Episode Transcript
[0:00:00 – 0:00:07] Erik: 5.45, darkness meets darkness as my alarm wakes me from sleep.
[0:00:08 – 0:00:21] Erik: As I roll over, flip the lamp on, and gather my bearings, I notice the rain on the roof and the wind in the trees and think about the day to come.
[0:00:22 – 0:00:28] Erik: I shuffle across the room, find the pants, shoes, hat, and shirt from yesterday and
[0:00:30 – 0:00:58] Erik: not really caring about how they smell or how they look and make my way outside into the early morning blue light just enough to see but not much more as I make my way towards the lodge I can see that the kitchen is dark so I know I have to make coffee which I do and stand in the kitchen as the pot slowly fills
[0:01:01 – 0:01:08] Erik: Thinking about the canoes that need to be moved around and the weather that will affect the people using them.
[0:01:11 – 0:01:19] Erik: At 6.05, I load up the black truck with a Royal X and a Kevlar canoe.
[0:01:21 – 0:01:31] Erik: Stop back on the lodge for the cup of coffee from the now full pot of coffee that I started about 15 minutes ago and check the weather.
[0:01:33 – 0:01:34] Erik: Showers likely.
[0:01:36 – 0:01:39] Erik: 20 to 40 mile per hour northwest winds.
[0:01:41 – 0:01:42] Erik: All right.
[0:01:44 – 0:01:45] Erik: Take my cup of coffee.
[0:01:47 – 0:01:48] Erik: Get back in the truck.
[0:01:49 – 0:01:51] Erik: And I head over to East Bearskin.
[0:01:53 – 0:01:54] Erik: And on the way I listen to NPR.
[0:01:55 – 0:01:59] Erik: I learn about some virtual burning man.
[0:02:01 – 0:02:02] Erik: Apparently people are for it.
[0:02:03 – 0:02:04] Erik: People are against it.
[0:02:06 – 0:02:30] Erik: It’s the morning moments before people are awake, before the store is open, that I get some moments to myself to think, to plan the day, and to just generally enjoy the surroundings.
[0:02:32 – 0:02:35] Erik: As I pass West Bearskin, I chase two foxes from the road.
[0:02:37 – 0:02:44] Erik: It seems like they’re being fed by someone in the area because they’re almost available on a daily basis.
[0:02:44 – 0:03:00] Erik: 6.30, I drop canoes off at East Bearskin under light rain, scrappy gray skies that seem ready for a more intense day.
[0:03:02 – 0:03:11] Erik: The winds have not picked up, but you can tell that they will.
[0:03:11 – 0:03:11] Erik: 6.33.
[0:03:12 – 0:03:14] Erik: I am back from Clearwater.
[0:03:15 – 0:03:16] Erik: I’m back to Clearwater.
[0:03:18 – 0:03:21] Erik: On my ride back, I listen to the new Killers album.
[0:03:22 – 0:03:23] Erik: And it gets even darker.
[0:03:25 – 0:03:27] Erik: And it pours for a minute.
[0:03:30 – 0:03:32] Erik: The new Killers album, I gotta say, is…
[0:03:34 – 0:03:40] Erik: Not necessarily always up my alley, that band, but that album is…
[0:03:42 – 0:03:50] Erik: At this moment in time, very self-affirming, positive, and kind of just the music that I need.
[0:03:52 – 0:03:57] Erik: It’s almost a daily go-to album when I’m moving canoes around in the morning.
[0:03:57 – 0:04:05] Erik: I usually don’t make it past three or four tracks, but I’m not here to sell you on the Killers album.
[0:04:05 – 0:04:09] Erik: But, Ken, you cast out a demon?
[0:04:12 – 0:04:13] Erik: Can you wrangle the wind?
[0:04:17 – 0:04:22] Erik: I run back over to West Bearskin to pick up a Kevlar canoe from yesterday’s day trip.
[0:04:25 – 0:04:27] Erik: And now the whitecaps have truly picked up.
[0:04:29 – 0:04:30] Erik: And it’s almost humid.
[0:04:32 – 0:04:33] Erik: The rain has stopped again.
[0:04:35 – 0:04:37] Erik: But speaking of wrangling the wind…
[0:04:38 – 0:04:52] Erik: The winds blowing off of West Bears can make it a downright impossible feat that somehow is managed to get a 20-foot Kevlar canoe wrangled up onto the top of the truck rack in the wind.
[0:04:56 – 0:05:07] Erik: I make my way back to Clearwater and move myself into a van to load two aluminum canoes for a fully outfitted trip to Seagull.
[0:05:09 – 0:05:13] Erik: And all I can think of are contingency plans for this wind.
[0:05:14 – 0:05:16] Erik: Northwest wind.
[0:05:19 – 0:05:21] Erik: 20 to 40 miles per hour.
[0:05:23 – 0:05:27] Erik: At the waterfront as I load the aluminum canoes, I can smell bacon from the kitchen.
[0:05:28 – 0:05:32] Erik: And that always makes me feel just generally good.
[0:05:34 – 0:05:35] Erik: Especially in the fall.
[0:05:38 – 0:05:38] Erik: 7 a.m.
[0:05:39 – 0:05:39] Erik: I open the store.
[0:05:42 – 0:05:46] Erik: Leaving most everything inside because of the wind.
[0:05:49 – 0:05:49] Erik: Obviously.
[0:05:52 – 0:05:55] Erik: 2020 being what it is.
[0:05:56 – 0:05:57] Erik: Our store is outside.
[0:05:58 – 0:06:08] Erik: And when the wind and rain is blowing sideways at 20 to 40 miles per hour, we typically leave most of the store items inside.
[0:06:11 – 0:06:15] Erik: But the store is open and ready for business through the window that we operate through.
[0:06:17 – 0:06:19] Erik: More coffee is had.
[0:06:20 – 0:06:25] Erik: as I turn the page on my notes from this day.
[0:06:32 – 0:06:48] Erik: The gusts pick up and are noticeable even through the window in the main store as it blows papers, pens, and other loose items that are inside
[0:06:50 – 0:06:51] Erik: off of the desk.
[0:06:53 – 0:06:56] Erik: I’m starting to think that this might be the windiest day of the season.
