Don't you see the trail? Mm-hm, that's what I mean.

Day 1
July 13, 2003
Today's miles: 10
Total miles: 10
Destination: Near Kekekabic trailhead

Well, we did hike about ten miles today ... but we're camped no more than half a mile from where we started! Our first day out and we get lost. Or at least, we thought we were lost. Everything seemed to be going pretty much according to the vague guidebook and somewhat better McKenzie map, but suddenly we found ourselves at the west end of a very big lake and nothing appeared to jive. So out came the compass, and we studied the map some more. We backtracked to a fork in the trail, and studied the map again. We took the other trail from the fork, came to a clear cut, didn't see any apparent treadway, and backtracked once again. We kept backtracking, over the beaver dam, past the old logging road and the powerline, and, six hours after we'd begun hiking, returned to where Doug had dropped us off just before noon. Where he'd dropped us off was not where we had expected to begin, as the trailhead has recently been relocated.

So here we are, camping at the edge of the powerline, the only clear spot we could find after re-starting from the trailhead. We just finished talking over the day and are convinced we know where we were when we turned back. I'd seen a powerboat on that big lake -- a boat Allen didn't see. It wasn't until we'd gotten most of the way back to the trailhead that I voiced a question that had crossed my mind earlier.

"Hey, Stumped, are there any roads that go to Disappointment Lake?"

There aren't. Which means that the motor boat I saw couldn't have been on Disappointment Lake, since there would be no reasonable way to get it there. Not to mention the fact that Disappointment Lake is inside the Boundary Waters wilderness area, where no motorized boats are permitted. So we must have been at Snowbank Lake and hadn't gone as far as we'd first thought. Then I realized, I'd been walking at what I know to be a two-mile per hour pace, but I'd continually stopped to wait for Allen, who was feeling a bit sluggish on this first day out. We'd also stopped for some calories, because neither of us had eaten since 7a.m.

With that lower mileage in mind, I looked at the Kek guidebook, which indicates that the trail comes to a fork leading north to a primitive campsite on Snowbank Lake. That fork isn't drawn on the map, just noted by the word FORK, which is a little tough to see amongst all of the topo lines and other features. Further up the trail, however, where we originally thought we were, there is a fork drawn on the map. Thinking that's where we were, the big lake we were at made no sense.

Soooo ... tomorrow morning we head back to the fork, take the trail to the right, which leads to the clear cut, and look for the trail on the other side of that jumbled mess. Since we won't yet be in the BWCA Wildnerness, we might find a blue blaze. Once inside the Boundary Waters, we'll have only what there is of a treadway and possibly some cairns and occasional blue flagging tape to lead the way. Allen is wishing he'd brought his GPS, but I'm optimistic that we'll do just fine with the map and compass, some common sense, and a bit more diligence when we get to a tricky spot.

One additional note: As we were waiting for Doug to pick us up at the SHTA office this morning, Allen and I ran into a young man who'd just finished thru-hiking the SHT in eleven days. Brad said he was going to return to a point along the trail and hike for another three days, until his ride back to Winnepeg, Canada would arrive to pick him up. Unfortunately, Brad had missed the SHT shuttle, but we told him he might be able to ride along with us, if Doug had enough room. (Oo, I hear a loon! Very cool.) Anyhoo, turns out that Brad and I had corresponded by e-mail only a few days before I'd left for Albuquerque! What a coincidence to run into each other out here. Brad had seen my journal on-line and wrote to ask if I had any tips to share about resupplying on the SHT, since he'd never done a backpacking trip that required buying food along the way. I never expected to see him, since Allen and I would be starting our hike on the Kek after Brad's start date on the SHT, and he'd be more than 100 trail miles ahead of us.

So anyway, Doug dropped Brad off en route to taking Allen and I first to Ely to get our BWCAW permit at the International Wolf Center, and then to the trailhead ... so we could hike ten miles and end up close to where we started. Oh well, I got some extra exercise. That's a good thing.

Allen has the alarm on his watch set for 5a.m., in hopes of getting on the trail at six. I'm sure I'll be awake before the watch beeps.

--Ramkitten