All Posts – Page 5 – Pick-up and a Pop-up

Canyons, Arches, and, Dead Horses?

Posted on July 3, 2021 by Matt Oliver

By Eli

(Note from Dad: The accuracy of this post is under review by experts)

The day started like any other. I was cozy in my sleeping bag too only hear the sweet sound of…WWII torture? That definitely wasn’t in the script. My dad awakened me with Dan Carlin’s HARDCORE history and the topic of Pacific Theater. After getting mortified we left Black Canyon Of The Gunnison to go to Dead Horse Point State Park in Utah. Wait, why is named that? The actual name comes from when settlers would run horses to edge of a cliff and then tame them. Or the horses jumped off and, and let’s just say the horses never got skydiving lessons; cue PETA. Anyway, we set up camp at Dead Horse Point State Park.

After that we decided to go to nearby Arches National Park for a sunset hike to Delicate Arch. There were SO many people there that we almost had enough to become a legal third political party. After the sun went down, we selected our candidates to run for president on behalf of the Archractins. (My vote was on the guy with hot rod and Hawaiian T-shirt). When the sun set we started to head back to the trail head with the Archractins, flashlights, and phone lights in hand. We had a heated discussion about who would win in a battle; Godzilla or Megatron from Transformers? Let me know in the comments who would win? Team ‘Zilla! We got back to our campsite to find the stars glimmering and wait what’s that? Where the star go? Dad what’s happening? Oh its going supernova, what’s that mean? WAIT WHAT THE STAR EXPLODED? GET TO COVER! *Slow mo dive into the camper open door and turn around to find my dad still sitting there* *In slow motion* *I reach out my hand gesturing to grab on to my hand but the giant explosion knocks me back* NOOOO!

After the radiation settled after 400 million years I used my Jedi-like powers and using the force to raise my dad from the dead and we went to Canyon Lands National Park. We waited in line about 60 million years and drove onto the Shafer trail which is a steep 4×4 trail. We started on the trail and saw a Jeep Trail Cat which is a really cool tricked out jeep with about 700 horsepower. I could go on and on about this jeep because it’s so cool and I just love it but I got to continue with the story, but you should look it up. Down the Shafer trail it was cliffs on either side and switch backs for miles. SLIP the truck hurtles to the canyon floor, but unlike the horses I HAD taken skydive lessons! I pull my dad out jump out of the car jump out of the car, and pull the parachute! *I turn my back on the car and there’s an epic explosion in the background and epic 80’s 90’s special agent soundtrack starts playing* No, sadly this never happened. What actually happened is that I saw the cliff and clung and slumped into my seat and started repenting and praying to God saying “Please let me survive the Shafer trail!” After having about 12 inner anxiety/heart attacks we got to the bottom of the canyon and had a great time 4 wheeling the Shafer trail only to realize snails were going faster than we were. By the time we would get to our destination, our graves would waiting there for us. So we decided to go on the Potash Road. It is called that because its next to a potash field and potash fields are fields salt that supply the demand of concrete- *someone in the crowd* “shut up NERD!” Anyway we followed the trail all the way into Moab.

Moab is a special little desert town but growing quickly because it is close to Dead Horse Point State Park, Canyonlands National Park, and Arches National Park. There we went into town and stopped at a frozen yogurt place which was a new experience for me. My Dad told me to fill up a cup with dairy free frozen yogurt which is a mistake, to put it lightly. After filling the cup so much and making so tall, I broke the frozen yogurt shop roof and took down a commercial airplane. After yogurt, we set off back toward Canyonlands to do a sunset hike to Aztec Butte, where we had a heated discussion about deer, headlights, the first jet planes, French resistance, bunny rabbits and 100’s of dollars, and snipers. Don’t ask. Then we went back to trailer, ate popcorn, looked at the stars and went to bed. That concludes our time in the area of Dead Horse Point State Park, thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

Overlook at Dead Horse Point State Park. The blue on the valley floor is the Potash evaporation pools. The La Sal mountains are in the distance.

Matt and Eli at Delicate Arch, viewed through Twisted Doughnut Arch

Gooseneck overlook off the white rim trail in Canyonlands

Potash evaporation ponds. The color is due to blue dye in the saline water.

Eli eating too much frozen yogurt in Moab.

Eli on Aztec Butte checking out the Green River at sunset.

