Thursday, September 15, 2022 This morning started off slightly breezy and I didn’t sleep much due to the pines roaring overhead although at lake level things were fairly calm in my bay. Gloomy morning with low clouds…yup I think it’s going to rain today. I must have repositioned my tarp three times trying to pick the best spot not know if the predicted winds were actually going to happen. I ended up picking the spot near the fire pit so I could at least have a view to the lake while hunkered down. No sooner than tying the last knot did the first pitter patter of rain drops sound on the tarp. Time for some coffee and pancakes. Yum!

I listened to that unique hiss of rain drops on a perfectly calm Lake. That’s right the wind died down to a whisper! So I sat and people watched as the morning crowd of paddlers went by in various states of preparedness. It rained and rained… I got caught up on journaling and read a few chapters of my book and sat listening to the rain. It paused briefly now and then. So I wandered around camp watching warblers glean insects off of the cedar trees and squabbling over territory. Red squirrels ran back and forth carrying mouthfuls of cedar seed clumps and burying them or chowing down on them leaving near little shaving piles everywhere.

I was pretty comfy in my chair and the day went by rather quickly. I wandered out in the canoe once during a brief respite and came across my other neighbor and his sweet old hound doing the same thing. We chatted a bit and headed our separate ways. But before long the light mist turned quickly into a steady heavy rain and I hightailed it back to camp. Now it was an uncomfortable rain. Rivulets started flowing under my tarp and I had to get things off the ground. My extra wood soaked up the excessive moisture in the air and I had to drag my tent slightly uphill to get it out of a puddle forming at its base.

It’s hard not to get a little grumpy when you are now starting to get damp and the latrine trail is turning into a river. Thankfully by dinner time it let up a little and I made a nice hearty meal with fry bread. Days under the tarp call for a more “gourmet” meal. The scotch came out again as I stowed everything away for the night. I retired to the tent early with the rain picking up again.