Exploring Ely and Northern Minnesota, Just Not In the Winter

Posted on by nativetrekker

When we travel anywhere from Colorado by car/camper, we normally head in three of the four directions: north, south, and west. At the end of this summer, we decided to do things a little different and headed east (and north) to to the land of 10,000 lakes, Minnesota. One of the mental barriers of driving east out of Colorado is that you have to drive about eight hours to get across eastern Colorado and either Kansas or Nebraska. Both Kansas and Nebraska have places that we enjoy, but we were looking for something more than what the Great Plains has to offer. We were looking for lakes and forests, and Minnesota definitely has that. You might say “don’t you have that in Colorado?” The answer is, sort of. We definitely have forested mountains, mostly pines and firs, with a few aspens sprinkled in here and there. As for lakes, this is an area that isn’t our states greatest natural treasure. Sure there are some, but most lakes in Colorado are man made, with enough people on them that most times it feels like you’re playing dodgeball. So if you’re looking to play in the mountains, you come to Colorado and if it’s lakes you’re after, head to Minnesota.

Sunset on Bear Head Lake

We chose the Ely area for our base camp and more specifically, Bear Head Lake State Park, because it was centrally located to many of the types of outdoor pursuits we were interested in, like hiking, camping, and kayaking. Ely is known as the gateway town to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA), and has that outdoorsy adventure town vibe that you see in places like Moab, Utah and Boulder, Colorado. In Moab, it’s mountain bikes that are strapped to cars. In Boulder, it’s road bikes and paddle boards. In Ely, it’s all about the canoe. We brought kayaks on this trip and boy did they ever look out of place in Ely. No matter the pursuit, Ely is the gateway to whatever outdoor adventure you fancy in Northern Minnesota.

Some people asked me before we left for Minnesota “have you heard about how bad the mosquitoes are?” “Yes,” I said, I knew all about the mosquitoes, having survived the relentless attacks by the Minnesota state bird on a trip to Lake Winnibigoshish with my dad when I was 16. On that trip, the primary purpose was walleye fishing, and we caught (and ate) more than we could count. That trip was in June and the state lived up to its infamous reputation as ground zero for mosquitoes. We used so much mosquito repellent on that trip that our clothes smelled like deet for a month. I still had a great trip in spite of the mosquitoes and the annoyances that came along with them. I had a great time boating, we caught lots of fish, and I always knew I wanted to get back there someday, but it took over 30 years for that to happen.

This trip was with my wife and was during early September this past year. This time out wasn’t going to be as much about fishing as the previous trip and there was likely to be one huge benefit to picking September instead of June: there shouldn’t be too many mosquitoes in the autumn as the temperature cools down (the highs were in the 60’s and the lows were in the 30’s while we were there).

The Minnesota State Bird

Bear Head Lake State Park turned out to be the perfect place for us. It had an excellent campground with large sites just feet from a beautiful northern lake. One of my passions is hiking and there were several trails that began directly from the campground, which was nice to just wake up and go hike without having to drive to a trailhead. Most people don’t come to this area to hike though, they come to Bear Head Lake to get on the water, either for boating or fishing or both (I did both but my boat was a kayak). Fishing and kayaking are best done early and sliding into this lake around sunrise had so many rewards. There were only a handful of watercraft out that early, and most of those were kayakers. Morning mist was everywhere but only slowly burning away as the sun grew higher. Perhaps the best part of being on a lake as big as Bear Head Lake with the only boats out there being ones without engines, is being able to hear the cry of a loon. To hear a loon while paddling on a quiet misty lake is an experience like no other, it is truly the signature sound of the northern wilderness.

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The smallest fish you can Possibly catch on a hook and line!

On every trip we go on there are things that we want to experience that just don’t happen for some reason, mostly that we have to get back home, to work. On this trip, we didn’t get to kayak/canoe the Boundary Waters, didn’t see the northern lights, I didn’t catch a walleye (or a pike for that matter), and we didn’t even see a moose. But what we did experience though was a place vastly different from where we live, we heard wolves howl and loons cry, I caught so many fish and not one of them was big enough to eat (I still had a blast), and I was only bitten by one mosquito, no repellent needed this time.

A Few Words on Glamping

Posted on by nativetrekker

Last summer, our family decided to take a weekend glamping trip up in the mountains of Vail Colorado, in the spirit of trying something different.  Glamping is the combination of two words, glamorous and camping.  When you glamp, you stay in tents with soft beds that have high thread count linens, wood floors, heaters for the cold nights, and electricity to charge your cell phone.

