Lake One

It was the trip of a lifetime. One you dream about, especially if you love the great outdoors. I had read about wilderness adventures in the likes of The Hatchet and Where the Red Fern Grows growing up, dreaming of the day I could live out my own adventure. Then I read about a wilderness that would actually allow it, The Boundary Waters of Minnesota. I did some research and found Kawishiwi Outfitters located on Lake One.
(www.elycanoerentals.com)

After choosing a starting point and an Outfitter I reserved an entry permit for May 21st at Lake One EP#30. Now all I needed was company. My brothers, Dustin and Eddie, were both happy to join me on this adventure. We planned on leaving from my place of employment in Grand Rapids, MI on May 19th at 5:00 PM. We had also decided to take the scenic route through Michigan Upper Peninsula rather than tackle heavy Chicago traffic. After all, we needed a transition from life as we live it to life as we all should know it.
The “boys” and I left Grand Rapids right on time. We had the vehicle loaded so that there was room for one of us to sleep on the road trip completely stretched out. Looking at the vehicle, you would be able to tell we were BWCA beginners because of the amount of gear we brought with us. We made really good time on the road trip. We stopped in Gaylord at Jay’s Sporting Goods. That was as intelligent as grocery shopping on an empty stomach. We bought more stuff for our “completely outfitted vacation”. Then we crossed the Mackinaw Bridge. It was the first time my little brother can recall driving over Might Mac. We stopped in St. Ignas for dinner. We all shot some pool while we waited for dinner. It was after 9:00 and we ate like champs and weren’t slowing down yet. We were to excited to get to Ely.
Night driving in the U.P. is rather easy to sum up in one word: trees. I remember stopping and getting in the back, stretched out in a sleeping bag in blankets surrounded by pillows and comfortably napping while Dustin took over the driving duties. I woke up once and heard, “I think you were supposed to go left back there, not right.” Then I went back to sleep. When I woke up a second time we were getting fuel and more than half way through the U.P. We were right on track. Because of our excitement we were ahead of a tentative schedule we had. I say tentative because it is good to have a plan while taking a BWCA vacation, but you can’t expect it to stick verbatim, nor would you want it to. I got back in the drivers seat and we headed west.
We entered Duluth, MN as the sun was starting to rise. It was the first “big” city we saw since the day before. We explored it a minute and stopped at a Wal-Mart for some much needed items for our already fully outfitted canoe trip. I think we really just wanted to stretch our legs. Of course, we did buy more fishing gear and a cast iron skillet. Back on the road, we stopped for breakfast in Virginia (MN). Our breakfast location was really neat. I remember it was filled with dolls that were “staring” at us while we ate. One thing I really liked about that restaurant was the people in it and the down home feeling they gave us. I hope to stop in there next time I make a trip up to the BWCA.
Having filled our bellies we continued on and finally arrived in Ely. We honestly had no idea what to do once we got there. We drove straight through the city once to get the lay of the land down, and then we stopped at another store to get more items for our already fully outfitted canoe trip. Beginners, right? It was time for lunch at this point and we ate at a friendly Ely breakfast restaurant. It had the feel of Ely and I look forward to that experience again. Since I am a breakfast man, I ordered breakfast again. After this second late breakfast we headed to our outfitters. All the way out of Fernberg Trail we found Kawishiwi outfitters. No one was at the desk when we pulled in, but someone is always close. We met Nicole who greeted us when she realized there was company. She got our paperwork and maps ready and started explaining the trip we were about to take while handling the hundreds of questions we were throwing at her. Frank made it up to the office to show us to our bunkhouse and go over the trip. I am fairly sure we wouldn’t have had to mention we were first timers, he could tell. By the time we got settled in it was a little past mid day. We knew we would have to try and get some rest before our adventure, but we just couldn’t yet. We went back to Ely for some exploration and to get a few more last minute items for our already fully completely outfitted canoe trip. We also ate again, this time at Dairy Queen.
We stopped at the Red Rock Wilderness Store which was recommended by Frank at Kawishiwi Outfitters. Red Rock had a lot of really good items we needed for the fishing part of the trip. I can not wait to go back to that store. So far, a lot of neat things have happened, and we aren’t even on the water yet. We made it back to Lake One in time to get some rest. We layed our equipment out and went over the trip plan one more time then I took a nap. Eddie and Dustin rested also. It was a light rain which made for good sleeping weather. Our nap lasted a few hours then we got up to fish. We couldn’t wait to get our lines wet. Dustin and Eddie watched an Osprey take a rabbit. I did not catch anything but then again; I really didn’t know how to fish the BWCA at that time. I would soon learn though. Before we called it a night, we packed most of our gear and were ready for our first canoe trip to begin.
Dustin and Eddie getting some much needed rest before our adventure into the BWCA.

Frank was impressed that we had planned on getting up at 5:00 am to head out on our adventure. He made sure we did not forget our freezer items or our leaches and minnows. We woke up around 4:30 and got dressed and ready for the day. There was a slight rain with not much wind. It was what I call a comfortable rain. We packed the canoes and double and triple checked that we had everything. Dustin and Eddie doubled up in an aluminum canoe and I soloed with a Kevlar. I did not think I would keep up with the two of them, but it worked out the other way. I was being chased. When I loaded the canoe I loaded it improperly. I loaded the gear up front and therefore my canoe would not keep a direct straight path and it made a lot of extra work.