[0:06:59 – 0:07:08] Erik: 7.06, I discuss the day with Michael, logistics and shuttles, and we check our, what we call the Bible.
[0:07:10 – 0:07:12] Erik: I hope that’s not offensive, but it might be.
[0:07:14 – 0:07:18] Erik: I’m not necessarily the creator of that term, and it is hung around.
[0:07:20 – 0:07:29] Erik: Essentially, it’s what tells us what needs to be done, who’s here, who’s checking out, both in the cabins, the bed and breakfast rooms, and outfitting.
[0:07:31 – 0:07:36] Erik: Today, we have five cabins to turn over, a bed and breakfast room to turn over, and two bunkhouses.
[0:07:37 – 0:07:42] Erik: On top of the general outfitting needs, it’s going to be a busy day.
[0:07:46 – 0:07:47] Erik: At 718, I get drinks.
[0:07:49 – 0:08:19] Erik: coffee and orange juice ready for the first outfitting slash breakfast group of the day and I head over to outfitting to finish packing their food slash gear which has been mostly packed up to this point but there is a decent amount of refrigerated and frozen food that stays in a refrigerator slash freezer until the last possible moment which is what I do at this point
[0:08:21 – 0:08:30] Erik: getting those final items taken care of, and then also asking the final questions on what exactly they need in terms of tents, sizes.
[0:08:31 – 0:08:31] Erik: You never know.
[0:08:32 – 0:08:40] Erik: A group of six can probably fit into one tent if they really want to.
[0:08:41 – 0:08:48] Erik: But as soon as you pack something, as soon as you plan something in advance to think,
[0:08:51 – 0:08:59] Erik: I’m doing myself a favor by planning and taking care of something in advance for a group.
[0:09:00 – 0:09:03] Erik: They will show up and want something completely different.
[0:09:04 – 0:09:09] Erik: So you have to get it up to a certain point of preparedness.
[0:09:11 – 0:09:13] Erik: And then ask those final questions.
[0:09:13 – 0:09:15] Erik: Do you want to do two-person tents?
[0:09:15 – 0:09:16] Erik: Four-person tents?
[0:09:16 – 0:09:17] Erik: Six-person tents?
[0:09:18 – 0:09:19] Erik: Everybody all in one?
[0:09:19 – 0:09:20] Erik: A smattering?
[0:09:20 – 0:09:20] Erik: Hammocks?
[0:09:20 – 0:09:26] Erik: You know, having it all packed up and just saying, this is what it is and this is what you’re getting?
[0:09:27 – 0:09:35] Erik: That is a recipe for disappointment, frustration, and confusion for everybody.
[0:09:35 – 0:09:43] Erik: So getting it to a point where you can get packed up at the last second is usually where we find the best success.
[0:09:47 – 0:09:48] Erik: As the morning moves on,
[0:09:52 – 0:09:56] Erik: Our food distribution service company.
[0:09:58 – 0:10:03] Erik: Those are all words I believe make sense in terms of what I’m trying to describe.
[0:10:03 – 0:10:04] Erik: Upper Lakes Foods.
[0:10:05 – 0:10:10] Erik: They deliver most of our food and they show up early in the morning, about 7.20.
[0:10:11 – 0:10:16] Erik: They show up and all of that stuff needs to be put into various freezers and fridges.
[0:10:17 – 0:10:24] Erik: And that’s what takes about 10 to 20 minutes in the morning, depending on what else is going on.
[0:10:25 – 0:10:27] Erik: Sometimes that gets done right away.
[0:10:27 – 0:10:31] Erik: Sometimes you just throw stuff in a fridge or a freezer and then get back to it later.
[0:10:33 – 0:10:35] Erik: But we get on top of that stuff right away.
[0:10:36 – 0:10:41] Erik: Shortly thereafter, 7.30, this is a growing concern.
[0:10:41 – 0:10:46] Erik: I’m not sure if any other outfitters out there are listening.
[0:10:46 – 0:10:48] Erik: You out there listening, outfitters?
[0:10:49 – 0:10:52] Erik: The Garmin InReach.
[0:10:55 – 0:10:56] Erik: It’s a thing of beauty.
[0:10:56 – 0:10:57] Erik: It does amazing things.
[0:10:58 – 0:11:00] Erik: And it also creates…
[0:11:01 – 0:11:04] Erik: It can create challenges.
[0:11:06 – 0:11:07] Erik: Because of the…
[0:11:10 – 0:11:19] Erik: The disconnect between the person sending it, the person receiving that message, and then the person that received that message, their…
[0:11:24 – 0:11:54] Erik: relaying of that message to an outfitter there’s the middle person between if you’re not familiar these Garmin inReach devices they can send text messages to and or emails to people and more often than not what happens is they they’ll send a message to a loved one a relative and then that relative will get in contact with the person who is most directly available to help typically an outfitter
[0:11:56 – 0:12:09] Erik: And it’s not created much change, but it has increased the level of how flexible can you be as an outfitter.
[0:12:09 – 0:12:21] Erik: So at 7.30, we receive a call via a sat phone, actually, that needs a pickup.
[0:12:23 – 0:12:25] Erik: from campsite number four.
[0:12:25 – 0:12:34] Erik: And this is the original information, and this is the main problem with these things, is the information provided is the best we can go off of, and a lot of times it’s not great information.
[0:12:35 – 0:12:40] Erik: So we, based on the wind, we kind of assumed that this would happen.
[0:12:41 – 0:12:48] Erik: Needing a tow in the afternoon, this makes for three tows scheduled for the day.
[0:12:50 – 0:12:51] Erik: And a note on tows.
[0:12:52 – 0:12:54] Erik: T-O-W-S.
[0:12:55 – 0:13:01] Erik: It’s not that we literally tow canoes behind a boat with a rope.
[0:13:01 – 0:13:08] Erik: We put the canoes on top of a little rack in the boat, just like you would on a vehicle.
[0:13:08 – 0:13:20] Erik: It’s not the greatest terminology because it does sound like you’re just dragging a canoe behind the water, you know, in a way that a toe would elicit.
[0:13:24 – 0:13:34] Erik: 7.45, kind of moving through the morning, we start going over routing and plans for a group putting in up at Seagull.