Redemption at The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

Posted on June 29, 2021June 29, 2021 by Matt Oliver

A few years ago, our family visited the Black Canyon, carved by the Gunnison River. The walls are vertical, and the canyon is deep. Because it is so steep, most activates in the park are easy strolls to the edge of the canyon for breathtaking views. The popular Painted Wall is a 2300 ft vertical face of crystalline veined rock towering above the river. Trips into the canyon itself can be done along three routes (not trails) from the south rim, and three routes from the north rim. These all require a wilderness permit, which are limited to 15 people per day, per route. The rangers describe these routes as some of the toughest hiking in the national park system.

The last time we visited, our family attempted the 1.5 mile Gunnison Route to the bottom of the canyon. This route drops 1800 ft, and, at one point, hikers need to lower themselves down a 100 ft chain to avoid tumbling down the slope. Unfortunately, we started too late in the day to complete the trip. The heat and altitude, combined with the intensity of the climb made us turn around early. You can read more about that trip here.

Since we were defeated by the Gunnison route, I’ve always wanted to come back and complete the trail. This was our chance! Knowing what we were in for, we started training early. Over the school year, Eli and I embarked on the “Gunnison Program”, which involved a weekly combination of running and burpees. We were not going to be defeated again! We also brought gloves so we wouldn’t cut our hands on the rocks, and I invested in a good GPS. It is so easy to get lost on the canyon walls!

Permits for this hike are given out at 4:30 pm the preceding day at the south rim visitors center. We learned that hikers were lining up as early as 1:00 pm for a chance to get a permit! Not wanting to miss our opportunity, we lined up at 12:30 pm on the back deck of the visitor center. It wasn’t so bad waiting on the back deck. We met a lot of interesting people, and had great views of the canyon. We could hear thunder rolling down the canyon from passing thunderstorms. For our patience, we were rewarded with permits to head down the Gunnison Route the following morning.

We hit the trail at 7:00 am. The air was cool, but the rocks were slick from the overnight rain, which made for a slow, careful descent. We knew we had limited time. Afternoons were either blazing hot, or had intense thunderstorms. Either of these conditions would make a the return ascent hazardous. Because the trail was so slippery, we spent a lot of our time in a crouch position, sliding down the route on our boots. We lowered ourselves on the chain, and continued down the steep slope of scree rock that had broken off the canyon walls. It took us 2 hours to descend to the bottom of the canyon. We were rewarded with stunning views at the bottom of the canyon. The walls are so tall, and so close together that you feel like a tiny insect in the vast crevice. It wasn’t long before we noticed trout surfacing in a large pool in the river. This stretch of the river is considered “Gold Medal” trout fishing. In only 30 minutes, we landed 7 brown trout up to 16 in. We could have fished longer, but we knew we had a tough climb ahead of us.

The best investment we made was the GPS. It all looks the same going up, and staying on the route is more difficult than expected. We could see where many travelers made wrong turns, and likely wasted valuable time. For extra safety, we partnered with two other climbers so we could watch out for each other as we made the steep ascent. The afternoon heat was interrupted with passing storm clouds, but luckily we stayed dry. We made it back to the visitors center with a sense of redemption!

That afternoon, we were so wiped out that all we could manage was watching 5 chipmunks (Carl, Kevin, Louis, Carlos, Timmy) squabble over crumbs in our campsite. Carl and Kevin were the fat bullies of the bunch, and chased the other three away. We could tell that Carl and Kevin had a mutual respect for each other as they traded chipmunk chirps and growls while they ate. The lesson seemed to be that if you are big and loud, you get your way in chipmunk land. This simple chipmunk behavior reminded us that this also seems to apply to humans.

Eli using hammock therapy to prepare for the descent into the canyon

Getting ready to descend into the canyon

Getting ready to cross into the wilderness

Eli showing off the “sliding on boots” technique we needed to go down the wet trail.

Eli landing nice brown trout at the bottom of the Black Canyon

Dad catches nice brown trout at the bottom of the canyon. There were a lot of fish swimming around!

Eli pulling himself up the chain back to the rim

We made it back to the top. We were wiped out!!

Carl and Kevin eat and growl at each other in our campground. They had chased the other chipmunks away with their bravado.

Fish the Gunnison River!

