The portage at Needle Falls showing old timbers used years ago for skidding motorboats. Now with more powerful engines rapids are often run instead of portaging. My blue barrels almost hidden in the grass on mid-right await carrying to the upper end of the 120 metre trail.
Well after sunrise the sun finally appears as a red-orange ball seen through dense smoke.
Canoe loaded at the upper end of the portage ready to head up the current of the narrows above Needle Falls, requiring strong steady paddle strokes to get to the lake above.
A pile of shed casings of recently hatched dragonfly nymphs at my breakfast stop.
Past the narrows west into Sandfly Lake proper where smoke is so dense I cannot see landmarks at any distance. Without more detailed maps I do not feel comfortable continuing, not to mention I am sure that I am facing worsening smoke from the Pinehouse fires to the west up the Churchill River that Jeanette mentioned. Thinking to slip across the north side I enter shallow waters surrounded by young bush and old fire burned skeletons of trees and realize going in that direction to turn west will not be a good option. Not to mention heading west into a very strong wind I will soon be windbound in that direction.
Late afternoon July 21 at camp 13 (back to old camp 12) the sky looks very ominous.
July 22 early morning, weather cleared, unfortunately with little rainfall. I paddle below Needle Falls and then to the far right side to try for walleye with no luck.
Returning to the left side of the falls where I caught pike previously at camp 12 I land another large pike for supper. Lucky to retrieve the fish because it is wrapped in line and water plants as it tries to escape. When pulling the fish in, right at shore its sharp teeth cut the line that was wrapped through the jaw. Now I have a big fish on a short 10 inches of line! Manage to quickly grab the wriggling fish and hang on. Would have been bad for the fish if it got away with the line, lure and leader in its mouth.
I previously used the existing fireplace at camp 12 with a favourable wind direction to avoid sparks damaging the tent. Now the conditions are not good so I create a smaller lower fireplace farther away, better anyway for using less firewood.
July 22 midday sky again looks quite ominous. Now I can see smoke billowing up in the distance to the east not a good sign. Smoke now coming from all directions!
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Summary:
Move on to Sandfly Lake but dense smoke with poor visibility, and facing the likelihood of becoming windbound, retreat to the camp just left. Not helping matters is only having the large scale map for the area that I never planned canoeing this year. A big fish on a short line; lucky for both me and the fish I manage to hang onto a pike that almost gets away after severing the line wrapped through its jaw. Play a talking game with a crow ... or the crow plays with me. Time for a bath, but I chicken out, the cool strong wind forces me to settle for fresh air bathing. This camp like most of the previous ones is too open, a fair weather site. Boots falling apart. Smoke billows up in the distance to the east, not a good sign; smoke now coming from all directions. Camp 13 is on the same spot as camp 12 after paddling a distance north and west on Sandfly Lake of six kilometres then back again for a total distance paddled of 12 kilometres, including the same 120 metre portage done twice. I think I have set a record for portaging everything over the same trail twice in opposite directions within a few hours.
July 21:
Waking up to the alarm at 03:30 it is still dark so reset it to 04:00. As it turns out it is darker because of heavy smoke, wearing mask right away. With fewer portage carries because of pre-portaging yesterday I get away in good time. Not far away on some bare rock I stop for breakfast. At the narrows into Sandfly Lake there is a strong current which takes some effort plus pushing off the bottom to pass through. From my journal: "With the dense smoke I cannot see very far, 500 metres at the most. Head north along shore thinking to cut across west but it is all low lying islands and reeds that themselves are islands in the shallows. When I turn north the blackflies are quite bothersome so don the head net. Everything has been burned in the last few years. Lone brown trees, many limbless, sit like sentinels of a ghost land. After canoeing about three kilometres I can see this isn't the best way to go, having to cut through large beds of tall reeds. Ground the canoe in one spot. Aie! Head back south the way I came. When I turn west to try again, it is into a very strong wind, still poor visibility. Only using 1:250,000 map so no detail like the 1:50,000 scale maps I usually use. At a minimum need to wear glasses when reading map. I only have the larger scale map which also covers the area first canoed because I never planned to head this way. Was hoping to find the ideal small island to set up camp ... hah! Not making any headway west, soon to be windbound in that direction. Can't see anything because of the smoke. Red ball of sun is two hands high when it just disappears in the smoke." Reluctantly I turn back to the portage thinking to continue downstream to the lunch spot of several days ago that had the only decent campsite found on a small island.
