Daily Trip Log Reports

July 31: day 20
Relatively short day paddling. The morning looked bad, so we thought we'd be windbound, but then it got a little calmer and we decided to give it a try. We rounded Wolverine Point with no problem, which is the part of our paddle which caused us the most concern because it's shallow for almost 2 kilometers from shore.

The winds pick up in the afternoon again and we called a halt earlier than we wanted, but it turned out to be a bonus. The campsite we had looked like something from a beach scene in BC. Lush forest extended right down to a beautiful beach which continued on until it hit crystal clear water.

The kids spent hours playing in the calm pools while we were busy with chores. Since we pulled out early, there was time for some baking. Fresh bread was on the agenda and it didn't last long after it came out of the reflector oven.

August 1: day 21

We know we have another day of shallow water, so we get out of the tents early. Everything is packed up in no time at all and we're underway not long after the sun crests the horizon. As we near the mouth of the McFarlane River, the sand extends a long way out from shore. We try to avoid some of the rougher off shore water and paddle inside some of the sand shoals, but that ends up turning into more of a hike as we have to wade frequent shallow spots. The kids turn it into a game and have races to see who can go the fastest or make the biggest waves.

  The McFarlane is fairly close to civilization and the shores show signs of garbage. We paddle the strong current until we reach the lake we think will be the end of our journey. It is a major disappointment. We had hoped to do some hiking and exploring as well as some relaxing before the plane picks us up, but we're concerned that there might not be enough water in the lake for the float plane.

If our pilot Chris from Mikisew Air in La Loche is checking the web site as he said he might, I'd greatly appreciate it if he could send us an Email letting us know his thoughts. Can the Beaver get all of us and gear out of the unnamed lake on the McFarlane? If not, we may have to go back downstream and portage our gear into Yakow Lake.

There was one bright spot though, as we watched across the water, three wolves came down to different areas of the lake. I did some photography and then we all tried to do a wolf howl. Much to our delight we got back answers from a large pack on our right and two individuals in different areas of the lake. It was a great end to the day!