Posted on June 28, 2021June 28, 2021 by Matt Oliver

The first time we visited the Gunnison region, I knew I wanted to come back to fish the Gunnison River. The main fork of the Gunnison starts in Almont CO, where the Taylor and East River meet, and continues west several hundred miles into the Curecantai national recreation area, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, and flows into the Colorado River in Grand Junction.

The We booked a float fishing trip on the Gunnison through Three Rivers Outfitters in Almont CO, just a few miles north of the town of Gunnison. TRO offers fishing, rafting, and other adventure trips in the region. If you are looking for a great place to hang out with friends and family, TRO is a great base-camp for local activates. The facilities were nice, and the staff were friendly and professional. TRO also offers trailer spots with hook-ups for a reasonable price. After we got set up, we headed north to Crested Butte, a quaint ski/snowboard hamlet nestled below Mt. Crested Butte. There, we met David Chu for dinner. David is an old friend, who now works for Los Alamos National Laboratory. He is running all kinds of atmospheric experiments for the Department of Energy in the remote mountains in the region.

The following morning, It was really nice to stumble out of the campsite into a boat and head out for a 15 mile float down the river. Our guide, Skyler was excellent! He had been fishing the river since he was a kid, and he knew every hole and riffle. If you casted where and when he said, you usually got a fish. I think Eli and I ended the trip with about 30 brown and rainbow trout for our efforts. Most fish were 12-14 inches, which made for a nice fight on light tackle while floating down the river. The combination of river rafting and fishing made for a really fun day. Eli said it was the most fun he ever had fishing! We got off the river just as a strong thunderstorm hit the region. We were glad to be off the water with all the lightning around! If you are looking for a great float fishing trip, check out TRO.

Three Rivers Outfitters, check them out!

We met the intrepid David Chu in Crested Butte for a great dinner.

Just getting started on the Gunnison River. Skyler (our guide) was excellent!

Eli with a nice brown early in the float

Eli with a nice brown trout as the rain starts to move in.

Ride the Dunes at Great Sand Dunes National Park

Posted on June 27, 2021June 27, 2021 by Matt Oliver

Nestled in southern Colorado are the largest sand dunes in North America. Surrounding the sand dunes are the Sangre de Cristo and San Juan Mountains, which are the remnants of an ancient volcanic crater. The crater eventually held ancient lake Alamosa, which was about the size of the state of Connecticut. Overtime, the lake dried, leaving sand deposits on the floor of what is now San Luis Valley. The balance of steady southwesterly winds, and storm driven northeasterly winds swept the sands off the dry lake bed, and deposited them in dunes as high as 750 ft above the valley floor, which became the Great Sand Dunes.

At 8000 ft elevation, Great Sand Dunes National Park visitors experience a landscape of extremes. Temperatures on the dunes change rapidly, rising quickly as the sun heats the dune surfaces far above the surrounding air temperature. During the day, hot winds from the valley, and cool winds from the mountains move the sands unpredictably. The dune environment is harsh and dry, while the mountains around provide a dense forest for wildlife. These contrasts give visitors a unique national park experience.

On our way into GSDNP, we were greeted by sweeping views of Mt Blanc, one of Colorado’s “fourteeners” (peaks taller than 14,000 ft). In the distance, the sand dunes crept over the horizon until they dominated the landscape. This really got us excited for our main activity…sandboarding. The scale of these dunes offer visitors the chance to grab a sand board (or sled) and let these dunes, thousands of years in the making, give you the ride of a lifetime. We arrived at Piñon flats campground on a breezy evening. Surprisingly, the wind was unable to knock down the muscular mosquitos of southern Colorado. Even though much of the landscape in the campground is dry scrub plants, nearby Medano Creek is enough to keep these pests hungry, and campers inside their tents. The only real escape was to head to the dune fields. The local wildlife seemed to also know this, as the dunes were crisscrossed with deer, elk and bobcat tracks.

The following morning, we waxed our sand board (and sled) and hit the dunes! After a few spills, we got it figured out. The cooler the sand, the more effective the wax was in reducing the friction between the sand and the board. As the sand heated up, the wax melted off the board and made for shorter rides.

The next two days were pretty much dedicated to sand boarding. Those things can really go! Blowing sand, combined with the downhill velocity of the sand board create the experience of full body exfoliation. I’m definitely smoother. On our final full day, we summitted the tallest dune we could see. The hike wasn’t a far distance (2 miles one way), but it was walking up sand the whole way. The final 300 yards was a hands and feet scramble up very loose sand. It was slow going, but the view from the top of the dunes was outstanding!

