There are gulls on all the waterways. One or more often appear seemingly out of nowhere after I catch a fish. I marvel at how they will perch on an exposed boulder even in heavy rains and strong winds. It seems they do not need to eat a lot as I have seen them sit for an extended period of time.
It is interesting how a small island in the middle of a lake will have been burned by forest fire and one near it spared. I can imagine how many embers were being blown in the wind to reach the island.
Lunch break after canoeing all along one side of this lake searching for a portage. The topographical map provides clues as to where it might be. What creek valley or what land narrows could I possibly use to reach the next waterway? I stopped at several likely spots to investigate on foot. Finally I found an old portage at the end of a bay right up against a steep hill. With some missteps here and there, I walked the length of the trail to make sure it went where I wanted. There was no good lunch spot there so I canoed back across to an island where I would have a more open but shaded area with few bugs.
The portage trail started along the precipitous rock face and then up a steep hill, an elevation of over 50 metres. The slope was 60° in places. The 1020 metre trail only levelled 200 metres from the top end so it was a tough sweaty climb with a load. It only took one hour to clear the portage as it has been used sometime within the last few years. The trip up with a load took 25 minutes, twice that of the return walk. The only "good" thing about a portage is the empty hike back which provides a chance to cool off.
Camp 13, after travelling 11 km, including the 1020 metre portage, and an extra two km searching for a camp site. I stopped a few times before checking out a spot that was a somewhat open pine grove behind spruce, birch and alder along the lake shore. When there is so much steep rocky shore like most of this trip, I look for an area of level-topped trees behind the shoreline, pine if possible, to indicate a flat location. If the trees behind shore are progressively taller it is usually because the underlying ground rises, not the trees themselves. When I landed and searched for a campsite, it took me a while to find a good spot and lo and behold there was a decades old camp still containing some rotting plywood used for the floor of a canvas tent. Did someone overwinter? Was it a trapper? fisherman? hunter? Perhaps there are lake trout in this lake, which must be spring-fed as it is at the top of the hill. There was the remains of a makeshift dock in the lake nearby. I was able to dig a fire pit in the sandy soil. For the first time I used a new Genji™ "bug" tent to get away from the mosquitoes and horse flies. I was pleased that it worked so well, fitting under the tarp shelter for protection against rain. I used it for all three meals because the bugs were so bothersome.
Note the pike in the lake near shore. I caught a meal of pike, but never tried very hard for lake trout which tend to be deep in water in the summer.
To find the next portage I had to canoe to where the lake emptied down a steep slope. I dragged the empty canoe 30 metres over grass and brush past a boulder-filled narrows to reach the creek. I found an old portage opening on the lake shore near the creek. It took about one hour to clear the 870 metre trail, another very steep path, but at least this time I would be going downhill when loaded.
On the steepest part of the slope there was a very old rusted-out wood stove right beside the trail. Why did the person abandon it? Was it the fellow who had the "plywood" camp? Was he portaging gear and just decided the heck with this and dropped it?