Woodland Caribou 2022 Solo Trip
Part 3
Day 11
The long hard day
I was up early and on my way just as the
early June sun was making its appearance. The water was like glass
however it was littered with tree blooms. A ten minute paddle to the
first portage. This one is to South Simeon Lake and was short and
easy. A couple more short hop-over portages and I am close to Simeon
Creek. However, I miss a hidden turn and paddle an extra mile and had
to pull out the GPS to get me back on track. Simeon Creek was one of
my favorite spots on my 2015 trip. The creek is straight and flows
through a narrow valley. In 2015 the valley was lined with
jackpines. Now it was burned hard. It can be seasonally shallow but with the
high water levels it is easy going. The portage into Dunstan Lake
was burned hard too,however you could see the far end of the
portage from the starting point. This would be the last of the easy
portages for the day. Again, Dunstan Lake was another beautiful lake
that had burned hard since my last trip. I pull up on the flat rock
island site that I had spent a night on my last trip. I have some
lunch and take a short rest break. Next up is the portage out of
Dunstan Lake to Ugly Lake. This portage is known as the Enchanted
Portage. One of the most scenic portages in the park. However, after two
fires in the last 10 years it was not so enchanted. I had a little
bit of a hard time finding the portage as I initially mistook a moose trail
for the portage. After a close search of the shoreline I finally saw
a tree blaze marking the portage. It would have been hard to find if
that tree was taken by the fire. In fact the entire half mile portage was hard to
follow. Not much of a path, an occasional orange tape marker on the
ground was helpful but a lot of the trail was also obscured by
downed trees. It was a cloudless day and by far the warmest day of
the trip. No wind and near 80 degrees were also contributing to the
difficulty of this 850 meter portage. The middle part was actually
pretty nice other than not much of a trail to follow. I found a nice
moose shed and set it up next to a tree to help mark the way.
However both ends had lots of downed trees. The smaller ones I sawed
my way through, the bigger ones I had to find my way around and
would have a hard time picking up the trail on the other side. The
far end was really bad and had to take some big detours around the
mess. My GPS showed that I took a slightly different route through
each time. I made 4 trips on this portage including a trip to just
find and clear away through the tangled parts. Between stepping
over, around and through the mess, dealing with the hot sun and
trying to stay hydrated, my leg muscle that had been bothering me a
bit in the months before the trip was starting to flare up. This
portage was taking 3 times longer than what it should have. However,
I eventually got everything across and was on my way across Ugly
Lake.
A large beaver dam at the end had to be navigated over and I ended
up with some water over my waders. This empties into the junction of a small creek.
In 2015 I went to the left, this time I take a right and head for
Wanda Lake. It’s a short paddle to the last portage for the
day. The portage has a rough start as you have to work your way
through ankle busting boulders and swamp for the first 50 meters and
then It doesn’t get much better. Over and under a few down trees and
no real discernable end to the portage. There are willows over the
very narrow creek passage. Once I found a place to put in I wasn’t sure
I wouldn’t run into more downed trees or obstructions. What looked
to be bad was really not bad at all. I was able to work my way
through the willows and some tight turns. Finally, I break out int
the open and Wanda Lake was in sight. I check out the closest
campsite on the map and while not great it was going to have to do.
It had been 13 hours since I left in the morning. I was hungry,
exhausted, dehydrated and my leg was hurting. I got camp set up,
had some supper and hydration. Then kicked back and enjoyed a nice summer evening. I wasn’t
sure of my plans going forward but was certain that tomorrow would
be a rest day and I would see what I felt like in the morning. I was
starting to think I might have to resort to plan B. Some bourbon and
Ibuprofen were good medicine as I watched the sun set.
