Surviving the Flu & Surprise on Lake Calhoun

The quarantine is over! My probable H1N1-related fever had finally broken on Saturday and I desperately wanted to escape the second bedroom of our apartment. Despite my previous post highlighting the experiences of my co-workers in the Boundary Waters, they had not yet returned from their adventure when my fever broke.

Although I had not quite yet fully healed, most of my symptoms were gone and I wanted to take advantage of the glorious sunshine that bathed the Twin Cities this weekend. On Sunday, I made the short drive to my defacto standard kayaking location, Lake of the Isles and Lake Calhoun, and hopped on the water for some light paddling.

I paddled out to the center of Lake Calhoun and kicked my feet up for some lounging in the sun. I was admiring the city skyline when I heard a loud speaker in the distance and the cheers of a crowd on the southern shore of Lake Calhoun. After I turned around, I was surprised to see a gathering of anchored kayaks & canoes floating opposite of bleachers set up on the shore.

There were a number of people obviously anchored for the day just outside of some floating barriers. A number of them had umbrellas, sun block and coolers with drinks and food. Other than my 1L bottle of water, I had none of these things, but I had arrived late to the party.

What is this party? I later found out it was the 70th-annual Minneapolis Aquatennial celebration. This 9-day celebration has a unique competition – milk carton boat races! How cool is that? I paddled up to the competition just as it was finishing up (drats!), but it sounded like people make their own boats out of milk cartons and race them. They come in serious or amusing designs, and were some of the most unique boats I’ve seen on Lake Calhoun.

There were a number of life guards and safety crew on call to help anyone that might have some trouble. I can imagine more than one milk carton boat didn’t cross the finish line.

A very long, skinny milk carton boat was being walked out to the starting line when I arrived. This thing was truly massive, and I cannot imagine how many cartons were used to assemble this beast. I couldn’t see them get into the boat, but I can imagine the boat was a bit ‘tippy’ with such a narrow beam. I also imagine this boat only raced in a straight line.

There were quite a few people gathered on shore to watch the races. I enjoyed my spot on the water, as I never imagined I’d spend the afternoon watching milk carton boat races while reclining in my inflatable kayak. Come to think of it, I couldn’t really move or breathe without pain just a couple days before.

I do enjoy fair-style food, but I think I will pack a lunch next year and enjoy the full competition from the water. I definitely will need to pack the kayak with sunblock, an anchor, food and drinks.

There were quite a few activities for families, including a climbing wall, bungee-assisted moon-walking, and a bouncy-house style inflatable playhouse. Perhaps I can bring our (soon-to-be) daughter here one year.

The long, skinny milk carton boat was quite speedy. I could count 10 people with oars, ranging from young to older. Low drag and lots of paddlers, that seems to be a good combination. I am fairly certain they were going faster than I could paddle my inflatable kayak.

Each of the boats had a sponsor. I’m pretty sure the ’sponsors’ were just a group of enthusiastic co-workers, as I can’t imagine they were financially supported. The comically named S.S. Colon Cruiser was sponsored by a department of a local hospital. Perhaps this means we’ll see the Finzel Crystal Cruiser next year? Hmm….tempting, very tempting.

The long, skinny boat was racing the S.S. Colon Cruiser. I’m afraid a 4-person crew paddling a double-hulled milk jug boat is not the fastest combination. Despite their best efforts, the S.S. Colon Cruiser came in a distant second place. Everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves though, so no hurt feelings were on the water.

I headed back to my familiar launching dock on Lake of the Isles. I had escaped the self-imposed prison of my second bedroom, saw the sun, and enjoyed a truly unique sight on the waters of Lake Calhoun. I’d say it was a good day.

I’m happy to say that the water level appears to be up a bit on the lakes, but still low for the year. Luckily the water was quite still and enjoyable to admire. I may not be floating in the Boundary Waters, but at least I am out on the water.

As my boat sat in the sun to dry, I managed to photograph a family of ducks swimming by the dock. They didn’t seem to appreciate my paparazzi-like chasing of them to get a good photo. I managed to capture this shot, and figured I’d stressed them out enough. You can see the extensive plant growth that was filling the lake in this shot.

One last photo before I packed the inflatable kayak back in the car. Although I missed out on my Boundary Waters trip, I still made the best of a bad situation. I’m happy to say that my flu symptoms were not terribly bad, and I seemed to have pulled through OK. My pregnant wife seemed to escape the flu, so that was a tremendous relief. How many more kayak trips can I squeeze in before our daughter is born? I hope a couple more, but we’ll see!

