A Camping We Will Go...

Logistically it didn't work out for me to enter the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. You really need two people because you have to carry the canoe and all your stuff between the lakes in the wilderness. I decided I would just take the canoe to the Superior National Forest where the lakes were vehicle accessible.

Since it was a two hour drive from where the RV is parked I decided to camp out.

Oh Brother!!! It has been a while since I have been camping in a tent. Things have changed a little since then:

1. The bugs have had a few generations to multiply. I started putting up the tent (thank goodness it was still light) and the mosquitoes swarmed me immediately. Faith went with me to get a bunch of bug repellent clothes before she left. I doused everything else with bug spray; otherwise I might have fled the area.
   
2. Tents have improved a lot! I pulled the thing out of its bag and it was like the alien machines in War of The Worlds with Tom Cruise. Metal tentacles went all over the place then quickly snapped together to make a backbone for the tent. No strings, thanks for helping me pick this out Liz!
3. The air mattress isn't an air mattress any more. It is this self-expanding thermal pad that is about as thick as a beach towel. I probably needed two or three of these things. Thanks for helping me pick that out Liz :(
4. The bug repellent clothes really work. Congress should pass a law that all outdoor clothes be bug repellent. For all the critters hovering around I didn't get a single bite, chigger or tick.
   

I was giving myself all kinds of reasons to pack this stuff back up and head for the comfortable RV. I hung around and paddled the whole length of the lake in my canoe. It was awesome; at the other end of the lake it was secluded and very beautiful. There was a single pair of Loons swimming around that area of the lake. It was the first time I heard their call in the wild.

On the way back to my campsite I paddled next to a Beaver for about 300 yards. I didn't know this, but when they get ready to swim under water they slap the water with their tail. I guess it gives them leverage for the dive but the loud slap was surprise.

No alarm clock needed. The birds started jamming at 4am, long before sunrise.