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Glamping is camping for those who prefer the finer things of life but also enjoy getting close to nature.  I’ve always felt like camping, whether in a tent, an RV or pop-up camper is great as it places you right smack in the middle of nature where you can just wake up and you’re already there.  For those who enjoy the great outdoors, nothing beats waking up and stepping outside to an alpine vista, the smell of the salty ocean air, or the sounds of a rushing river.  Glamping can give you those experiences, without having to own a camper or loads of gear. For some, the thought of sleeping on the ground isn’t appealing and others don’t want to invest in a camper/RV or all of the gear needed to have a proper camping trip.  When you go glamping, everything you need is already there and all you have to do is show up and camp.

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Just like normal tent camping, where you camp (or glamp) does matter.  For our trip, even though we were in the Rocky Mountains near Vail Colorado, we were on a treeless plateau where there really wasn’t anything to do.  If we wanted to go out for the day to go to town or do any sightseeing, we had to hike down (and eventually back up) a steep and long hill that switchbacked all the way down it was so steep. You aren’t allowed to drive your car to the top so the only option was to walk or wait for an ATV to pick us up to finally make it to a parking lot where our car was.  For this particular experience, we were hoping to be able to stay at the camp without feeling like we needed to leave for anything. but being on a treeless plateau, with the sun beating down relentlessly on the camp with temperatures in the 90’s didn’t give us the feeling of it being ‘luxurious’ camping. It was nice at night as the temperatures dropped and the tents lit up and we all sat in our Adirondack chairs looking up at the clear night sky.

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In doing the research for this glamping site, the pictures gave the appearance of being shady and more private than it was. It also didn’t mention the long trek to and from your car to get up to the top of the plateau. So choose wisely when selecting a glamping trip and make sure that the location and activities fit your lifestyle.  Ask specific questions regarding amenities and what is or isn’t provided.

This particular glampground (sorry, I couldn’t resist) was tailored more towards a western theme with horseback riding, ranch style buildings, and cowboy meals.  We are more of the outdoor adventure types who like to bike, hike, and kayak and I’m sure there is a glamping experience more catered to what we like to do.

My wife and I are split about doing this again or not.  She would like to try it again but I can only say that I’d be willing to.  To be honest, I’d rather either camp in our own camper or stay in a nice hotel.

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At least the sunsets were amazing!

 

The Oregon Coast : Nehalem Bay

Posted on by nativetrekker

I have been to the Oregon Coast a few times now and I’m always drawn to Nehalem Bay State Park near Manzanita.  It is just one of the places I feel that has it all and is one of only a few places in the world where I don’t get antsy to go somewhere else. I admit that I like to stay active and have a hard time relaxing, I can do both here.

The park has a large campground that has sites for tents as well as big RV’s.  It is clean and well organized, without feeling cramped or over-crowded.  The park is set on a narrow four mile long sand spit with the Pacific Ocean on one side and Nehalem Bay on the other.  Its location gives you easy access to a beautiful stretch of sand beach on one side, with the relative calm of the bay on the other.  The small town of Manzanita is just a  mile or so away with a grocery store and several restaurants.

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On the ocean side there is a long beautiful stretch of Pacific beach that you can have mostly to yourself, especially if you walk south along the water from the campground.  Unlike Cannon Beach to the north, there are no beautiful offshore rocks to see but the upside is that it keeps the crowds away.  Unfortunately, the Pacific can be heard but not quite seen from the campground, but a short walk over some sand dunes leads directly to the water. The beach is one of the cleanest anywhere that I have seen.  Be sure to take a camera when you head down for a sunset, and if you’re lucky maybe you can see one as good as we did.

The bay side is a completely different vibe altogether.  The water is much calmer and has many outdoor activities such as kayaking, fishing, crabbing, and boating.  We were able to do three of the four and had a blast.  While kayaking in the bay we found a few areas with winding, river-like passageways that are more reminiscent of the bayou (sans alligators) than coastal Oregon.  There was also some of the straightforward paddling that you would normally find in a flat and calm bay like this one.

