South Nahanni River

The map shows the general South Nahanni river route from northwest to southeast with a section on the Liard river. The purple track is the flight from Fort Simpson to our start at Beaver Ponds.

Please be patient while photos load.

Use your browser back button to return.

South Nahanni trip log 2017 July 10

Reed and I had breakfast at the Walnut cafe. Afterward he drove me to Loveland where I connected with Bill Rivers. We said goodbye to Reed who joked about taking the last picture of us - funny Reed! We shared the driving as we made our way to Billings, Montana by 8PM. We ate at a Thai restaurant in the downtown area. I had a Kung pao dinner which I would later relieve myself of in a rush on the side of a Montana rode. We drove north of Billings thirty miles or so and pulled over to spend the night in a grasslands area. The place we parked was a short drive down a gravel road. We nearly ran over a burrowing owl with us both thinking it was a rabbit until we were almost on it. We slept in the bed of the truck. Just before we laid down we watched the just past full orange moon rise.

11 July 2017

This morning we enjoyed a cup of coffee on the tailgate. Bill thought about having seen the burrowing owl and started scanning the area looking for one. Sure enough there was one about 150 yards from us on a mound of dirt. We each snapped a picture of it through the spotting scope using our iPhones. We drove to Calgary and immediately went shopping at MEC, the sporting goods COOP store. I purchased a pair of goretex rain pants. Both Bill and I had to became lifetime members for $5 to be able to complete our purchases, We enjoyed a couple of beers and dinner at a sports pub nearby. The place had monitors around the place listing the beers on tap at the time. I had a Saskatoon Czech Pilsner. It went down nice and smooth. We selected a dive motel on the west end recently taken over by an Indian (as in India) family and crashed for the night.

12 July 2017

I sit here in the bed of Bill's truck wearing a mosquito suit, my jeans on and my feet and legs inside the sleeping bag while I alternately type and slap at the mesquites trapped inside with us. I've already lost count of the number of bites I have. This morning as we checked out from the hotel, Bill inquired about where to get breakfast. The indian clerk suggested Tim Horton's and was incredulous when Bill didn't know the chain. We decide to walk the couple of blocks to try it out. We walked in and immediately walked out. All I could see was sugar marketed as fresh food. Bill found a terrific restaurant called OEB that served a number of very diverse, creative and healthy meals. The next order of business was to head for Banff and select a place to do some tandem canoeing. We ended up on the Kananaski river east of Canmore based on a recommendation from Howard a canoeist in Calgary. A nice guy from Ontario started chatting with us. Bill asked if he'd mind ferrying one of us so we could place our car at the takeout. He happily agreed. So we put in at Widowmaker just below the first big drop and proceeded to canoe to canoe meadows only 2 miles down river..That stretch of river is controlled by flows from the dam just a few miles further up river. The Alberta river club worked to install gates and place boulders to create a fun and up to Class III challenging course. Bill and I swamped the canoe on about the third drop but we're able to quickly swim to shore and empty the boat of water. We took a more cautious approach going forward scouting the rapids and porting around a couple. There were numerous inflatable rafts running the stretch along with one guy in an open canoe who did well. Bill and I paddled some reasonably challenging rapids without further incident. I really enjoyed it! I feel good about what we accomplished. We drove to Canmore and then on to Banff. The valley was spectacular despite the haze from fires in BC. We enjoyed a delicious Indian dinner of Behindi do Piyasa in Banff at the restaurant Masala. Afterward we walked to the falls and saw the Banff lodge. We couldn't find a free campsite near Lake Louise so parked in the Johnston Canyon lot and bedded down in the bed of the pickup battling mesquites!

13 July 2017

Just as this day started, which I assure you is when most of us are sleeping, Mr Ranger pointed a flashlight into the bed of the pickup and asked if anyone was inside. Waking from one hour of sleep, I didn't consider not answering to be in my best interest. He said it was illegal for us to be sleeping where we were and that we needed to leave. I asked for suggestions and he said across the road in the overflow lot of the full campground like we were expected to know this. So we loaded gear and moved camp. Poor Bill. First he had an hour of sleep robbed from him and at 4:45AM I whispered a question to him asking if he wanted to watch the sun rise on Lake Louise. He began to move but he never was fully engaged until after we were parked at the Lake Louise lot and he was enjoying a cup of Via tailgate coffee and a big bowl of granola with fruit and yogurt. While he prepared his breakfast I headed up to the east end of Lake Louise near the hotel and took some pictures of the sun's light as it brought the lake to life. There were about 30 photographers and nature worshippers watching the beauty unfold on the lake and surrounding mountains. After we'd both had coffee and breakfast, we set out hiking to enjoy a tea and sweet at the tea house high above the lake. We made good time. Bill didn't want to arrive too soon suggesting we hike to the large Beehive first. We took some fine pictures. Bill's camera battery died which was a disappointment. We made our way down toward the tea house conversing and then watching a young lady take a swim in Lake Agnes upon who's shores the tea house sits. Tea house to-go line was long so we went looking for a table and snagged one almost immediately. We ordered tea, apple strudel, soup of the day and a tuna sandwich. Our waitress said she lives and works at the tea house for four consecutive days. Helicopters deliver food and haul out trash. While we sat there on the south deck overlooking lake Agnes and Louise, we had a pleasant conversation with a young couple from Tanzania. After they left an older Canadian, Herman, sat down and proceeded to almost talk our ears off. I had to laugh when I asked if he rod with riders he meets along the way; he replied that people 'talk too much'! He's been riding a tricycle with his next destination Jasper. Look for his story on the 'Crazy Bike Guy' blog site under trikes. We said good by to Herman and hiked out to the little beehive for more overlooks. it was here that I dropped my phone shattering it's screen - bummer! We headed out of Lake Louise, found a campsite in the Rampart camp area and took in a poor meal at The Crossing. This is the nicest camp site we've had to date! The mosquites are just normal in numbers here. "Another good day", says Bill as he lay in his sleeping in the bed of his pickup in the Rampart camping area site number 20 north of The Crossing about 13 kilometers.

