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Boundary Waters Quetico Forum Trip Reports Trip Report - ode to a portage yoke, oh how I missed thee... |
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08/13/2009 12:12PM
New Trip Report posted by bear bait
Trip Name: The Kawishiwi
Entry Point: 37
Click Here to View Trip Report
Trip Name: The Kawishiwi
Entry Point: 37
Click Here to View Trip Report
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08/14/2009 12:08AM
the portage yoke?
maybe i shouldn't say stolen, but i'm still pissed about it. since the canoe is a solo design you need a removable yoke, so after i made the portage from beaver to adams lake i removed the yoke and loaded the gear and was off to my camp on adams lake. when i arrived i noticed i had forgotten the yoke at the portage. it was late and the winds were picking up so i decided to wait until the morning to pick it up before i continued on to boulder and the 3 letter lakes. i got to the portage around 8am the next morning and it was gone. i thought for sure that if someone saw it they would just lay it off to the side like you see all the hats, fishing poles, and water bottles people forget. nope. gone. maybe it wasn't technically stolen from me, but who would think it wouldn't be missed and came back for. i mean it's a pretty essential peace of gear for the bwca. my canoe is light but like all canoes its awkward and painful to carry it any other way then on your shoulders. i rigged up my short spare paddle with some bungee dealees and wrapped my life jacket around it and it kinda worked. it dug into my neck and i kinked my back trying to compensate. my loop was over. i slowly made my way back by taking only 1 or 2 portages and then stopping for the night. fortunately i ran into some very simpathitic campers who helped me carry the canoe across a couple portages.
anyway, thank you all for your kind words for my trip report.
willy, i use a nikon d200 slr and nikon lenses; 80-400mm, 18-35mm, 50mm, 105mm macro. i also brought my old tripod with the 3rd section of the legs removed.
maybe i shouldn't say stolen, but i'm still pissed about it. since the canoe is a solo design you need a removable yoke, so after i made the portage from beaver to adams lake i removed the yoke and loaded the gear and was off to my camp on adams lake. when i arrived i noticed i had forgotten the yoke at the portage. it was late and the winds were picking up so i decided to wait until the morning to pick it up before i continued on to boulder and the 3 letter lakes. i got to the portage around 8am the next morning and it was gone. i thought for sure that if someone saw it they would just lay it off to the side like you see all the hats, fishing poles, and water bottles people forget. nope. gone. maybe it wasn't technically stolen from me, but who would think it wouldn't be missed and came back for. i mean it's a pretty essential peace of gear for the bwca. my canoe is light but like all canoes its awkward and painful to carry it any other way then on your shoulders. i rigged up my short spare paddle with some bungee dealees and wrapped my life jacket around it and it kinda worked. it dug into my neck and i kinked my back trying to compensate. my loop was over. i slowly made my way back by taking only 1 or 2 portages and then stopping for the night. fortunately i ran into some very simpathitic campers who helped me carry the canoe across a couple portages.
anyway, thank you all for your kind words for my trip report.
willy, i use a nikon d200 slr and nikon lenses; 80-400mm, 18-35mm, 50mm, 105mm macro. i also brought my old tripod with the 3rd section of the legs removed.
08/14/2009 10:24AM
Great pictures but 17 pounds or 15% of your total wieght (yes, I'm an accountant) was in camera gear. Not sure I would be willing to pack that much even if I could come anywhere close to your quality.
On my Merlin I use a cheap set of Menards Tool Shop ratcheting clamps to attach my yoke. They are tied to the yoke with about a foot of string to keep them from getting lost. When I remove my yoke, I immediately clamp one of them to the front thwart to keep it from getting left behind or getting separated from the canoe if I swamp.
On my Merlin I use a cheap set of Menards Tool Shop ratcheting clamps to attach my yoke. They are tied to the yoke with about a foot of string to keep them from getting lost. When I remove my yoke, I immediately clamp one of them to the front thwart to keep it from getting left behind or getting separated from the canoe if I swamp.
08/14/2009 11:39AM
jdevries,
if you think about it, 15% of weight in equipment you use 75% of the time your up there is pretty good. if i'm not eating, sleeping or pooping i'm out taking or looking for pictures. whereas my tent, sleeping bag, mat, pillow and long underwear are probably around the same weight and i only use those 6 maybe 7 hours a day:)
if you think about it, 15% of weight in equipment you use 75% of the time your up there is pretty good. if i'm not eating, sleeping or pooping i'm out taking or looking for pictures. whereas my tent, sleeping bag, mat, pillow and long underwear are probably around the same weight and i only use those 6 maybe 7 hours a day:)
08/14/2009 10:54PM
Lots of great pictures! I'm sorry to hear about the yoke. It's an odd thing for someone to take. Maybe they meant well but were confused? Who knows.
When I first started to go to the Quetico area in the mid-70s when I was 10, we carried Grumman canoes with two paddles wedged in the thwarts to create a flat surface to sit on your shoulders. I couldn't carry a Grumman like that at age 10, but I could a couple years later. When I saw a proper portage yoke a year to two after that, I thought it was cheating. Now there are nice thick pads etc. Obviously, you need something (two things, really) so that the canoe can sit evenly on both shoulders, but your report got me thinking about how we used to do that with just our paddles. Were we smart, or just dumb?
When I first started to go to the Quetico area in the mid-70s when I was 10, we carried Grumman canoes with two paddles wedged in the thwarts to create a flat surface to sit on your shoulders. I couldn't carry a Grumman like that at age 10, but I could a couple years later. When I saw a proper portage yoke a year to two after that, I thought it was cheating. Now there are nice thick pads etc. Obviously, you need something (two things, really) so that the canoe can sit evenly on both shoulders, but your report got me thinking about how we used to do that with just our paddles. Were we smart, or just dumb?
08/16/2009 09:29PM
Very, very fine pictures.
Sorry about the yoke - strange that. Like Ho Ho I've carried 100# Grummen canoes with no yokes - just jammed paddles and a life jacket, no fun at all.
Sorry about the yoke - strange that. Like Ho Ho I've carried 100# Grummen canoes with no yokes - just jammed paddles and a life jacket, no fun at all.
"You're not serious about wearing sandals on this portage.... are you?"
08/17/2009 05:37PM
Stunning photos!! Bummer about the portage yoke :-(
THE EDGE, there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over. - Hunter S. Thompson
11/22/2009 10:56AM
thanks
rafa, i bought a new toy before the trip - garmin 60csx, or as i call it, the stat tracker. i'd turn it on when i left in the morning and then write down the info as soon as i got to the next camp each day. yes, it does include the portages.
rafa, i bought a new toy before the trip - garmin 60csx, or as i call it, the stat tracker. i'd turn it on when i left in the morning and then write down the info as soon as i got to the next camp each day. yes, it does include the portages.
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