My first hours canoeing in the BWCA was even better than I could have imagined. I was surrounded by endless wilderness and beauty. I saw Eagles in flight and Moose in play. I saw loons and got to watch the sun come up over the water. I even got to tackle my first portage. The portages in between the numbered lakes are not that long and are definitely kept up with. The rapids and small waterfalls are also picturesque. We took our time unloading all our gear and moving forward. We stopped and fished. We rested. I remember Dustin slipped a few times on wet rocks, so be careful of that.

Portaging, if you have never done it before, should not be done in a hurry. Even though we all got up really early and hit the water early, we were met by others at portages. We politely let the more experienced move through. We even helped those that were double portaging. I mean here we are on vacation in the BWCA, we have to make the most of it. They in turn gave us newbie’s a few helpful pointers. One pointer was that if we wanted a campsite we should move on. That was great advice because around the numbered lakes, and for beginners really wanting to find a campsite, you have to keep moving. The numbered lakes are large lakes. You have to be ready physically if you plan on moving a large distance in the BWCA. Be it by land or by sea. For those that are not used to canoeing, you will find that you are using muscles that you usually don’t. That is one thing that I realized on this first trip, that I love portaging. I can not wait to take on E.P. #19 or #20 and then the follow on portages they offer. I imagine this is key to solitude, scenery, and some secret fishing spots. Not to mention access to lakes which only have one campsite on them.

Now, back to this trip. We fished a little in and around the falls then moved onto Lake Two. The Islands were a lot of fun to traverse and offered some nice scenery. As beginners, we had a few hiccups with map reading, but we always eventually found our bearings. We checked out potential campsites on the way and ended up on a site in between Lake Three and Lake Four.

The campsites had good flat ground to lay our tent out with additional room to roam. The fire grates are a great addition to the campsites in the Boundary Waters. With decent weather, we rarely had to use the propane grill to cook. After surviving our first ever entry into the BW, we were equally excited to be in it and setting up camp, as we were exhausted and ready for a nap.

We got camp set up, and then…well we were to excited to nap. So, we did the next best thing. We cooked food and fished. We didn’t really think we had caught anything yet, so we ate dinner. The food that Nicole (Kawishiwi Outfitters) packed for us was really high quality and in abundance. They did not forget anything. I was impressed. We had steaks our first night.

After dinner, Dustin reeled my pole in. It had a walleye on it. Dustin caught the first fish of the trip. After that, I rushed over to my second pole and reeled in the first walleye I ever caught. What a cool moment. Then Eddie reeled in two walleye at once. Dustin also used a jointed rapala to land his first pike ever. The action didn’t stop for a while and we realized it was well into the night now. So we rested.

In my opinion, the Boundary Waters is equally enjoyable at night as it is in the day. The stars are incredible. Observing nature at night with a crisp fresh air is as relaxing as it gets. I didn’t sleep long the first night. I woke up around (estimate) 4:30 a.m. I wanted to see what I was missing out there. Watching the water I saw a beaver swim by. Then a loon made it way around the bay we were near.

I decided it was time to fish. This was a great idea. I set my poles out and then heard splashing in the water. A pike had come into the shallow water and latched right on to our walleye (breakfast). It was a good sized pike, but I like walleye for breakfast. I grabbed it under the belly and lunged it onto land. I had just caught a pike with my bare hands. Cool! I held it up to the window of the tent and said, “Boys the fish are biting.” That was motivation for a quick rise. We were such kids out there having a good time catching fish and enjoying God’s nature. We caught more fish before breakfast and enjoyed camp before we day tripped around the numbered lakes.

I remember taking a few naps on day two. I napped on an island or two here and there, then went back to my own campsite and napped there. I didn’t catch a lot of fish during the day, but I did see some great scenery and enjoyed every moment of it. The fish started bighting again about dinner time. When they start biting, they keep it going into the night. The last night of our trip (three days) was another good one. We had great weather while we were there and we really didn’t want to leave. After getting a good nights sleep, we went at the day a little backwards being the last day and a travel day. We all got in our canoes after breakfast, before picking anything up, and headed out to adventure. What we should have done, was got out gear, and went on adventures that were in the general direction of where we had to be at days end. We used a lot of our energy exploring in the wrong direction. I did enjoy what I discovered during the day, but once we got back to camp we had to “hurry” and clean, pick up, and pack. Hurrying in the BW is never a good thing. We also had some map issues on the way back and I admit I was getting nervous towards the end as it was starting to get dark. Lesson learned. Take your time getting out. Don’t adventure in the wrong direction the day you have to leave. We were exhausted from hurrying back to Lake One and our excellent outfitters. We were able to take a nice warm shower and clean up before we hit the road. It was a great time and a great trip. I left with a desire to make the BW an annual trip.

Lake One and the numbered lakes, as well as being completely outfitted, in my opinion, is a great way to learn how to take a BWCA vacation. The knowledge we gained by using an experienced outfitter is irreplaceable. I highly recommend Lake One outfitters for any beginning canoe paddler.