 parties exploring different areas of the BWCA and Quetico allow for greater coverage, and better scouting of potential future fishing spots. At least, this is how GadgetMan and I saw it. Paul and Alan would view the "split" as much more, leading to some interesting, and sometimes heated discussions on the 18+ hour trip back to Louisville.
After loading our equipment into the canoe, I decide this would be a great place to take a GPS waypoint. This year, I decided to mark waypoints for some of our campsites, and specific areas. This would allow for easier navigation in the future. We head out into Saganagons, and make a right and head South towards Silver Falls.
Well, we didn't turn right enough, and actually end up heading North. This is one of the only days that it is overcast, so we really cannot see the sun too much. We didn't catch our mistake until we determine that the wind shifted. Coincidence, I don't think so. After paddling for 2 hours or so, I decide to check the good ole Garmin 12XL GPS. We should be heading Southwest, but instead, we are heading Northeast. I discuss this with GadgetMan, and it is decided that I am reading the GPS incorrectly.
After paddling yet another hour or so, I finally convince GadgetMan that I am reading the GPS correctly, and we are in fact headed in the wrong direction. I had also taken waypoints at Slate Lake, and according to the GPS, we were headed away from Slate instead of toward Slate Lake. This was conclusive enough evidence, and we turned around. By this time, we were near Boundary Point, headed in the wrong direction, 3 hours behind schedule, with a 10-15 mph wind blowing in our faces. This was bad, really bad. It was about 4:00PM, and we were going to have a tough time of it. At least we did fish the whole Northern side of Saganagons, determining that it is a barren wasteland for smallmouth bass.
We put up our fishing gear, and start digging in. By this time, I determine we are at least 5 miles or so off course, in the wrong direction. We would have nearly 7 miles to go..5 Back to our campsite where we started, and then 2 or so more back to the Lily Pad portages into Jasper.
It starts to rain. Not enough to put rain gear on, but enough to make you a little wet. This would be 1 of 2 days of rain that we would encounter on the entire trip.
We finally make it to where we think the Jasper portage is, and cannot find the portage. We search for nearly 1 hour, but cannot find it. I did manage to get some pretty good moose photos where we thought the Jasper portage should be though.
It is now approaching 7:00PM, and we decide to look for the other portage into Lily Pad. This would require paddling up the "cut", or around the big island on Saganagons. We decide to paddle up the "cut". This is harder than expected. The wind is still blowing pretty hard, and the cut actually has a fair amount of current running through it. We dig in, and barely manage to make it up the "cut". If anyone is wondering, this "cut" is directly across from the campsite on the right when leaving from the Silver Falls portage. I believe it is only passable when the water is higher than normal. We now realize that there is absolutely no way to reach the other Lily Pad portage from the Saganagons side. Our map did not have some of the portages marked, and we determined there was no way to make it without risking serious bodily injury. Later, we would find out about additional portages that would have made this trek to Jasper rather easy.
By this time, we are ready to kill each other. We hate making silly, no.stupid navigation mistakes. These mistakes push us back yet another 30 or so minutes. It is approaching 8:00PM, and we have no idea what we want to do. At this point, Jasper is out of the question, and we absolutely are beginning to hate Saganagons. We decide to cross back over Silver Falls, and take the first campsite we find available.
The water is running pretty hard through Silver Falls, and we remember Jason, the park ranger at Cache Bay, warning us to be careful. We quarter the rapids just like Jason told us to, but we still manage to get sideways in some huge white water. How we did it, don't ask me, I don't know. I do know that we managed to keep the canoe from tipping, and ended up with about 10 inches of water in the bottom. With that much water in the canoe, you couldn't breath, let alone move. We just barely paddled to get out of the current, and then started bailing. I still don't know how we managed to make it across that current without swamping the canoe, and losing all of our gear.
GadgetMan and I are convinced the canoe saved our butt. The Souris River Quetico 18 ended up riding on top of the waves, instead of getting bogged down in them. Any other type of canoe, other than Kevlar, would have been riding lower in the water, and would have surely been tipped over by those waves.
We portaged over Silver Falls without incident. While loading the canoes, I manage to drop GadgetMan's favorite rod and reel overboard. It is not too deep, and we retrieve the rod and reel. It would take another 3 days for the reel to dry out, and become usable again.
Amazing enough, the wind completely stopped blowing when we reached Cache Bay. This is where I accidentally threw GadgetMan's brand new Nalgene bottle overboard. Funny thing, I actually told him not to drop it, because I filled it completely to the top with water, and it probably won't float. I then proceeded to throw it about 5 feet out of his reach. What A day.
Did I say that we were ready to kill each other. I am convinced one of us was not going to make it back to Louisville. I'm not sure which one, but considering GadgetMan used to be a weightlifter, and can still bench over 300lbs, I figure I'm a goner.
We paddled Cache Bay, which should be renamed Glass Bay, because the water was like glass. We made great time, and find a campsite on the Quetico side of First Bay on Saganaga. We decided we really need to catch some fish so we dumped our gear, and quickly setup our tent. By now, it is nearing 10:00PM, but we can still see, and the smallies await. We immediately found fish in some favorite secret spots on First Bay, and caught 10 or 20 decent smallies before it became too dark.
At this point, we decided that we were in fact on two different and separate trips. The first trip was over, and behind us, and we were starting over, from day one. We even thought about resetting the spankometer to 0, but decided the numbers had to stay.
Tomorrow would be a much greater day, and in fact would turn out the be the best day I have ever had in the Boundary Waters........
This page was last updated on: December 23, 2022
