I got back early this morning from a canoe trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA), in northern Minnesota. This was my 3rd trip up to the BWCA this year . The first trip was in early June, I was so sore and wet from sleeping on the ground that I had to try something different. That's how I found this site and hammocking. My next trip was in mid July and I did it comfortably in a WBBB hammock and a Claytor Diamond Fly(CDF). But last weeks trip was the best of the year and actually the best in recent memory.

My cousin and I drove up and stayed in a hotel south of Lutsen on Sunday night. We then got an early start up the Caribuo Trail to the Homer Lake entery point. After a 3 hour paddle and some short portages we were on Pipe Lake. It is a pretty lake with high piney ridges to the south and filled with a very active and large population of good sized small-mouthed bass. We caught atleast 14 bass 3lbs. or better and a few lunkers too between us as well as a good eating sized northern, that I caught, that we had for a dinner.

We had the nicest spot on the lake and we had the whole lake to ourselves from Monday until we came out on Thursday. It was the warmest and fairest weather of all of our trips this year. I slept with the bug net on my WBBB pulled back and my CDF only half way deployed, because there were NO BUGS or rain . It was a new moon on Saturday so it was very dark and it was lovely to go to sleep in the pitch black looking at stars that seemed close enough to touch. It is nice waking up in the morning and already being outside, I love hanging! Because of the clear nights we had a low in the high 30'sF but, I stayed warm in my WBBB with a thermarest pad in my pad pocket and a JRB Shenandoah quilt as a top quilt. I was also wearing wool socks, poly pro long johns, fleece shirt, fleece hat and fleece gloves, but I took my hat and gloves off each night because I got too warm.

Reluctantly, we had to come home yesterday but that was a trip I will remember always, for all the right reasons! I will poist some pics as soon as I get them out of my cousin's camera.

P.S. The colors are already turning so if you go up there for them you may want to go early this year because of it. The leaves are very colorful this year because of the dry weather.