On an unseasonably warm May morning, my husband put the canoe on top of the car while I loaded up the food barrel. We headed towards the Sylvania Wilderness for our first canoe trip of 2018. Typically May canoe trips include cold, wet, and throngs of mosquitoes. This trip surprised us with hazy summer-like days and an occasional thunder shower. We grew sticky under the clothing meant to protect us from fly and mosquito bites.
Day 1
On Day 1 we took our time getting to the point of entry to avoid a morning thunderstorm, stopping at IHOP for a leisurely breakfast. We arrived near lunchtime, and ate sandwiches while swatting mosquitoes and preparing to launch. We entered on Crooked Lake, and paddled it's wide and narrow passages to the portage to Mountain Lake. Along the way we delighted in hearing, then seeing swans.
Day 1 Video: Entry Day
We breezed through the portage to Mountain Lake, an easy 13 rods (1 rod = 16.5 feet). Once we entered Mountain Lake, we paddled to Lynx 1 campsite. Lynx 1, like most campsites in the Sylvania Wilderness, does not have wide open views of the sky. From this site there is no view to the west for a sunset, with the sunrise view also obscured by trees.  |
| Arriving at our first campsite |
From what we observed, we were the only campers on the lake. If others occupied the other sites on the lake, we neither saw nor heard them. The mosquitoes began to ramp up their hunger as the day wore on. We set up camp and had plenty of time for Ams to challenge Dad to a few games of chess while I prepared pepperoni pizzas for dinner.
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| Day's end on Mountain Lake |
In the evening we watched the lake, and caught glimpses of birds and small animals swimming and playing. Before long it was time for sleep. After a round of mosquito smashing, we slept soundly with the rain fly open, relishing the cooling evening air.
Day 2
I woke to dawn's first gray light, and found a hazy, buggy morning waiting for me outside the tent. With thunderstorms in the forecast, we decided to stay put. I enjoyed some peaceful hours by the lake while Ams and Dad slept. Being the type unable to sit still for long, I made busy collecting more firewood than we would ever use. I'm sure the next visitors to Lynx-1 enjoyed my collection. When my family woke, I prepared bacon and Hungry Jack dehydrated cheesy hash-browns.
It felt like a lazy summer day. Ams and Dad played chess and cards. Dad and Ams took their turns at relaxing in the hammock. Ams and I splashed around in the lake while thunder rumbled in the distance. This day we began to see other paddlers on Mountain Lake and the other campsites on the lake began to fill. We enjoyed watching a small critters swim by, and delighted at two swans we first heard coming over head, and then watched low in flight along the shoreline at camp.
Since we planned to relax and do a whole lot of nothing all day, I expected the day to drag on. Much to my surprise, my daughter started asking for dinner at what I thought was early or mid-afternoon and I learned that evening had already arrived.
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| Bacon and hashbrowns with ketchup |
It felt like a lazy summer day. Ams and Dad played chess and cards. Dad and Ams took their turns at relaxing in the hammock. Ams and I splashed around in the lake while thunder rumbled in the distance. This day we began to see other paddlers on Mountain Lake and the other campsites on the lake began to fill. We enjoyed watching a small critters swim by, and delighted at two swans we first heard coming over head, and then watched low in flight along the shoreline at camp.
Day 2 Video: Relaxing in Camp
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| Mountain Lake |
For dinner, I asked my husband to make a fire for some reflector oven cooking. With the view to the west obscured by trees and terrain, a thundershower blew in taking us by surprise, and dousing our our fire. In the end, we portaged the reflector oven around Sylvania and never did use it. I hid from the rain under the tarp and made beef stroganoff from a Knorr Beef Stroganoff instant pasta meal and dehydrated ground beef, and served it with dehydrated applesauce. When the rain cleared up, we had another nice evening sitting by the water watching birds and small animals.
Day 3
The songs of owls and loons woke me on day 3. I watched the day move from gray to light as the forest awakened. When my family woke, I made a breakfast of pancakes and bacon, which was messy and took some time. It was nearly lunchtime when we packed up camp and headed out.
Day 3 Video: Moving to High Lake
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| Ams paddling the family across Kerr Lake |
After a very short paddle on Mountain Lake we portaged 96 rods to East Bear Lake. Already unseasonably hot and sticky, we sweated the short 40 rod portage to West Bear Lake, and paddled to the 97 rod portage to Kerr Lake. The mosquitoes bit, and we were happy to push away from land to start the short paddle across Kerr. After a short 38 rod portage we were greeted by the beautiful blue-green waters of High Lake. After a short paddle around an island on High Lake, we arrived at Racoon Campsite.
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| Taking a break at the portage |
We didn't run into other paddlers on the portages. Being alone on the portage trails gave us that wilderness feeling we like, but we did see that campsites had been taken and saw others paddling around on High Lake. It can be easy to fall into a resentful feeling when you are caught up in the wilderness experience and you feel like you're the only people around, and then suddenly you run into another party. However, we remind ourselves that if others love these places as much as we do, it means we may have a shot at preserving our precious canoe wilderness areas.
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| A hot afternoon in the Sylvania Wilderness |
We hauled our gear into camp feeling super sweaty. We ate snacks and drank water, trying to replenish and hydrate ourselves. We moved slowly as we set up camp. I cooked dehydrated spaghetti with meat sauce for dinner, with another side of applesauce. After dinner, Ams chose a girls paddle over swimming.
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| A hazy morning on Mountain Lake |
We sweated and paddled around High Lake until the sun began to set. We enjoyed loon and eagle sightings, our first of the trip. But most of all we enjoyed the time together. That night the loud hum of mosquitoes was later quieted by persistent thundershowers.
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| Evening arrives on High Lake |
Day 4
We slept soundly to the patter of rain on the tent and occasional rumble of thunder. I tried to hold out and stay in the tent until the rain stopped, but nature and a bad case of the can't-sit-stills had me outside hours before sunrise. The rain finally stopped around 7:00 am. It didn't take long for the sun to come along and dry up the rain.
Day 4 Paddling Out Video Coming Soon
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| The rain has finally ended on High Lake Day 4 |
When my family woke, we had oatmeal and bacon jerky for breakfast, then began to break camp for the paddle out.
We took a short paddle from our campsite on High Lake to the 22 rod portage over to Crooked Lake. As we approached the portage, we were surprised when an eagle flew from a nearby tree at the portage, and we were awestruck by it's massive wingspan. Close up these majestic creatures appear huge. It's amazing to realize their true size as opposed to viewing them as a distant bird moving across the sky.
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| High Lake as still as glass |
Once back onto Crooked Lake, we paddled the the entry point to unload our canoes. Due to the hot, sticky weather, we longed for the showers we would take later that evening. My daughter kept asking could we stop somewhere for lunch, and this being one of our family's vacation highlights of the summer we did precisely that.
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| Saying goodbye to the frogs and mosquitoes at Racoon Campsite on High Lake |
Four days isn't really enough time for a canoe trip. About the time one falls into the rhythm of life in the backcountry, it is time to put the canoe on top of the car and drive home. Although thankful for the time we spent in the Sylvania Wilderness, it left us longing for more. More time, and something a bit more remote.
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| Trip Map |
That's all for now, let's get outdoors and keep our wild places wild.
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| The landing at Racoon Campsite on High Lake |
Update 1: Added link to Day 2 Video
Update 2: Added link to Day 3 Video
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