My brother was experiencing "chest pains" on Day One.  He also was having some major issues with gear.  Those factors gave me serious pause re: the orginal plan.  So, we (DentonDoc, my brother & I) elected to do a more leisurely route very early on.  Also, 4 pretty hefty storms figured in.   Magic, PineKnot & his son were only a couple lakes over much of the time but apparently DIDN'T get nailed like we did.  So, the weather had an impact on route selection & progress.  Three of those storms featured 30+mph winds and all four of those frog-stranglers dumped 2+ inches of rain (or more) on us in under an hour exacerbating issues my brother was having with his Hennessey Hammock (inadequate tarp & rip in fabric he was laying on).  Fortunately, MagicPaddler was able to loan a spare tarp that was far more functional than the one my brother's new hammock came with.

Fishing was pretty good, especially for bass and lake trout.  I had my grand slam on Day Two on Darky, the day I started to fish.  The other guys fared pretty well, too, though the walleye were more scarce than we would have liked.

There are stories to tell of that trip and I'm still working them through in my mind as to how best to tell them.  My brother & I were quite "over-packed", the result of having communicated very poorly in advance.  Despite discussing "packing" (thoroughly, I thought) before we ever left, we STILL somehow managed to bring 2X of almost everything for the two of us!  Oh, and consider: 1) NONE of the guys seemed to want ANY of the potatoes or corn that Wally13 & I had planned, 2) none of those dudes consumes more than a small child's portion of steak (or anything else!) and 3) my brother decides to eat his beef jerky & dried fruit 90% of the time versus our planned packed meals... well, let's just say that I had enough left over to feed an army!  Truly, I certainly don't need to buy hardly any supplies at all for my upcoming trip with Wally13 & Magic in about 4 weeks!

I hadn't tripped with my brother in about 10 years.  This trip was sort of his "retirement party", therefore we'll likely do it more often since he'll have time on his hands.  I suspect our pre-trip communication will improve... and, consequently, our loads will lighten.  Despite adversities, he had a blast, thoroughly enjoying the company of more experienced paddlers.  Upon our return he almost immediately went out and bought "upgrades" to equipment, per suggestions from Magic, DD, etc.  To hear him tell it, he was travelling with the likes of Daniel Boone & Davy Crockett! 

Yes, there's a story to tell but it may have to wait until the flakes start flying.  I'm fond of this anonymous quote: "You cannot hear the waterfall if you stand next to it.  I paint my jungles in the desert."

There's still too much summer activity going on for my brain to put our adventures & mis-adventures into proper perspective.  I took great notes so those tales will keep for a while, including the one about sipping from the Holy Grail that Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone found....

Later,

Jimbo   8-)

P.S. I'm not so convinced that the Darky River route to Darky Lake was  all that much "easier" than Magic's mountain goat trail into Wicksteed (something Magic was trying to tell me well before we ever got started).  In addition to going "upriver", we spent a lot of time loading, unloading and negotiating some tricky foot paths along a much longer route.  Anyway, like he says, planning is ever so much easier than actually doing the route.  Live & learn.  I was actually quite happy with how my "bionic parts" handled all the stresses.  I'm not giving up on my "fountain of youth" just yet; I found it still trickles, some.

P.P.S.  By the way, we DID run into Stu (well, at least MY group did).  It happened on the next to last day at the Curtain Falls portage.