Brian F. Allen

Grand Marais

Dragonfly resting at the outfitter
Unpacking from the cars and packing the Duluth bags at the outfitter's
Scott starting to pack his personal dry bag
Rob contemplating the many puzzles to come
First order of the while still in civilization: hats
And a close second: sunscreen
Duluth bags packed; final prep before getting out on the water
Hauling all the gear to the outfitter's landing
The anticipation wedges open the first cracks in our sanity
Gooch measures up the provided canoes: will these suffice for the adventure ahead?
Ben demonstrates lifting the canoe onto his shoulder
First canoe in the water
A short paddle across Round Lake
And into a bit of a traffic jam...
A scouting sortie to see if there's a navigable route from Edith Lake to Brant Lake this way
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Chad points out that maybe this isn't the right way after all...
And back the way we came...
Chad: lord over these lands
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Almost back to Edith Lake, we settle on doing the portage
Puzzle materials were passed between canoes carefully
At last! Entry to the BWCA
A loon
Emerging into Bat Lake after a short portage from Green Lake
Scoot communes with a tiny amphibian
Back on the water of Bat Lake
Setting up camp after a long paddle across Gillis Lake
Rob hides in his tent from the sun, mosquitos and camp-buzz to work on a puzzle
Scott works on one of the jigsaw puzzles at camp
The camp site on Gillis Lake
Chad and Scott contemplate a puzzle
Sore feet are rested while pondering the meaining of the incomplete jigsaw
Fishing for dinner, and puzzle points!
One of the puzzles reveal a map of some sort
Leading finally to a particular spot in a particular tree.
That shows the frame of the next one...
Each has a missing piece...
The jigsaw puzzles seem to be taken in the BWCA
Rob and Scott consider the possibilities
If this is Little Saganaga Lake, the big version must be gigantic
Evening approaches, but the solutions are more reluctant
Tim taking Anna's picture in the light of the sunset
Tim and Anna in the fading light
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Ben evaluates the craftsmanship of the chess set made of found objects and the board made of charcoal markings
Can a game really be played this way?
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Anna and the aftermath of victory
Photo from 2021 Boundary Waters
Scoot ponders the new puzzle: a star map, but no stars we've seen before...
Rob finds that it's not a star map, but a map of campsites!
Scott admires the trophy carabiners from the day's successes
Ben counts out the prizes on the Tuscarora Lake campsite
Close to the end now, so close to an entrance. Day-campers fill the availlable campsites. We race the oncoming darkness to find a last campsite, dividing the canoes to search separately. What could possibly go wrong?