Saturday, May 22, 2010
Trail Clearing on the Bluff East of Stairway Falls, then starting my backpacking trip east
I woke up fairly early and pulled my stocking cap over my eyes and went back to sleep. But it wouldn’t last long. Soon I heard people milling about the campsite, and I had the urge to pee, so I thought I’d better get up. After all, I had a lot of work to do. I needed to completely pack up this morning, and get ready for my backpacking trip. I took a photo looking from my tent of the lake in the morning.
I usually wear a stocking cap when I camp for sleeping. It keeps my head warm on cold nights, and I can use it to cover my eyes and ears, making it easier to sleep. When I got out of my tent, Jeff started razzing me because I had a Green Bay Packer stocking cap on. Evidently, he thought that it was a bold move on my part considering everybody else on the Trail Crew was from the Twin Cities.
I walked up to the latrine and did my duty. Then I came back to the campsite and started packing up. The first thing I do when packing is to stuff my sleeping bag all the way down into the bottom of my backpack. The sleeping bag is rather bulky, and takes up the bottom third of my backpack. Then I retrieved my two bear bags that were hanging near the south bay and put them in my Backpack. That took up another third of the backpack. Then I packed up my tent and some other items and put them on top. I had an orange bag with a zipper on it that I used to carry miscellaneous items that I might need more frequently. Stuff like the trowel to make a cat hole, extra batteries for the camera, voice recorder and Spot Messenger, extra camera cards for the camera, the first aid kit and more essentials.
Tom saw that I was packing up and he came over. He asked if I was going to start my backpacking trip today after we got done trail clearing, and I said yes. Yesterday, I had said that I was thinking about it, when I talked to him. He told me now that he thought that I was a smart Idea. We looked at some maps together, and I said that I was hoping to reach the “Campsite at the Notch” as I call it, on Clearwater Lake to camp tonight. Tom called it the “Two Mile Campsite” because it is two miles from the western end of the lake. Evidently, Tom had been on some Trail Clearing Trips where they used that campsite. The reason I call it the “Campsite at the Notch” is when you’re walking east along Rove Lake, eventually you get to the Rove Lake/Clearwater Lake Portage, which goes up through a notch in this big hill. And down on the other side is the campsite.
I asked Tom if I could borrow one of his Water Filters for my trip, because Jeff was concerned about me just using Aqua Pills in the hot weather. Tom said yes I could borrow one. I didn’t want to borrow Jeff’s bag filter system because it was being used quite frequently by the trail crew. In fact, they were filling up a big 3 gallon collapsible water container using the bag purifier.
Tom seemed to be in a good mood this morning. It was a beautiful day and the trail crew was really coming together as a group. I continued packing while everyone was starting breakfast. I announced that I would be starting my backpacking trip today after we finished the trail work. And I asked if someone could carry my daypack up to the top of the hill, because I would be carrying my backpack. Dick volunteered to do it. I was happy about that. Perhaps, he volunteered because I hauled water up the hill yesterday, and he really seemed to appreciate it.
They were just about finishing breakfast when I scurried over there with my mug. They were having oatmeal with all the fixings. I put two packs of oatmeal into my mug, and I pack of hot chocolate, then filled it with hot water and stirred it. Then I put on some toppings like brown sugar and walnuts and stirred it some more. This is the more deluxe version of the choco-oato that I usually have. It was really good.
I finished packing up. I again was using the 3 bag system. I had my backpack, then I had the weekend pack, and then there was the daypack, which would travel inside the weekend pack. The weekend pack was a much larger pack, almost like a Duluth Pack. It was called a California Pack. The whole front of it zipped open to make it easier to put things in. It also had several pockets. In the weekend pack I had my work boots, and several other items that I wouldn’t be needing for my backpacking trip. In the daypack, I had my backpacking clothes that I would be changing into later that day, all of the water bottles and bags, plus some snacks.
We started canoeing back to Stairway Falls. This time I was in the back of the canoe doing the steering. We made it over to the Stairway Portage Landing, and I was fidgeting with gear for the last time. I showed Tom where I put the keys for my van. They were located in the side pocket of the California Pack. Tom was going to drive my van down to Grand Marais on Sunday, after the trail crew had returned to the boat landing. I gave my daypack to Dick, who was hiking it up the hill for me. I changed into my hiking boots and away we went.
