Sagnaga, September 9--13, 2020 Norm, Bill, Ruth, & Chloe

9-10-20 Thursday

We launched from the landing at 1:30.  The boat was heavily loaded.  Norm's canoe was tied according to Cliff Jacobson's instructions & the boat tracked perfectly.  Our journey included 45 minutes of "freestyle exploration".  (in other words - "We were lost!"

B & R had steak, salad, & sweet corn.  Norm had mashed potatoes & gravy.  It cooled off fast in the late afternoon.  With FULL stomachs - we talked & then went to bed at 8:00.

9-11-20 Friday

Woke up to nice weather.  We were surprised by warmer temperatures.  We enjoyed our breakfasts in the fresh air.  The glistening lake was our backdrop.  We fished from 11-12.  It was a beautiful day but the fish were not interested in our bait.  We went back to camp & took a nap. 

Later Norm decided to take a cruise in his solo canoe.  While attempting to get in the canoe it flipped and Norm fell into the lake.  Norm was good-natured about the incident!  For supper, Ruth & Chloe ate Velveeta Shells and they LOVED it.  Bill had 3 chicken brats & Chloe had 1. They thought the brats were surprisingly good!  Norm had Italian pasta.  When Bill finished washing dishes we celebrated with OREOS.  Our plans for the evening were to watch the sunset glow on the lake.  We were wondering if it was going to rain tonight/tomorrow.

9-12-20 Saturday 

Last night we found out that Chloe could unzip the tent to get out if she needed to.  Mixed emotions about this ability - not sure if she will abuse this talent.  It rained for about an hour early in the morning.  We enjoyed "tarp time" for most of the day. Misty fjords of Sag!

We enjoyed a day of relaxation.  Norm read, Chloe chased balls, we watched the lake & talked.  That evening we enjoyed the glow of Norms lantern & talked until 9:00.

9-13-20 Sunday

We woke up excited for our last day on the lake.  Bill got up at 4:45 and made coffee.  We could still see the stars that morning thanks to the fact that the BWCA is a "Dark Sky Sanctuary". We were awed by the increasing illumination of the distant shorelines.  The morning was BEAUTIFUL!  Ruth went back to bed at 6:15 and slept til 7:45.  Bill & Norm talked. 

We started packing up the tent.  Bill closed up the "kitchen" and we were loaded & on the water by 10:30.  We did some "freestyle exploring" on our way back to Sea Gull River.  Back at the landing we were loaded & on the road by noon.  Another good ending to a great trip.

 

August 26-29,2020 Mark, Marsha, Ruth, & Me

 August 26-9, 2020 - Mark, Marsh, Ruth, & Me (Saganaga)

Wednesday 8-26-20

I missed the "cut" to our favorite campsite so we decided to tour the sites north of the Granite River.  We made our way back past Horseshoe Island and found Choice #1 campsite was EMPTY much to our joy!! It took 2 hours to get to this site & we celebrated our landing with a bottle of Steel Reserve.

Supper was steak, sweetcorn, & a huge salad.  The evening was topped off with a campfire & beverages.

Thursday 8-27-28

Thursday morning was a beautiful day!  Cooper went on a fishing daytrip & we played cribbage and napped. We played more cribbage and Bill took a bucket bath.  Ruth, Coopers, and Chloe swam.  Supper was hot dogs, salad, & sweetcorn.  We took a tour of the western islands and toured the beautiful Canadian cabins.  We arrived back at camp at dark & enjoyed Mark's campfire.

Friday 8-28-20

We wake to rain showers at 6:30.  We headed to the tarp & drank Starbucks French Roast Coffee, & scrambled eggs prepared by Bill.  They were almost as good as the ones Ruth makes at home.  Coopers got up at about 9:00 and the rain had basically stopped.  We visited with Coops as they ate their breakfast.

Bill took a nap and woke up in time to visit with Coops before they went fishing.  We pondered the beauty of the wilderness while eating lunch.

Saturday 8-29-20

We packed up and headed towards the landing.  We towed Cooper's boat but the weather was a bit rough and their canoe filled with water.  We dragged the canoe until we we made it to a safe spot to dump out the water.  Coopers then paddled their canoe and we transported their gear back to the landing.

bill and ruth on s ag..... from august fifth to the twelfth.. twenty twenty....

August 5-12, Bill & Ruthann

Wednesday

We motored easily across Sags eastern shoreline to a of islands on the Canadian border.  Our 1st through 3rd choices were already taken.  So...we motored farther east to a campsite that we had never been to before.  The campsite had a good place to pitch the tent & tarp near the shore.We were able to park the boat on the sand beach.  We celebrated our arrival with 40oz of beer which made it difficult to set up cam efficiently. But...we accomplished the task successfully.  We took a nap and then enjoyed Chicken Noodle Delight (noodles, chicken pieces, & Pioneer Gravy Mix).  After washing dishes, we basked in the beauty of the wilderness lake.

Thursday

 We got up at 5:45, made a pot of coffee & bundled up against the morning chill.  After a breakfast of scrambled eggs, we played cribbage and took a mid-morning nap.  We paused the cribbage game at a tie (to be finished later).  We fell asleep until 1:00.  Chloe wandered around the camp like "queen of the camp". We worked on her "sit, down, and handshake" commands. After we finished the earlier cribbage game (Ruth won handily) we made our 2nd pot of coffee.  We drank coffee while watching the the puffy white clouds overhead.   Supper that night was "out of this world".  The sweet corn (picked out by Preston) was fabulous.  We saved 1/3 of the steak for breakfast the next morning.  Chloe was a pest. Ruth had trouble getting Chloe leashed up (she was only slightly impaired by WINE).  Chloe and Ruth were both determined to win.  We had a good laugh.  