In the hot afternoons, we took advantage of the 4WD trail that leads from the campground, along the dunes. We were rewarded with awesome views, some great sand boarding opportunities away from the crowds, and more angry mosquitos. Just outside the park, we found that the stream fording hike to Zapata falls was refreshing! The icy waters from the towering peaks around us cut their way through a narrow slot canyon. The only way to see the falls is to hike through the icy cold creek, into the rock capsule that contains the 25 ft falls. It was a really great experience, and a nice relief from the heat!

Eli bombing down a dune on a moonlit evening

Mud, Blood, Treaties, and Trenches.

Posted on June 20, 2021June 20, 2021 by Matt Oliver

By Eli

It started like any other day. I got up, got dressed, ate and started cranking up the camper jacks, only to realize that my dad was still… ASLEEP? ON DAY LIKE THIS? UNACCEPTABLE! So, naturally I started jumping on the bed before he clobbered me and threw me into his pillow. Ahh, good times. The reason I woke up my dad is because we were going to the National World War 1 Museum and I was ecstatic to get there! The museum is located in Kansas City, MO and offers several exhibits, as well as views of the city from a 217 foot tall tower. It was really hot and outside, so we did the tower first. We didn’t want to get up there later in the day when it was 100 degree heat because the birds would think we were burnt hot dogs and would probably poke our eyes out. Anyway, we got up into the tower and the view was incredible, at least that’s what my dad said. I was clinging to the wall for dear life. After that we went to our first exhibit called 100 Years of Collecting. This exhibit shows you what 100 years of collecting from World War 1 looks like and there was a lot! We saw Mauser pistols which were German fast firing pistols. We also saw a huge Italian machine gun that the Arditi used (an Italian shock troop unit, you should really look them up! Super interesting). We also saw some Russian medic and special event uniforms which were REALLY cool. When we entered the main exhibit there was a glass floor with red poppies on display underneath. The red poppy is the remembrance flower of World War 1. When we got to the main exhibit I was so happy. I knew so much and learned so much more. We got to see the war from different perspectives and we saw the coolest guns. For example, the famous German anti material/anti-tank rifle that could penetrate 20 mm of armor! We also saw the famous trench shot gun and Moisin-Nagant which are two of my favorite weapons of all time! We also saw artillery batteries, the Lewis machine gun and even a French tank! I saw so much at this museum and I am so happy I got to go! The museum also had the Silk and Steel exhibit. I was excited for what I might see but it turned out the entire exhibit is French women clothing from 1900-1920’s. *Cue whomp whomp whomp music* Well at least there was one more exhibit entitled the War remains. This exhibit is an immersive VR experience that brings the war to life and the VR correlates with the surroundings. So, if you bump into a wall in the game you bump into wall in real life. But, you have to be 14 years old to do it. *Cue whomp whomp whomp music* *AGAIN* Anyway, even though I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t do the VR, I had an awesome experience and I loved the museum.

View of Kansas City from the top of the tower

The Trench Shotgun. The Germans complained of war crimes because it was so brutally effective.

Moisin-Nagant. Made in the USA for the Russian Imperial Army.

Anti-tank rifle. It needed a two man crew and could shoot through 1 inch of steel armor.

Big Speedway and a little American town. (Sniff, sniff) Do I smell patriotism?