What I didn’t see at the Boundary Waters

Having only a few days after my Waterville Valley trip to get ready for the much anticipated Boundary Waters paddling and camping trip, I ran out to purchase the last few pieces of equipment & food I still needed. A few days before the trip, I started to feel a bit under the weather. Then the fever hit. Then it was painful to breath. Then I went to the doctor.

I tested positive for Influenza A. Due to the prevalence of H1N1, the hospital stopped secondary screening and the policy was to assume anyone testing positive for Influenza A as positive for H1N1. Therefore, I was listed as likely being infected with H1N1 and placed under quarantine at home. No contact with others, no leaving my apartment, and no Boundary Waters camping trip.

Devastating! I’ve been looking forward to this trip for months! Despite my sadness at not going on this trip, I was even more saddened by the possibility that I had transmitted the virus to my 7-month pregnant wife. She was immediately placed on side-effect-prone Tamiflu, as H1N1 seems to cause coma in pregnant women and is not good for the baby.

I’m happy to say I survived, my wife remained healthy (except for the nausea and vomiting from the Tamiflu), and I got to go “camping” in my office at home for a week while my fever broke.

The plan was to enter at Moose Lake (entry point #25), northeast of Ely. After paddling across Moose Lake, we would then have a half-mile portage to Wind Lake. Next, we’d settle on a campsite on the shore of Wind Lake and use that as a base for the rest of the trip. We planned on paddling around Wind Lake and have day hikes around that area. We’d rent kevlar canoes to help with the portages, but I was planning to bring my inflatable kayak for myself. We’d planned to have a total of 5 people, including myself.

What follows now is a post about what I did not see while on my Boundary Waters camping trip. These photos were “stolen” from a co-worker of mine that did make the trip. I am grateful that he got such beautiful photos, but also sad that I now know what I missed.

These are the canoes that I didn’t see us rent. They weigh less than my inflatable kayak and were reportedly quite manageable to portage.

This is the hard paddling I didn’t see them do. I would have been blown all over in the inflatable kayak. I guess there was a reason they named it Wind Lake.

This is a landing I didn’t get to see. Luckily the shores are mostly sandy and easy to get in and out of.

This is a portage trail that I missed. The main portage trail was more open than this, but I’m sure it would have been quite the struggle with the inflatable kayak over my head.

The water level was fairly low, so this trail was extended to keep the portage trail accessible. I didn’t see one of the campers almost lose a shoe in very deep mud around here.

Here are three of my fellow campers I didn’t get to see sitting in the rain on my waterproof tarp.

Here is my tent that I didn’t get to see in the woods. I hear it performed just fine with three people and kept everyone mostly dry.

Here is the campsite I didn’t get to experience. It actually looks more developed than I was expecting.

Here is the campfire I didn’t get to see, but my fellow campers didn’t get to see it very much due to the wet wood around the campsite. Luckily the camp stove worked just fine.

Here is a beautiful sight I missed.

Here is a picture-perfect shot of Wind Lake.

Here is some tough navigation of lily pads, grass and shallow water that I didn’t get to see or experience. This would have been tough in the kayak, but I can’t wait to paddle in an area like this.

Here are some lily pads I didn’t see while paddling on Wind Lake.

Here is a blooming lily pad flower I didn’t see on Wind Lake.

Here is a beaver dam that I didn’t see built on Wind Lake.

Here is a Bald Eagle I didn’t see hanging around Wind Lake. I’m always impressed to see these in Minnesota, especially in the Twin Cities.

Here are some turtles sunning themselves that I didn’t see.

Here is a picturesque scene along the woods I didn’t see in Wind Lake.

Here is a trail leading to a nearby campsite across Wind Lake from the campsite I didn’t get to see.

Here is a picture perfect scene of the sun setting over Wind Lake that I didn’t get to see.

Here is another picture perfect scene of the sun setting over Wind Lake that I didn’t get to see.

Here is dusk settling over Wind Lake that I didn’t get to see.

Here is some very still water over Wind Lake providing great shots of a colorful sunset that I didn’t get to see.

Here is a view of the darkening sky over Wind Lake that I didn’t get to see.

Here is the end of the sights I didn’t get to see in the Boundary Waters.

Fret not, for I certainly hope I can make it up here again while I still live in Minnesota. My daughter’s pending birth does imply I won’t make it up this year (or the next couple), but I am willing to bet that I make it up here one day. I just hope I can capture as beautiful shots as my lucky, lucky co-workers. Thanks again for the photos Aravind!

Paddling Minnesota

Inflatable kayaking in Minnesota

Surviving the Flu & Surprise on Lake Calhoun

What I didn’t see at the Boundary Waters

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