Rich and I paddled stern in the Souris River canoes with the girls, Kari and Kayla in the bow of each boat. The three boys paddled the Old Town Tripper with Adrian steering from the stern. Jake and Sam took turns in the bow. We made it to our camp in 2 1/4 hours. After camp was made we shared tortillas with salsa, hot sticks and cheese. The students went looking for fire wood and were gone an hour. They returned with no firewood but did have stories of their adventures navigating the circumference of the island on foot. We talked them into paddling around the island looking for wood. As soon as they left it was obvious they were going anywhere they wanted. They soon disappeared behind lady boot campsite. After a while they reappeared and made their way back to our campsite. They did have a little firewood they scavenged from a nearby campsite. They talked about visiting a place called Heaven. It was a pristine piece of woods near the channel to Lake Three. The girls made salads while the fire was started. Soon the steaks were sizzling and the potatoes were roasting in the coals. The meal was a little late in being served but tasted like we had gone to Wiederholts. I enjoyed a cleansing experience while washing dishes. At sunset the kids went to a huge rock across the channel and sat there in the evening glow for a long time. Rich went to his tent early and the students and I hung the food pack. It was 15 feet off the ground but only a couple feet from the tree. Bear proof 90%. We all slept in a little the next morning. For breakfast we had tortilla wrapped eggs, bacon, fried onions and cheese. Our day trip took us to the East side of Lake Three, where we walked the Pow Wow trail and viewed some historic logging camps. For the return trip paddling across Lake Three Rich and I paddled my Souris River while the 5 students paddled the Tripper. Actually the girls paddled and the boys rode duff. They swapped positions after crossing Lake Three because it was a huge load for the girls to paddle. Kincaid and I struggled to keep our balance for several reasons. Camp life took over with swimming, coffee, snacks and then a supper of Mac and Cheese with grilled hot dogs. Sam and I went fishing with Sam in the stern and me fishing from the front. Kayla fished while Kari powered the bow of their canoe. I had one small Northern steal my Mepps. The evening was cool with a gray overcast. Eventually it started to sprinkle and then with a full shower as we headed back to camp. We spent the evening under the tarp and talking until the full moon shown above the tree tops. Kincaid was cooking pancakes when I walked into camp at 9:30. He also handed me a cup of coffee. A good way to start the day. Our day trip had us paddling to "Dangerous Waters" which had a hiking trail along the east side of the rushing stream. We walked, photographed, and wondered at the beauty of this little known part of Lake Two. While taking group photos on top of a cliff over looking the rapids I realized that Jake had a wonderful camera. Father's day is soon and I will get one. We went back to camp and took a short break. It was a hot afternoon and the students and I went looking for a rock to jump into the lake from. We couldn't find a safe one at first and then Kincaid paddled out solo in the Tripper. He led us to a nearby campsite with perfect jumping rocks. One was 5 feet off the water and the other was 10 feet above the water. I checked the water by surface diving below the cliff to check for submerged rocks or logs. All was clear. We had a blast leaping from these rocks. Now totally cooled off we headed back to camp. After supper Kincaid stayed back to wash dishes and we all went to the rock again. Several students brought their cameras and I filmed many videos of them jumping. It was a beautiful evening. Fun, exhilarating, refreshing and relaxing. To warm up we paddled into a quiet bay where we enjoyed the warm setting sun, the beautiful trees and no chilling breeze. We raced back to camp and I lost, they were very proud of themselves. Upon our return to camp we all did some organizing in preparation for our early morning departure. The students built a nice fire and we roasted the last of our s'mores. I told the story about the Real McCoy. In the morning we had breakfast and broke camp in 1 1/4 hours. The paddle out was easy with a 15 mph tailwind. It was a wonderful 4 days, I only wish it could have been a full week.
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