Tuesday, September 27, 2011

It appears it is setting up to be yet another glorious day. Aurora sleeps in her pea pod while Vickie & I begin to tear down and pack up. We set out to retrace our route back to the entry point. Thankfully it is a mostly uneventful, yet pleasant, journey back.

After loading up and changing into some dry socks and shoes, we head for The Boathouse in Ely for hot sandwiches and cold drinks. Later, we browse some of the downtown shops before heading back to my parents place for the night.

In the final analysis this trip did not provide the greatest fishing, best campsite, most solitude, stunning scenery or wildlife encounters. But, I can say with confidence, we still created lasting memories for a lifetime. For me as a parent, seeing Aurora enjoying herself in this setting is beyond description. Certainly there were bumps in the road along the way. But, none that came close to shaking our confidence in our approach. Aurora has proven to be a real trooper. I mean, how many people can honestly claim to have crossed a 2 mile portage before they were 3 months old? If I have to do some triple portaging for awhile? I feel it is a small sacrifice to make for a hopeful lifetime canoe tripping partner. Perhaps, one day in the not so distant future, Aurora will be taking us along on her trips? And changing our diapers & feeding us! Needless to say, we are looking forward to planning our trip for next spring.