Walli and I stopped for photos at Stairway Falls, but the angle was pretty bad on the east side of the falls, and we didn’t have enough time to hike around to the other side. Then we also took photos at the overlook up from Stairway Falls. We continued on up the bluff. This time it didn’t seem so bad. Maybe because it was because we were fresh in the morning or maybe it was because we knew what to expect this time. Walli and I were lagging behind, and after we went up one big uphill section, I seen the 5 gallon collapsible water container sitting on the side of the trail, full of water. Again, Tom had taken steps to make sure we were prepared. I guess I was paying all my attention to packing my own gear that I hadn’t noticed that they had brought that water container until seeing it on the side of the trail.
We made it past the Notch Log then up the big uphill section where the tools were stored at the top. My daypack was sitting there. Thank you Dick for carrying it. I decided that I would leave my backpack sitting here for the day, because there were some other packs there, too. So, Walli and I grabbed our lopers and a small bow saw, and off we were to start working on the trail.
I was working for a while when I came to an area were there was a downed tree. It was about fifteen inches in diameter and it crossed the whole trail at a height of 2 and a half feet. While I was trail clearing in the vicinity of the downed tree, the Cross Cut Crew of Jeff and Jim came along and started working on the tree. It was then that I realized that I had not taken very many photos of the actual trail being cleared. After all, if I wanted to document what it is like being on a trail crew, I’d better take some photos. So, I took a little rest from doing Trail Clearing and photographed the sequence of Jeff and Jim cutting the downed tree.
First they cleared out an area on the left side of the trail so they had enough room to cut the tree. Then they cut the log from the top down about half way using the Cross Cut Saw. Then they under cut the log from the bottom using the Cross Cut Saw. When it was almost all the way cut through, they stopped with the Cross Cut Saw and used the Bow Saw to complete job on the left side of the trail. Then they worked on the log on the right side of the trail. On the right side, they cut from the top down, and that was it, a 6 foot section of log dropped to the ground. Jim wrangled the log off the trail while Jeff cut off a pointy piece of wood that didn’t fall with the log.
This whole sequence just took less than five minutes, and it was a lot more complex than I thought it would be. Jim is an engineer with an energy company, so perhaps it comes naturally to him. Jeff never told me where he worked, so I don’t know what his background is. But Jeff must have went through the Cross Cut Saw Training this spring, because this is his first Trail Clearing Trip and he is certified for the Cross Cut Saw.
Again, now I realized that I needed to take some more photos of the Trail being cleared. I had taken photos at our Campsite, at Stairway Falls and at the overlooks, but I didn’t take any Trail work photos. How else could I show the complete story of being on a Trail Crew on my website. So every chance I had a moment, I took a photo of one of the crew. I wanted to take at least one good action shot of every crew member doing trail work. Sometimes that is a little hard because the digital camera still has a little lag in it. And by the time you take a photo, the person has already moved to a different position, which isn’t a very good shot. I tried to take a photo of Tom, throwing some brush off the trail, and it didn’t work out.
Today, we have a bunch of people working in a closer proximity than yesterday. Perhaps we were more confident using the tools, and felt we wouldn’t accidentally hurt someone else. I had developed a system where I was working well with Martin. I would use the lopers in an area on the trees that are smaller than 2 inches, and then Martin would come along and bow saw the trees that were larger than 2 inches up to about 4 inches in diameter. Again, Walli was taking the far end position on the trail, cleaning up the stuff that others had missed.
We just kept working on the trail. I would set my daypack down then work on a section of the trail. Then, when I completed that section, I would walk back and get my daypack and move it down the trail. Usually, I stop and drink some water, and have a snack, when it was time to move the daypack down the trail. Sometime in the morning, I noticed that Jim was working on the trail next to me. I took his photo, and realized that Jim and Jeff must have completed the Cross Cut Saw work, so now Jim was working on the trail with lopers and a bow saw.
At around 11:30 am, we had cleared down to where I had left my Backpacking Backpack. It was on top of a big uphill section, which had now been cleared. Tom said to wait there, and he would go down and get the rest of the Trail Crew, and we would have lunch.
