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Canada, Lake
Superior - Saturday 17th September 2011
Part 1 -
The calm before the storm
The morning was quite warm for some
reason and the girls were up before me! It may have been because
of the beautiful sunrise and the sight of a slightly misty
morning that attracted them.
I soon grabbed the trowel and walked
over the small, round beach boulders and found a quiet place
in the forest. I dug a hole and squatted and looked out across
the lake. The mist was still rising from the water and the
sun was reflecting on the leaves of the trees making them
sparkle as the light fed through the branches. Rotting logs
were embedded into the lichen covered rocks that looked as
if they hadn't been disturbed for centuries. Smoke coloured
ground cover that amazingly grew in this hostile environment
and freezing winters contrasted with the green forest and
the green/reddish creeper with red berries that grew in front
of me. It was scenes like this that make it such a pleasure
to go to the toilet in the wilderness.
Behind our tents the waning moon was
shining bright through a gap in the pine trees. Fungi were
growing on horizontal tree branches and the berries of the
mountain ash tree were a rich red against the perfectly clear
blue skies of the early morning. It looked as if it was going
to be a beautiful day.
As the sun rose right across the bay,
with nothing to break its warming rays it made our breakfast
so much more enjoyable. The chill was gone. We readied ourselves
to leave but Leo was lagging. An Ipad can be helpful on such
a journey but it often distracted her and broke up the continuity
of the trip. We waited.
The day was just perfect
as we started crossing the bay towards Fluor Island. Minutes
later we noticed two sandy coloured wolves trotting along
a rocky beach. We stopped and then turned our kayaks towards
their direction. They immediately noticed us and trotted off
into the forest. We waited a few moments hoping they would
return but they didn't.
Yesterday the mountain on Fluor Island
was billowing smoke caused by a forest fire but the fire must
have died over night and today there was little smoke. The
wind was light and the water to the east was sparkling because
of the ripples and the sun's rays. We paddled around the cliffs
of Starke Point where an eagle circled and where the water
was swaying back and forth off a reef. There were gentle breakers
hitting the reef and the coast, but they were much friendlier
than the ones we had by-passed on other days.
On the east side of Fluor Island, between
Fluor and Willard Island it was quite beautiful, but a little
further, as we paddled between a few smaller islands the scenery
turned from beautiful to stunning. When we stopped on one
of the small islands for a pee we were able to check out the
animal droppings, animal tracks and a few different kinds
of bushes, vegetation and big mountain ash trees. Not only
that, we were able to pause and get the most fantastic view
of our route ahead, where there were rich orange cliffs beckoning
us.
It was such a lovely paddle heading
towards the orange cliffs. Arrow like spruce trees and the
odd birch tree thickly covered the cliff tops. In the far
distance, beyond the cliffs was a high mountain range on the
mainland with a line of cloud floating above its ridge. It
was virtually the only cloud in the sky. The season for kayaking
was over and although few kayakers venture here in season,
we were here to experience such a beautiful wilderness.
Leo slipped ahead as we took several
photos of the area. It is surprising how much distance a kayak
can travel when we stopped and took a photo. Sometimes I felt
guilty for taking so many photos, but it is so good to look
back and relive those moments once we were home. I often felt
a little glum when I know I should have taken a photo, but
I hadn't. Today was certainly a photo day.
The colourful cliffs ahead were part
of a small island a few hundred metres west of Irvine Island.
As we got closer it was again one of those times when I felt
so lucky to be living and being able to explore places where
few people go. All three of us could have walked on water
with joy and excitement at that moment. I have experienced
this feeling so many times before, when I have explored alone,
but it was good to be able to have others share the same experience
and the nice thing about Alaine and Leonie is that they did
appreciate the beauty around them.
We approached the stunning ochre cliff
which was taking our breath away. Beyond it, and through a
gap in the islands there was another special vista. It was
hard to know in which direction to look but the orange cliff,
which was probably caused by the build-up of lichen, was a
true spectacle.
We passed between the cliff and Irvine
Island and it was like walking into another room with another
much different, but still beautiful scene no matter what angle
you looked at it. We paused for a few moments and stared,
as the beauty, which was on a much wider scale, just couldn't
be captured in our camera lens. It was one of those times
when I could have sat there in my kayak and wept with joy.
I wasn't alone so I didn't.
As we headed towards the eastern end
of a small island called Tisdale, we could see a tree that
looked as if it had a beautifully shaped large wide ball on
the top of it. Just like the trimmed bushes you see in people's
gardens. It was disappointing when we reached it, as it was
actually two different trees.
As we paddled over to Newash Point
on St Ignas Island and into a more exposed part of the lake
Alaine became worried again because Leo was more than 50 metres
ahead due to us stopping and taking photographs. I wasn't
particularly worried as the lake wasn't that rough, but for
Alaine it was a big thing and I think she thought I didn't
care, so soon after I could feel a little tension between
us. As we arrived at Newash Point Leo had allowed us to catch
up as the islands and reefs off the point, caused a lot of
breaking waves that sprung up without notice. We thought we
might have to go around all the islands but at closer inspection
we were able to sneak between the reef and the first island
allowing a shorter course into the bay.
No sooner had we paddled into the large
bay we discovered that there were several reefs breaking inside
it although we were easily able to avoid them. In Thunder
Bay we were told about a good camp spot inside a small bay
nearby and as we rounded the point of the bay, where waves
were breaking on a reef, we could see a Canadian flag flying
high on the steep hill kilometres over to the west. It was
above the cliff line, but below the tree line. We were puzzled
to why a flag was flying in such a remote place.
The cove was calm and it had a high
steel flag pole with the Canadian flag flying at the end of
a sand spit. We paddled to it and found another smaller cove
with a big boat and 3 or 4 cabins snuggled in the trees. It
was just such an amazingly protected harbour.
