Mosquitos and the Boundary Waters

            If you were to ask the average person if they would spend a 6 day vacation in the backcountry of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, most would probably say “I don’t even know what or where the Boundary Waters are.”  If you were to then explain to them that the Boundary Waters is a 1.1 million acre canoe area with over 2,000 backcountry campsites in northern Minnesota, bordering Canada and try to ask them again, they would say “Hell no!  Why would I spend my entire vacation outside?”

The answer to that question, from our perspective, is to spend quality time with family. The best way to do that is to remove yourself from the distractions of modern technology, and test yourself both mentally and physically. The reward is seeing the amazing things nature has to offer, that the average American lacks motivation to work toward.

After our trip we had similar exchanges while explaining where we went on vacation.  Surprisingly, most people just assumed that we did not, and would not take Atlas, our 2.5 year-old with us.  The expression on their face was priceless when we explained that not only did we drag the little one along, we canoed and portaged 50 miles across 14 lakes with him in tow. Just because we have a kid, it does not mean we have to change how we spend our vacations: Family. Outdoors. Adventures.

Now, keep in mind that our close, childless friend devised the itinerary for the trip, since the Boundary Waters were his stomping grounds.  Living in the mountain west, our trips usually involve mountains.  The only water we typically have to deal with are the small streams that we hop across on the trail and cold mountain cirques.  We had only been on one prior canoe trip - over 7 years ago.

Day 1: Mudro Lake to Gun Lake

The adventure started with our outfitter (Boundary Water Outfitters based out of Ely, MN) dropping us off at the Mudro Lake entry point.  With Yadéeh on the front seat and child in the space in front of her and Justin in back seat of the canoe, the first ¼ mile of canoeing was a complete shit show:  The entry point was a meandering river that wound through reeds, lily pads, and pine trees and with some portions only 10 feet or so wide.  Neither of us remembered much about how to steer a canoe, and our kid refused to keep his hands and arms safely inside the vehicle at any time.  The only thing we knew was that the stronger person should be in the back to steer.

Our canoe spun out of control the entire time we tried navigating through the winding river, to the great amusement of our friend and his girlfriend 100 feet ahead in the other canoe.  Once the river opened up into Mudro Lake, it seemed that we finally figured out how to steer a canoe again and gave up trying to keep our kid in the canoe and dry.

Portaging, although scenic, quickly became our least favorite part of the trip.  Yadéeh had to manage carrying a pack while encouraging Atlas along the trial or carrying him in her arms down the trail. Meanwhile, Justin resorted to taking two trips: first carrying the canoe, then trail running back to retrieve the remaining pack and the canoe paddles.  Keep in mind, the trails were often rocky, muddy and SWARMING with mosquitos.  Luckily, our kid was fine wearing his mosquito net and they didn’t seem to like him anyhow.  Us, however…let’s just say that after 3 weeks from the end of our trip, we still have several faint mosquito bite marks.

We ate lunch at a beautiful campsite on a peninsula.  During lunch, the partly cloudy sky quickly gave way to a tumultuous thunderstorm.  Fortunately, the storm passed within 15 minutes and we set off across the lake. This is when we had one of our favorite sightings: a beaver swam in front of us in the lake, wacked its tail, and dropped under the water.

As we looked for our next portage entry, another storm rolled in. We huddled under the tarp at a campsite about 50 feet from the next portage. Our poor kid was exhausted at this point and fell asleep in Yadeeh’s arms while waiting out the storm in rain gear under the tarp. There was no way we wanted to wait upwards of 2 hours for his nap to finish, so we loaded up into the canoe, paddled the 50 feet, unloaded and portaged, all while trying to keep Atlas asleep.

After this, the rest of the day went by without a hitch. Our campsite wasn’t our first choice, but we made due as it rained on-and-off for the rest of the evening. As the sun went down and we got ready for bed, the toads came out to play. Although Yadéeh went into the tent early to put Atlas to sleep, he wasn’t having it, so we all went to bed as a family.

Day 2: Gun Lake to Friday Bay

            We woke up to clear skies and choppy water. So, we had to put our newly acquired paddling skills to the test. All-in-all, it went well because we paddled with the waves along the lake to our dreaded longest portage of 1 mile. That doesn’t sound like much, but given the conditions we described before, it seemed like 10 miles. After meandering through Papoose Creek and another portage (Yadéeh carrying our sleeping kid), we eventually popped out on the southern tip of Friday Bay and made camp shortly thereafter on a peninsular cliff. Justin had to set up camp while Yadéeh held the still sleeping kid. We enjoyed the continual breeze through camp, as it kept the mosquitos at bay and we enjoyed a small cocktail as the sun set.