Soon, everyone was gathering for lunch. Martin sat down on the side of the trail and pulled up his pants legs to show a scraped up area on his leg. But he was taking it all in stride and was even joking about it. We all sat around at the top of the uphill section and rested while eating lunch. And everyone looked a little worn down so they really needed the rest. It was a really warm day for May in Northern Minnesota.
Tom had brought some tortilla bread and some fixings, so everyone made some sandwiches. Dessert was Sandies Cookies. I had tried to have a complete trail crew photograph, at that point, but not everyone was in the shot. I also took some photos of people just relaxing.
Illona was wearing a full net jacket, compete with a net hood that covered her face. She said that she had bad reactions to mosquito bites, so she liked wearing it. It looked like a good idea, and she said it only cost her around $35. I also remember that Walli asked Tom if we could go down and clear the most dense and thickety part of the trail. But Tom said that the alder plants would just grow back next year, and he wanted us to concentrate on clearing trees that take longer to grow back.
So, we finished lunch and went down the big uphill section and started Trail Clearing on the bottom. As we were Trail Clearing in the afternoon, there were two central things I was thinking about as the day wore on.
First, I was hoping some backpackers would come along. Wouldn’t it be great if some backpackers would come along and enjoy the section of newly cleared trail. I think it would be great for the backpackers, to see that a bunch of people are working on the trail, so the backpackers have a better trail to hike. And it definitely would be great for the Trail Crew to see someone using the trail. After all, it’s for all the backpackers and hikers why we are out here clearing the trail. The Trail Crew had met some people. But the people we met were canoeist and fishermen down near Stairway Fall. They were taking a side trip to look at the falls. They were not actually hiking the Border Route Trail. I was hoping to see some actual Border Route Trail hikers or backpackers.
The second thing I was thinking about was how labor-intensive using lopers is. It is fairly slow to get the loper jaws lined up around a small tree then cut. If I had a motorized brush cutter I could cut down ten trees by the time the lopers cut one tree. Plus, to be at the right angle to find the base of the tree and cut it with the loper, I had to kneel down.
But the Forest Service doesn’t allow motorized equipment in a Wilderness Area. I can see why they don’t allow chain saws, because they are very loud and you can hear them for over a mile. But, a 4 horsepower brush cutter doesn’t make that much noise and would be the best tool for this job. Besides, we didn’t need a chain saw anyway, the Cross Cut saw crew had already cleared all the downed trees and were now helping us make the trail wider by cutting small trees with lopers and bow saws.
As time and work progressed in the afternoon, the trail crew made it down to the spot where trail was overgrown with alder plants and other thickety plants instead of trees. Soon I saw that Jeff was using a scythe to cut these plants, Since there was a long section of these plants, I ask Tom if I could use a scythe, too. So Tom assembled a scythe, and I started using it.
I wanted to use the Scythe for two reasons. First, I wanted to see what it was like, and secondly, I wanted to do something different than using the lopers, which I had done all day. The Scythe looks like an old time hand thresher that farmers would use to harvest wheat, before the invention of the tractor. It had a curved stem, with two handles on it, one for each hand, and on the bottom of the stem there is a foot long blade.
You use the scythe in a circular motion, and twist your body around like doing an exercise. I didn’t take long until I was tired of it and Jim took over. We had decided that we would switch off with it. But the main thing I didn’t like about the Scythe was that it didn’t do a particularly good job. Sure it would cut the plants, but it would leave a stem of 2 to 4 inches sticking up from the ground. Tom was right, they would just grow back again next year. This is again where I wish we could have had a weed wacker. With a Weed Wacker, we could have cut the plants at ground level and perhaps stunted their growth a little more.
But the Forest Service doesn’t allow motorized equipment in a Wilderness Area. But the Boundary Waters Section of the North Country Trail Reroute will be perhaps the longest and most difficult section of National Trail to traverse a Wilderness. Both the Border Route Trail and Kekekabic Trail have over 35 miles of trail in the Boundary Waters Wilderness Area. And these wilderness miles are often very difficult to maintain because of the effort it takes just to get into these remote areas.
