Monday, August 12, 2019 Stew commented that we should have planned this trip to have 1 day of bushwhacking, 1 day of rest. But alas, onward we had to push. Portaged to Din was quick...less than 30 minutes. Waterway from Din to Mass was completely blocked with plants/trees but it was a quick lift over the rocky point.

Notes I had read before the trip mentioned portaging through the marshy area from Mass to Ell. We didn't feel that would have been the most logical route. We opted to make our way through the woods which are relatively open in that area. We checked out a number of start points before settling on a likely route. We used the same team work approach that had worked yesterday. Stew and Joey scouted a route, selecting good staging points along the way. Then I carried each canoe through with a pack carrier acting as a guide so I didn't miss any turns. The route was not muddy...there were slippery rocks and some weird holes in places and plenty of tight squeezes between trees with the canoes. The sound of gunwales squealing as dragged through the trees echoes through my brain.

Doing this type of portaging, you get really good at using every tool. I rarely had both hands resting on the canoe gunwales as I walked. Instead, my hands would reach out for trees to steady myself as I balanced on rocks or to pull myself up a big step up. I spent a lot of time clambering over downed logs that were waist high thinking how glad I was our canoes were both very well balanced.

After three legs of this bushwhack, we all walked to Ell to refill water bottles and have lunch. We had 2 more staging points planned, but then Joey left lunch early and brought the "beast" pack to the end in one stage. While he collapsed at the end to rest, Stew, Jose, and I went back for the canoes. I carried the heavier and wider canoe while Jose carried the yellow pack and Stew acted as my guide. I had my first dropped canoe for the trip just as we started out. Stepped wrong, canoe went on wrong side of a tree. When I took a step backward, the canoe slammed into the side of a tree and just got knocked right off my shoulders quick as could be. Fortunately no harm done. I got good at fancy footwork and at tilting the canoe sideways to fit through some spots but I made it to the end in a single stage.

It was a hot afternoon so I wetted my head buff and neckerchief and headed off for the other canoe. We had found by this point in the trip that my short, squat body was best suited for the canoe carrying. My husband had discovered that his hips weren't flexible enough to clamber over downed trees like I could and his height was a distinct disadvantage with all the low tree branches. Fortunately, carrying the canoe puts me in my happy place and I could do it all day long.

Since it was 4pm by the time we reached Ell Lake with all the gear and we were facing another unknown bushwhack to reach Iris, we decided to camp on Ell. Good choice, it started raining soon after we camped

Total time: 6 hours (5 bushwhacking, 1 paddling)

~Sora Lake, Din Lake, Mass Lake, Ell Lake