[0:13:35 – 0:13:50] Erik: Considering the wind, we finish running down their gear, packing, putting in at Trails End, and suggesting that they hug the north shore of Seagull based on the wind’s
[0:13:52 – 0:13:58] Erik: And spoiler alert, this seemed to work out for the crew.
[0:13:58 – 0:14:04] Erik: 8 o’clock, I check emails, amongst other things.
[0:14:06 – 0:14:09] Erik: Not going to get into specifics on emails.
[0:14:09 – 0:14:12] Erik: 8.15, the Seagull shuttle takes off via Michael.
[0:14:14 – 0:14:26] Erik: And at 8.30, I issue the permit for the East Bearskin crew that I had brought the tandem Kevlar and the tandem Royal X over for.
[0:14:30 – 0:14:34] Erik: At 8.30, I run down and strip cabin two.
[0:14:37 – 0:14:57] Erik: This involves essentially pulling all of the sheets, used towels, garbage, inside and out, checking the fridge and freezer, and doing any big, big item.
[0:14:59 – 0:15:14] Erik: sweeps of things that have been left which in the in this case involved uh three pillows three personal pillows uh left behind which we did get a call on and we did ship back
[0:15:18 – 0:15:27] Erik: As I returned to the laundry room with the stripped items from cabin two, I ran into a group of six who had been spending a night in one of our cabins.
[0:15:28 – 0:15:34] Erik: And I was expecting to be setting up with two three-person Kevlar’s.
[0:15:35 – 0:15:37] Erik: They kind of come walking up to the outfitting room.
[0:15:39 – 0:15:50] Erik: And we go through everything that they need, and it ends up being a little bit more than what was originally planned, which is typical.
[0:15:50 – 0:15:59] Erik: Whatever the word is beyond typical, like just plan on people needing a little bit more than what you originally planned for.
[0:15:59 – 0:16:06] Erik: So we get them set up with sleeping bags, some pads, some packs, some rainflies, you know.
[0:16:07 – 0:16:28] Erik: And we are set up to be able to provide those things on an as-needed basis, which when people call, that’s what I say, to try to manage a reservation system for individual items like that, especially considering how often they change.
[0:16:30 – 0:16:40] Erik: Inevitably, you will make this full reservation for all of the things that you need, and then you show up and it has changed.
[0:16:40 – 0:16:46] Erik: So it’s much easier and much more flexible to just say, yeah, we have it all available.
[0:16:46 – 0:16:49] Erik: Whenever you want to pick it up, we’ve got it.
[0:16:50 – 0:16:59] Erik: So we get them outfitted, and I spend about 15 minutes folding tents on the big table and outfitting, which is, again, one of those
[0:17:02 – 0:17:03] Erik: Kind of me time moments.
[0:17:04 – 0:17:07] Erik: Folding the tents on the map table.
[0:17:08 – 0:17:14] Erik: Getting to check out the maps.
[0:17:15 – 0:17:20] Erik: 9.25, I pull some chicken wings because that’s what’s planned for dinner.
[0:17:22 – 0:17:26] Erik: 9.30, I head down to cabin one to strip it.
[0:17:28 – 0:17:33] Erik: And 940, I actually run out and clean bunkhouse one.
[0:17:35 – 0:17:41] Erik: The bunkhouses are a little bit more of an easy clean because of the involvement of sleeping bags.
[0:17:43 – 0:17:48] Erik: We just change over the pillowcases, the towels, and the showers.
[0:17:49 – 0:17:56] Erik: And then disinfect the bathroom, the floors, and any of the surfaces around the bunkhouse beds themselves.
[0:17:56 – 0:17:57] Erik: But pretty easy.
[0:17:58 – 0:18:04] Erik: And then I run out and strip cabin five.
[0:18:05 – 0:18:12] Erik: And by this time, the group getting the two Kevlar three persons are just about ready.
[0:18:14 – 0:18:16] Erik: So we head down, get them set up with paddles, life jackets, and
[0:18:21 – 0:18:24] Erik: And the rest of their gear makes it down to the lake.
[0:18:27 – 0:18:28] Erik: The original two canoes…
[0:18:29 – 0:18:42] Erik: So this is a thing like we’ll get up a little bit early and run canoes over to East Bearskin on the 50-50 chance that they are going to end at the lake that they put in at, being East Bearskin.
[0:18:43 – 0:18:49] Erik: In this case, the canoes that got shuttled over there, they need to…
[0:18:51 – 0:18:56] Erik: And at Clearwater, which means they need to be shuttled.
[0:18:56 – 0:19:01] Erik: So we get back in the vehicle and shuttle them to East Bearskin.
[0:19:01 – 0:19:05] Erik: And in the meantime, notice that the lakes are ripping.
[0:19:06 – 0:19:10] Erik: Numerous small branches and limbs have come off of trees.
[0:19:11 – 0:19:12] Erik: They’re on the roads.
[0:19:13 – 0:19:14] Erik: The winds are picking up.
[0:19:14 – 0:19:15] Erik: It’s mid-morning.
[0:19:18 – 0:19:21] Erik: Dropped the group of four off with their Kevlars.
[0:19:22 – 0:19:32] Erik: Well, their one Kevlar and their Royal X. Fortunately, they’ve got the winds that have been picking up as a tailwind down east Bearskin.
[0:19:34 – 0:19:46] Erik: And as soon as I make it back to Clearwater, I spend the group that I had anticipated being gone at the waterfront has kind of been hanging around and waiting.
[0:19:46 – 0:19:54] Erik: And as soon as I make it back, we spend about 10 minutes doing a little bit of a routing session on the Clearwater loop.
[0:19:57 – 0:19:58] Erik: And then get them on the water.
[0:19:59 – 0:20:00] Erik: And they’re very excited.
[0:20:00 – 0:20:01] Erik: And they have a good trip.
[0:20:02 – 0:20:03] Erik: Spoiler alert.
[0:20:03 – 0:20:03] Erik: Alert.
[0:20:04 – 0:20:05] Erik: They have a good trip.
[0:20:07 – 0:20:14] Erik: 11.15, I’m back on emails because there’s a little bit of a lull between groups.
[0:20:15 – 0:20:20] Erik: And 11.45, I head up and clean, fully clean.
[0:20:20 – 0:20:21] Erik: This isn’t just a strip.