14 July 2017

We had a slow relaxing morning today. We slept in! Bill heated water for coffee and we enjoyed some of the granola and frozen berries that he brought. We then drove north on highway 93 toward the Ice Center. This large building provides a base of operations for all the tourist in buses and cars visiting the Columbia snow field and the Athabasca glacier. The Columbia snow field is the source of snow for the glaciers in the area. The Ice center offered motorized trips out onto the Athabasca glacier, tickets for a glass walkway high above the valley floor and a couple of restaurants. The place was packed with buses, cars and the associated people. We grabbed some fast food and then headed toward the base of the glacier where we were told we could take a walking tour on the glacier. We located the icewalk.com van at the trailhead to the glacier base and were told they were fully booked for the day. The walking tour only proceeded up the shallow incline glacier to where the mobile tours took people so we declined to sign up for tomorrow's tour. We continued to drive north to the Sunwapta falls. These falls are located 1km off of 93. The wide Sunwapta river suddenly drops into a narrow chasm only about 20 feet wide as it then drops about 50 feet into another cliff sided raven. It's quite spectacular, but as we learned later only a precursor for another very dramatic waterfall. We made it to the Honeymoon Lake campground and secured one of the last if not the last campsite. Here we met a pleasant Canadian couple, Jeanine and Rob along with their very attention hungry dog. Bill wanted a shower and the lake was beaconing. We changed into swimsuits and slipped right into the cool, but very refreshing water for a little swim and scrub. Feeling rejuvenated we climbed in the truck and headed for Jasper. Along the way we came upon a bunch of cars stopped in the road. We were told to watch for such phenomenon as indicates a wildlife sighting. Sure enough, it was about a dozen mountain goats licking some white soil beside the road devoid of plant life. We each snapped a few photos. Our next stop was Athabasca falls. Like the Sunwapta river falls, the Athabasca river falls into a narrow slot canyon and dramatically descends with the power and energy of a flash flood. The existence of two offsetting abandoned slots added to the Magic of the place. The slots ranged from 12 to maybe 30 ft in width. The roar was impressive. We both felt the spiritual beauty no power of the place. Once in Jasper we enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Raven sitting at the bar. We met Mick the bartender who told us about the skiing (he recommended R) and gave me a name of someone who can fix broken phone screens. We grabbed some food and Ice before heading back to camp. The skies had filled around Jasper with heavy smoke from BC fires while we were eating. The smoke had not reached the Honeymoon lake campground - yet. A quick photo opportunity at the lake as the sun set and then we laid down to sleep.

15 July 2017

We enjoyed a casual start to the morning and some conversations with Rob and Jeanine camping next to us. Then it was back to Jasper for a shower and laundry before snagging lunch at the Other Paw Cafe. Jasper is smokey again today. We drove north out of town to the Miette Hot Springs. A group of Big Horn sheep greeted us in the parking lot as the licked the under carriages of vehicles. The hot spring had cold, medium cold, warm, and hot pools. There were lots of people of all ages. I enjoyed a couple of dips in the cold pools. We finally connected with Ken and Judy in Hinti about 6:00PM. Dinner was at Subway. We found an open communal grassy campsite in the William Snitchell Provencal Park for the four of us. We took a short nature walk hearing a loon along the way.

16 July 2017

Today was a travel day from near Hinton to Buckinghorse River. BC. It was raining hard on the drive but abated for dinner at the campsite. The region we traveled through has massive oil and gas operations with big trucks and man camps.

17 July 2017

Today was yet another travel day. We left Buckinghorse River in an overcast. Our first stop after a few hours of driving in rain was Fort Nelson. At the visitor center they told us where to purchase some very last minute supplies, secure a shower, and do that last laundry. Bill and I enjoyed lunch at the Gourmet Girl. We all took showers at the beautiful recreation center and I purchased more bug spray and a flannel sleeping bag liner. we headed west from Fort Nelson and made the final turn toward the river at highway 77. Shortly after the turn we saw a black bear cub! The road was paved which delighted us. After about 150 km we crossed into the Northwest Territory. We saw another black bear cub, Bill got too close for my comfort to take a picture of a bison. We saw a couple of red tail hawks. We fueled up in Fort Liard. The road turned to gravel. Another hour of driving and we arrived at the Blackstone Territorial campground. This will be our takeout point and where we leave Ken and Judy's car. We got our first view of the Liard River and no small river it is! We did another dry run through of loading the boat. Ken and Judy did the same. The sun was still hanging above the horizon at 10:40PM. I went to sleep with the back of the truck still lit up by the sun that refused to set.

18 July 2017

This morning we went through our daily ritual of boiling water for coffee and cereal. I sensed everyone is feeling an under current of excitement. Bill chatted with a lady from Australia with an unusual pickup camper. It tilted at the front so that it could be folded down when traveling with hard fiberglass sides. The top had solar panels and the heater and stove consumed diesel. Ken and Judy parked their Honda with 220000miles. Judy was feeling a bit uneasy saying goodbye to it for a month. They joined Bill and myself in Bill's truck now loaded with two canoes and everyone's gear and we drove the final land leg to Fort Simpson. This did require driving onto the free ferry to cross the Liard river. The river must be about 1000ft wide here. Each side of the river had a dirt ramp that the ferry workers maintained with a front loader. The ferry captain would simply direct the ferry into the dirt ramp, lower the steel ramp and we drove on and once across off. The ferry 'ferried' across the river by turning into the current at a slight angle. Once across, we passed the airport almost immediately and reached town a few kilometers later. I called South Nahanni Airways to get directions to their office. The lady, Claire, wasn't good at explicit instructions just telling us to come to the silos that we couldn't miss. We had to walk about a block because of street construction. As I would expect in a small town, we were allowed to casually walk past a heavy piece of operating equipment with a 10ft deep open trench. Claire was sitting there in this small office inside half a trailer. Almost immediately she disrupted our packing plans for the day by saying the pilots saw a weather window this afternoon that we should take with final confirmation by 2PM. So we went to lunch at the inn and then the local store so that Ken could purchase some more lighters. It was at this time that Claire called saying the pilots were fueling the plane and that we needed to leave now! That had everyone stressed slightly in there own way. We headed to the plane dock on the MacKenzie river and started loading gear and simultaneously conducting last minute packing that we had thought we'd be doing in a relaxed manner. We parked Bill's car behind South Nahanni Airways' office and next to a small airstrip before paying for the flight. I asked for a boarding pass and Claire apologized but there wouldn't be one. Back to the plane being careful not to fall into the river or drop my broken phone as I boarded the plane taking the seat closest to the cockpit of the four seats along the left side of the cabin. The two canoes where stacked to my right along with the gear. The copilot gave us a quick safety briefing about exits and not to inflate our life-vests until we were out of the aircraft. He untied the rope holding the plane to the dock then climbed over us and the canoes to take his seat next to the pilot and we were off! The plane traveled down the Mackenzie on it's pontoons and very soon we were airborne. At first we traveled over miles off flat wooded and boggy country going almost due west. We flew over braided river after river climbing at 8 feet per hundred until we reached our cruising altitude of 13600ft. About half way into our two hour flight we entered a mountainous region. The ridge lines and mountains felt very close at times as we enjoyed the spectacular views of river valleys some wooded others rocky and big clouds some of which were loosing moisture to the ground. It was beginning to look as though we'd be landing in the rain. Fortunately the cloud burst had just passed to the south east of Moose Ponds so we were go for landing. The copilot pointed out the recommended campsite just seconds before we landed on Moose Ponds. We taxied to the west shore and the engines were turned off. We exited walking the length of the pontoon and stepping onto firm ground. Some small bags were passed to the shore to make room to off load the first canoe into which gear was piled. We moved that canoe near the shore and the offloaded the second canoe and the remaining gear. After Bill did a quick check for any gear left on the plane, and with Judy holding a canoe up against the bank immediately in front of an engine, the captain warned to be prepared for the prop wash and started the engines. He backed away from the shore, spun the airplane around, and was airborne in three hundred yards. The decision was made too paddle the canoes across the lake pretty much as they were loaded, albeit poorly. In about 15 minutes we'd found a previously used campsite on the shore of Moose Ponds and at the base of Wilson Peak now our Home for the next two nights.