Another beautiful morning
The tree blaze marking the portage
I found a moose shed and used it to mark the portage
The end of the portage, It didn't look good but was actually pretty easy to navigate
Wanda Lake, tent pitched, end of a long day
Day 12
Decision time
I had a good night sleep and it was a beautiful morning. I cooked up a big pan of hashbrowns for breakfast and made a plan for the day. My leg was still pretty sore but otherwise felt good. I decided to try find a better campsite, check out the fishing, sort through my gear and then decide on whether to keep going or lay over here for a week and fish before flying out. I was in no big hurry today so I took my time packing up. There is a light NW breeze and mostly sunny skies. First stop was to check out campsites marked on the map to try find something better. The map showed a site on a big island in the middle of the lake. I decided to check that one out first. I couldn’t find any semblance of a campsite there however I did find a really old beer can, confirming at one time there must have been something t here. This is not a well-traveled route so a campsite could easily get overgrown. Next check was on the east end of the lake. I found that one campsite but it was burned out and no good tent pad. The planning map I had showed that at one time their was a cabin on this lake. I decided to go see if there might be something there. On my way there I go by a small island, no site is marked on the map but it may have some potential if nothing else works. I am fishing along the way without much luck but catch a couple walleyes on a shallow rocky area near this island. I finally get to the spot where there might be a cabin and there is no cabin to be found. This part of the lake has burned and it is an area of piled up and fallen trees. However there is a nice sandy beach that would make for a great place to be picked up by a float plane. I decided to paddle back, check the small island out. The island was small, about an acre in size and not much for trees to break any wind. On east side was a small channel that separated it from the mainland. It had a decent spot for a tent and enough trees to put up a tarp. I decide to set up camp here for now and have a good supper and spend the evening relaxing. After a dehydrated meal, I pour my daily ration of bourbon, get comfortable in my camp chair and contemplate the rest of the trip. If I were continue I would have to travel almost every day and hope I do not run into any difficult portages or bad weather. I had my doubts whether my sore leg would take any more punishing portages. The long range forecast is for another weather system to pass later in the week. I hate to give up on seeing some of the places I really wanted to see. However it was not a hard decision to stay here and fly out after a week or so. The fishing is good, it is a nice lake that has only partially burned and some areas I can explore.
It was a beautiful morning, a gentle
breeze and sun. I took my time getting up. Oatmeal with some dehydrated
blueberries for breakfast. Then get my canoe and tackle organized to
go find some walleyes. I started out where I had caught the ones the
day before. I was mainly using a jig and a white twister tail and a
couple different Rapalas. The jig/twister tails were the trick.
There was a large area with rock rubble and a few
bigger boulders in 3-8’ of water. It was loaded with feeding walleyes. Almost every
cast produced a walleye, nothing big but lots of action. I found a
few more similar spots with good action. I brought my lunch with so
found a nice piece of shore to take a break and have some lunch. A
burrito supreme was on the menu. Probably the best dehydrated meal I
had on the trip. Then back out for more fishing in different spots.
I would troll the shoreline until I would catch one, then fish the
area for anymore schooled up fish. It was starting to cloud over and
looked like some afternoon showers coming so headed back to camp. It
was mid afternoon and shortly after I got back it started to rain. I
crawled into the tent and took a good nap. When I woke the rain was
done and I fried up some walleyes from the day. Another nice evening
on the island. Went to sleep thinking about what I might do in the
morning.
I was up early and despite rain in the
forecast it was another nice morning. I had a quick breakfast and
was eager to get out for some more fishing while the weather was
good. It is a bit warmer today with a light and variable breeze. I
start out at my rocky shoal spots and the walleyes were hungry. I
have no idea how may I caught in the morning, maybe 30-40 off 3
different shallow rocky shoals within a half mile of camp. After
Lunch I went to explore the west and northern parts of the lake. I
caught a few fish here and there but nothing consistent. There was a
bull moose that swam from the big island to the western shore
off in the distance. Then, close to where I camped on the first
night on Wanda I saw another small bull moose along the shore. He
let me paddle as close as I dared go and seemed pretty uninterested
in me. He eventually got up and wandered down the shoreline where a
cow walked out to join him. It is later in the day and I put down
the camera and just live in the moment. I’m not sure where the day
went. Back at camp, a light rain shower passed over, mostly
evaporating before it hit the ground. Then a nice warm evening to
watch the sun go down.
As close as dared get
Yep, that was close enough
He introduced me to his freind
My little island home
All you can eat Shore Lunch A good thunderstorm came through about
3-4AM, I slept through most of it. The rain was on and off all day,
mostly light showers. I went out to fished some between
showers but it was slow fishing. I did find one new spot about 100
yards from camp, a small flat rock protruding out of the water. It
was good for about a dozen walleyes in a short time. If you could
find the schools that were feeding it was a fish every cast until
the school was fished out. Come back later in the day and do it
again. Also caught a 33” northern that put up a really good fight. I
had my last burrito under the tarp as it was raining pretty good in
the early evening, then into the tent early as the rain persisted.