[0:20:21 – 0:20:27] Erik: I fully clean Sweet Bee, which is one of the B&B rooms in the main lodge.
[0:20:31 – 0:20:35] Erik: And at this point, we are at the midpoint of the day.
[0:20:36 – 0:20:39] Erik: And the turning of the journal page.
[0:20:42 – 0:20:43] Erik: 12.30.
[0:20:44 – 0:20:50] Erik: I head out and clean cabin 10 for the group of six that I had just gotten done outfitting.
[0:20:50 – 0:20:52] Erik: They spent the night with us before.
[0:20:53 – 0:20:55] Erik: And it almost looks like they’ve…
[0:20:59 – 0:21:00] Erik: slept on top of the beds.
[0:21:02 – 0:21:03] Erik: One of the easiest cleans.
[0:21:03 – 0:21:13] Erik: Shout out to a crew of six in cabin 10 from an indiscernible or discriminant date.
[0:21:13 – 0:21:22] Erik: If you’re out there listening and you know who you are, you probably have no idea, but you left that cabin in great shape and it was a very easy clean.
[0:21:23 – 0:21:24] Erik: You didn’t even really use the beds.
[0:21:24 – 0:21:26] Erik: So cleaning cabin 10,
[0:21:27 – 0:21:29] Erik: It was a real smooth operation.
[0:21:32 – 0:21:40] Erik: Head back for the scheduled tow, which is a group of seven.
[0:21:43 – 0:21:45] Erik: Excuse me, group of five.
[0:21:48 – 0:21:50] Erik: So, it’s 12.40pm.
[0:21:52 – 0:21:52] Erik: p.m.
[0:21:53 – 0:21:59] Erik: Bail, gas, clean up, get ready some boats.
[0:21:59 – 0:22:11] Erik: A group of five typically can be shuttled on our John boat, towed, shuttled, water taxied, whatever you want to call it.
[0:22:11 – 0:22:13] Erik: But it is what it is.
[0:22:13 – 0:22:17] Erik: And this group, it seemed like it was going to be a little bit easier to
[0:22:19 – 0:22:22] Erik: …to have everything happen… …between two boats.
[0:22:23 – 0:22:37] Erik: So we put three… …in the John boat with… …the gear… …and the canoes… …and then two of the extra people… …and a little bit of gear… …carried over into one of the V-Hull… …the Lund 9.9s.
[0:22:40 – 0:22:47] Erik: And if you’ve been following along up to this point… …and you’ve been enjoying what you’ve been hearing…
[0:22:52 – 0:23:03] Erik: This is about five hours of tow slash water taxi slash shuttle conversation here.
[0:23:04 – 0:23:05] Erik: Not in real time.
[0:23:05 – 0:23:09] Erik: Obviously, that would be the longest podcast we’ve ever made.
[0:23:09 – 0:23:14] Erik: But I’m on the water now from 1230 to 530.
[0:23:18 – 0:23:21] Erik: If I haven’t mentioned, the winds have been blowing.
[0:23:26 – 0:23:33] Erik: So we head out, the group of five, three in the John boat, and I’m in the little V-Haul with two other people.
[0:23:36 – 0:23:40] Erik: And they’re looking for a campsite worst case scenario.
[0:23:41 – 0:23:45] Erik: They’ll end up having to do a portage into West Pike.
[0:23:45 – 0:23:50] Erik: So campsite five, the one just south of the Mountain Lake portage, is occupied.
[0:23:52 – 0:23:55] Erik: Campsite six, occupied.
[0:23:57 – 0:23:58] Erik: We go by campsite 7 and it’s open.
[0:23:59 – 0:24:01] Erik: And so they take campsite 7 and we drop them off there.
[0:24:04 – 0:24:16] Erik: In the meantime, as we are shuttling them, Michael is in the John Boat, which is the one with the big wooden rack that can accommodate the canoes.
[0:24:17 – 0:24:19] Erik: I’m in the 16-foot Lund V-Hull.
[0:24:20 – 0:24:22] Erik: He gets flagged down by some canoeists.
[0:24:24 – 0:24:26] Erik: I don’t necessarily see what
[0:24:28 – 0:24:34] Erik: Exactly happens or hear what his plans are with them, but he stops and then takes off again.
[0:24:35 – 0:24:39] Erik: And so we drop off the group we are originally planning to tow.
[0:24:42 – 0:24:42] Erik: Out.
[0:24:44 – 0:24:54] Erik: And we have a scheduled pickup about a half hour after 1 p.m. Pickup at the Far East Portage.
[0:24:56 – 0:25:26] Erik: in from caribou the one in the little uh the back bay on clearwater so as we’re unloading and dropping off people at the seventh campsite on clearwater michael tells me that he ran into a a group of three canoes six people just struggling into the the headwind and he’s he he told them to just go to campsite five which is the one just south of the mountain lake
[0:25:29 – 0:25:50] Erik: portage and in the meantime I still have the information from the the morning phone call that there is a group needing to be picked up at campsite and number three campsite three
[0:25:56 – 0:26:23] Erik: And so as he’s working on finishing up dropping off the original scheduled tow, knowing that he’s going to head over and pick up the group at 1 p.m. at the portage from Caribou, I head down to campsite three where I expect to find people who had called in the morning or at least told somebody to call
[0:26:26 – 0:26:27] Erik: And there’s nobody there.
[0:26:28 – 0:26:29] Erik: Campsite’s empty.
[0:26:30 – 0:26:44] Erik: So then I start wondering, was there some confusion with the group that Michael ran into and said, just go to campsite five, and we’ll pick you up there?
[0:26:47 – 0:26:50] Erik: Maybe that’s the group that we’re looking for that had called in the morning.
[0:26:50 – 0:26:54] Erik: So I run back to campsite five, and…
[0:26:56 – 0:27:01] Erik: I can tell that it’s not the group that we had because it was a group we had originally outfitted.
[0:27:02 – 0:27:14] Erik: So, it’s just kind of not random, but not nearly as planned of a group that was there sharing a site with some people that had already been camping there.
[0:27:16 – 0:27:17] Erik: So, it was a group of six.
[0:27:17 – 0:27:20] Erik: They had three canoes, one of their own, two of ours.