Contrast this with other Wilderness Areas in the Midwest that the North Country Trail passes through. In Northern Wisconsin, the Rainbow Lakes Wilderness has 6 miles of the trail and the Porcupine Lake Wilderness has about 7 miles of the trail. Meanwhile, in Upper Michigan, the McCormick Wilderness has 8 miles of North Country Trail. All of these Wilderness Trail sections are meager compared to the 70 miles within the Boundary Waters Wilderness. I think the Forest Service should cut us some slack, and let us use brush cutters and weed wackers in the Boundary Waters.
I continued to trade off the Scythe with Jim. But one time when I was working with the scythe I had Walli take some photos of me with it. Then, Tom came along and announced that we were a 6 minute walk to the water container. I decided that I would take the 6 minute walk to get some more water. I had been drinking water at a pretty good rate, and needed my bottle and platypus bags filled. So I walked the mostly brushy, thickety trail to the water container. When I got there, Jeff was sitting in the shade across the trail from the water container. He looked really beat. I had a short conversation with him while I was filling up my water containers, then I headed back.
We worked on the trail for a while more, then after 3 pm, Tom came along and said we were calling it quits for the day. He said the crew could go down and spent a little time exploring around Stairway Falls. Then I asked everyone that came along to wait at the water container while I changed. Meanwhile, Tom had gotten some orange ribbon and tied it to a tree, thereby marking where the trail crew had stopped. I hiked up the trail and found a spot to change. I had put my backpacking clothes in a ziplock bag in my daypack. I quickly changed into them, and placed my grungy trail crew clothes into the daypack.
Then I walked down to where the Trail Crew had gathered. We took one last photo of the Trail Crew, perhaps to have an “after” photo. Never the less, it would be the last time we would all be together, because I was backpacking east. After the Trail Crew photo, I summoned Tom forward and told him I would like to take a photo of me handing him back the hard hat that I had used. Walli took the photo, it was really special.
Then I shook the hand of every trail crew member and said something like “On behalf of backpackers, I thank you for your hard work on the trail.” To each one of them I did it. Tom, Jim, Jeff, Walli, Illona, Dick, Paul, and Martin all took there turns at the final handshake. The person I remember most in this sequence was Martin, because he said to me that he was glad someone was hiking the trail.
So, I gave my daypack back to Dick to hike down the hill, and I grabbed my water bottle and platypus bags, and I was off, heading east. The daypack would be hiked back down to the canoes where it would be placed inside the weekend pack. Then the Trail Crew would take the weekend pack back to my van at the boat launch on Sunday, and Tom would drive my car down to the Pincushion Mountain Trailhead near Grand Marais, where I would eventually hike to.
Meanwhile, while I was hiking east the trail all of a sudden got a lot lonelier. It reminded me of the movie “Before Sunrise.” A young couple had met on a train decided to get off the train together in Vienna, Austria. Through the course of the evening they met several different people at several different locations. They met some actors on a bridge, a poet along the riverwalk and had eaten food at a pub. During the evening all these places were bustling with people and activity. Eventually, the couple fall asleep on the grass at a park. Then the movie cuts to early the next morning. It shows the bridge, riverwalk area and pub all empty in the morning, where the night before it was bustling with activity. That sequence in the film really left me with an empty and lonely feeling.
I felt the same empty and lonely feeling as I walked back on the trail that we spent the last day and a half clearing. I walked over the notch log that is now cleared of brush. I walked up the uphill stretch and made it back to where we had shared lunch together.
My backpack was there. I packed up my water containers, hoisted my backpack, and continued east. I was still in the area that we had cleared. I saw the log that I photographed Jim and Jeff cutting earlier this morning. I continued on a saw the trail section that we worked on yesterday. Then I finally made it back to the “Z” section, as I call it, where I started working yesterday. I walked left next to a rock face to get on top of the rock face, then I walked to the right along the top of the rock face, then the trail turns to the left again. That’s the spot where I first learned the techniques of using the lopers.
Soon, I was out of the territory that our Trail Crew had done. I wondered how they all were doing down by Stairway Falls. I wish I could have gone down there and explored it with them, but I really didn’t want to walk up that hill again. I wondered whether Tom was looking for possible campsites in the area. There was a campsite just a short ways west of Stairway Portage on Rose Lake, I wondered if there is already a path that connects to that campsite. Perhaps there is a nice place for a campsite on the Cariboo Rock Trail. It’s definitely worth exploring. Finding places for campsites is one of the things that the Border Route Trail Association would be concentrating on over the next year or so.
