Start: Kadunce River Campsite
End: 270 Degree Overlook – Northern Terminus
Day 16-17 mileage: 39 miles
Total mileage: 260 miles (the end!!)
The next day was glorious. I didn’t have to wear four layers of clothing. The sun even came out for a bit! The 1.5 mile walk by the lake was amazing.
The winds were up and the waves crashed into the pebble beach. When the water absorbed through the pebbles, it made the sound of those crackling fireworks enjoyed on the 4th of July. The ones that are white and make a rainy, crackling sound on the way down. I really felt like I was on an adventure in this section. It was a special morning.
Judge C.R. Magney state park was another highlight. Not only did they have toilets and trash cans (I’m easily amused these days), but Devil’s Kettle Falls was one of the coolest waterfalls I’ve ever seen. It looked like the water was being sucked into an underworld.
I was planning to camp at South Carlson pond. A southbound section hiker I met after Magney told me that was where she spent the night and it took her a long time to make it to Magney. She raised her eyebrows about my making it that far and assured me there was one campsite (Hazel) before South Carlson, so if I couldn’t make it that far, I could camp there. I told her I had already hiked 12 miles that day and it shouldn’t be a problem. She reminded me that Hazel campsite was closer.
I spent the next couple hours of hiking reflecting on the fact that few people seem to have confidence that I can make it as far as I say I’m going to. Everyone has their own perspective, their own experiences that play into their expectations for everyone else. I decide to set an intention to NOT do this.
Needless to say, I am making good time to South Carlson. Two miles before the campsite, I began to hear what I’m pretty sure were wolves yipping and howling. They didn’t sound too far away and they didn’t sound happy. I started booking it to the campsite. There was a big climb and once I made it over, I couldn’t hear the wolves very well. Once I got even further, I couldn’t hear them at all. I made it to the campsite. No one else was there. Of course, I started to hear wolves again and freaked out. In my paranoid state, I was convinced I was being followed by a pack on the hunt.
I looked at the guidebook to see how far the next campsite was, 2.3 miles. The next campsite was also about a half mile from a road and a parking area. The thought process that followed consisted of two parts: A) I believe wolves to be rather elusive, so they don’t want to be by a road or parking area and B) Close proximity to a parking area may mean there are people camped nearby. If I booked it, I could get to North Carlson campsite a little before dark. I prayed there would be people there and started my mad dash to the next site. I was getting pretty close and what do I hear? Not wolves, but human voices! There were two men camped there, Tim and Pat. They are friends who started at the Northern terminus today. One is going 40 miles, the other to Duluth. I was so happy not to be camping alone. On this trip, there have only been two nights where I’ve been completely alone, although most of the hiking has been alone. One of my goals on this trip was to get over my fear of sleeping in the woods by myself. I’m not entirely sure that fear has been conquered… The next day I planned to finish. It was something like 17 miles to the terminus and then to my car.
It rained all night. I packed up a soaking wet tent, meeting the criteria of a legitimate backpacking trip of packing up two soaking wet tents. Pat warned me that the next few miles were boggy, but that turned out to be a bit of an exaggeration. I passed by some beaver ponds, a common theme on this trail. I also made it to the highest elevation of the trail (1,829 ft). This point was in the woods, with no views. It even mentions this in the guidebook, saying there is no viewpoint from the highest point on the trail, a fact that made me chuckle when I read it. I began to reflect on finishing, feeling excited about accomplishing a goal, but also sad about the trip being over soon. This is a common feeling I have on long trails (except the Camino del Norte, which was absolutely awful and wasn’t over soon enough. Read about it here). I heard gunshots occasionally and was happy I bought an orange blaze vest in Grand Marais that I draped over my pack. I made it to the Northern Terminus (the 270 degree overlook) at about 4pm. The view was amazing and I spent some time soaking in the silence at the peak, something I would be missing as soon as I drove away.
I signed the trail registrar, but it was pretty soggy, so I’m guessing few will read it.
There was also a trailhead nearby, as the 270 overlook was at the beginning of the Border Route Trail, a hiking trail through the Boundary Waters. My mind was already churning over ideas for the next hike. I hiked to my car, which Domonick and I had dropped off about 10 days previously.
I drove to Grand Marais, enjoying a veggie burger at the Bluewater Grill again (Tuesday was 50% off burger day, hooray!). I had already decided to sleep in my car at one of the trailheads. I was too exhausted to get a room and take a shower and all that stuff, plus the cheapest rooms in that area are $150 and not very nice. I picked a trailhead with an outhouse, which I was thankful for in the morning. It also rained all night and was generally freezing. I was happy to be in an enclosed space not running away from wolves =)
Stay tuned for one more post with my final reflections of the SHT!