[0:27:22 – 0:27:24] Erik: And I’m just in the V-Haul…
[0:27:26 – 0:27:28] Erik: There’s not much I can do besides just take people.
[0:27:29 – 0:27:31] Erik: So I take three girls and some gear back.
[0:27:34 – 0:27:36] Erik: Run them back to Clearwater, drop them off.
[0:27:37 – 0:27:39] Erik: And as I’m heading by campsite one…
[0:27:40 – 0:27:42] Erik: I kind of can tell that there are some…
[0:27:42 – 0:27:44] Erik: There’s a bit of gear…
[0:27:44 – 0:27:47] Erik: Slash a bear barrel down at the waterfront.
[0:27:48 – 0:27:52] Erik: That looks like… One of ours.
[0:27:53 – 0:27:55] Erik: So then at this point I’m assuming…
[0:27:57 – 0:28:07] Erik: I don’t know where the idea of what campsite three means, but that must be where the people we got a call from in the morning are.
[0:28:08 – 0:28:22] Erik: So I head back, drop off the people in my boat, and then head back out to stop at the first campsite.
[0:28:25 – 0:28:28] Erik: And this whole time, it is insanely windy.
[0:28:30 – 0:28:31] Erik: It’s insanely wild.
[0:28:33 – 0:28:38] Erik: The clouds are whipping by in such close proximity.
[0:28:38 – 0:28:44] Erik: It feels like… You know, everybody always says this.
[0:28:44 – 0:28:45] Erik: You could just jump up and grab them.
[0:28:46 – 0:28:48] Erik: But they seem like they’re just right there.
[0:28:51 – 0:28:52] Erik: And it’s intermittent…
[0:28:58 – 0:29:15] Erik: crisp blue skies… warmth… and… gray, dark… like beating… heavy rain.
[0:29:19 – 0:29:20] Erik: But it’s beautiful.
[0:29:21 – 0:29:22] Erik: It’s amazing.
[0:29:22 – 0:29:26] Erik: And I’m out there in this… this little… V-Hull…
[0:29:29 – 0:29:33] Erik: Buzzing around… As best as I can.
[0:29:34 – 0:29:41] Erik: Basically as… A little… Sidecar to the John boat.
[0:29:43 – 0:29:44] Erik: Which…
[0:29:47 – 0:29:49] Erik: Can accommodate a few more people.
[0:29:49 – 0:29:51] Erik: You know, it has a little bit more space.
[0:29:51 – 0:29:54] Erik: It’s got a little bit more of a rescue feel to it.
[0:29:54 – 0:29:55] Erik: Like, hey, come on.
[0:29:56 – 0:29:57] Erik: Jump in the John boat.
[0:29:58 – 0:29:59] Erik: You’ll be safe here.
[0:29:59 – 0:30:01] Erik: And then I’ve just got this little V-Haul.
[0:30:06 – 0:30:06] Erik: But it’s wild.
[0:30:07 – 0:30:11] Erik: I mean, it’s one of the crazier days out on Clearwater.
[0:30:11 – 0:30:19] Erik: And I’ve been out there a number of days into, you know, well into late in the year, snow, winds.
[0:30:19 – 0:30:30] Erik: And this is a couple of moments where the rain is beating into my face so hard I can barely look forward.
[0:30:33 – 0:30:37] Erik: And so the tow operation continues.
[0:30:39 – 0:30:49] Erik: We have to pick up people from what they said was campsite number four, then number three, which ended up being number one.
[0:30:49 – 0:30:53] Erik: The first campsite, the one that has the spur trail that goes up to the border route trail.
[0:30:55 – 0:30:57] Erik: There’s six of them there.
[0:30:59 – 0:30:59] Erik: And I’m
[0:31:03 – 0:31:05] Erik: Pretty much set in the way that I can be set.
[0:31:06 – 0:31:07] Erik: With the V-Hull.
[0:31:07 – 0:31:09] Erik: So I bring three people gear.
[0:31:10 – 0:31:11] Erik: Run back to Clearwater.
[0:31:11 – 0:31:12] Erik: Go back three people gear.
[0:31:13 – 0:31:14] Erik: I’m like whatever.
[0:31:14 – 0:31:16] Erik: We’ll just run back out with the John boat.
[0:31:16 – 0:31:17] Erik: And get your canoes.
[0:31:17 – 0:31:18] Erik: It’s not a problem.
[0:31:21 – 0:31:22] Erik: The wind is still blowing.
[0:31:23 – 0:31:24] Erik: On the first trip back from.
[0:31:25 – 0:31:27] Erik: Campsite one with the first group of three.
[0:31:29 – 0:31:30] Erik: Kind of just.
[0:31:32 – 0:31:33] Erik: Chugging along.
[0:31:33 – 0:31:34] Erik: And all of a sudden.
[0:31:34 – 0:31:35] Erik: I look over.
[0:31:37 – 0:31:38] Erik: And there’s a bear.
[0:31:39 – 0:31:40] Erik: A bear.
[0:31:40 – 0:31:40] Erik: A black bear.
[0:31:41 – 0:31:42] Erik: Swimming across the lake.
[0:31:44 – 0:31:45] Erik: Towards us.
[0:31:46 – 0:31:47] Erik: Just direct like.
[0:31:48 – 0:31:50] Erik: We’re not moving fast.
[0:31:50 – 0:31:51] Erik: But we’re not just.
[0:31:51 – 0:31:53] Erik: Swimming or floating.
[0:31:53 – 0:31:54] Erik: And there’s this bear.
[0:31:54 – 0:31:55] Erik: Just kind of.
[0:31:55 – 0:31:56] Erik: It’s just his head.
[0:31:57 – 0:31:58] Erik: Just a tube.
[0:31:58 – 0:31:59] Erik: A black tube of.
[0:32:01 – 0:32:07] Erik: feed me peanut butter and jelly sandwiches kind of cruising towards us and it…
[0:32:08 – 0:32:18] Erik: I don’t know if it finally noticed us or it finally decided that we were not something that it wanted to have anything to do with but it started doing this like…
[0:32:18 – 0:32:20] Erik: kind of bobbing in the air.
[0:32:20 – 0:32:26] Erik: I said a little like spy hop thing where it was like kind of swimming and jumping up and looking.