Campsites are especially needed along the route of what will become the “Stairway Loop.” The Border Route Trail Association is working on building a trail on the south shore of Moss Lake. The Trail will connect the Caribou Rock Trail with the South Lake Trail. The loop would make a nice extended weekend hike for backpackers. They can hike from Hungry Jack Lodge north on the Caribou Rock Trail. When they reach Stairway Falls they would head west on the Border Route Trail. That section has some really spectacular views on the Rose Cliffs. Then, after hiking west about 4 miles, you hit the intersection of Border Route and the South Lake Trail, Hike South on the South Lake Trail several miles until getting to the yet to be built Moss Lake Trail. The 2.5 mile Moss Lake Trail will take you back to the Caribou Rock Trail, where it’s a short distance back to Hungry Jack Lodge.
I’m not sure the exact mileage of this loop, but the loop is intended to get more people out hiking some of the most scenic miles of the Border Route. You may ask yourself where did the idea come from for this loop. Well, I hate to take exact credit for any of it, but last year I pointed out that the Kekekabic Trail had several loops attached to it such as the Snowbank loop, Dissapointment Loop and Old Pines Loop, and the Border Route had none. Ed Solstad picked up on the idea, and knew exactly where the best place for a loop would be. Ed pitched the idea to the Forest Service and they agreed that it was a good idea and approved the concept. This spring the BRTA has had some Trail layout hikes to explore possible routes for the trail. And they have been flagging the best route for the Forest Service to approve. Hence, the creation of the Moss Lake Trail. Well, it’s not created quite yet, but hopefully will be within the next year.
Back on the Border Route, I’m hiking east on the bluff that’s east of Stairway Falls. The trail is in great condition because it has been cleared within the last few weeks by a different trail crew. I knew that my next few miles of hiking would be perhaps the easiest miles of the trip. It was all flat or downhill going to the Rose Lake West campsite, then I would travel along the lake to the Rose Lake East Campsite. After hiking along the lake again, I would reach the Long Portage, which is a former railroad bed. I would have easy hiking on Long Portage for another mile or so. I knew this part of the trail because I hiked it last year before I left the Border Route on the Daniels Lake Access Trail, which connects to the Long Portage.
On top of the bluff I was traveling in mostly sunny areas without many tall trees. Perhaps this was one of the areas that were hit by the 1999 Big Blowdown, which toppled many trees in the Boundary Waters. One of the problems with the Boundary Waters is that it is very rocky and there isn’t much topsoil. Trees have a hard time putting a taproot into the ground. Instead, they have what’s called a pan root that spreads out on top of the rocks. Not having a taproot makes these trees more susceptible to tipping over in the wind. I did see a few glimpses of Rose Lake way down below while I was on top of the bluff.
After being on the sunny hill top, the trail starts down the hill in a big loopy affair. The trail heads back and forth several times in a switchback system. I was getting closer and closer to the lake, but I couldn’t see it very well because I was in a deep, dark woods on the side of the hill, as opposed to the sunny area on top of the hill. Soon I was down near the lake and I made it to the Rose Lake West Campsite. It’s a nice little campsite in the woods up from the lake about 50 yards. The site was empty. I went down to the canoe landing and took a look, then I headed east along the lake shore.
The Trail is pretty easy along the shore. I saw a nice rocky spot along the Shoreline, so I walked out there and took some photos. I didn’t see any boats on the lake. I continued east and soon made it to the Rose Lake East campsite. And this campsite was occupied. There were two tents, some kitchen gear, and a bunch of clothes that had been set out to dry on the logs around the campsite. But nobody was home. I went down to the shore to see if I could if I could spot any boats in the vicinity. I did see one really long canoe, with 4 people in it, but it was way across the lake, so I wouldn’t be able to talk with them. But I did take some photos while I was down by the shore. I got a good shot of the big cliff across the lake in Canada.