19 July 2017

Today started slowly with everyone getting up at their own pace. I enjoyed a coffee and oatmeal with suwarrow honey. The skies were steel gray and cloudy with low strips of clouds running near the mountains across Moose Ponds. Mount Wilson was shrouded in cloud. After a leisurely start we agreed not to hike up Mount Wilson as originally planned. It was unclear where the trail started. Lacking that, we were faced with a difficult hike through the 6 foot willows for at least a mile. So we chose instead to venture out onto Moose Ponds to explore it. For the avid canoeists of Bill and Ken, this struck me as a much better choice. We headed for the southeast end first looking for the campsite that we understood the copilot to have pointed out as we landed. We didn't find any campsites. We did find a beaver dam establishing the elevation of Moose Ponds. The river is about three feet lower. We spotted an owl and some possible bear tracks and scat. We looked for a place where the ponds and river are at the same level, but only found twisty mazes of water between large patches of grass growing out of the ponds. We secured the canoes where the plane had dropped us off and went in search of a commemorative plaque and campsite. Instead we became entangled in willows. After further perseverance we finally found the plaque and decent trails. After a relaxing lunch and talkative rest, we continued the exploration of the ponds ultimately returning to camp after a couple of bird sitings. The late afternoon was spent relaxing at camp as sporadic rain sprinkles passed by with beautiful single and double full rainbows! With dinner in our bellies, Ken and Bill took to the lake in a canoe hoping to see more wildlife of the four legged kind with no luck. I continue to battle the mosquitos. Despite wearing gloves, socks, and upper body and head netting, I keep acquiring new bites. At night I was awakened by intense burning and itching from my hands and feet from the bites. The sun doesn't set here until 11:45 with the skies never getting dark through the "night"!

20 July 2017

Rain started this day. We didn't let this deter our routine of breakfast, coffee, bathroom run, and breaking down camp. With the canoes loaded properly for the first time, we paddled across the lake to our first obstacle the beaver dam. We spied a loon along the way. The decision was made to unload the canoes on the right side of the dam that had a 2 foot drop and the slide the canoes down an overflow channel left along the dam. The dam stretched for at least 400 feet through the grass and willows. We noted human, moose, and possible bear tracks on a small sand bar near where we reloaded the canoes. From here it was a winding 20ft wide 'canal' as Bill called it. Once Bill and I picked the wrong split and had to walk the canoe 200 feet before rejoining the main channel and Ken and Judy. This section for several meandering miles was placid and calm. About 4 miles down river we came to another dam with about a 3 foot drop. We observed that a previous boat had gone down the right side. We selected an overflow channel on the left with some 2 foot deep holes. It required a back in turn with a 6" waterfall drop back to the canal. Ken took some water over the top of his Welles. Shortly after this we had lunch. We came to our first rapids sooner than the waypoint Bill had marked but spot on for the map the park service provided. We scouted it and with Bill's enthusiasm chose to run it. We had a minor mishap at the start that landed us between a couple of shallow rocks, but a quick backup and we finished the 600+ foot rapid cleanly. Ken and Judy asked Bill and myself to take their boat. We modified the top route and had a fun clean run. After a few more minor rapids we pulled off on a broad sandy and gravel bar for the night. Looking at the park guide it appears that the river level is low.

21 July 2017

Today was a slow start. We awoke at 7:15 to a beautiful day and had breakfast before starting to break camp and load the boats. Ken spotted a beaver and a Harlequin duck The canoe skirts went on for the first time so extra focus was on loading the boats low and flush before securing the skirt. The process delayed our departure till 12:15. Almost immediately we were faced with a complicated series of rapids because of the low water levels. We walked a long stretch to inspect it. Bill and I ran it and high centered on a rock at the first move. Bill had to climb out of the boat and guide us for 50 feet before we proceeded. We sailed through the remainder almost to plan in a fun run. Bill contacted Ken on the radio and it was decided Bill and Ken would run Ken's boat and Judy would walk. Bill and Ken did great with the exception of one spot. We had lunch in a gravel bar and the skies proceed to open up on us with rain and hail. The next stretch of river for several miles was pleasant with good depth and only occasional rocks. Then the river started to toss more rocks at us, lots more rocks! Bill and I made it through one tough stretch and jumped out carrying throw bags heading upstream just in case Ken and Judy needed assistance. They had had a nasty experience on a previous rapid when they got turned sideways wedged between the shore and a rock and almost tipped over. The experience made Judy uneasy. We made our way to a particular challenging rapid and walked it. Bill called it a class IV. We decided to line both boats. It was getting toward 5:30 and we were getting a little fatigued. Ken and Bill worked to get Ken and Judy's boat through first. They were making slow and awkward progress when with Ken standing atop a large boulder and preparing to toss the line to Bill, the rope slipped from Ken's grasp and the boat accelerated down the river unattended. Judy exclaimed in disbelief as we all scrambled to chase the boat down river from the shore. I happened to be furthest down river and after boulder hopping for about 50 meters I reached a spot where I thought the current and rapids where such that I could safely go for the boats rope. It worked out as I was able to grab the boat and hold onto it while sitting in the river. We were all ready to set up camp, but it was all rocks and willows. We consulted the maps and it looked like a gravel bar was located a short distance down river. Judy, despite being apprehensive, agreed to try for it. We ran a few hundred meters of rock dodging rapids and eddied out at a nice gravel bar. It intermittently sprinkled as we made camp and ate dinner. Ken had spent most of the day very wet. Judy had had a teary melt down. Bill had started to feel a little irritable. And I was fatigued and not following Bill's directions well. The mosquitos are slowly driving me mad. My face and hands hurt from the bites. I've adopted the strategy of spraying my groin and legs with DEET when taking a dump. The days are long. It!s almost midnight and the sky is still bright.

22 July 2017

It rained at some point during the night, but stopped early enough that the tent was thinking of drying. I helped it along by separating the rain fly and draping it over a bush. Bill and I got up shortly after 7 am. Ken and Judy slept until sometime after 8. The rising sun light slipping down the hills across the river and eventually onto our camp was beautiful. I worked to get my stuff packed and my dry suit on to help with an earlier departure. In the end we didn't get on the river until almost 11AM. It was slow going. We all paddled a short stretch, but came to a rapid almost immediate that we all agreed needed to be lined. It was about 200 yards in length.The current was fast and the obstacles many. It took us 1-2 hours to line both canoes. Bill and I ran the remainder of the rapids for the day. Ken and Judy were a different story. Judy walked many of the rapids while Ken and Bill or Ken and I ran the rapids in Ken and Judy's canoe. Bill and I communicated better today. A key I find is to follow Bill's direction. I feel like we're doing well together. I'm learning improved river route selection from Bill. After 4.4km river miles, we selected a campsite across from a cliff of metamorphic sedimentary rock. It was early enough to enjoy the bright sun and blue skies that finished the day. I did some laundry and took time to be in the moment. We all shared some light conversation before hitting the Thermarest around 10:30PM.