[0:32:26 – 0:32:32] Erik: And then I think it kind of noticed what we were and then turned and swam back in the opposite direction.
[0:32:34 – 0:32:43] Erik: And then I dropped that group of three off, head back out, pick up the last three and their equipment.
[0:32:46 – 0:32:58] Erik: And the whole time Michael is moving back and forth with the towboat and the, and the canoes and everything that, you know, we’ve been flagged down to do at this point.
[0:32:58 – 0:33:05] Erik: And then the last run back in with the, the V home.
[0:33:10 – 0:33:11] Erik: I’ve got three guys.
[0:33:14 – 0:33:15] Erik: Then their gear.
[0:33:16 – 0:33:20] Erik: And we’re not moving fast, but we’re not crawling.
[0:33:21 – 0:33:23] Erik: And I knew Michael was ahead of me.
[0:33:24 – 0:33:36] Erik: He had been, I kind of, I didn’t see him go by, but just the timing of things made sense that he should be back with the john boat and the canoes for the group.
[0:33:38 – 0:33:50] Erik: of people that he was picking up from Campsite 5, which is the one just south of the Mountain Lake Portage, which by this point was one of their canoes and one of our canoes.
[0:33:52 – 0:34:02] Erik: And so I’m kind of crawling in and trying to piece together what I’m seeing from a distance.
[0:34:04 – 0:34:07] Erik: Because it doesn’t make sense to my eyes.
[0:34:08 – 0:34:10] Erik: It doesn’t make sense what I’m seeing.
[0:34:13 – 0:34:24] Erik: Because the john boat is disassociated from the rack that holds the canoes.
[0:34:25 – 0:34:50] Erik: So if you’re not familiar, our flat-bottomed John boat holds a little wooden 2×4 rack, basically like a square rectangle-y kind of contraption, and we can tie canoes onto it upside down, and then we shuttle them down the lake.
[0:34:51 – 0:34:55] Erik: And that wooden rack is always in the John Boat.
[0:34:58 – 0:34:58] Erik: It was always there.
[0:34:58 – 0:35:13] Erik: It would be like looking at a house and every time you look at that house you see the roof on it and then one day you looked at that same house you’ve looked at a thousand times and there just wasn’t a roof on it.
[0:35:15 – 0:35:21] Erik: So I’m coming into the Clearwater waterfront area and
[0:35:23 – 0:35:28] Erik: The canoe rack is not attached to the john boat.
[0:35:29 – 0:35:52] Erik: And as I grow closer and closer, I see that the john boat is sitting on the shore next to the canoe rack, which still has two canoes tied to it that are upside down in the water with the canoe rack on top of them.
[0:35:57 – 0:35:58] Erik: I’ve never seen anything like it.
[0:36:01 – 0:36:03] Erik: I’ve been at Clearwater 15 years.
[0:36:03 – 0:36:14] Erik: And the only time that the canoe rank is not associated with the John boat is in the fall and spring when we move it in and out of the lake.
[0:36:17 – 0:36:19] Erik: And so I, I docked the boat.
[0:36:19 – 0:36:26] Erik: Everybody that’s in my boat doesn’t seem to really even notice because they’re in good spirits to have not had to have paddled the length of the lake.
[0:36:28 – 0:36:29] Erik: In the wind.
[0:36:33 – 0:36:34] Erik: And so I tie up.
[0:36:34 – 0:36:35] Erik: And I walk towards.
[0:36:36 – 0:36:37] Erik: I walk towards the beach.
[0:36:37 – 0:36:39] Erik: And Michael.
[0:36:39 – 0:36:40] Erik: He’s wet.
[0:36:41 – 0:36:43] Erik: He seems a little rattled.
[0:36:44 – 0:36:45] Erik: Not too bad.
[0:36:47 – 0:36:47] Erik: And.
[0:36:49 – 0:36:49] Erik: He’s.
[0:36:50 – 0:36:51] Erik: Like yeah.
[0:36:51 – 0:36:53] Erik: The canoe wreck blew out of.
[0:36:53 – 0:36:54] Erik: The john boat.
[0:36:55 – 0:36:57] Erik: With the canoes attached to it.
[0:36:59 – 0:37:07] Erik: And almost sunk the whole operation because one of our canoes started taking on water.
[0:37:08 – 0:37:21] Erik: And I had to gather both canoes that were still tied to the canoe rack, sort of half attached to the john boat.
[0:37:23 – 0:37:25] Erik: And make our way back to Clearwater.
[0:37:26 – 0:37:27] Erik: And both canoes were fine.
[0:37:28 – 0:37:30] Erik: Everybody involved was fine.
[0:37:30 – 0:37:31] Erik: Besides some…
[0:37:32 – 0:37:34] Erik: Some bruises, I think, on Michael’s part.
[0:37:36 – 0:37:37] Erik: But that’s how windy it was.
[0:37:39 – 0:37:44] Erik: The canoe rack… With two canoes… One of which was a gel coat…
[0:37:47 – 0:37:48] Erik: Blew out…
[0:37:51 – 0:38:10] Erik: of the john boat flipped out i never even thought it was possible because i have been involved in so many horribly windy days with that boat and contraption with canoes that i never i never thought it was going to be a concern
[0:38:14 – 0:38:43] Erik: and so then all of a sudden the first time it happens in 15 years I get super concerned so I’m like hey well I’m going out to get these canoes by myself I might want some help just to make sure because I couldn’t even imagine canoe wreck and canoes flip out of the towboat alone what you would even do but Michael handled it well enough
[0:38:48 – 0:39:17] Erik: 7 o’clock oh sorry I’m an hour off it’s 6 o’clock I clean 8 Kevlar canoes and start making my way through a bunch of wet gear from a fully outfitted group of 6 and wet gear oh boy wet gear is the best it’s all just so much fun
[0:39:19 – 0:39:22] Erik: And a lot of it I need for tomorrow.
[0:39:22 – 0:39:25] Erik: So, you know, there’s a whole hanging operation.
[0:39:26 – 0:39:26] Erik: Fans.
[0:39:29 – 0:39:32] Erik: Hopefully the sun will be up right away in the morning.
[0:39:33 – 0:39:34] Erik: Get some of this stuff dried.
