Part one is here.
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...-13-to-8-17-14
And here's Part Two.
We expected that crossing the Brandreth private land would be the highlight of the trip but it turned out to a bit anti-climactic. It appears Brandreth owns most, or at least some, of Mud Pond, as well as a section of the Shingle Shanty Brook. However, the paddle through the Brandreth land was not much different than the rest of the traverse. It did beat the heck out of doing another 8/10 of a mile portage, of that much I'm sure!
If we had known the portage from Little Salmon Lake to Lillypad Pond was so inconsequential, that the paddle to the Brandreth waterfall wasn't all that tough, that the portage around the waterfall was a breeze, and that the Shingle Shanty Brook can be done in less than two hours, we would have been at Lake Lila the day before. However, we were being cautious.
It's a good thing we were, 'cause Buck Island on Lake Lila would not have been available if we had arrived the day before (I know, 'cause I threw a piece of athletic tape in the fire pit and it immediately caught on fire - the previous occupant had obviously left not long before and didn't extinguish the fire). It's the best island (and the best campsite) for hammocks, with beautiful views no matter which way you turn.
Gmarc and the boys paddled back to the cars, drove into town and got burgers, hot dogs and fixins. They also grabbed some cold adult beverages. We had a fine feast on our last night.
After looking at the map some more, I believe the Little Tupper to Lake Lila traverse may actually be 18 to 22 miles. We were prepared for a much harder trip, and while it was plenty hard, it wasn't that tough. While we all consider ourselves to be amateur canoeists (though some of us have been canoeing for 40 years), we expected something much more difficult than the trip turned out to be.
At the start of the 1.75 mile portage, I know we all had doubts about our ability to finish the trip. I was carrying the solo Pack canoe, and had a hard time figuring out how to carry it. Eventually, I found a way to comfortably rest it on the top of my pack. It was all downhill from there once we kicked that 1.75 mile portage's butt.
Looking forward to another epic trip next year!
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