TomT -

Stu was sort of surprised to see me "still in the park."  He had heard from Mark Zup that we had gone in a couple days before the previous trip he was guiding.  He was heading out of the park with a SECOND group when I ran across him.  His group was relatively small due to some last-minute no shows.  He indicated "good fishing" on Crooked but was anxious to hear about my experiences on Conmee & Suzanette... of which there were none.  Mark Zup had warned me that Conmee has been "slow" this year, the hot lakes being Wicksteed & Darky, according to him.

jimmar -

Sounds like we both have had excellent rehab experiences re: hip surgery!  I had been pushing "core strengthening" extremely hard since my surgery in January.  Since then, I've added a strong cardio component... easier now that I'm not limping around.  I, too, get some "discomfort & stiffness" that goes away with some activity.

Hey, watch out for those "snow flies" in the Porcupine Mountains.  I hear those little beggars can really bite (on a par with canoe flies).


OS -

You're right; you shouldn't mess around with chest pains.  I figured my sister-in-law would haunt me forever if I managed somehow to snuff out her husband immediately after he retired and she had him to herself!  On the other hand, my brother accused me of "colluding" with her in a sinister plot to nab the company life insurance policy money which was still in effect until the end of July! 

I suppose if she had been willing to split the proceeds I might have been willing to tackle Magic's "mountain goat" approach via Wicksteed.

ST -

DentonDoc took quite a spill on one of those landings, trying to reload his vessel on a major incline (well, in this case, "decline").  For the most part, we did a good job of helping each other out in those spots.  My brother & I blew it that time, however.

If nothing else, it slowed DD down some so we were better able to keep up.

About all I can say about our Day #1 is: 1) we survived, and 2) I'm sure as heck glad that MagicPaddler wears a bright orange hat wherever he goes.  Otherwise, I might have missed him entirely when we finally arrived on Darky Lake!

We DID have a very good time, though I wish I had the smarts of Pine Knot's son, Matt, who brought the best possible defense versus the notorious ankle biters/canoe flies... a fly swatter!  Even my ankle net socks couldn't keep them from biting me.  Had to wear a heavy pair of socks underneath for them to do any good.  I had almost forgotten how badly I hated those little SOB's....

Jimbo   8-)