What's my rush?  I'll tell you my rush.

There are 365 days in a year.  I get to spend 8 of them with Pascannel in a canoe in Quetico.  That's roughly 190 hours out of 8,760.  Subtract 20 hours for travelling, 56 for sleeping, +/- 10 for screwing around in camp with chores etc.. and that leaves 94 hours for fishing or 1.07% of the year to fish Quetico.  Every minute not spent in a canoe fishing in Quetico (while in Quetico) is a minute wasted IMO.

So, if I can get my coffee in 5 minutes vs. 15 thats an extra hour and a half on the water.

There is a greater life lesson in here though; which I would be happy to share with the rest of you.  Canoe camping, like life, is about being efficient, streamlined and intentional.  Those people that simply "let the day happen" end up being the weakest of the herd.  These are the folks blowing out knees on portages, sleeping till 3pm and baking pizza in dutch ovens on top of a BWCA fire grate.  You call that living?!?!?!  They are the same people swapping pink-stew recipes and wondering how and where to hang or hide a food pack or plugging in coordinates into their GPS or trying to balance a tripod.  That's not life my friend.  That's a pity and pray for their souls.  You know how I know this?  Because come May, my PM box is filled to the gills with fishing related questions from every member on the block.  You know why?  I'll tell you why.  Because it finally dawned on them that they just spent the last year trading stew recipes.

That is how I can look myself in the eye and know that I spent my limited time here on earth wisely; no excessive time brewing coffee, hanging my food pack, cooking pizza or snapping nature photos.  No my friend, I spent my day  intentionally and efficiently.

Who are you going to be Pax?  Recipe guy or fishing guy?  The choice is yours.