G.A.S.P.

(Great Adventures to Scenic Places)

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June 1, 1999

Click on thumbnail	On Tuesday morning, my bicycle and I boarded the Ranger III for a 6½ hour trip to Isle Royale. The first hour was in very calm waters (the lake channel I mentioned), but once we hit Lake Superior, it was quite rough. The Ranger III is a prettygood size vessel (about 160 feet as I recall), but she bounced up and down pretty well. There were a lot of 10 – 15 foot waves. Later at the lodge, when I was arranging to store my bike, one of my fellow travelers was renting a cabin for the night. He had spent a couple of hours lying down on the boat, and was not in any condition to head out on (in?) his kayak.
We arrived at Rock Harbor on Isle Royale mid-afternoon, and after storing my bike, I headed off to the second closest campground, three miles away. Park rules are that no one can stay two consecutive nights at Rock Harbor and I figured I needed to be right there Thursday morning to catch the boat to Minnesota. So off I went – hydration unit and lumbar pack on my back and two bundles in my arms containing my tent, sleeping bag, cooking gear, food and rainwear. This proved to be a very difficult way to hike on Isle Royale, as the trails are very rough – everything from tree roots to boardwalks over marshy areas to expanses of bare (and sometimes slippery) rock. But after an hour or so, I made it and was lucky enough to find room in one of the enclosed shelters that are only at the camps in and near Rock Harbor. Good thing too – it rained that night. I did carry the tent all that way for no good reason though.
Click on thumbnail	After dinner, I headed west along the lake on an evening walk in search of Mr. Moose. As I passed through the end of Three Mile Camp, something with a very bushy tail crossed the trail in front of me. I caught up with him on a section of rocky beach – Mr. Red Fox. Seems that Mr. Fox had been closely watching the dinner preparations of another camping couple, just circling and circling their shelter and picnic table waiting for an unguarded moment. He looked pretty well fed to me. I walked another two miles, down to a point across the water from the National Park Headquarters on the Island.
As I came back, nearing the end of a boardwalk section, I looked up just as two young (very brown) moose spotted me from about 100 feet ahead on the trail. They galloped down the trail and around a curve in about 2.3 seconds – before I could even say moose let alone get my camera out. I was disappointed about missing a photo, but had met objective number one – I saw a moose in the wild.