Day 6

Day 6. Friday August 20^th. Berg River to Whitewater Lake. 11.4 miles.


Our high hopes were dashed when clouds rolled in just after dawn the next morning; the rain started as we broke camp.  By Minnesota flatwater standards, the initial portage landing was half in the rapids.  True, it was an easy Class I, but this was a common scenario we came to expect in Wabakimi.  

The rest of the Berg River was easy, with low-lying banks, no rapids, and no campsites.  We were lucky to see a wolf swimming the river ahead of us, a canoe trip first for us.
  
We found the last portage into Whitewater Lake with no problem, having spotted several boats in various states of disrepair at the end, another hallmark of a Wabakimi portage. The portage itself, a longish 889 meters, was very easy, although we would have been happier without the little board bridges someone had installed.  These were very slippery and in their own varying states of disrepair.

 The sky started to clear when we got to Whitewater Lake.  We saw our first signs of human activity since Smoothrock Lake, smoke ascending from a lodge chimney.  Later, a float plane landed.

We paddled north on Whitewater, heading for the Greyson River, with a gentle tail wind. There we found a lovely site just where the river enters the lake; perhaps the best of the entire trip. We stretched a clothes line, dried our things, and enjoyed the sunny evening.  We also made a nice dent in the food supply.

Lovely campsite on Whitewater Lake

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