I went back to the fire ring and got one of my “I saw Tman” cards out. I wrote something like “I stopped by here while I was hiking the Border Route Trail, Sorry I missed you. Check out my website.” I put the card down on the fire grate and put a small rock on top of it. I wrote on another card and put it in a tent so it wouldn’t blow away. I would hate for a quick rainstorm to come through, because nothing was buttoned up in this campsite. All the tent windows were open, and everything would be soaked. But it was a beautiful day with no sign of rain anywhere. I continued on down the lakeshore to the east.
It was an easy hike in the woods along the shore to get to Long Portage. I stopped at the Canoe Landing and took some photos. I noticed there was a water bottle that was left at the landing. When I examined it closer, it said “oil” on it. I was thinking about taking it. But maybe the rightful owner would be back to claim it. Besides, I was already carrying more weight than I wanted.
Then I headed down Long Portage. It was just as I remember it, flat and easy walking. There were several areas that had boardwalks to make it even easier. To the left of the trail was a little river, and beyond that, Canada. Over the next mile or so, the river changes. First it is a little rapidy river, then there are some beaver dams which make beaver ponds where the river travels slower. Eventually, the river becomes one big marshy area.
Along the way on Long Portage, I was looking for possible campsites for the Border Route. But because this is a former railroad bed, it made it difficult to find a possiblecampsite location. On the left side of the trail was a river, and on the right side there was a little drench where they had dug dirt from to make the railroad grade. But perhaps a campsite along Long Portage is not a necessity. There were the two campsites that I walked through west of Long Portage, and there is a nice campsite south of Long Portage on the Daniels Lake Access Trail.
Finally, I made it to the intersection of the Border Route and the Daniels Lake Access Trail. This was the spot where I left the Border Route last year. Now I would be hiking east on a section of the Border Route I never hiked before. I set down my gear at the sign at the intersection, and took a photo of me pointing east, towards the section of the trail I soon would be hiking. Then I picked up my gear and started hiking into the new territory.
I had a new piece a gear that I was using for the first time on this trip. I was wearing a fisherman’s vest. This vest had many pockets to put things in, which I like. I put my spot messenger in one pocket, and my phone and voice recorder in another. There were more pockets for snacks, Aqua pills, and my “I Saw Tman” cards. On the inside of the vest, there was a big pocket on each side of the vest, presumably to put fish in. They were big enough for me to put my platypus bags of water in, so I did. This vest made everything really handy to get.
I hiked east towards Rove Lake. This is a portage too, but it wasn’t a former railroad grade, so it isn’t as easy as Long Portage. It isn’t a overly difficult portage, but it has a few little up and down sections. And the Trail was clear, after all, it was a portage, and the Forest Service makes sure the portages are good. On the McKensie Map, I saw another trail connecting with the portage, going into Canada. I looked for the trail, but saw none. Besides, that trail looked like it would be going through the big marshy area that had some water areas. I don’t think a trail would be able to make it through it.
When, I was walking on the Long Portage, the big marshy area was to my east. On the portage that I was walking on now, the big marshy area was to my north. Technically, I was walking on the Portage between Daniels Lake and Rove Lake. Soon, the trail turned to the north, and the big marshy area was to the west. This meant that I was getting closer to Rove Lake, and sure enough when I got up on a little hill I could see the Lake at the end of the trail.
Now I could see that the sun was getting low in the sky and the shadows were getting long. In fact, the sun was getting so low that it made it difficult to take a photo of the big marshy area that is now to the west. The sun was getting lower, but all I had to do from here is walk down the shore of Rove Lake, hike the portage up the hill through the notch and down the other side to the campsite on Clearwater Lake.
I made it down to the Rove Lake Landing and took a couple photos. There was nobody on the lake, but why should there be, there are no campsites on Rove Lake shown on either map. I started hiking along Rove Lake. At first I thought it was going to be a short distance to the portage. It’s a little difficult to gauge using the Border Route Guidebook because Map 3 ends a Rove Lake and Map 4 begins at Rove Lake. But I looked at my McKensie Map, and it showed that the trail along Rove Lake was at least a mile.