[0:39:39 – 0:39:43] Erik: And then it’s just…
[0:39:45 – 0:39:48] Erik: It doesn’t necessarily have a specific…
[0:39:54 – 0:39:58] Erik: I don’t have a specific problem with any one group.
[0:40:00 – 0:40:01] Erik: But there is a thing.
[0:40:03 – 0:40:06] Erik: And there’s maybe a translation to this.
[0:40:09 – 0:40:14] Erik: To other aspects of hospitality and maybe how you could judge.
[0:40:16 – 0:40:17] Erik: That’s not even really the best word.
[0:40:18 – 0:40:19] Erik: It’s not a judgment thing.
[0:40:22 – 0:40:30] Erik: But it’s just trying to understand how some gear gets left.
[0:40:33 – 0:40:35] Erik: This is probably where I’m going to end.
[0:40:35 – 0:40:38] Erik: Before that, I sold a slice of pie.
[0:40:39 – 0:40:42] Erik: I checked out a solo canoe rental.
[0:40:42 – 0:40:44] Erik: I do the trash run.
[0:40:44 – 0:40:46] Erik: Oh, yeah, remember those chicken wings I pulled?
[0:40:47 – 0:40:48] Erik: Yeah, those didn’t happen.
[0:40:48 – 0:40:50] Erik: Those went back in the fridge.
[0:40:52 – 0:40:57] Erik: We have pizza and salads because there’s no time to do anything besides the basic stuff.
[0:41:01 – 0:41:02] Erik: Recycling run.
[0:41:02 – 0:41:05] Erik: So all the end of the day stuff happens.
[0:41:05 – 0:41:08] Erik: I mean, it’s 7 o’clock now.
[0:41:10 – 0:41:11] Erik: Just like that.
[0:41:11 – 0:41:14] Erik: Did you notice how the day went by?
[0:41:19 – 0:41:27] Erik: But there’s times as an outfitter, at the very least for me personally…
[0:41:31 – 0:41:49] Erik: And it really causes, if I’m being honest with myself, it causes me to question just how much I want to trust in and believe in humankind.
[0:41:49 – 0:41:52] Erik: I don’t know.
[0:41:52 – 0:41:57] Erik: Maybe I’m blowing it out of proportion.
[0:41:57 – 0:41:58] Erik: Maybe.
[0:41:59 – 0:42:00] Erik: Maybe.
[0:42:02 – 0:42:32] Erik: I could be, but the juxtaposition of how people treat equipment that’s rented and the space that they are using it in seems at odds.
[0:42:35 – 0:42:55] Erik: And this, again, is a common concern, especially this year, with, you know, here’s a picture and a slight story of somebody who cut down a huge white pine.
[0:42:56 – 0:43:04] Erik: You know, that dichotomy between a wilderness area that is
[0:43:07 – 0:43:13] Erik: Been protected by people who had our best interests in mind.
[0:43:15 – 0:43:25] Erik: To be used by people who had future generations’ best interests in mind.
[0:43:27 – 0:43:28] Erik: That was kind of the idea, I think.
[0:43:32 – 0:43:53] Erik: To see that disparity between the original purpose of the wilderness and the people that are coming up to use it, not across the board, but a little bit more frequently, is kind of, it’s challenging.
[0:43:53 – 0:43:56] Erik: It’s not challenging in the way that
[0:43:58 – 0:44:00] Erik: It’s not physically challenging…
[0:44:00 – 0:44:06] Erik: But it’s just challenging to the mind… To wonder… Why?
[0:44:06 – 0:44:06] Erik: Why?
[0:44:07 – 0:44:09] Erik: Somebody who’s coming up to…
[0:44:10 – 0:44:16] Erik: Experience a… To use the wilderness… For their benefit…
[0:44:21 – 0:44:27] Erik: But… At the same time… Can just leave…
[0:44:30 – 0:44:31] Erik: things the way that they do.
[0:44:31 – 0:44:32] Erik: I don’t know.
[0:44:32 – 0:44:36] Erik: Maybe I’m being too broad and vague.
[0:44:40 – 0:44:42] Erik: Just as an example…
[0:44:44 – 0:44:47] Erik: wet gear, wet gear that comes back to an outfitter is whatever.
[0:44:47 – 0:44:52] Erik: That’s just part of, that’s just the cost of doing business as an outfitter.
[0:44:52 – 0:44:54] Erik: Wet gear is what it is.
[0:44:54 – 0:44:58] Erik: Um, grounds left in a coffee press.
[0:44:58 – 0:44:59] Erik: Okay.
[0:44:59 – 0:45:07] Erik: Now you’re kind of starting to get into that 50, 50, like really, you’re just going to leave your, your grounds in the coffee press.
[0:45:07 – 0:45:08] Erik: Right.
[0:45:08 – 0:45:09] Erik: Um,
[0:45:10 – 0:45:18] Erik: You’re going to want to stuff the Therm-a-Rest in a sleeping bag bag and the sleeping bag in a Therm-a-Rest bag.
[0:45:19 – 0:45:21] Erik: Doesn’t really make that much of a difference.
[0:45:22 – 0:45:39] Erik: But when you start getting to the point where you’re putting cups of black dirt and night crawlers…
[0:45:41 – 0:46:07] Erik: in thwart bags, just loose, so that when you zip open a thwart bag and there’s just worms and dirt in it, or any of the dishes that you’ve sent out, it literally looks like somebody yelled at the crew at the campsite
[0:46:09 – 0:46:11] Erik: We all have to leave now.
[0:46:11 – 0:46:14] Erik: And then everybody just threw everything into a bag.
[0:46:16 – 0:46:16] Erik: With food.
[0:46:22 – 0:46:23] Erik: That’s what makes me kind of wonder.
[0:46:27 – 0:46:32] Erik: How can you have that same level of appreciation for where you’re at?
[0:46:34 – 0:46:38] Erik: In the Boundary Waters, in the wilderness, Quetico, whatever.
[0:46:39 – 0:46:47] Erik: If that’s just how you’re generally going to treat rental equipment.
[0:46:50 – 0:46:54] Erik: And I feel like that’s just generally the nature of being an outfitter.
[0:46:55 – 0:46:57] Erik: It’s a constant juxtaposition.
[0:47:01 – 0:47:03] Erik: The chaos and the calm.