Posted on June 18, 2021June 18, 2021 by Matt Oliver

Blog post by: Eli

The day started out amazing. The birds were singing, the sunrise light was seeping through my window all the while I was tucked in my little cozy sleeping bag. However, I had a dad that was insisting I get out of bed. I was ecstatic to go to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but I didn’t want to get out of bed. Then I thought, why haven’t people invented flying beds? It would so much easier. What’s taking Elon so long? I mean come on. Anyway, I eventually got out of bed and while eating proceeded to spill almond milk all over me. The day wasn’t starting great, but at least I got the almond milk off of me before my dad noticed. My dad and I cranked up the trailer jacks, dumped the sewage out, and we were on our way. As we entered Indianapolis my dad and I got increasingly nervous about driving our 40 foot camper-train-rig on the winding roads of the city. Eventually, we got to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and it blew my mind. What I saw I couldn’t believe. I was like an 12 year old boy at the arcade with his moms credit card. I felt at home. We went through a tunnel and arrived at the speedway. We were in the middle of the famous oval racetrack for Indy cars, NASCARS and F1 cars. In the parking lot, there were Peel Tridents, which are my favorite miniature cars from England. If you don’t know what those are, they’re miniature bubble cars from the 60’s and 70’s that have 3 wheels and can fit one person; fun for the entire family! (Buyer disclaimer: This does suggest you’re alone and single and have no friends) Anyway, after we left the parking lot, we went on our V.I.P. tour (pretend I said that in a fancy British accent.) Our tour guide was great. His name was Scott and he was super nice and funny. On our V.I.P. Tour we got to kiss the ancient 1907 bricks that they put down at the finish line. These bricks mean a lot to racing fans and racing history. We went up into the pagoda where all the race controls, broadcasts, and interviews happen. The view from up there was amazing. I had smile on my face during every second of the VIP Tour and I was exited to learn all the history the place had to offer. Eventually, we had to leave but not before I bought an American flag Indy 500 baseball cap because you know, patriotism. I was sad to leave the speedway but I’m so happy that I got to see it. Later, we arrived at our campsite in Casey, Illinois. Our camp neighbors told us the town of Casey was a small town that builds big things. So, we left for downtown Casey and found some huge items like a 6 story tall rocking chair, a giant pitchfork and other giant tourist traps. One of my favorites was the giant mailbox that is actually a functioning mail drop. Plus, we saw some cool cars from the 50’s. Finally, we headed back for the night.

Entrance to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum

Track Level at the brickyard finish line!

These are the actual controls to turn on the green, yellow and red flags at IMS. We tried them out.

Use this oversized pitchfork to stack oversized hay, or chase off oversized witches.

Coopers Rock State Forest; don’t drive by!

Posted on June 15, 2021June 18, 2021 by Matt Oliver

Blog post by: Matt

Just a short detour off of I-68 in West Virginia is Coopers Rock State Forest. I’ve passed Coopers Rock several times, and I was happy to get the chance to finally go. We stayed in McCollum Campground, where we were greeted by very friendly staff. The sites have electricity, and potable water is a short walk away, but cell service is very limited. The campground hosts recommended taking the McCollum trail to Raven Rock trail before the strong thunderstorms set in. We hustled along the 2 mile out and back trail to Raven Rock overlook. The trail through the vernal green forest was relatively easy. Just watch out for loose rocks or you might twist an ankle. We were rewarded with sweeping views of Cheat River Gorge on a beautiful day. We headed back once we heard the roll of distant thunder. The storms still hadn’t arrived after an early dinner, so we snuck out to Coopers Rock overlook. Again we were greeted with views of Cheat River with Morgantown WV in the distance as the thunderstorms rolled in. Coopers Rock State Forest is a beautiful place for a short hike, and to stop for a night.

**Entrance to Coopers Rock State Forest**

**Eli on Raven Rock Overlook in Coopers Rock State Forest**

**Lightning strike over Morgantown WV from Coopers Rock Overlook.**

**Lightning strike from Coopers Rock Overlook**

We are home!

Posted on August 12, 2019August 21, 2019 by Korin Oliver

After another spectacular camping trip, we are back in Delaware. Matt drove 6,998 miles which included 11 states, 4 Canadian Provinces, 5 United States National Parks, and 4 Canadian National Parks. We are extremely thankful that God has given us the opportunity to travel for a significant amount of time each summer. Our kids are growing up quickly and we are trying to spend as much quality time together as possible. As a family, we have now visited 32 National Parks. Let us know if you have any suggestions for next summer!

Once again, we leave you with a memorable video:

Isle Royale National Park

Posted on August 7, 2019December 21, 2019 by Korin Oliver

The only way to reach Isle Royale National Park is by boat or sea plane (unless you are a crazy good kayaker). This national park is located in Lake Superior and is technically a part of Michigan, although we departed from Minnesota. We decided to leave our camper behind for a few days so we could experience the 99% wilderness that Isle Royale boasts. We arrived by sea plane which gave us a fabulous aerial view of the island. No roads. No cars. Just pristine wilderness to explore.

