05:55, 06:36, 06:55 August 20, smoke in the air high on the horizon. Facing away from the sun I sit to eat breakfast, a welcome meal before leaving camp 12 after no supper last night.
Pools of water on the rock shore indicate recent rain.
08:33, looking back at camp 12 island.
Heading north down the lake past gulls on the surface. Soon after, three pelicans fly over and land with the gulls. It is probably a good fishing area. I know that gulls follow pelicans with the hope of stealing fish; perhaps pelicans take advantage of a gull fishing spot too. Or maybe gulls were just waiting for the pelicans to land at a favourite location.
09:41, approaching the channel between two islands, the larger on the right is where I will set up camp 13.
09:55, the shore below north-facing campsite 13 through the opening in the centre of the photo.
10:09 August 20, finally landing at yesterday's ultimate target that I was not prepared to paddle another five km to reach against a still strong wind.
Early morning August 22, wildfire burned spruce needles carried on the west wind litter the tent and lake surface. The prior evening there was an ominous weird looking sky, very dark with smoke and cloud, overlaid with a glow, like the sky on fire, probably projected flames from fires in the west. It prompted me to start singing John Denver's 'Fire and Rain ... I've seen fire and I've seen rain'.
Scat on shore at camp illustrates that bears swim to islands even this one several km from mainland.
Double-crested cormorants swim past camp, just after wondering why I have not seen any yet.
August 20, smoke colours the clouds high above.
August 21 and August 22, thick smoke daylong both days.
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Summary:
Move on five km to camp 13. Another demonstration of the low water level, the campsite quite a ways up the rock slope. Hot and sweaty a bath feels good but slip and fall luckily only with a minor scrape. Sky very dark with smoke at different levels different days. Temperature rises to a very hot 34°C that makes me feel poorly. Welcome rain accompanied by thunder and lightning the first two evenings does not help the smoke situation carried from the west. A tough long challenge to catch pike in the low water levels. The water level, the smoke, the heat ... fun ... not! Ominous weird looking sky, very dark with smoke and cloud, overlaid with a glow, like the sky on fire, probably projected flames from fires in the west; the next morning fallen charred spruce needles on tent and lake surface make me wonder if the fire has advanced closer. Undecided whether to continue on to the Churchill River or return to the waterfalls at camp 10, I will let the wind direction tomorrow decide for me.
August 20:
On arising at camp 12 I am greeted by an otter just off shore, the second day in a row. Canoe loaded, I sit at shore to eat breakfast extra hungry after no supper last night. A light tailwind helps cover the five km to camp 13 in good time, arriving at 10:10. It is a short distance but I was definitely glad to stop last evening when I did. No surprise, the lake surface is low and quite a ways from camp up the exposed rock. I have to fetch two heavy rocks to tie the canoe along shore while I unload. All gear up at camp I erect the tent and lay out sleep gear. There is no safe place for a fire above shore so the fireplace must be situated at the top of the rock slope. I haul some stones to support the fireplace grill and to protect against wind. Temperature must be above 30°C, hot and sweaty I have a bath before lunch. Not realizing how slippery the sloping rock underwater is where I bathe, I fall, luckily only with a minor scrape on one forearm. Next time I bend down and touch the base rock for support as I enter the water. I did look for a safer spot but most places are too steep, one step and I would be in deep water and have to swim. My sweat-soaked clothes hang on clothesline to dry, including rinsed shirt and undershorts. There is a levelish spot beside the fireplace for the chair where I sit unclothed fortunately not bothered much by bugs. All day the sky is very dark with smoke up high. A moderate east or southeast wind feels good against bare skin. From my journal: "On a regular non-fire day I'd be thinking about rain and taking cover it's so dark. I chant 'Come on rain, come on rain'." Dressed again I set up the Tarp shelter, having to stand on the Kitchen barrel at both upper ends to position the support rope high enough to stand beneath. At 18:30 temperature is down to 27°C and I am back to sitting with no clothes on after having another refreshing bath. I have been drinking lots of water all day; one disadvantage of drinking so often using the LifeStraw® is that my lips are getting sore from sucking. In bed by 21:00 I sleep unclothed a long time, a level bed for a change. Soon after dark there is a lightning storm for several hours taking a long time to move east. Hopefully no new fires, but it is sure good to have rain.
August 21:
Up by 05:30 I load the canoe with the usual gear for fishing. After paddling to the point about 100 metres from camp I land the canoe to fish from shore. I could have walked there but did not feel comfortable leaving Kitchen barrel and other gear to be out of sight of camp. After much casting from multiple places I finally catch a 19" pike. With such low water fishing is a real chore. Not thinking I would be canoeing past the point I did not bring a tarp and ropes or place moss for fish. I gather some long grass to lay in the canoe for fish, something I should do more often rather than use moss; leafy alder or birch branches work well too. Still humid from last night's storm, mosquitoes and black flies have been bothersome since arising. Trolling as I paddle only to get hung up on something solid, I lose another leader and lure, my fourth! Landing at a small isle I fillet the fish and attach a new lure. Finding a patch of shade I eat a late breakfast, although not very hungry because it is so hot. I use the small saw on the multitool to cut a few spruce branches to sit on. Back in the canoe I try casting along shore until I get to the end of the small isle where I land a 22" pike where the current swirls past into the channel between this isle and another. I vow to probably start fishing here tomorrow but for today I have enough for supper chowder. It has been a long morning fishing. Lunchtime already but I am not hungry in this heat and smoke. Back at camp I hang up all my clothes and bedding while I bathe.