[0:47:04 – 0:47:07] Erik: Like if it feels like
[0:47:10 – 0:47:18] Erik: There’s fluctuating moments of madness and serenity.
[0:47:18 – 0:47:19] Erik: You’re surrounded by it.
[0:47:22 – 0:47:37] Erik: And then the gear that you rent seems like it might not be a 50-50, but you notice the bad cases more.
[0:47:40 – 0:47:46] Erik: You know, sociopathic and empathic tendencies.
[0:47:51 – 0:47:59] Erik: And the experiences of people you would like to think would improve over time.
[0:48:02 – 0:48:05] Erik: And it makes me question…
[0:48:07 – 0:48:17] Erik: What the real purpose of the wilderness and the boundary waters and what outfitters stand for.
[0:48:17 – 0:48:20] Erik: Are they just there to make money?
[0:48:22 – 0:48:23] Erik: Especially this year.
[0:48:28 – 0:48:29] Erik: Especially this year.
[0:48:33 – 0:48:34] Erik: I don’t know.
[0:48:34 – 0:48:35] Erik: I’m rambling now.
[0:48:35 – 0:48:36] Erik: Am I rambling?
[0:48:36 – 0:48:37] Erik: I’m rambling.
[0:48:41 – 0:49:06] Erik: well at 7 o’clock yeah I sell some pie and then I do a trash run and then I head back to the annex and I open a bottle of wine and I watch classic SNL on a DVD player remember that what that was
[0:49:09 – 0:49:10] Erik: There’s nothing beyond that.
[0:49:13 – 0:49:13] Erik: There it goes.
[0:49:15 – 0:49:15] Erik: All right.
[0:49:15 – 0:49:19] Erik: Well… Was that a day in the life?
[0:49:23 – 0:49:24] Erik: It was…
[0:49:25 – 0:49:25] Erik: It was thoughts.
[0:49:26 – 0:49:26] Erik: Heavy thoughts.
[0:49:30 – 0:49:32] Erik: Intermingled with kind of madness…
[0:49:33 – 0:49:55] Erik: And yet, at the end of the day, the overwhelming majority of people that used to walk through the doors of Clearwater but now stand next to the window, regardless of the year, the vast majority of people we interact with and service are great.
[0:49:56 – 0:50:01] Erik: They respect the facilities, they respect our staff, and the gear that we read them.
[0:50:02 – 0:50:10] Erik: Because they’re on vacation at one of the coolest places in the state and my favorite place in the world.
[0:50:14 – 0:50:18] Erik: And yeah, the hours get long.
[0:50:19 – 0:50:24] Erik: Some of the tasks get a bit repetitive.
[0:50:26 – 0:50:28] Erik: I’m going to run another canoe down to West Bearskin.
[0:50:30 – 0:50:31] Erik: Somebody wants to go to Rose Falls.
[0:50:32 – 0:50:33] Erik: Oh, you don’t say.
[0:50:33 – 0:50:34] Erik: Wow.
[0:50:36 – 0:50:36] Erik: Yeah.
[0:50:38 – 0:50:40] Erik: That’s all still being…
[0:50:41 – 0:50:58] Erik: Serviced in the realm of working with people who are on vacation, who want to be here, and love the effort that we put in to provide a good time while they’re here.
[0:50:59 – 0:51:09] Erik: Because I’ve worked other jobs in hospitality where it’s, you know, ho-hum, motel, hotel, business trip.
[0:51:11 – 0:51:11] Erik: Somebody’s checking in.
[0:51:12 – 0:51:12] Erik: That’s about it.
[0:51:12 – 0:51:13] Erik: Check me into my room.
[0:51:13 – 0:51:14] Erik: Leave me alone.
[0:51:14 – 0:51:15] Erik: I’m done.
[0:51:16 – 0:51:26] Erik: Even some restaurants that I’ve worked at, you know, even in the area, even tourist restaurants, it’s, you know, in, out, not much in between.
[0:51:26 – 0:51:29] Erik: You know, there’s relationships and there’s conversations and there’s
[0:51:31 – 0:51:50] Erik: a bit more that day-to-day brings a little bit more color to the day than just going through the motions of 9 to 5 or whatever.
[0:51:51 – 0:51:54] Erik: And so, you know, it is a lifestyle.
[0:51:55 – 0:51:55] Erik: And yes…
[0:51:58 – 0:52:14] Erik: I do miss out on a vast array of, especially in the summer, personal free time, summer things that friends do.
[0:52:16 – 0:52:18] Erik: Do I miss getting to do that?
[0:52:18 – 0:52:19] Erik: Yeah, for sure.
[0:52:21 – 0:52:30] Erik: Do I miss getting to spend as much time in the boundary waters physically overnight on personal trips?
[0:52:32 – 0:52:33] Erik: Yes, definitely.
[0:52:34 – 0:52:36] Erik: But would I change anything?
[0:52:37 – 0:52:38] Erik: No, absolutely not.
[0:52:40 – 0:52:45] Erik: And I don’t know if I necessarily…
[0:52:47 – 0:53:01] Erik: gave a, a solid representation of a day as an outfitter, a cabin cleaner, front desk helper, clerk.
[0:53:01 – 0:53:02] Erik: I don’t know what you want to call them.
[0:53:02 – 0:53:06] Erik: Associate and a front desk clearwater associate.
[0:53:06 – 0:53:07] Erik: That’s the word.
[0:53:07 – 0:53:13] Erik: Uh, you know, many hats get worn this time of year.
[0:53:13 – 0:53:13] Erik: Um,
[0:53:16 – 0:53:18] Erik: But every day is different.
[0:53:18 – 0:53:26] Erik: And that’s the point I was going to make is I think the main reason that I love what I do is no two days are alike.
[0:53:29 – 0:53:38] Erik: And it’s all surrounded by the beauty of this wilderness that I was originally drawn to.
[0:53:40 – 0:53:50] Erik: And I find myself incredibly fortunate to have formed a life that has allowed me to be so close to something that I love so much.
[0:53:52 – 0:53:56] Erik: And make an honest living from it.
[0:53:58 – 0:54:07] Erik: And with that… Loons, please, Adam?
[0:54:31 – 0:54:31] UNKNOWN: Thank you.