Once we were settled and had eaten dinner, we set off on our first hike via the Tobin Harbor trail which connects with the Suzy’s Cave trail. It was around 7pm when we started hiking the 4 mile loop and we figured it would be good timing to see a few animals. We reached Suzy’s Cave around 8:30pm and began our way back to the lodge along the water, watching the colors in the sky change as the sun began to descend. Soon we were met by another hiker who told us that there was a moose directly on the trail. Super excited, we walked a few more feet to see a huge bull moose grazing. He was truly a majestic animal. We took pictures, Eli flossed, and we chatted with the other hikers (one family of 4 and 2 others). It was awesome. We were stoked that we saw a moose so quickly after we had arrived! Minutes ticked by. The moose would take a few steps down the trail, we would take a few steps back on the trail. More minutes went by. Soon, another bull moose came out of the brush and was eating. The moose took a few more steps down the trail, we took a few more steps back on the trail. By this time, it was about 9:30 and we were losing light. We were only about a ½ mile from the harbor and could see the lights however, the moose were not in any rush and it didn’t seem like they were going to leave anytime soon. At this point, the 10 of us decided to make the 3 ½ mile trek back around. As far as light was concerned, Matt had one headlamp and I had my cell phone flashlight to share amongst the entire group. Needless to say, it was an interesting hike back over rocks, roots and brush in the pitch dark. About half way back, Matt (who was leading the group) spotted two large orbs on the trail. A second later, he saw two more sets of smaller orbs. It was another moose and her two calves! The ten of us made some noise and soon, the moose headed back into the forest. We all made it safely back to the lodge around 11pm! Whew! What a first day on a remote island!

We slept in a bit the next morning and decided to take advantage of the wonderful weather to explore the island by boat. Matt rented a small motorboat and we all jumped in. We zipped over to the Edisen Fishery historic site. We were quickly greeted by a volunteer who told us about the area and then made our way to the Rock Harbor Lighthouse on other side of the island. There was a small museum inside the lighthouse that described the area during the 1800-1900s and a great view from the top! From there, we took another trail to the “Mooseum” where was saw hundreds of moose bones and antlers. We met Candy Peterson, the wife of Rolf Peterson who is a research scientist. Rolf and Candy have been conducting research on the moose and wolves of the island for more than 50 years. The four of us found Candy and her knowledge about the moose extremely interesting, especially since we had just seen five moose the night before. She answered all of our questions and inspired the kids to spend their lives doing something the love, just as she and her husband have done. From the Mooseum, we headed to Moskey Bay. After a quick look around, we took the boat over to Daisy Farm, a beautiful field of daisies and other wild flowers. Next, we headed back to the lodge for a late lunch and to celebrate Eli’s 11^thbirthday. The restaurant didn’t have any dairy free desserts but luckily, I secretly bought a Hostess Apple Pie at a gas station before we were on the island. Later, Matt and Eli took the boat out and tried fishing for the lake trout we had heard so much about. Later that evening, we took the trail to Scoville Point and saw a fox and a bunny while hiking.

Our third day on the island, we packed up and got ready to leave. We had a good breakfast and headed down to the dock. A few minutes before our plane was to arrive, the lodge bellhop came to tell us that due to weather, all flights back to Minnesota were cancelled. This meant that we would not be heading back to Minnesota until the following day. We were surprised to say the least. The lodge had one room left (nicer than our first) so we MasterCard-ed the moment and settled in for one more night. We decided to completed one more hike after dinner in search of more moose and we were successful! We found a moose laying down a few feet from the trail. He looked like he was going in and out of sleep. We had all sorts of time to look at him and through the binoculars we could see the veins in his antlers!

The following day we had a very intense game of National Park Monopoly before leaving Isle Royale National Park. As we flew over the island, I thought about the island, the animals and how God orchestrated such a beautiful place. I felt blessed to have had the experience with my family and terribly emotional as I realized that our 2019 summer adventure was coming to a close.

We surprised Eli and Sam with the sea plane option!

Scooting around the island in the motorboat

Eli tries to hold up a moose antler that we found

Voyageurs National Park

Posted on August 6, 2019December 21, 2019 by Matt Oliver

By: Matt

Voyageurs National Park lies on the boundary waters between northern Minnesota and southern Ontario. It is named after the French Canadian trappers that used these waters for the beaver fur trade. The park itself only has 8 miles of paved roads, and all of the campsites are only accessible by water, so seeing the park by car is not possible. I thought to myself, perfect, I’ll just bring the family out by boat! Thus began another dad-venture.

