Ahhh, fond memories. That's what happens when you're young, dumb and invincible. We were fishing all day too. When it began to get dark, we began looking for a site as we fished until it started to rain and got black to the point we were paddling by flashlight.

Our hastily set up makeshift accommodations served us very well though. It looks miserable but I'll still say it was one of the most comfortable night's sleep I've ever had anywhere. Breakfast was a pain though. We never brought a stove back then. We were manly men but the only suitable place for a fire was on a small shoreline rock.

All we did there was sleep and eat so there was not much evidence of our passing. Even 'firerock' was left as we found it, which surprised the heck out of me.

We basically paddled the entire shoreline and were within a hundred yards of a rapids and knew the portage was on the other side so we were simply out of options. What we didn't know was there was a campsite on our side of the rapids. DOH!

I was just on that lake a few weeks ago. I've gone out of my way to paddle by in the past just for chuckles (it's pretty thick there) but I had forgotten all about it. Thanks for the blast from the past PJ.

I should add that the $9.99, (circa 1980) 6 x 9 K-Mart tarp in out of fashion international orange made our lives much more comfortable on a number of occasions for a lot of years. I don't know why we so considered it cheating back then. The one burner stove I bought a couple years later generated a lot of distain as well until a long day that ended in nasty wind and rain made it's space and weight appreciated.