We paddled into the cove and landed
next to a jetty which the big boat was tied up to. I jumped
out and had a quick walk around but there was no-one there.
It was lunch time so we pulled our kayaks up the shore and
enjoyed our lunch on the jetty. This small, though lifeless
settlement appeared to cater for fishing groups but I suspect
it was too late in the season for such an activity.
Our visit to the cove was very interesting
and as we left it and paddled across Squaw Bay the wind had
picked up pushing us quickly towards the north-west end of
the Bowman Island. As soon as we left the shelter of the island
and started crossing the exposed part of the lake I could
feel Alaine getting anxious as Leo was surging forward and
widening the gap between us. Alaine was worried that Leo might
capsize and we were too far away to rescue her before she
froze to death. In this lake it was possible to die quickly
as the water temperature was so cold. The wind increased and
the lake became rough with the waves washing and wallowing
in all directions. Our perfect day had suddenly changed.
We passed by the tiny Nest Island and
for a few moments we were sheltered from the bigger waves
coming from the south. Being less than 100 metres long our
shelter was short lived. Luckily there weren't too many kilometres
to Hope Island and Armour Harbour where we would get some
shelter from the southerly winds. We were now following the
rugged and mountainous St Ignace Island which was about 22kms
long by about 12kms wide and it has over 100 big and small
lakes on it.
As we paddled to the north of Hope
and Armour Islands the water calmed and Alaine began to relax.
The shores along Ignace were high, with cliffs dotted along
it at different heights and with an enormous amount of different
coloured trees that indicated that the fall was on its way.
A few shanty cabins came into view.
Some of them were quite hidden in the trees but we didn't
see any one around. The wind was increasing so we checked
for a campsite at the bottom of the bay but the beaches were
too narrow and stony to camp on.
McNab Harbour was now our target for
the night, but to reach it we had to go back out into the
exposed water again and paddle along the island coastline
for a few kilometres to reach it. I was hoping that the conditions
out in the open lake would have calmed, if it hadn't Alaine
would be anxious by the time we reached our destination. And
that wouldn't be good, an anxious Alaine doesn't make for
a happy Alaine! Unfortunately, it was rough so we bounced
up and down and got thrown around like a cork until we got
there. Alaine wasn't so happy.
Reaching the cove we had to make sure
we didn't turn into it too early or the big waves rolling
towards the entrance may surprise us and we might just get
slammed onto the rocky shore. We kept paddling until we were
in the centre of the cove entrance and well away from the
breaking waves that were slamming onto the point. I advised
Leo to turn her boat quickly, so not to wallow sideways on
the waves as this was the time when we were most vulnerable.
She took notice and both our boats were soon facing directly
into the cove with the big swells pushing in directly behind
us.
The swell was high so we were in danger
of them breaking as we moved further into the cove, especially
if the water shallowed too much. We paddled in taking care,
watching for big waves sneaking up from behind and keeping
well away from the rocky shores that were on each side of
us. We paddled towards a narrow entrance with calmer water
which gave us hope of getting in safely. A big swell rose
high and picked us up, as if we were on a big dipper but it
slowly eased us down and didn't break. Our hearts fluttered,
but seeing the calmer waters in front of us we secretly rejoiced.
It was like heaven when we paddled
through that narrow gap and turned to the right and into the
small cove which was now protected by the rocky shores. At
the end of the cove there was a blackish sand beach and a
big rock slab further over on the left side and very high
cliffs looking majestic further behind to the north. It was
certainly a pretty cove.
It took us a bit of time to pick the
exact spot on the sand as it was scrappy and vegetated in
places. Near the rock slab, where it would have been ideal
to camp there was too much vegetation and driftwood and with
the sun setting that position would soon lose the sun allowing
the cold to creep in a lot sooner than we wanted. We picked
a place 50 metres further south, closer to the middle of the
beach and where there would be more sunlight and had more
sand to erect our tents.
Getting dry was our usual priority
so I immediately erected a washing line and got changed. Alaine
however sat on the sand with her head between her hands and
shed a few tears. She wasn't that comfortable about being
on the lake. It was a huge, hostile lake that everybody we
met warned us about. When you hear bad things too many times
it does erode your confidence and Alaine was being effected
by the harsh words. The weather was getting colder, the water
rougher and not having experienced a real big lake or ocean
before, it was quite daunting for her. And, like usual she
worried about others, she was worried about Leo who paddled
alone in the Epic kayak and which was a lot more unstable
than our very stable double kayak.
As the sand beach was full of hollows
we levelled the sand to have a flatter surface to erect our
tents. The sun was moving around to the west and it was about
7.30pm when the sun was blocked out by the trees and the cold
started to creep in at a fast pace. Luckily we all had washed
before the sun's rays were lost. Rugged up for the cold I
walked to the cove entrance to see if the lake had got any
rougher in the last two hours. It had, but I didn't tell the
girls that, as I didn't want to concern them.
The scene standing at the entrance
of the cove looking back to our camp, the cliffs and the forest
behind with the sun setting and still catching the tips of
the trees was just stunning. The sky was full of aircraft
jet streams and a few lonely clouds were drifting above me.
The lake was roughened, but the weather didn't look at all
bad. It was hard to understand why Alaine wanted to get off
the lake as soon as possible and leave all this behind, but
saying that, the days were getting bleak. I had to remember
that I was used to the hardships and dangers of paddling and
she wasn't.
I returned to our camp along the rocky
shore, had dinner and as it became dark a small bat started
flying closely around us. The stars above were bright, it
was a perfect but cold evening to sit there in our warm gear
and reflect on such a beautiful day.
Part 2 - Stormy Seas next week.
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