We were excited to find that both Portage and Vera froze on Saturday night. We spent about an hour carefully poking along the shore of Vera Lake, testing the ice. A we found small patch of 3 inch thick ice on Vera. This area much have frozen several night earlier. Amy practiced crawling on her belly like a lizard to spread out her weight. (Do not try this at home! Amy actually did this in an area of thicker ice that also supported her weight while standing. Also, the water depth was just 1 to 2 feet, so even if she did break through, she would not have gone in very deep.) We were wearing our dry suits and staying very close to shore, so it was fun to play on the ice. Most of the lake surface was covered in less than 1 inch of ice. This ice would not hold our weight but we chopped a few holes from shore to measure the thickness.
It felt good to get out and explore after spending several days at our campsite. We always see more animals and interesting things when we are out paddling, portaging, and poking around in the Wilderness. We are excited to see that most of the lakes are finally freezing, but it is a little disconcerting to look at the long range forecast. The forecast calls for highs in the 30’s and lows in the 20’s for most of the next 10 days. These temperatures are about 15 degrees above average and it will likely take a long time for the ice to thicken.
Due to the unusually warm weather, we are especially thankful for all of the chocolate bars, baked good, honey, and other treats that people have sent in with our resupplies over the last few months. These extra treats have caused us to slowly build up a large surplus of food. Luckily we still have lots of food and we can wait until the ice thickens.
It felt good to get out and explore after spending several days at our campsite. We always see more animals and interesting things when we are out paddling, portaging, and poking around in the Wilderness. We are excited to see that most of the lakes are finally freezing, but it is a little disconcerting to look at the long range forecast. The forecast calls for highs in the 30’s and lows in the 20’s for most of the next 10 days. These temperatures are about 15 degrees above average and it will likely take a long time for the ice to thicken.
Due to the unusually warm weather, we are especially thankful for all of the chocolate bars, baked good, honey, and other treats that people have sent in with our resupplies over the last few months. These extra treats have caused us to slowly build up a large surplus of food. Luckily we still have lots of food and we can wait until the ice thickens.
Like most people Amy and I are used to schedules and set timelines. Out here our actions are dictated by the Wilderness that surrounds us. That can be frustrating at times, but most of the time it is a refreshing gentle reminder that we are part of something much larger.
#wildernessyear #BWCA #BoundaryWaters #savetheBWCA #ice #onlyinMN #fun #smile
