TO RAPID BEFORE LAC DE LA CACHE -- Long half day 6 1/2 hours moving. July 19 (strong SW wind all day)

At the NW end of Camousitchouane a turn is made west, for a short distance (where a swift is run) and then west again. At the narrows two rapids are run.

Horse Race

R just a little way below the H.R. We ran right at the top and then out to the center. A powerful R arcing to the right.

Paddle current with a few swifts in places. Follow map closely here!

C.S. (Possible) on right at tip of point in lake before Cache, just as turn is made from paddling SW, to paddling N.W. Obvious.

Follow far right channel (there are three) into Lac de la Cache, running these:

• A few swifts.
• H.R.
• R (“Trouble spot #6”) Very tricky. This year in very low water, we shot starting on the left, down the first small swift part. In the large pitch just below, the right side was shallow. At the top of this pitch a pillow in center and one on left. We shot on right side of “v” between these pillows, pulling right to avoid huge rock and swells to the left, then as mot of the current goes to the right of the channel, we pulled into the center, avoiding a rock on the right, then out the bottom on the right, going just left of a large pillow on the far right at the foot. A very tricky rapid. (Was run on right all the way down in high water another year)
• Swift
• R run left of center. Small & easy

CAMPSITE:

• Very good, on rock point on right, about 100 yards after the above rapid, in a pond like expanse. Middle channel into Lac de la Cache enters here.

Woke up at the usual time this morning (5:30) but the wind beat us up. We were on a fairly big lake (Lac Camousitchouane) and the old SW wind was blowing really hard. For the first 6 miles we had to go SW, and it was a hard headwind, then we turned up into its northern arm so the wind was pretty close to a tailwind,. Right after this turn we left the protection of several islands and with 8 miles of open water behind us the wind had whipped up the biggest rollers I’ve ever been in, 30’ across and about 3’ high, and that’s pretty big when the canoe is only a little over a foot deep Unbelievable. Very close to being windbound. It all was handled in stride though and we shot a few small rapids down to trouble spot #6. Very, very tricky, rock dodging. In the section two grazed a small one at the very top and two bumped over one just below, not major, only one cracked anything (sheeting cracks only, nothing major). No sweat really. Only 7 more trouble spots to go!

So far things are going really well & I’m pleased. The forest now is mostly jack pine & spruce, birch in certain places. No aspen as earlier. A little Tamarack. Clay & Bill are still behind us, haven’t seen them since lunch on Little Loon lake 2 1/2 days ago. That’s good, they may pass us today though. More rain now. The river still looks a good foot low though, in spite of all this rain. First day I haven’t been dying of hunger before lunch. I ate 2 1/2 pannicans of Oatmeal. Usually I can only down one at breakfast. I’m really enjoying this trip!

We’re on the Marten on the rapid before Lac de la Cache.

Later: the rain let up for a while, but it looks like the kind of weather when it rains for a couple days. Yuck. Our tent isn’t completely waterproof so we’re finding stuff tends to get wet and stuffy-musty after a while with no airing. Two more moving days to our next planned rest day. Something to look forward to.