From my journal: "Midafternoon temperature 34°C, hot, hot, hot. Aie! Almost dead calm. Sitting unclothed damn small flies are biting low, ankles and unmentionables, so I get fly swatter to shoo them away. No lunch, hope I'm hungry for supper. Keep falling asleep. Much harder fishing with water so low. The water level, the smoke, the heat ... fun ... not! Tempted to turn back. Sisipuk Lake so much lower than water bodies before it. But I'm interested in what Churchill River is like. With probable low water I should be able to get up the river to do what the long portage was going to. If I can't get walleye at several rapids in the river then truly Sisipuk not the place to be!"
At 16:30 I am sitting beside the fireplace, undressed except for boots, when the sky really darkens and the first thunder booms. Luckily I have already taken bedding from the clothesline to the tent. I start water to boil in two pots. Then I carry the Kitchen barrel to the tent front vestibule, its usual resting place for the night. After dressing I take all my gear to the Tarp shelter; the chair comes in handy to carry it all. Water boiling quickly, cubed pike cooked, I make chowder and take to the shelter. Before it starts to rain in earnest at 17:00 I am sitting under the shelter. Definitely hungry now after no lunch the chowder goes down well. It gets so dark with storm clouds that I cannot see to write. From my journal: "Thunder, lightning, rain. Ominous weird looking sky, very dark with smoke and cloud, overlaid with a glow, like the sky on fire. Start singing John Denver's 'Fire and Rain ... I've seen fire and I've seen rain'. I sit back to watch the lightning show accompanied by a symphony of thunder." If outside I would be soaked in seconds. There is just a light breeze but it has definitely cooled down from 34°C. At 18:50 the rain stops, thundering way off to the east, sky brightening enough as clouds pass to now be able to see well enough to write again. From my journal: "Certainly did not feel good when it was so hot. Knew I had to eat but just wasn't hungry. Thunderstorm happened at just the right time." Bugs have disappeared hiding from the rain. A squirrel nearby is chattering about the passing storm perhaps glad it is over. At 19:00, 19°C, darker than usual, I can still hear thunder rumbling even farther away in the east. Now there seems to be a breeze from the east. Safe now to pack up and head to the tent, I am in bed by 20:30. Now still hungry, I eat two protein bars, one from lunch and the other for supper, washed down with water from the canteen. Before laying down I floss again and chew gum instead of brushing. Feeling much better I sleep well.
August 22:
As soon as I exit the tent in the morning I can smell smoke and see that the tent is littered with burned spruce needles. Aie! At shore the lake surface is full of a layer of the charred needles. I now realize the red glow in the western sky seen yesterday late afternoon and in the evening was of projected flames from the fires to the west. The 'sky on fire' preceded all the ash and burned spruce needles carried on the west wind last night. Perhaps the wildfire is closer than I thought. It is smoky, sun not visible and stays that way all day. I was optimistic about going to the Churchill River but now not so sure. Camp 13 is 21 km from an island campsite just up the Churchill above Sisipuk Lake; it is also the same distance to return to the waterfalls of previous camp 10. Fresh bannock for breakfast is accompanied by the remainder of yesterday's lunch and hot water to drink, the first time in the trip. 19°C, there is a light cool north wind. From my journal: "I have a notion now to turn back." Midmorning still no clearer or brighter I sit under the Tarp shelter wearing heavy shirt over light. Like many campsites I cannot have a fire in front of the shelter because of moss and humus ground cover. Just after thinking 'Haven't seen any cormorants yet' a group of about 30 swim past right beside shore; one gives a 'cronk' but they do not panic and I am able to get a photo before they disappear around the point. To make sitting under the shelter more comfortable I have cut a bunch of spruce boughs. Now there are spiders of all sizes crawling over me; they will move to other of the many trees nearby. One problem with a bough mat table is that if I drop anything small it falls through the branches and can be hard to find; but its comfort is worth it. The sky at lunchtime remains smoky, dark and no sun. From my journal: "Still haven't made up my mind which direction to go." Sitting for a bit by the fireplace, I see a sleek dark mink swim by near shore, momentarily popping up to see me, then diving to disappear. In a few minutes the mink returns going the opposite direction but across the sloping rock shore; I make a kissing sound and it freezes to stare directly at me, then runs and dives into the lake. Out of the water its brown fur appears a beautiful sleek black wet from the water. I find myself prepacking but still do not know if returning south or moving ahead to the Churchill. From my journal: "Will let the wind decide for me tomorrow morning." As in many campsites I decide where I would erect the canvas Tent and find a source of soil or sand to insulate the stove from the ground. Here I would place the Tent where the nylon tent is; the closest soil is about 100 metres away to the east in a small bay. While updating my journal and doing some puzzles a crow startles me by diving at speed through camp right at eye level. Bedtime sky is still smoky with no sun. No need for the bedsheet tonight, I wear pajamas right away.