23 July 2017

Sunday Frost was settled on items left outside this morning. Laundry remained wet. It had been nippy during the night yet warmed up quickly. The chill kept the mosquitos sequestered till the sun quickly melted the frost. It took almost three hours from the time we awoke until we were paddling. The process of breakfast and packing is slow and methodical. That's not the only part that is slow and methodical. Walking the rapids and planning the route is also. Before we even climbed into the cockpits of the canoes, we walked a big drop down from our camp. It had probably the biggest standing waves of any rapid yet. It took less than two minutes to run it and eddy out. Bill walked back up and ran it with Ken while Judy and I chatted, I was prepared to grab a throw bag just in case. The mosquitos were bad by this time so I was wearing he mosquito jacket over my dry suit to keep them off my neck. We paddled a couple hundred yards and then scouted the next rapid as well. Judy felt comfortable running the next few rapids. Apparently they got turned around in one of them, but made it through fine. We're having lots of comments about how it would be nice if the river was higher. All the exposed and shallow boulders are making the rapids rather technical. Ken and Judy's boat doesn't have as thick a construction as Bill's and has a few deep scars. We came to one tricky rapid. We had to ferry across first before walking it. There was plenty of discussion. There was one spot that it was simply not possible to get by without hitting the canoes on some rocks so we decided that section needed to be lined. Here's where it became interesting. Bill and Ken didn't want to line the whole rapid so Bill was pushing for running it to one point and then eddying out. He was emphatic that I needed to plant the paddle. I couldn't see how I could do it so I suggested that Bill and Ken do it. The tricky part was that there wasn't much width and plenty of rocks that the boat could hit as it swung and if you got sideways that would be bad and if you missed the eddy out you'd have to run the portion of the rapid we'd decided to line. After more discussion between Bill and Ken headed up to get a boat and run it down to the eddy out point. Bill really wants to canoe as much of the rapids as possible. They executed well and the boat went about how I would have expected had I been in it and been able to plant the paddle properly. We then lined the next stretch with the first canoe before Bill and Ken went for the second canoe, That run was pretty much to plan except that they hit a rock somewhere early on and then nailed the eddy out. We lined it quickly with Ken on the aft line and with me at a fast walk over boulders on the side of the river while Ken just feed out line! We then of course had to walk the next section. Bill and I ran the rapid, but the channel was so narrow where we'd lined the boats to and because there were so many rocks, that we ended up not being able to peel out and had to run about 100 meters backward! so after just over 4 kilometers we pitched camp on a beautiful island. At this rate it may take us another week to clear the rapids. It's looking less likely that there will be time for side hikes unless we can make up distance. Judy doesn't sound keen to do the Cirque of the Unclimbables. I hope we can make that three days happen. I confess to becoming a little frustrated by the pace of our progress. It might be faster to line questionable rapids instead of spending so much to trying to figure out how to paddle them with minimum rock hits. Well here it is almost 11PM and the sun is just slipping elbow the horizon and I'm going to close my eyes. We saw our first contrail off in the distance since arriving. We also had three small planes pass high overhead. They appeared to be coming or going from Fort Simpson. Judy spotted a wolf and cub tracks. We saw some caribou tracks and Ken spotted some old bear scat.

24 July 2017

Monday We ran lots of rapids today. The water is deeper making it a bit easier. There were so many rapids, it just wasn't practical to scout and plan every move. It did result in hitting some rocks hard. I couldn't pull us to the left in the last rapid we did before stopping for the night and we hit hard. I could feel the boat flexing underneath me as it came down on the rock. I'm feel bad for Bill's boat and disappointed in my performance. Bill ran a number of rapids with Ken. One in particular they ran it cleanly, but, as they were exiting it, Bill raised the paddle over his head in triumph just in time to nail the exit boulder!. Bill and I ran Junction Rapids essentially on the fly. We did pretty well avoiding the beluga white rocks. Ken and Judy lined that one. We doubled our distance from the previous day. Judy's about had enough of the safety concern because of the rapids. Curious to me is the rapid classification doesn't fit well with what we are dealing with. We've slipped through class III and taken a long time on rapids that aren't even marked. Tonight's camp is on a small island across from a campsite that Ken and Judy used 33 years ago. We thought we'd left Mt Wilson behind us, but saw the distinctively shaped peak once today looking back up river.

25/07/2017 Tuesday

This morning I enjoyed the thirty plus minutes while the four of us ate breakfast together and chatted. The mosquitos weren't bad for a change. I still had wet socks and shorts so I packaged them in a trash bag before stuffing them in the dry bag. I broke down and packed the tent after drying and cleaning it. Bill and I loaded the boat and then the four of us took a short walk down river to inspect the rapids. We elected to run the upper portion of them, known as Bailing Rapids but didn't get far before pulling out to line the remainder; too many boulders. We ran a very short stretch before pulling over again. After walking the rapids, we were preparing to run them when Ken spotted a black bear across the river on the left bank. Initially it didn't see us. Bill hollered at it and then it took notice looking in our direction and clearly trying to figure out what we were while making movements to get away. After probably less than a minute, the small bear wandered off into the brush on the far side of the river. That was exciting! Paddling a very short distance further we found ourselves at the top of Massive Boulders Rapids. The water was too low to attempt running it. It took us a long time to line both canoes down it as the path was convoluted around 300 yards of boulders. Finally we got a reprieve! We'd only made about two kilometers up to this point. Now though we ran eight kilometers down river pulling over only a couple of times for scouting. During one such occasion we took shelter under a tree/bush from a rain and thunder storm. Gently floating down the quiet river in the light rain, I enjoyed the rich greens of grass waving in the wind and the pine trees swaying. It was a pleasant reward to having worked hard through the day to line the canoes. We pitched camp on an island infested with mosquitos. Ha! Big surprise there.

26 July 2017 (day 9)

Yuck! It rained through the night and continued in the morning. We packed tents and soaking gear with coarse dark sand. Again after a very short paddle we ran our first rapid. A short distance down river we slipped to the side to scout a rapid. Bill and I ran it and had a short wait while Ken and Judy lined it. The next major rapid was Hollywood. Upon scouting it, Bill said almost immediately, "It looks runnable." A friend of Judy's had said to run it on river left. That might be an approach when the river is running 5 feet deeper! We plotted a simple route. The volume of water was greater than the previous rapids we've been doing but technically it was straight forward. We ran it easily. Bill had anticipated that we might have problems with it so it was a delight just to enjoy it! Around the corner we came to The Sequel rapid. Ken and Judy elected to ferry across and wait for Bill to hike back up for Bill and Ken to run it. Bill and I chatted briefly about the route and paddled in. It felt like canoeing through downy pillows. There were a couple of big waves that splashed big over the front paddler, but we sailed down it with barely a correction and maybe one small scrap of a boulder. Bill had shared just prior to the run that he felt a bit anxious and I was curious what his heart rate would be as we started. Lunch followed in a steady rain. Judy was getting chilled. We ran the bottom of The Sequel and Ken and Judy nearly flooded their canoe on a big wave, but made it through ok. We used two hand pumps to empty the canoe while Bill went back up river to recover a paddle someone on another trip had lost. That brought the equipment found to two paddles. We pressed on despite Judy being a bit chilled. We had to scout several more rapids. Bill and I ran them all well. Ken and Judy lined one more short section. And then we were done with the rapids! Yeah! Judy was ecstatic not to have to worry about the rapids coming up around the next corner. We floated casually enjoying the opportunity to spend more time watching the scenery drift past than intently focused on dodging river boulders. Our path brought us past two wolves on river left as they emerged from the bush. The lead animal was uncertain what to do when it saw us. It seemed both hesitant and curious before finally turning back into the bush. The animals were a charcoal rust black color. What another wonderful gift of the South Nahanni. We selected a campsite on an island across the river from an osprey nest perched high in a dead tree. The pair of birds may have been mating or feeding chicks. It rained as we set up camp gradually easing. Delightfully to me there are virtually no mosquitos here. Judy's spirits are buoyed and we talk of trying for some extended kilometers tomorrow.