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The narrow channels through the reeds

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Nehalem Bay Kayaking

If you like crabbing but don’t have a boat, nearby is Kelly’s Brighton Marina where you can rent a boat with baited crab traps for a two hour adventure of setting traps, catching Dungeness crabs, and boating around the calm waters of the bay.  We only caught one crab of legal size but it was the crabbing experience itself that made it worth it.  Earlier in the day, when we went out kayaking, we met a couple from Portland who were going to try crabbing from their kayaks, something that would be extremely challenging but immensely rewarding.  We caught up with them later in the day and they had caught a crab just as big as the one we had caught in two hours of crabbing with three traps and two people to haul them in with.  They were very proud of their catch…and should be!

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The days catch, one legal sized Dungeness crab

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The fog made for some challenging navigation to our buoys and to the marina

And last but not least, I love picking blackberries here, anywhere for that matter but especially here.  As with most parts of the Pacific Northwest, they can be found here at Nehalem Bay State Park.  Blackberries straight off the vine taste better than any store bought varieties that I have ever tasted, and that includes organic berries from places like Whole Foods.  The problem with picking blackberries, (if you’ve ever picked them you know what I’m about to say) is that the plant will bite back and often draw blood.  The bush has thorns that grab you and get hooked right into your skin and/or your clothes, but the taste of fresh Oregon blackberries is worth the bloodshed.

So if you are only looking to get wowed by spectacular scenery this isn’t the place, go to Cannon Beach for that. If you want to get close to nature in a relaxing setting, Nehalem Bay State Park is the place for you.  It is definitely the place for me!

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The trail from the beach to the campground

Lake Powell Without An Engine

Posted on by nativetrekker

Lake Powell is for those with power! Engine power that is. It is an enormous lake with extensive side canyons throughout, making any journey on the lake one that requires you to have a ski boat, houseboat, or jet ski to have the horsepower necessary to get you from one place to another. On a recent trip there with my wife, our engines on this trip would be our arms, as a kayak, rather than thehouseboat, would be the primary means of getting around the lake.  In a lake the size of Powell, 186 miles in total length and over and 1,960 miles of shoreline, that meant that to get safely off of the main lake and into the side canyons took quite some time and immense amounts of effort. These side canyons are (in my opinion) the prettiest part of the lake and have interesting features such as narrow passages, high walls, calmer water, beaches to take out of and stretch your legs, stunning rock formations and surprises around every corner.

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Lost Eden Canyon

Out on the main part of the lake, boat traffic has to be monitored closely by anyone in a small craft, especially kayaks that lie low in the water. Not all boaters are used to looking for kayaks so you have to paddle defensively, just like motorcycles have to be defensive out on the roads. As they passed, some boaters slowed down a little bit, one slowed down a lot, and once did not slow down at all, nearly causing us to capsize.  It must not be common to see a kayak on this lake because a few looked utterly shocked to see a kayak out there and a couple even looked impressed. However, I think most boaters seemed annoyed by the additional hazard that the kayaks presented. One boater was visibly irritated by us even being on the boat ramp unloading our kayaks.  Lucky for us though, we paid the same fee to be there that he did and was even told by a ranger where to launch from.

We were here the week after Labor Day, just into the off season.  The weather was still very warm as was the water but most of the people were gone, making being on the lake in a kayak during peak season hard to imagine.  Aside from occasionally playing a bit of dodgeball with houseboats, jet skis, and ski boats, the experience of kayaking in the high desert landscape of Utah on such a large lake was a surreal and memorable experience.  Paddling  in the canyons, especially Lost Eden Canyon, was like boating through a maze and as you go deeper into the canyon arm, the water got flatter and flatter, making the paddling very easy.  If there are two things that can make paddling easier it’s light wind and and small waves. There wasn’t much of either of those happening when you get off of the main lake and into the smaller canyons where the boats are fewer, the ones that are there are going slower, and the canyon walls are so high that the winds can’t get in.

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Moqui Canyon

 

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Moon rising, sun setting

Ideally, learning from this experience, having a kayak on this lake would be best if you use a boat with an engine to get you and your kayaks to the side canyons from a marina or boat ramp rather than paddling all the way to them, many miles in some cases. This way, you don’t expend the majority of your energy just getting to the mouth of the canyon arm. Once you arrive at the mouth, you could have many miles of paddling to get to the end (if you choose to go that far) and of course, many back. But if you choose to kayak without the support of a boat, you can still have a great time, and we did, just expect your natural engine to be sore for the next week after you get home!

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Parting Shot – Sunset near Halls Crossing