Day 9
Up
early again for a travel day. Hard to believe I have been up at 3:45 every
morning. I love the dawns, but usually don't get to see them all. Usually
the wind is down and smallie fishing is up. Of course sometimes I have gone
back to sleep for several more hours. The friendly flies have been a nuisance
during the afternoons, but the skeeds have been on an unusual schedule. They
have not been coming out in force until after dark. Almost nothing around
dawn and dusk. About the time I am heading to bed, they have been waking up.
And sometimes they have kept me awake with paranoia that some of that buzzing
MUST be coming from inside the tent. Been going to sleep around 11, so I've
missed the northern lights, but will hope for a peek at them when the moon
is less of a factor.
Well,
today I am off to Kawnipi. If it is crowded, I'll keep moving. Fished a bit
below the falls on the way out. Did "Have a Smoke" portage and took
a few pics at the upper end, and then off through Shelley. Lots of burn damage.
A couple of dink portages and the changeover to Kawnipi somewhere in there.
Found a couple of current areas in the upper section that held nice smallies.
South wind increasing.
I hugged the west shoreline as I made my way south. Ran into
a dead end on one section through the narrows. It wasn't that far of a backtrack
but it really took the spirit out of me. This day was a struggle.
The wind was really only about 15 mph. A few small caps. I guess it was just
a long haul fighting it, and it drained me. I was set up for laker trolling,
but that was wasted effort -- 25' depth and boring. Nothing on that whole
run even tempted me to drop in. Stopped for a lunch break, and felt better
after that. Was happy to reach the south end of Rose Island and turn east
so I could coast for awhile. There was some deeper water, so I did a little
wind trolling, and enjoyed a cup of coffee. By the time I got to my turn south
it was 120' deep. The wind was doable, and I made the run across to the eastern
shoreline. A man solo fishing on the west shoreline of the main lake is only
the second party I have seen today. He is part of a group camped on an island
about 200 yards away from where
I plan to spend a few days. I said a quick hello to them as I was checking
for additional sites. I only was aware of two sites in this area, and didn't
find any more with a quick search, and it was getting late, so I opted for
taking the site close to them. If it is too loud tonight, I can always move
on. Got camp set up quickly, and had time for a little exploring before dark.
As I reached the high point in the area I found that a recent group had built
a throne there to enjoy the view... I wish they would have dethroned it before
they left...