27 July 2017 (day 10)

Rain was the theme of the day. We ate, packed camp and paddled in the rain. We saw a beaver in the water next to us. We took lunch under a pine tree on the side of a hill to gain protection from the constant rain. We were all getting chilled. We shared the hot water I'd brought in my thermos. I loaned Ken my poncho to help keep him warmer. We saw a tan wolf loping along river left near the 120 kilometer mark. It didn't see us until we were passed it and then it was trying to figure out what we were as we passed out of site. We saw several King Fisher birds and an osprey nest with a bird in it. The valley of high mountains had cascading waterfalls. We stopped at Moore's cabin. There was no place there to register and plenty of mosquitos. We did a short walk there thinking the hot springs were nearby but they are not. It was getting late so we stopped at the very next gravel bar we came to and pitched camp in the rain - ugh! The rain finally eased and stopped as we ate dinner and enjoyed the views of the surrounding waterfalls and high mist on the mountains.

28/07/2017 (day 11)

We received a reprieve today. It was not raining when we woke up. It had sprinkled a couple of times during the night. We slept in until about 7:45 this morning. Everyone deserved it after our long day in the rain yesterday. We moved slowly taking the chance to dry things a bit more and clean them. I discovered that the food cans were cutting holes in the bottom of Bill's dry bag. I crushed one can and with Bill's help emptied another into a ziplock bag. I packed the other two in an effort to prevent the cans from contacting the dry bag. We pushed off from the river's edge at noon. We paddled a short distance to Moore's hot spring, Bill was most anxious to try them out. As we paddled up a narrow channel off the main river on river left Bill commented how you could feel the water temperature getting warmer. We could see vapor above the water further back. Parking the canoes, Bill and I started walking further up this small flat creek bottom looking for an inviting hot pool. There were matured Thistle berry plants with no berries. There were raspberries and some very tiny strawberries which we munched on. Ken and Judy had commented that the last time the mosquitos were bad here. The mosquitos did not disappoint again. I was ready to go very soon. Bill laid down in the warm water next to the canoes as I snatched a photo. Then we headed down river. Increasingly there are large log jams. The sides of the river has undercut the banks and many large trees line the edge laying in the water as silent sweepers encouraging us to stay away. There is also the occasional massive tree in the river. I watched one breach the surface briefly and then be pulled under disappearing from view. The river is turbid and relatively smooth. There aren't the large boiling eddies I saw on the Colorado. We didn't see any wildlife of note today. Lunch was on an island around the 142 kilometer mark. It would make a nice place to camp. We often had a head wind that grew in strength as the day progressed. The mountains on both sides are impressive but especially to the east and south. Our big rapid today was just before the river takes a ninety degree turn back to the southeast. The water piles up against a rock wall making a sharp right hand turn. Bill skillfully took us on the inside of the turn so that we missed a big drop and the standing waves. There are large alluvial fans and a spectacular trail of light colored rock winding steeply down a mountain ending at the river. The top part looks like a giant tongue and above that hints that a small glacier once sat in the alpine bowl. The last 7 kilometers was against a steady head wind. We stopped just above the confluence of the South Nahanni and the Broken Skull rivers. Our camp site is on a lightly vegetated mud flat. It spotted rain for the first time today while we ate dinner. Folks are tired. Ken and I worked to repair Ken's white gas stove. I believe we solved the problem. A single engine float plane passed right over our camp headed down river. We'd seen a helicopter a few hours prior some distance north of river left. It's great to be making solid progress down river for a change. Everyone just does what needs to be done with no complaints. That was true during the lining and again now when we face head winds. It is odd to me that the upper Nahanni water level was so low and down here it is running above average based on the water level in comparison to willows and the vegetation on the banks.

29 July 2017 (day 12)

There were more sprinkles through the night, but they were light and our cracking mud campsite stayed mud free. I was the first to climb out of the tent. I looked to the south east and was greeted by a spectacular view of mist, blue skies, clouds and jagged mountains that are on the extreme northeast of the Cirque of the Unclimbables. It was a cool morning, but low on mosquitos. My hands are slightly swollen from all the bites. Ken and Judy's stove worked perfectly this morning after our diagnosis and repair the previous night. We loaded the boats sequentially because of the muddy steep bank. Judy expressed her concern about their lack of proper clothing for the trip. We left the confluence of the South Nahanni and Broken Skull Rivers with a bit of a head wind yet a quick current owing to the high water. We passed many large log jams. Bill watched a large bush be swept away by he current from the bank. It was a second day of no animal sightings. Lunch was enjoyed on the upstream side of a small island. The wind died down as we ate on a debris large double trunk tree that acted as a lounge chair for Judy and Ken. There was no problem finding the campsite at the trailhead to the Cirque of the Unclimbables thanks to Bill's GPS and a small blue sign of a backpacker. BILL, Ken, and Judy hiked down the South Nahanni to the confluence with the Brintnell Creek looking for a better take out and campsite with no luck. It was tricky, but we unloaded the boats at the designated campsite and made our nomadic home. After dinner, Ken showed us how to hang our food from the bears. Fortunately a cable had been stretched between two trees to facilitate the process. We enjoyed a raspberry crisp dessert that I'd brought.

