SWEMB BIRT Boundary Waters Day 6

 This was the day I was the most excited about.  Edward also looked forward to canoeing the boundary waters.  He really wanted his own canoe but we learned the canoes were super hard to control with just one person so he was glad we shared.  I had done a ton of research on the boundary waters so I felt like I was ready.  I had bought some very strong bug spray and memorized the map.  We started at Hungry Jack Lake and headed up to Rose Lake Falls.  This took us across two lakes, Bearskin and Dunkin.  We had to carry our canoes over two portages to reach our final destination.  I didn't take a lot of photos on this day because we spent most of our time rowing.  It ended up taking us about 5 hours to do the entire trip.  Once we got to the falls, we had our lunch and swam in the water.  It was so refreshing.  On our way back, I couldn't find our final portage.  Luckily, a fisherman saw us and pointed us in the right direction.  

Edward and I shared a canoe with Erik and Anders.  That meant that Edward had to do most of the paddling.  He was the back and I was the front.  Edward carried the canoe over two portages and I did two on the way back.  Carrying the canoe was tough!  It weighed 35-40 pounds and had to be carried on your shoulders.  I tried to get a photo of carrying it but my phone was in a waterproof bag so the photo is fuzzy.  This was by far the most adventurous things we have ever done on a SWEMB BIRT and it was so rewarding.  I am so glad we embarked on such a difficult journey.  I would love to go back someday and camp with Stephen and see more of what the boundary waters have to offer.  

SWEMB BIRT Wisonsin Dells and Isle Royal Day 4 and 5

 We stayed at the Dells until about 2:00 then took showers in the main indoor water park before getting in the car to drive to Grand Portage, Minnesota.  It was a long 6 hour drive that ended up taking longer because the boys had to use the bathroom every 100 miles.  We drove along the coast line of Lake Superior and it was absolutely gorgeous.  

We woke up early to catch our boat to Isle Royal National Park.  This is the least visited national park in all the continental United States.  I was unprepared for how cold the boat ride would be.  The boat tour was about an hour and a half and we FROZE all the way to the island.  Thankfully, when we arrived at the island it was nice and warm. 

I researched a few different hikes on Isle Royal and landed on an easy 3 1/2 mile hike up to an overlook.  We hiked up Grace Creek Overlook with ease.  There was a slight incline at the end of the trail leading to the overlook.  It was lush and green all around us.  Once we reached the overlook, we unpacked our lunches and ate.  We then hiked back to the visitor center and grabbed a snack while we waited for our boat to head back to Minnesota  

We got back around 4:00 and went to our airbnb for the rest of the night.  We played scattagories and did laundry.  We bought pizza to cook in the oven and just relaxed.  We needed a break in the week to just catch our breath.  The airbnb ran our of hot water while we were showering and it was a bit creepy with a basement.  Erik ended up waking up both nights scared and slept with me one night and Chelsea one night.