After 11 years, I’ve come to accept that the unexpected will occur while out on a week-long Boundary Waters trip. The question is not “I wonder if anything will go wrong”, but “I wonder what will go wrong”. My annual trip with Nora at the end of August/beginning of September was no exception.
Also, important, is that this reality is not a deterrent for me.
Back in January, we reserved and planned for 8 nights and 9 days in Minnesota’s most pristine wilderness. I was absolutely giddy about this. This was my 40th birthday present to myself. 9 days of Boundary Waters. Thank you Nora for readily agreeing to the couple of extra days with me. Thank you to my husband and parents for helping me with our two young boys as they started school while I was finishing up my trip. That was the first thing to go not as planned. After years of school beginning AFTER Labor Day, my luck would have it that they would start BEFORE Labor Day this year. We made it work!
Once we got to Ely, we were in full-on excitement mode. We packed and prepped the night before with Nora’s dog Stryder in tow. He both loves us/this trip and finds us completely ridiculous and somewhat impossible to handle. I think most people would feel this way about us. Maybe that’s why we go in just the two of us. ;)
“Where people are only visitors. There is little of technology or modern conveniences, but there is adventure and tranquility in large supply.” - I love the entry point signs.
We were excited about our Little Gabbro entrypoint. In the previous winter, prior to permit reservation time, Nora randomized all of the entry points in a spreadsheet and had the spreadsheet pick for us. We landed on an entry point we’d never been to before, and that’s really all we cared about. Exploring new areas, traveling via paddle and portage nearly everyday, and appreciating all there is to see and do. Moving at a pace in sync with nature is our daily agenda.
Once we arrived, we knew that the dry summer and low water levels might create some interesting travel. Just how interesting it would get was where the adventure really came in.
We found ourselves having to spend more time strategizing putting the canoe in and out of portages. With lower water levels, we were faced with walking on shallow water and slippery rocks and/or murky water where the lake muck threatened to take your shoes forever. It’s just a game of trying not to hurt yourself while getting your packs and canoe in and out of the water.
We had a few fun “weird magnet” encounters. A previous blog I wrote explains this phenomenon. I was actually a part of the experience this time. Nora said she wished she had brought just one more rope. Lo and behold - we stopped at a campsite just to look at it, but we knew we weren’t going to stay. What did I spot wrapped around a tree? The perfect rope.
The second weird magnet item was a gear tie. We didn’t even realize we had gained an extra one along the way as it had matched our others. But we were glad to have it when Nora accidentally got one stuck in a tree while throwing the bear hang rope. We did eventually get it down though. So now we are up one gear tie! A very useful item.
We laughed plenty on our trip. We did not get hurt (badly…but, more on this soon). We ran into very few people after departing Gabbro Lake. We were amazed at how quiet of an area the neighboring lakes were.
From a past burn, to now a revived forest, this area was part of the Pagami Creek wildfire in 2011. The wildfire had started from a lightning strike and spread over 92,000 acres. To witness nature fully “taking back” the area and rebounding with life was fascinating. Particularly given our own close proximity to the lightning strike fires of 2026 both in Ely and at the end of the Gunflint.
We explored our way into a quiet slice of heaven. We didn’t see any other travelers for a few days - just my kinda birthday celebration! ;)
While the solitude, scenery, and wildlife was glorious, there was one little caveat. I got myself a leech (I won’t scar you with the photo evidence). Now this can happen of course, and besides the astonishing amount of blood this thing got all over my Chaco, everything was fine. I bandaged up, put pressure on it, joked with Nora that I was “bleeding out!” and moved on with our dinner, campfire, and bear hang escapades.
The next day we kept on paddling and portaging to explore more areas, and find another campsite. Our portages were evidently very infrequently traveled. This made for very interesting portages.
I kept myself cleaned up and bandaged up. Annnndd then that’s where the trouble started. Once we arrived at our campsite, it became apparent that my leech bite was oddly throbbing.
Fast forward through a day of emergency satellite communication on our Garmin, cleaning and monitoring, a few doses of Benadryl, thinking I have a rare allergy to leech saliva…. It dawns on me. I’ve seen this type of strange rash and reaction on my body before, because I’m allergic to antibiotic ointment. But I've known this for 20 years and haven’t run into an issue in a lonnnggg time. I stay far away from that stuff. Alas, did you know they make bandaids WITH ANTIBIOTIC OINTMENT IN THEM NOW? And what’s more, the boxes are labeled as such, but the little paper wrapper on the bandage are not labeled. We don’t bring the boxes into the wilderness. This was a case of allergic reaction via antibiotic ointment. Relieved to get to the bottom of it all, and without the ointment touching my skin, I soon recovered and could walk around and be a contributing member of our team without my ankle swollen and throbbing. Hallelujah!
Due to a bit of injury and a couple Benadryl-induced hammock naps, we ended up spending 3 nights at this remote campsite that was a stunning and quiet 10/10. We observed swans, ducks, snapping turtles, beavers, leeches, and crayfish. Nora loved going down to the water’s edge with her headlamp once it got dark to be a part of what she called “the night life!!!” She was thrilled at the cray fish, leech, and fish action happening in the dark lol. I was mesmerized by the little island view we had, illuminated by the sunrises and sunsets, looking majestic at all hours of the day.
Once we departed from that campsite we found another gem. Honestly can you go wrong with a campsite in canoe country? Not really. I mean there are definitely campsites that are superior to others, but in the end you are out in the wilderness and it’s divine.
At this campsite, the kitchen came equipped with a very long fire poker. Now, we found this hilarious. Would it be funny to someone who hasn’t spent a week in the wilderness? Maybe not.
We swam at our new campsite and Nora got to laugh at me as I entered the water unceremoniously via surprise slippery rock. We watched a beaver swim across the shoreline and chomp on a little snack on shore. Swans flew in.
On our last couple of days Nora said that she found me just staring off into space. I had read a lot of books on this trip, and was really enjoying the time to do so. But the last full day I chose more so to just start off into the scenery quietly. Take it all in.
I love this annual tradition. Time disconnected from the world, and hyper in tune with the wilderness. It feels like an oxygen mask in a fast-paced, stress-inducing world.
Our annual trip helps me learn more about myself, nature, and canoe camping every time we go. Despite unexpected challenges, this getaway gives me so much life. Getting to dedicate time to this every year, and with Nora, is so special and I’m immeasurably grateful.
I also get a kick out of the fact that the Boundary Waters will always keep me humble, no matter how much time I spend there. Upon our departure from our campsite on the last morning, I was carefully stepping into the canoe, and before I knew it, I was not in the canoe, but sitting in the lake. Those slippery rocks are seriously the slipperiest of slippery ever. The Boundary Waters, ever humbling.
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