30 July 2017 (day 13) Sunday

It rained during the night. It wasn't raining as we emerged from our tents, but everything was still wet. We sat eating breakfast together underneath the 'wing' and Bill asked what people wanted to do. There was a long silence. Very soon it was established that Judy didn't want to hike to the Cirque of the Unclimbables. Rightly so she pointed out that they had planned poorly and did not have the proper gear for hiking through wet brush. Further when I suggested that I might go alone or that Bill and I go together she stood up and burst into tears as she walked away. I had asked them to wait 24 hours while I hiked and paddled on my own. Nobody liked the idea. Bill offered to go with me, but while Ken was consoling Judy, He expressed concerns about us running several days late <(Because we had to help Ken and Judy through most of the rapids.)> and that probably the visibility would be such that we wouldn't see anything anyway. It was apparent to me that I was out voted and that a battle would ensue if I left on my own. So we agreed not to go. I was mad. I was mad at myself and angry at the Gwyn's for being so poorly prepared. This outcome had already been seen coming when it was taking us so long to get through the rapids and given that Judy had expressed days before that she didn't want to go. Instead we had a short paddle day of about 18 kilometers to Rabbit Kettle. We signed in, made camp across the river on the island and had lunch. Bill and I waited for a break in the light rain and then ferried slightly upstream and across the river to the trailhead to the Tuffa Mounds. The 7.5 kilometer walk was delightful taking us by Rabbit Kettle Lake and the ranger cabin. I enjoyed distant views of the Cirque of the Unclimbables from Rabbit Kettle Lake dock. The ranger cabin was shut down with shutters containing outward facing nails to keep the grizzle bears out. We saw several frogs and many gigantic (12 inches in diameter) mushrooms. We saw a small pile of bear scat on the trail that contained berry seeds. We enjoyed fresh strawberries. On a ridge overlooking a small lake sat two red Adirondack chairs. We sat there on the way back and watched a 100+ strong flock of possibly sparrows feeding on bugs on the surface of the emerald lake. It felt like watching fireworks to me as the birds made expanding circles wherever they touched the surface. The trail wound around and up and down, but mostly it was through a forest rich in undergrowth and beautiful green moss. We observed the tuffa mounds from a high but somewhat distant overlook. Bill requested that we hike down to the Rabbit Kettle river across from the mounds for a possible better look. We found the boat and cables set up to cross, but it was locked up as expected. After hiking back to the South Nahanni and Bill's canoe, we ferried back across the river, ate dinner, and headed to bed.

31 July 2017 (day 14) Monday

We woke to thick low clouds, but no rain. We slowly ate breakfast and began loading the canoes. Ken had graciously lowered my food bag off of the 12 foot food cache platform by the time I'd emerged from the tent. Ken and Judy were finished with their canoe well before Bill and I for the first time that I am aware of. We tried to load the boat with the skirt on without success and had to start partially over. The clouds were starting to clear and I could see sun on a distant down river peak as we started out. We've decided to push for Virginia Falls in two days which requires a couple of 60 kilometer days. A couple of hours in I spotted a porcupine coming out of the water on river right. There was a perfect backwater that we pulled into. Bill got us within about 20 feet! The porcupine noticed us but was not bothered as it munched on some willow leaves and wandered about on the sand. A single engine float plane passed overhead going up river in the afternoon and a little over an hour later passed us again at a lower altitude going down river. We paddled to Flood Creek traveling the 58 kilometers in about 7 hours to arrive at 6PM. This is Bill's favorite campsite thus far because it is wide open. The mosquitos are just a few for a change making them manageable. I took a much need bath and washed some clothing. While I was shaving I spied a beaver just finishing crossing the South Nahanni. The sun has been shining most of the day and afforded the opportunity to get a better charge on the iPad using the solar panel battery. It's warm probable 74F tonight as we lay down.

01 August 2017 (day 15) Tuesday

We woke today to a beautiful clear day. It had been cold enough during the night that I pulled on a stocking cap. Now the only thing other than blue and the sun in the sky was a contrail. We saw several before the day was done suggesting that we'd traveled far enough to be near a flight corridor. Ken spied three river otters while we were still in camp. That is likely what I actually saw yesterday. We struck out a little before 11AM for what would be our longest distance in one day, 63 Kilometers. Surprisingly, we had a little rough water right away. Some shallow section that Ken and Judy became grounded on and had to get out of their canoe to negotiate - this in the middle of a 200 yard wide section! Just below that shallow water was a section with big boils of water that Bill had to work a bit at to keep us going straight while I just focused on pouring on some speed. The river is getting wider and slower. Sometimes it looked more like a lake. We traveled several very long loops in the river as it meandered probable a kilometer from one side of the valley to the other. It did afford us almost a 360 degree view as we would point in many directions! We paddled into Oxbow lake shortly after the 330km distance hoping to see a moose. We didn't see any, but we did see a loon/duck bird that we couldn't identify. The lake was very calm with green plants growing up from the bottom making the water emerald. We stopped at the Sunblood ranger cabin on the understanding that we were to sign in. There was no one there or a log book. We paddled the last 10 km or so to the Virginia falls dock and took out. There was no one to greet us. As we became familiar with the camp arrangements we meet a 10 person Canadian group guided by Charles with Blackfeather. He was very friendly and helpful. The park rangers, Morgan and Tanya, gave a presentation on Dene games. We learned about a rung toss game, put-your-finger-in-the-beaver-pelvis-socket, break-the-beaver-bone-between- fingers, and the arrow toss. We were the served some tea and biscuits Dene style. By the time we cooked some dinner and pitched the tent it was midnight. There was a beautiful sunset looking northwest up the river at the dock.

02 August 2017 (day 16) Wednesday

Today was our first layover day. Coffee, breakfast, and then a tour by the park rangers to the Virginia Falls overlook. It was a sunny day - ALL DAY! I learned that bears eat Buffalo berries by the tens of thousands by stripping the berries and the leaves from the branches and then spitting out the leaves, Buffalo berries are those red berries that always seem to be left on the branches! We enjoyed spectacular views of the fall. The sun changed position enough to generate beautiful rainbows in the mist. The ground almost shook under the pounding of the water. The camp was a busy place after we returned along the boardwalk trail. Three planes arrived over the coarse of the day. One plane landed as a helicopter arrived for it's second visit ferrying materials for work being done on the camp. Poor Bill had just laid down for a nap when the cacophony of helicopter, plane, and chainsaw started up! The helicopter left with a barrel of human waste. One plane remains at the dock as the people are spending the night here. The other planes brought guests for a couple of hours and then departed. All the planes are float planes. I enjoyed the rumble of one with a large radial engine. We spent dinner talking with the folks on a Blackfeather trip. The guides were Charles, Sara, and Nick. Some of them left shortly after dinner to portage boats and gear to below the fall for their departure tomorrow. I walked back to the fall around 9PM for some evening photos. I hiked down close to the water to experience the full power.

3 August 2017 (day 17) Thursday

Today was a very sunny day at Virginia Falls. We ferried across the river and hiked up Sunblood mountain. It took us 2-1/2 hours. The trail winds through lichen and moss covered ground with stunted trees from the soggy earth. It soon climbs through mature but still small trees to emerge onto a scree slope. It traverses the scree with better views of the camp and the falls. After about 1/2 mile the trail slips back into the trees and proceeds to go directly up a very steep fall line to the ridge line ending at the summit. The sky was blue with a few clouds so our views were epic. On the hike down we took more pictures of the falls and the camp. The braided stream bed of Flat River was beautiful to observe far off in the distance. It took us almost the same amount of time to return. We stopped near the canoes to gorge ourselves on blue/huckleberries while waiting for Ken and Judy. We were all exhausted and perhaps a tad dehydrated back in camp. Still, we elected to portage the boat and boat equipment to below the falls to get a jump on tomorrow. The falls were being lit by the lowering sun as seen from he bottom. It was my first view from this perspective and I was wishing I had a camera. The park rangers and maintenance crew were working on a section of the boardwalk as we took our loads down. The boardwalk runs from the takeout point a couple hundred feet from the sluice box about halfway to the end of the portage and just at the point where the trail gets steep with a few switchbacks. We enjoyed a late dinner and a pleasant talk with Morgan the camp supervisor before laying down to sleep with the sky still light.