Having canoed about six kilometres, 12 total when including the paddle back, the smoke clears enough to see quite ominous dark clouds sure looking like rain. By noon I am back at the 120 metre portage. I think I have set a record for portaging everything over the same trail twice in opposite directions within a few hours. So now to top off having decided to give up heading any farther up the Churchill River, I decide to camp again at old camp 12 as it starts to lightly rain. My first thought had been to canoe to the falls to fish but with the rainfall set up camp right away after portaging. When I was paddling into the west wind, or since I turned back downwind the blackflies were okay. But once reaching camp they are bothersome again so start a small smoky fire to stand in to shoo the buggers from my clothing. Ironic that with the smoky conditions I start a smoky fire because of blackflies. After camp all set up I slip into the tent to lay out sleep gear and to eat lunch. All gear is stored, Tarp shelter up, canoe parked, water boiled. Soon it will be suppertime but beforehand I build a smaller lower fireplace farther from the tent so it will less likely be affected by sparks blown with the new wind direction. By bedtime, the high of 20°C, the sky has mostly cleared. Sadly we did not get much rain. Camp 13 is on the same spot as camp 12 after paddling a distance north and west on Sandfly Lake of six kilometres then back again for a total distance paddled of 12 kilometres, including the same 120 metre portage done twice.
July 22:
Arising at 05:15 the sky is clear but soon after the whole sky is very cloudy with dark clouds blown in from the west. Wearing two shirts against the cool wind, I try fishing from the canoe on the far side of the falls with no luck. Returning to the near side I catch a 29" pike in the usual spot. From my journal: "Give thanks for the fish. Lucky to retrieve it because is wrapped in line and water plants as it tries to escape. When pulling the fish in, right at shore its sharp teeth cut the line that was wrapped through the jaw. Now I have a big fish on a short 10 inches of line! Manage to quickly grab the wriggling fish and hang on. Would have been bad for the fish if it got away with the line, lure, leader and weeds wrapped in its mouth." With the strong west wind does not feel like bath weather today. It sure looks like rain, but then it looked like that yesterday with very little rainfall. From my journal: "A warming breakfast of fresh bannock and hot water under the Tarp shelter. Fish caught for supper. Camp up, firewood and kindling stored. Life is good! Play a game with a nearby crow ... or the crow plays with me. The crow gives the usual three calls, 'caw, caw, caw'. I respond with my poor imitation of three caws. It caws twice, so do I. Then it caws once, as do I. This goes on for three iterations. Neither crow or I know what the conversation means. The crow could be saying 'Crazy guy, doesn't even know how to talk correctly'!" 20°C, warmer than I thought with the cool wind. Updating journal and doing a puzzle I am falling asleep. By noon, 17°C very dark clouds still cover the sky. There is a suspicious cloud due east beyond the horizon, it sure looks like a fire plume. Carrying stones from shore I create a fireplace in front of the Tarp shelter. If it does rain the fireplace will be welcome. From my journal: "Midafternoon I doff clothes and walk to the lake with the intention of bathing. But when I get to the water my intention changes. So I have a fresh air 'bath' and my clothes get hung on the Tarp ropes to freshen. I examine my boots. They are falling apart! Aie! Seam at back of each is coming apart. Sure hope they last the season. No amount of duct tape is going to patch them." Supper of fish chowder and fireweed salad hits the spot. From my journal: "A bee crawls out of the stack of fireweed on my plate. I let it go rather than eat it. Wonder if anyone has been bitten inside their mouth by a bee? The sky remains ominous looking as it has for the past two days, sure looks like building up to a big rain. Rather be somewhere with more shelter in bush. Almost all my sites have been too open, fair weather sites." Hoping to move on tomorrow I prepack. As I go to bed terns over the lake near the falls are 'chir, chir, chiring' with their sharp high-pitched calls.