When we reached the narrow stream leading into Glee Lake, it was frozen. Amy took the canoe off her shoulders and set it down on the ice-covered channel. As we loaded our packs into the canoe, their weight caused the ice to break. The ice was half an inch thick and we used our canoe like and ice-breaker as we paddled and pushed our way down the narrow channel. We laughed at the novelty of canoeing through the ice.
When we reached the main body of Glee Lake, we were surprised to see the ice stretch on across the lake. The ice slowed our progress, but we were able to break through with our paddles and pull the canoe forward. The novelty quickly wore off and we maneuvered through the ice on 3 more small lakes before reaching French Lake. French, Peter, and Gabimichigami are all very deep lakes. Ice typically forms first on the small, shallow lakes because the water cools more quickly on the small lakes.
Dabbling with ice-paddling reminded us that the lakes are likely to start freezing soon. In fact, the temperature dropped overnight. We anticipate the temperature will stay below freezing for the next week and with any luck the lakes will start to freeze for good.
We have returned to Knife Lake, where we are planning to wait for the lakes to freeze. Yesterday, we spent several hours gathering firewood from an area that burned in a forest fire several years ago. The area has many dead, down trees that have been drying in the sun for 3 years now. We loaded our canoe with a dozen 6-foot long logs, which we paddled back to our campsite.
A cold northwest wind is gusting to 40 miles an hour, whipping Knife Lake into a froth. It feels good to be warm and cozy in our @seekoutside Tipi with an ample supply of dry firewood.
Please help us protect the Boundary Waters from the sulfide-ore mines being proposed along the border of our nation’s most visited Wilderness. Follow @savetheBWCA and help spread the word about this important issue. #wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #ice #BWCA #onlyinMN #boundarywaters #canoe #minnesota
When we reached the main body of Glee Lake, we were surprised to see the ice stretch on across the lake. The ice slowed our progress, but we were able to break through with our paddles and pull the canoe forward. The novelty quickly wore off and we maneuvered through the ice on 3 more small lakes before reaching French Lake. French, Peter, and Gabimichigami are all very deep lakes. Ice typically forms first on the small, shallow lakes because the water cools more quickly on the small lakes.
Dabbling with ice-paddling reminded us that the lakes are likely to start freezing soon. In fact, the temperature dropped overnight. We anticipate the temperature will stay below freezing for the next week and with any luck the lakes will start to freeze for good.
We have returned to Knife Lake, where we are planning to wait for the lakes to freeze. Yesterday, we spent several hours gathering firewood from an area that burned in a forest fire several years ago. The area has many dead, down trees that have been drying in the sun for 3 years now. We loaded our canoe with a dozen 6-foot long logs, which we paddled back to our campsite.
A cold northwest wind is gusting to 40 miles an hour, whipping Knife Lake into a froth. It feels good to be warm and cozy in our @seekoutside Tipi with an ample supply of dry firewood.
Please help us protect the Boundary Waters from the sulfide-ore mines being proposed along the border of our nation’s most visited Wilderness. Follow @savetheBWCA and help spread the word about this important issue. #wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #ice #BWCA #onlyinMN #boundarywaters #canoe #minnesota
