Don't Feed The Bears #BWCA 4

 

 

After we arrived at our camp on Englishman Island on Saganaga Lake, there were lots of chores to be done before it got dark. Sunset was supposed to be about 7:44 pm and I didn't want to miss it. Since it was the first day at camp, we had fresh water we had carried in, 2 gallons that would last us another day before we had to start boiling our water. But we did need to gather lots of firewood to get a fire going, and we wanted to get some fishing in and hopefully catch something to eat for dinner with our steaks we also carried in frozen.

We gathered what firewood we could find around camp and also decided to get in the canoe to get some driftwood off shore.

We also had to find a nice setup to hang our food bag up in a tree to keep it away from the rodents and bears. Since we were on an island, I didn't really worry about any bears, but there were pesky chipmunks that were very brave and came right up into our fire area begging. We were snacking on some trail mix and had left it unattended for a few minutes, and when we came back there was a hole ripped in the bag and the peanuts and raisins spilling out. Those little rodents had attacked our snack.

Anyway, the best branch we found at least 12 feet above ground, and at least 6 feet away from another tree was a failure. We tied some lightweight cord to a jagged rock and threw the rock over the branch to get the cord up and over. Then we tied the real rope to the cord and pulled it over the branch. But when we tied it to the food bag, which was heavy, it broke and dumped everything before it was even halfway up. So, I took this opportunity to repack the food bag into a liner in the bag in case it rained, and to keep aromas in so animals wouldn't want it. Anyway, we got a little more firewood out of the broken branches.

We scouted around and found another tree branch that would work, but it was deeper in the woods and higher off ground, which meant throwing the rock in the air higher. This sounds easy, but it actually is kind of dangerous and it took a few tries before we figured out it is easier to just swing the rope with the rock underhand and through it like a horse shoe. We finally got it before sunset, and you can see if the picture below Scott has tied off the rope on a nearby tree.

 

Remember to turn up your volume to hear my commentary on the video below. 

Finally, we were rewarded with a beautiful sunset after our long day of hard work. I wasn't too excited by the prospect of sleeping on the ground, but when you're tired any flat surface will do. As soon as the sun set it was pitch black and the stars in the sky were amazing.

See the beginning of the adventure by clicking links below.
BWCA1
BWCA2
BWCA3