It was a beautiful cloudless morning and
I was up early. A quick breakfast with a plan to head to Terry Lake
today. Just as I was leaving, I saw a cow and two calves coming from
a nearby island to the mainland about 100 yards away. The early
morning sun was lighting them up nicely and I got some good
pictures. A great way to start the morning. Wanda Lake is connected
to Terry Lake by the same creek that got me to Wanda and had I
stayed with my original plan would have been my route out of Wanda.
Despite being burned, it is a pretty and enjoyable paddle. I try
fishing on Terry which is also supposed to be a good walleye lake.
It is mostly shallow, 6-8’ in the northern part I explored. I only
managed 1 walleye in a couple hours of fishing. With more time I am
sure it would have been better. I Paddled a little further down the
creek to check out the next portage. It had burned pretty
hard several years earlier and lots of foot tall jackpines covered
the forest floor. You couldn’t see much of the portage path but a
few tree blazes and some sawn logs showed the way. Except for one
large fallen tree blocking the portage, this was an easy portage.
The wind was picking up so I decided to head back and have some
lunch. It rained on and off the rest of the
evening but the winds did subside. I was into the tent early, spent
a fair amount of time contemplating what I would have done had the
canoe made it around the point before I drifted off to sleep
Momma moose showing off her calves to
start the morning
An uneventfully day. I explored the one
last part of Wanda and found a boat that was last licensed in 2004.
It was pulled up on shore and was in pretty good shape. Also, there
was a pretty good place to camp. My theory is that the map showed
that at one time there was a cabin, when that burned down they
continued to fly in and fish and camped at this spot. Once that
group “aged out” it became abandoned in place. I would love to know
more of the history.
Day 13
Wanda Lake
Fishing Day
Day 14
More exploring
Day 15
Rainy Day
Day 16
Lost Canoe
Day 17
Lazy Last Day
Abandoned
boat
Last of the bourbon. A toast to future trips
Day 18
Bluewater taxi ride
I had arranged with Tanya via my
InReach for a 7:30 pickup. I was up at sunrise (5 AM) as I did
not want to be in a hurry nor late for the pickup. It was a picture
perfect morning. I had stuff mostly packed but it was a nice morning
and I took my time. I arrived at the beach about 7:20 and right on
time I see the Otter circling the lake. The beach made for a real
nice pickup spot. They got my gear loaded and canoe tied on and we
were off. It is always fun flying in these backcountry workhorses.
This otter was manufactured before I was born and still flying
strong 69 years later. It’s a half hour ride back to Bisset and I
take in the scenery below, hoping to paddle it again one day.
When we arrived at the
Bisset base there was a Boy Scout troop from Colorado waiting to fly
out to the Scouts Wilderness base in Atikaki PP. My first
canoe trip was with the Scouts out of Charles Sommers Wilderness
Canoe Base in the BWCA. I enjoyed talking to them and seeing their
excitement as they were about to head out on a great adventure.
When I settled up with
Tanya I asked for a recommendation for a place to get a good burger
as there is nothing in Bisset. She recommended a place just past the
Powerview dam in Pine Falls. A big burger, onion rings and a beer
are always a treat after a few weeks of dehydrated food. The trip
back across the border was uneventful and it was good to be back at
the cabin.
Loading up
Real food and cold beer
Final Thoughts
I had some real mixed feelings about this trip. I had two conflicting goals on the trip, one was to explore more of WCPP and see as much as I can in 3 weeks. The other was to slow down, fish more take my time and enjoy. I was somehow hoping I could do both. The cold rainy start and my being in no hurry put me a day or two behind schedule. About half way I realized to complete plan I would have to really push hard and hope for no unforeseen issues. At 65 YO, plan B was the only choice and I probably knew that was more of the reality when I was planning. My style is more to move every day and see new country. But slowing down and enjoying some world class fishing was also enjoyable. Maybe the next trip I will fly into Wanda and then complete the trip.
I had my GoPro and got some video but I was pretty disappointed in my video skills. Got some screenshots of fish but not too much else.
I hope you enjoy the virtual trip. Feedback is always welcome. I can be contacted via email at bill@hobbydog.net