4 August 2017 (day 18) Friday

Today was a milestone day for several reasons. We shared a Dene land ceremony of respect, thanks, and requests with Tanya and Morgan by saying the blessing to the four compass directions and making a offering of tobacco. We completed the portage around Virginia Falls. We ran the rapids in the Fourth canyon without incident. And Judy let go of her worry and fears actually enjoying the Fourth Canyon rapids once we got into them. Bill shared as we sat with our last portage loads that he was going to miss the camp, I agreed. Living there the last three days I started to feel like the workers and the park ranger staff we're friends. We shared a common love of the wild and nature. My perception is that we felt the sacred nature of it in some mutual way. Bill and my first portage load in the morning brought us down to the falls with the sun striking the water fall mist creating a beautiful rainbow. The cooling mist felt good as the sunny day was already heating up the air. Bill, with his generous soul, grabbed some of Ken and Judy's portage load as we passed the portage dock. So I took a small item as well. I walked up the river bank toward the falls with my camera. Still 200 meters away, the mist was so heavy I gave up the effort before I was soaked. We had lunch before changing into dry suits, loading the canoe, and reinstalling the skirt. Loading was made awkward by the seashore like waves that kept pushing the canoe against the rocky river bank. We didn't push away until after 3 PM. The rapids had some 2 foot standing waves but were straight forward to run. A few times the canoe would be high out of the water at the front and then I'd be hit in the chest with next one. The skirt arrangement worked much better at keeping the water out though I would stop paddling to empty the water that would pool in front and behind me on the canopy skirt. We stopped after only 12 kilometers at the Clearwater confluence at the recommendation of Charles and Sara of Blackfeather. We are all feeling a bit tired after the exertion of climbing Sunblood mountain yesterday and the three portage trips to get the boats and our gear around the falls. It's 9:30PM. I'm laying In the tent with Bill. The netting is zipped wide open at the door and the window. We're looking out at a blue sky with scattered clouds and the sun high enough to feel like we're laying down for a nap not the night.

5 August 2017 (day 19) Saturday

Bill and I both had difficulty falling to sleep. We lay there watching clouds roll in. During the night it sprinkled and we woke to the sound of an extremely light sprinkle on the tent. The rain held off despite the thick but high clouds. Bill and Ken waded the canoes back to the main river. We had a couple of small rapids before arriving at the Figure Eight rapid. As Charles with Blackfeather had shared, the massive eddy was gone. Bill steered us just to river right of the wave train as we made the turn to the left to avoid a large eddy on the inside of the turn. And then Figure Eight rapid was behind us. There was a rapid some distance after Figure Eight that caught our attention. It made a right turn against some rocks on river left with a large eddy on river right. The faster water of the main current spun us into the eddy and we had to paddle with gusto against the counter clockwise eddy current on river right to get out. We had another similar dynamic rapid to Figure Eight just before the Wrigley Whirlpool rapid. We avoided a large back eddy on river left but cut through a couple of big standing waves to insure that we made the left side of the gravel bar to avoid Wrigley Whirlpool. That was the trickiest move of the day and we did it smoothly. We stopped to take a look at Wrigley Whirlpool. It is definitely "crazy waters!" We were able to run out the water on the left side of the gravel bar as the water was running high enough. The next forty kilometers was fast easy water with a number of boils and some standing waves from time to time. We did see a cinnamon black bear eating from a bush high on river left at the 380 km point. This section has a high steeply slopping (150 ft) bank. Once the bear heard our voices it scampered up the slope occasionally looking over it's shoulder until it turned around to look at us from the top of the bank in some small trees. It watched us as we floated out of sight. At record speeds of 12.6 km/hr we arrived at The Pulpit and Gate camp ground (Tthetaehtluah) by 4:30PM. Camp was set up quickly. Shortly afterward while Ken And I were standing on the river bank, the park service helicopter came into view flying up river passing near The Pulpit rock. It then landed just up river in about the only place it could in the narrow steep canyon. Two guys got out and unloaded human waste barrels. We knew one of them! It was Patrick from the Blackstone Territorial Campground where we'd left Ken and Judy's car. Later we had a pleasant conversation with them about a myriad of things: testing for 24" river ice thickness in the winter for caching fuel using aircraft, politics, eclipses, scarring bears, repairing boardwalks, etc. The other persons name was Burton. Eventually the helicopter returned, but not soon enough for them to take the human waste barrels; they'll likely be back tomorrow. It's back to raining after several days of sunny warm weather. This is a nice campsite and obviously used frequently judging from the toilets.

6 August 2017 (day 20) Sunday

I awoke and got out of bed early. That is by 7 AM. It was cold! Not frosty, but still chilly enough that I had to put on a light jacket under my rain jacket. Bill and I had breakfast and then prepared to hike up to the top of the Gate on river left overlooking the Pulpit Rock. We hiked up the creek next to the camp about 200 yards where we found two trees laying across the creek. Bill selected the log broken in the middle with a little water running across it. I used the tree that was still growing, but with a branch turning trunk that I had to swing around. We followed a trail up the hill that passed over scree fields. We found ourselves on a spur trail ending prematurely in a lower overlook. From there we went rogue and did some scrambling up short climbs before finding the main trail again. The next overlook we came to was a bit of a surprise. The path was only about 3 feet wide and dropped straight down to the water. I pulled out my camera from under my jacket to take a picture and by doing so the jacket slid the lens cap retaining strap off the lens barrel and when I removed the lens cap it dropped, the cap fell tink tink tink down into a crack leading toward the river to far to reach with an arm. I took the picture and we headed to the top of the Gate where we hollered and waved at Ken and Judy below. We hiked down and loaded up the canoes. Today was a 44 kilometer float through some of he most beautiful canyons yet. We passed through third and second canyons. We spotted another black bear feeding near the river. It cautiously moved up to stand on all fours on a log next to the tree line to watch us float from view. We saw two small planes taking people to Virginia Falls. We were surprised by a jet boat creating a wake as it headed up river with three men on board. After lunch while getting the canoe floating again, Bill was pushing the boat from the side with his right leg behind he boat. I proceeded to give the canoe a big shove to back it off the shore as we typically do and undoing so the boat hit Bill's knee hard. It clearly hurt. He was mad at me for ramming the boat into him. I apologized. I certainly had not intended to harm him. We proceeded down river and arrived at Deadman Valley. The was some confusion about the campsite that Charles with Blackfeather had recommended. Our first guesstimate wasn't liked by Bill so we proceeded down river stopping two more times before settling on a place for the night. I was rather tired at this point and it was hot in my leaky dry suit. We pitched the tent but left it upside down to dry. Bill wanted to get out of his dry suit. Judy wanted the wing set up, but Bill didn't so Ken borrowed the wing poles and built a shade using the rainfly to their tent. Bill ended up completing the pitching of his tent while I was getting out of my dry suit and doing the little associated chores. Bill withdrew at this point. Ken asked him if he was ok and Bill replied that he needed some private time. He set up his stove away from us and after eating alone took a long walk by himself. He got into the tent first. When I arrived his eyes were closed. I asked him if there was anything I could do for him and he said yes, "don't ram the boat into him." I apologized again and asked him if it hurt and how his knee was doing. He said it hurt but would probably be fine. That was the end of our dialogue for the day. Ken and Judy shared with me that they were concerned for Bill while also expressing their enjoyment at his company and friendship. For the first time it's feeling a little awkward sharing the tent. We've been living in very close quarters now for almost a month so a little strain is to be expected. Ken and Judy also expressed that they were ready to be off the river soon.