I found an outfitter than rented houseboats on Crane Lake, which is one of the lakes that connects to the waterways of Voyageurs. We arrived at the Voyagaire Lodge at about 2:30 pm to pick up “Island Hopper.” Island Hopper is a 36 foot houseboat, complete with water slide, refrigerator, microwave, BBQ, head, and shower. Samantha was very happy that she was going to have a real toilet and shower on the boat. It didn’t really matter to her that she would be showering in with lake water. Compared to the pop-up, this thing was a mansion, and everybody was excited. I guess after 4 weeks in a pop-up, expectations had been set so low that we felt like we were cruising in style! So far, the dad-venture was going to plan.

Each night, the houseboats scramble to tie up to designated houseboat campsites. Some of these are maintained by the National Park Service, while others are informal, and can only be identified by stone fire-rings on shore. Since we arrived in the afternoon, we made a short steam to the upper reaches of Grassy Bay on Sand Point Lake. We found an unofficial site perched on a granite bolder surrounded by dense Minnesota woods. The place was idyllic. Downed logs in the water, lily pads, soaring eagles above, and a warm afternoon sun. Once we tied up the boat, we grilled some hamburgers on the deck and enjoyed dinner overlooking the water. Since the sun sets so late (~9pm), Eli and I decided to try our luck at fishing from the 16 foot aluminum boat that comes with each houseboat. With a 15 hp motor, it got on a plane quickly and skimmed across the smooth water. Eli really liked driving it. In about an hour we landed 4 smallmouth bass and 1 northern pike. Not too bad for not trying very hard. We got back for sunset and hung around the fire. I couldn’t believe how nice it was! We looked forward to star-gazing as the last bit of daylight receded. That’s when it started. What seemed like at first a few stray mosquitos turned into a squadron of combat trained mosquito ninjas. The air was alive with the high-pitch whirring of blood sucking vampires. We looked toward the houseboat for refuge, but that too was coated with bugs trying to get to the lights inside the boat. We dashed in the door, only letting in a few hundred of the hoarding millions. The next hour was a full on “swat to the death” as we mercilessly exterminated all insects. After that the lake water shower was nice way to wash off the bloody mosquito carcasses.

The next morning, the bugs had vanished. We steamed north to Namakan Lake to explore the islands. We found a nice swimming hole and used the houseboat slide to its fullest potential. There were some storm clouds to our north, so we turned south again into Sand Point Lake. We had read that the more rocky campsites had fewer bugs, so we made our way to an island that was mostly granite to tie up for the night. We found a wonderful site, and swam and fished a bit more. We made a huge fire on the granite rock, completely bug free. We had a wonderful evening….until the last bit of daylight receded. We must have really made the mosquitos angry the night before, because they showed up with reinforcements. I didn’t think it was possible to fit more angry bugs in the air. These things attacked so fast that we barely had time to retreat to the boat. We swatted away for another hour, clearing out the boat, then wept silently in our pillows (really!). I actually contemplated turning in the boat a day early. The bugs are tough!

By morning, the bugs were gone again, and we saw a beaver busily working on a nearby shoreline. The day was HOT, so we decided to motor over to Burnt Island where there are places to jump off cliffs. The kids were excited about this, and they jumped off the boat, and swam over to the island. There are two cliffs to jump from, the lower is about 15 feet high and the upper is about 40 feet. Sam wasted no time jumping from 40 feet, and Eli followed. By then we had an audience of about 5 boats cheering us on. It was so refreshing on a hot day! For a finale, Eli, Sam and I a jumped off the high rock at the same time. Unfortunately, Eli jumped with his arms out, rather than tucking them to his side. He received a pretty bright raspberry on each arm that stayed until the next day. OUCH! He was a trooper though.

One of the best things we did was park the boat, and hike over to Mukooda Lake. There, we were treated with crystal clear water filled with fish. The kids waded out to their waist and caught dozens of panfish with a few really nice smallmouth bass mixed in. It was a great time on light tackle. We left the fish biting, and went in search of our last campsite. This time we learned our lesson. We found a beautiful campsite in Grassy Bay, swam and fished the afternoon away…but as soon as the sun went down, we stayed inside!!! Alas, we had a wonderful dinner, played cards, trivia, and mocked the mosquitos hanging on the outside of our boat. It was a good night sleep on a quiet bay, in a very beautiful national park.