I kept going, looking for the portage. Since there was a big hill to my north, everything seemed to be a little darker than when I was hiking next to the big marshy area. I came up to a path that led to the water. I thought this was the portage, but it was a false alarm. I believe it was just a path so you could get water and look at the lake. I didn’t see any other reason for it being there. I continued on the Border Route along Rove Lake. The trail was not very difficult along the lake, with only a couple downed trees.
I finally hit the portage and went down to check out the landing. But the last few yards before hitting the shore is straight downhill, so I took my backpack off and went down. I was starting to feel the effects of all the Trail work I did over the last couple days and I was getting tired. When I made it to the shore, I took a photo of a big hill with cliffs that is across the lake in Canada. Then I returned to my backpack and got ready for the most rigorous part of today’s hike. I would be hiking uphill through what I call the notch. It was at least a half of a mile straight up.
But right before the trail went up the hill, there was a nice flat grassy spot that would make a good campsite. Perhaps people have used it in the past, that’s why it looks so cleared out. But I didn’t see any evidence of a campfire. so maybe the people were using low impact techniques.
I headed up the hill and it was hell on wheels. It was steep, with rocky and muddy sections. I took it slow. All I needed to do was get to the top and go down the other side and I would be at the Clearwater Lake Campsite. But it was getting darker and darker. I kept going up and up, and was getting more wore down and more wore down. Finally, I made it to the top where there is a Border Route Trail/Clearwater Campsite sign. Now all I had to do is walk down the hill, and it was shorter than the hill I just walked up.
I decided that I would hang the bear bags up at the top of the hill, then in the morning I wouldn’t have to haul them up the hill. I would just take what food I needed down the hill. So, took the two bear bags out of my backpack and worked on hanging them between two trees. This took around ten to fifteen minutes and it definitely was dark by now. But I could see the lake down below, so I thought I could make it to the campsite.
I was thinking about just putting up my tent at the Border Route/Clearwater Lake Trail Junction. There was enough space to do so, and it was flat. But, in the Boundary Waters the regulations say you need to camp at a designated campsite. So I was bound and determined to continue on even though it was dark.
I headed down the hill with my headlamp on. I could see pretty good using the moonlight and my headlamp. It kept going down and down, but it wasn’t as steep as the hill that I had just came up. Instead it twisted around in a wide switchback affair. I could see I was getting closer to the lake, and I shouted out “Ahoy Campers, I’m a Backpacker hiking towards your campsite.” I thought this would give campers a warning so they didn’t think a bear was trampling near their campsite. But I got no response to my shout.
The trail kept going and going, and then I hit a dark spot on the trail, where there was some trees overhanging the trail. All of a sudden, I didn’t have any moonlight, and my flashlight wasn’t good enough to see the trail. I was beat and bewildered. I turned back a walked to a flat part of the trail. This is where I would pitch my tent. I took my backpack off and found my tent inside it. I unrolled the tent. I took the rope off the back end of the tent and tied it to the peak of the tent. I tied the peak of the tent to a tree that was next to the trail. Then I stretched out the tent. I put a bread loaf sized rock on the back end of the tent after I stretched it out. Then I went inside the tent and started staking down the tent using the grommets from the inside. This is something I have never done before. The tent as I set it up was only about 2 feet wide, which is the width of the trail, when the tent is normally about six feet wide when set up correctly.
I grabbed the bag with the food in it and walked down the trail back down to the dark spot and I just set the bag down. I figured this would be far enough from the tent so animals after the food would not bother me. I came back to the tent, unfolded my sleeping pad and put the sleeping bag on top of it. I closed up the tent door and laid on top of my sleeping bag. I didn’t bother to change my clothes, I just tried to adjust my body so it wasn’t laying on top of a rock that was jutting up.
I decided to do my trip report while I was laying on top of my sleeping bag. So I turned on my voice recorder and the first words I said was “Oh Man, this was a bit more than I bargained for.” I continued on with my trip report and was getting some of the names of the lakes wrong. I was giving a rather ramblin and repeating report, and in one spot on the recording I paused like I was going to sleep. The voice recorder would have kept recording all night if I fell to sleep with it on. But I manage to recover and repeat some stuff I said earlier in the report. The last thing that I said on the voice recorder was “Hopefully, everything will be better in the morning.” Then shut off the recorder and I fell asleep immediately.