Sunday, August 28, 2011

Interlude: The Boundary Waters

In early August, right before school started, we traveled to Minnesota and managed to spend three days in the Boundary Waters, a network of lakes, streams, and portages that stretches for hundreds of miles. From paddling on pristine waters to falling asleep to the sound of the loons, the trip offered a wonderful respite from working life. Even more enjoyable than the natural setting, however, was the chance to spend time with family. From games of balderdash at night (I think Juliana cheated) to games of canoe ultimate frisbee during the day (I'm not sure if Bruce cheated, but no one else could handle a canoe like that), the trip was packed with laughter. Not to mention Max's Olympic-quality leaping and Greg's superpower portaging. Can't wait until next year!

Juliana and Max navigate one of the many beaver dams that made our trip down Hog Creek...well...adventurous. We traveled on it for three miles before reaching Perent Lake.

Our campsite on the lake was perfectly situated for sunsets -- Betsy took this shot.

Betsy and Juliana bask in the glow of our "sunset rock," the little outcropping where we gathered each night to watch the sun drop into the lake.


Betsy and Juliana (not that I need to tell you who it is...) treated us to some morning canoe gymnastics.

Bruce and Greg warm up for canoe ultimate frisbee, which involved teams of one swimmer and one paddler.

Max and Greg found a great jumping rock, which Max took advantage of with spectacular leaps. Juliana's face might be the best part of this shot.





That night, we gathered on the rock once more for some balderdash.


As the sun was setting, the mosquitos would come out, but so would the horse flies. As we finished our game, a swarm of horse flies came out and hovered just above the rock, jabbing and diving at the mosquitos, keeping us relatively safe.

The next day we headed back to the rock, where Max and Bruce refined their technique.

On the way back up Hog Creek we saw these lillies.

This shot was taken after I grabbed the huge backpack that Greg was holding in one hand, and at the end of our journey. We'll surely be back...

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