Day 3: Friday Bay to Crooked Lake

A cloudy, misty and cool morning with flat waters started out our third day. However, once we entered Crooked Lake, things drastically changed. Crooked Lake is one of the larger lakes in the area and straddles the US-Canada border. At this point, Atlas was becoming a bit ornery, so Justin took a shift paddling in the front while Yadéeh tried to steer in the back. As we turned the corner into Crooked Lake, the swells began to rise and white caps began to surface and the weather continued to deteriorate. Our kid continued to try to play in the water, despite the misty weather and rocking boat. Ultimately, he fell asleep in Justin’s lap. This posed a challenge, as Yadéeh could not steer to save her life, so we decided to pull ashore and switch places. Luckily, Atlas remained asleep. Before we knew it, we were battling head on white caps in the middle of Crooked Lake, with a sleeping child in Yadeeh’s lap, and no land within a ¼ mile radius. Taking it one swell at a time, we made it through without incident and made camp early due to the inclement weather and the emotional stress on the group. 

The blessing in disguise was having a bit more down time at camp. When Atlas woke up from his nap, we went exploring as a family and found a sweet set of camping pots and pans. Atlas loved helping collect and carry the firewood back to camp.

Day 4: Crooked Lake to Tiger Bay

Yay, sun! The morning was nice and clear with calm waters, a much appreciated change from the previous day. This began our longest day yet, providing plenty of opportunity for our kid to help paddle and drag his hands in the water.

       

First, we crossed Crooked Lake and hugged the Canadian shoreline as we headed west toward Curtain Falls. Yes, we had our passports, but our friends didn’t. It was an intense experience approaching the inlet to Curtain Falls.  As we turned the corner to enter the inlet, we could hear the roaring water, but still could not see what was creating the sound. Then, off on the horizon we could see the mist from the falls. The entry to the portage was only 50 feet or so upstream of the falls, so we had to make sure we didn’t overshoot it. The falls themselves were spectacular, although not that tall. Once back in our boats, we continued paddling toward Tiger Bay.

The portage on Canadian soil was one of the buggiest and steepest yet. But, we survived with only a few hundred more mosquito bites. As we entered Tiger Bay, our friend who was navigating, had a few “perfect” camp sites in mind. Unfortunately for us, they were all already taken. In order to figure that out, we had to circumnavigate an entire island, only to settle on one of the first sites we saw. It turned out to be one of our favorite sites because it had few bugs and we finally got to set up our hammock with a view of the lake. This was also the first site where Justin and Kid went for a swim...brrr…too cold for Yadéeh though. While hanging out at camp, Atlas began to scream like we’ve never heard him scream before. There was a snake in our camp. Atlas usually loves animals and is not afraid to touch new ones, but instinct kicked in, and he knew to wait until we told him it was ok. So, of course, Yadéeh tried to catch it. Bad idea, kind of. The snake (only a garter snake, don’t worry), bit Yadéeh and went on its merry way, only to be back to bask in the morning sun the next day.

Day 5: Tiger Bay to Nina Moose Lake

Oh boy, we thought the freak out from the snake was bad…when it came time to take a group photo, Atlas’ melt down began. We made it 5 non-stop days with little down time, so it was just a matter of time. After we took a picture without Atlas, we tried to put the life jacket on him. You’d think we ask him to cut off his own toe. After calm negotiations did not work, we had to force the jacket on him, and then Yadéeh held him in the canoe kicking and screaming, and tried to sing to calm him down while Justin paddled us away from camp. There were many points throughout the trip where Justin had to do most the paddling while Yadéeh took care of Atlas in some fashion or another. Other than this being the longest day and the morning melt down, it was the most uneventful day. It did, however, have Atlas’ favorite portage. At the end of the portage, there were boards set across the trail, which quickly turned into “train tracks” with a ticket agent while we waited for Justin to finish the portage.

          Upon arriving at camp, we noticed a turtle in a flat area used to set up a tent. As we approached, we saw that the turtle had dug a hole in which it filled newly laid eggs! We left momma turtle alone while we unloaded our gear. This campsite was the buggiest yet. We couldn’t even venture to the bathroom or hang out at the fire pit because of it. We spent our time on the granite slab along the water’s edge, enjoying our last night out.

Day 6: Nina Moose Lake to the Moose River Portage

We weren’t allowed to get on our boat (the canoe) without a “ticket.”  Luckily, Atlas found enough “tickets” for all of us. As it turned out, Atlas’ ticket doubled as a coloring stick! It was slightly burnt and when it became wet, Atlas was able to draw on the canoe seat with it. Yet another way to keep him entertained. While this was one of the shorter days, it felt like an eternity because we were sore from all the paddling and portaging. Most of the day was spent meandering through the narrow Moose River. We joked that it felt like a final exam because of all the precise paddling required navigating the river, including up and over flooded beaver dams. Justin was even able to flawlessly parallel park the canoe by the end of the trip.  We ended the day with burgers at a microbrewery in Ely and lighting sparklers at the outfitters lodge in celebration of the 4^th of July.

All in all, it was a great time. Having a kid along for a trip like this certainly made it several times more challenging. However, introducing a child to outdoor adventure and the many wild things nature has to offer made the experience worthwhile and unforgettable for not only us, but hopefully for our kid as well. If we were to do it again, the only things we might change is that we’d plan in more down time at camp each day and go in August when the mosquitos were less intense.