Well then....so after my brief absence from the interweb highway I am back online to update the latest adventures, which have been very exciting over the last week.
I ended my last trip visiting the pictographs on Hagman Lake, riding the wind on glare ice 8 miles down Moose Lake up into Canada. This was such a fun day. We loaded up 35 dogs, 7 sleds, 19 people into our trucks, trailers, and shuttles, and drove to Moose lake about a 45 minute drive from Wintergreen.
As you can imagine, the amount of dogs and participants was quite chaotic at the launch sight. It's what I would call a shit show. But credit to the other 2 guides and myself, it was a fairly organized shit show. We launched in intervals of 2-3 sleds per guide to avoid a the maximum number of 9 people per group in the Boundary Waters, spaced about 1/2-1 mile apart. As the first team launched our princess dog Lady Convington aka Covy took off chasing them as nobody noticed she was loose. So we were down a dog right away.
Next the second team launched without any problems and away they went. This left me with my group to launch last. As I hit the lake on my ski's I felt I was going to fly across the lake this morning. The glide was long, wind blowing to my back, and nothing but dark smooth ice ahead for 8 miles. I signaled for the first team in my group to launch and they did with no troubles, the second team launched next and their dogs decided to take a short cut over a significant rock pile next to shore. Two woman were riding this sled and as the dogs bolted over the rock the pile, one of these woman shot into the air but never letting her grip loose on the handle bar. The dogs kept running and brakes of the sled do little on the ice, so this poor woman who wouldn't let go was dragging behind the sled on her back. After a hundred feet or so we stopped the team and she stood up laughing hysterically. She hopped back on and away we went.
We flew for an hour gliding across the ice, with me having to wait up for the dog teams. We traveled north from Moose Lake, into New Found Lake, and into Sucker lake up to Prairie Portage which borders the Canadian Wilderness Area, Quetico. We had a great lunch, one of the guides fell waist deep through the ice near shore, and people relaxed for while.
We trekked back the same route enjoying the sunshine, endless landscapes, and bellies full of chocolate, coffee, and shore lunch.
The next day was a short day on White Iron and we cruised around showing the group Blueberry Cliff lookout point. As we headed back to the lodge we came across a section of ice that was pretty thin from all the warm weather. The first few teams raced by with no difficulties, but then came a team that felt the ice break a bit and this guy jumped off the sled thinking it would be good so the sled didn't break through, as he took two steps, he crashed through the ice and caught himself with his arms before submerging. Carefully, I came around behind him and reached my ski pole out to him. He grabbed hold tightly and another guide pulled my other ski pole and we pulled this guy to safety. A very intense moment, but handled very calmly, and most people we laughing at the guy.
I have had a few days since that trip and managed to find adventure on my days off. I headed to Ashland, WI to visit an old professor and friends. When I arrived I was asked to go paddle the Bad River which was running high from all the snow melt.
Friday morning we loaded up 4 boats, 4 dudes, in 2 cars, in hopes of a epic day of paddling. I am usually quite anxious when I paddle whitewater and this day was no different. I knew the river would be high, the waves would be meatier, the holes would pull harder, and the paddling would be technical. Basically it would be ready to kick my ass.
So I made a deal with myself that I would not walk any rapids this day, and wanted to avenge my last time on the river where I swam about 4 times, and walked a series of rapids.
We paddled hard all day, crashing through waves, catching eddies, avoiding big holes or paddling out of them when we did get stuck. We even shattered through a Class IV which I must say was the biggest piece of river I've ever done. An 8 foot drop into a pool of churning water which immediately dropped into a 10-15 foot slide of super fast raging water ending with a smooth exit. All of us dropped it, and we all came out successful.
We continued paddling the day and had some fun on the river, all laughing and ready for a hard earned beer. After realizing my social life has been minimal at best lately I decided to head out with friends for the night.
After the long day of paddling we dropped off the gear and found spots at the Deep Water Grille in Ashland. After a couple of pitchers of APA we headed back to my buddy John's place and ate some good dinner. Feeling good from the good day of paddling, I looked up some other friends and decided I would make the rounds. I followed another buddy to a house called Gia's Cradle at Northland. When we arrived we proceeded to the "hobbit hole" located in the attic upstairs. Walking into the "hobbit hole" there are old 70's penthouse posters hanging, artifacts or memento's from previous college kids celebrating the hobbit hole. A group of 10-15 joined in the room. To my surprise most seemed to be young 20 something earthy girls. Not to be an insult, but I believe many of them to be lesbian or feminists. As the haze in the hobbit hole grew smokier, the stories and ideas passed around the room were entertaining as I sat in the background observing. I watched two girls cuddled next each other whispering secrets away, another dude in the circle drawing pictures of party. The kid who sounds gay, but who your not sure really is sat next to me sassing all the feminists. My other buddy stares across the circle at me rolling his eyes at the estrogen filled, and smokey air. And some homely shy looking emo kid sat crushing on the lesbian next to him as he rolled spliffs and passed them around. Radically liberal ideas filled the room and it was fun to listen to the passion and some senselessness. I found it amusing that many of them self proclaimed vegans, were later chowing down a pepperoni pizza from Domino's. Guess the hobbit hole doesn't count.
Later on I hooked a ride over to hang with John, Mallory, and Thomas, two of the paddling partners earlier. We joked and exaggerated stories of our epic day on the river swearing it to be the first of many for the year.
FinallyI am back in Ely. I attended a wedding for two of the guides and danced to Irish Folk music. It was fun to see a small community of people group together for a wedding in the woods, and celebrated later with swing dancing and waltzes. I felt we were a group of hobbits clanking glasses and dancing into the wee hours of the night. The last few days have been full and exciting.
Back on trail Wednesday for a 4 day camping trip, but thinking it might involve backpacking rather dogsleds. We'll see!
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