Isle Royale - Day 20

Key statistics:
Total miles hiked: 113.7
Total miles paddled: 4.6
Total moose seen: 14
​Total foxes seen: 4
Total days with no cell service: 19

​Today was a light hike and fortunately and the weather had returned to a more expected cooler temperature. We packed up from Daisy Farm and began the flat, sloggy, muddy section. While not a difficulty section, it can be a frustrating section at times. The fun part of today was recreating a picture that we took between father and son six years before when our son was 8.

] looked for the same spot jutting out into Rock Harbor close to 3 Mile campground and staged them in the same positions. This picture has been one of our son’s favorite up in his room, so it was enjoyable to see him almost eye to eye with his dad now, still hiking with us.

Getting to camp earlier allowed us to spend some quality time together hanging out on the dock and doing small camp chores. Our son single-handedly  attempted to fill in Lake Superior with small rocks, and spent his afternoon lakeside. The adults lounged and relaxed in the cool breeze, letting the stress of work fade away. The previous two weeks had been about hard miles, and now it was just about enjoying time together and sharing in one of our favorite places. The best part of the evening was watching the aggressive squirrel edge closer and closer to our table and then run back to his giddy hole in an old log. His oversized round eyes peered at us in Disney princess fashion, but then just as he was adorable and cute, he would turn on a dime and chide us with his rattlesnake-like chatter and dart away. It was his loud chatter that woke us up the next morning like an annoying alarm clock.

​This week is all about enjoying company and short hikes to accommodate our slowest hikers and simply enjoy the details of the island. 

Rockhopper and I at this same spot 6 years prior, Isle Royale

One of Three miles resident red squirrels, Isle Royale