Friday

Bill woke up at 3:45 and listened to the loons calling.  He watched it get light through the tent. We got up at 6:00 to heavy showers. The floor of the tent had leaked during the night.  Bill & Ruth stayed dry but Chloe woke up with her head  in puddle.  She found a dry spot & we all went back to sleep.  We ventured out of the tent and headed to safety under the tarp.   We made cinnamon & sugar fajitas - they were great!  We enjoyed a nice long breakfast and good conversation.  It was a great morning!  

Saturday

We had a nice breakfast and packed up to head home.  We were back to the landing by 1:00.  

june 25-28,2020 bill ruth and rich on sag.

We met rich at the sag landing and were motoring to an island paradise  which took a couple hours to achieve.   Many campsites were taken but we found a perfect site on an island with a southern view.  THe forecast was for showers so in addition to pitching the tents we also pitched the tarp .   the evening was fantastic with steak and sweet corn for supper.
We fished the local area that morning.  We found no fish.  Back to camp for lunch and naps.  Rich and Ruth are good company.  We spent an excellent evening talking and watching the lake. 
On saturday we sspent the whole day in camp enjoying the good weather and each others company.
Sunday we loaded up and powered back to the landing.  Rich ran the boat.  it was a great four days.

bill, ruth and rich to sag on 5-18-23-2020

Monday - Ruth and I motored to an un-named island north of the channel and near the Canadian border. Traveling in a motored boat at ten mphs requires different orientation of time and space.  We spent somewhat of an extra hour trying to find a destination.  we got there eventually and Ruth pitched the tent and I prepped the kitchen.  The forest was hot and sunny.   We didn't pitch the tarp because the forecast was so good.   Supper was steak, sweet corn and salad.  Chloe adapted to camp life easily.  She was off leash but stayed close.

Tuesday - A camp lay over day during which we watched the gorgeous lake change moods all day.  It went from calm and ethereal to textured by breezes. to 3D by afternoon winds. We had a nap in the afternoon and brats for supper.

Wednesday - We had scrambled eggs for breakfast and then prepped to go meet Kincaid on the channel.  We were both early but it worked out great.  Our pickup went good but it was tricky navigating.  When we arrived back at our campsite Rich made "camp" and I rested.  Supper was steak, salad and sweet corn again.  We spent the evening visiting. 

Thursday - Eggs and LOTS of coffee for breakfast.  Fishing was trolling and still fishing, but not a single bite.  Then we had a quick lunch and nap.  The wind came up so we stayed in camp for the evening.

Friday - Woke up at 6:15 and Chloe's head was laying on my head.  Went back to sleep until 8:00.
We tried fishing again and again but still no luck.We had a nice supper and good conversation.  We did some prep for tomorrow's departure.

Saturday - Up at 7:00 and had a nice morning.  We took our time packing and loading the boat.  We had trouble exiting through  the Sea Gull River channel.  We were stuck for an hour.  Finally Rich got out of the boat and we were able to get through the shallow spot.  Next time we will launch from the bay instead of the river. 

Geezer trip....7-17-19

On Wednesday the seventeenth Ruth and I paddled into lake one to establish a base camp for the others that are to arrive later in the week.  We had the same campsite we had last fall when a bear ate all our food. Even though it was in a bear resistant barrel  he knawed his way through it.   We had two blissful days of watching the lake and meterological phenomenon that is the show of a wilderness lake.   On friday elizabeth and perry paddled into camp.   It was a joyous reunion after not paddleing together for a year.  The yoders read books and so did ruth.   I took a nap.   Later that afernoon ruth and i fished and explored the Lotus garden....  it was beautiful to be out of camp for a while.    That evening Yoders prepared brats for supper. They were delicious.    on saturday we packed up and paddled out.

May 10-13, 2019, with the bill club.

We got an early start and were at our favorite campsite by 10:30 am.  We all got busy  hauling packs up from the beach and pitching tents and tarps.  Norm helped me with the tent and tarp while Doug and Ross pitched a huge tent.   Cooper and Larsen had a huge tent to pitch too.   Norm had his own tent up before anyone else. Everyone brought their own snacks for lunch.  I retired to my tent for a welcome rest after a busy morning.   Supper was provided by me..  I grilled steaks on a wood fire that mark provided.  The steaks for the 6 of us turned out perfect.   we also had sweet corn and salads. All good.   we rounded off the evening with cigars and wine.  I didn't have any wine but the cigars were delicious .   That night i woke up shivering.  So i bundled up and went back to sleep.   I think it got down to freezing. 

Slept till seven am and had a wonderful breakfast provided by Doug and Ross.   Scrambled eggs and bacon,   Later that morning Norm and I fished the bay to the west.  We trolled with a jig and a rapala. no luck though.   It was beautiful to be out on the water.  Cool and breezy with partly cloudy skies.  After lunch i took another nap.   the other guys fished all day but with no  luck.   For supper mark grilled brats.  I had a steak and salad.   It was another evening of stories around the campfire, and because i bundled up i slept warm all night.

Sunday was a repeat of Saturday except that cooper caught 3 lake trout.  Cooper roasted two of them over the campfire while wrapped in tin foil.  He took the third one home.   That evening coop and  i stayed up late talking around the campfire. It was a good evening.  Later that night i swore i hear a bear in camp twice.  I got out of my tent both times and saw and found nothing.     It didn't worry me because it was our last night.

Hoping to sleep till 7 or  8  i was disappointed to hear everyone moving about at five thirty.  Coop made pancakes and eggs and it was the start of a beautiful day.   I packed up and Norm helped me.   we launched with a photo session of us in our canoes.    I paddled the first 1/2 mile to only realize that i was exhausted from the short night.    Norm did 90% of the  paddling on the way out.   Again it was a beautiful morning.