7 August 2017 (day 21) Monday

Ken, Judy, and Bill commented on the full moon low in the southern horizon reflecting off of the river during the previous night. My bladder didn't wake me so I missed it. This morning was foggy! The light was ever changing as the sun gradual came up over a northeast ridge and the fog thickness morphed. We enjoyed a lively conversation over breakfast and coffee. Once the boats were loaded - through the skirt! - we headed off with Bill announcing that we would stay river right to insure not missing our next objective a short few kilometers down river. The Nahanni has many splits as it wanders through Deadmen Valley. Bill was very astute at selecting good routes. We paused shortly after Sheaf Creek looking for the Paddle Cabin. There was nothing apparent so we proceeded. Shortly there after, Ken and Judy yelled at us from behind that we just passed the cabin. We spun about and slid next to the river right bank that was an eight foot wall of gravel, trees laying down and over hanging moss and top soil next to somewhat fast moving water. We managed to find means to climb up the bank and then spotted a trail paralleling the river. Following it up river 200 meters we came to a small clearing and the Paddle Cabin. The cabin is in good condition and absolutely loaded with all manner of paddle facsimiles written with the date and the people who passed. There are real paddles, painted paddles, whittled paddles, and paddles made from wood, rock, and stone. Most are only a few inches long. Many hang from the ceiling, some rest loosely on some small tables, and others are secured to the cabin walls. There were at least two miniature canoes made from birch bark. The memorabilia date back to at least 1984. We scratched our initials JBHL and the year 2017 into the west wall at eye level. We paddled about a kilometer to the Park Deadmen Valley Cabin where we signed in and had lunch. Bill took the opportunity to walk the trail back to the Paddle Cabin to take pictures. Back in the canoes and a short few kilometers more we arrived at Dry Creek Canyon. This was a short paddle day at just shy of 10 kilometers. Ken and Judy found an established campsite just upstream of the confluence. We unloaded the boats. Bill and I changed into hiking gear and did a three mile hike up Dry Creek Canyon. Just to it's name sake, there was no water running. The Canyon is narrow at maybe 300 to 50 feet wide with cliffs several hundred feet high. We had to negotiate around big boulders at times. The vegetation was lush and the creek bottom was littered with rocks containing fossils. The sun had been shining all day after burning the fog off. Some of us did laundry and I took a bath. The bright sun dried clothes quickly. There are all manner of insects at this camp. Fortunately there are only the odd mosquito. We saw what Ken called a tarantula wasp; it had yellow eyes and a quarter inch stinger! There were loads of small black flies, some horse flies, and a flying beetle with long antennae.

8 August 2017 (day 22) Tuesday

The sun rose over the ridge line between Dry Creek Canyon and First Canyon of the South Nahanni to start a special day on the river. We enjoyed breakfast in the lightly wooded campsite before loading the canoes. It was only 2 kilometers to George's Riffle. The current was faster than expected as we approached the island for scouting and we had to work to get pulled over. We scouted down the left side of the island along the channel running river left. It was passable, but would require we walk the canoes back up river 100 meters or so to enter it. As we arrived at the east end of the island, we could see the extent of the rapid. It had some moderate size churning waves. Bill suggest we could run the right channel staying close to river right, cut across where the left channel rejoined the right channel at the rapids, then paddle through the slight back eddy and past a rock on river left to exit the rapid. There was a diagram sketched into the sand that we surmised was drawn there by the Blackfeather group depicting the plan Bill proposed. We walked back up the river left bank of the right channel on the island to arrive back at our canoe. We ran the rapid to plan with only a slight surprise at the strength of the up river flow on the eddy just past the confluence of the two channels passing the island. Ken and Judy made it through as well. We spent the next few hours drifting or paddling lazily past spectacular limestone cliffs of several thousand feet in height at times. White Spray Spring on river left was a delight! The water emerged at large volumes from maybe 20 feet above the river level. It flowed clear and cold cascadig over rocks before entering the turbid South Nahanni. While sitting in our canoes we drank and filled what canteens and water bottles were accessible. In a few more kilometers we arrived at our last rapid, Lafferty's Rapid. We just stayed left next to the gravel bar only having to enjoy the waves reflecting off of the rock wall on river right that came across the river to us, By staying left we avoided the standing waves river right completely. A couple more kilometers and we arrived at Kraus Hotsprings and our last sign-in before Nahanni Butte. We almost missed it as we drifted down the river, the top of the log building and the bear cache could just been seen well back from river's edge. Ken and Judy remembered the place. Ken took us on a short walk back to the ponds. They aren't warm at all! There were lots of water fowl and Ken, Bill, and Judy did some bird watching. The small log building is another "paddle cabin" with many paddle replicas on the table or hanging from the ceiling. The sign-in box was located on the outside. A hot pool has been built above the river level where hot water pours from the gravel river bank. Bill and I tried it out. The temperature was a perfect bath water, but bath water it was not! There were algae mats on the bottom and floating. There was an oily sheen on the surface and the smell spoke of strange bacteria living the good life. We keep our dip short. I washed off in the cool Nahanni river. The four of us sat underneath the 'wing' chatting and watching wasps capture large horseflies in mid flight or off of each other and then fly them off toward some trees. I remember laying there during the night smelling rotten eggs (hydrogen sulfide) and thinking that was a good thing yet still wondering the concentration level. The hot springs gave off the gas.

9 August 2017 (day 23) Wednesday

Such a pleasant morning waking up at the Kraus Hot Springs. It had thundered, lightened, and rained during the night, but now the sun was slowly finding it's way into a very blue sky. There was left over rain on everything. We enjoyed another breakfast filled with conversation and two cups of coffee. Things dried out with the bright sun. The canoes were loaded and we started paddling at a leisurely pace. We anticipated no rapids and possibly some shallow gravel sections in getting through the 'splits' - a section where the river splits into multiple channels. So today was our first day that Bill and I packed away our dry suits and paddled with shorts on to help stay cool A little over an hour in Judy spotted an old log cabin on river left with it's foundation being under cut by the river. Shortly after that I spotted a Moose with big antlers walking on river left. It eventually spotted us and continued to watch us over it's shoulder until I couldn't see it any more. This was our first Moose sighting of the trip. We continued on negotiating some splits and then came to a place with two converging channels. There was a larger than normal ridge line where the two currents converged. We were rather relaxed as we hit this perpendicular to the line. It immediately swung the bow to the right pushing the boat up against the ridge line and then started to roll the canoe to the left! It was with a bit of luck and coordinated movement by both Bill and myself that kept us upright! We took a little water over the rear cockpit gunnel. It was our closest near miss of the trip. And us not in our dry suits or with the cockpit skirts fully attached! Over the next hour we came to two more sections with standing waves that required focused paddling and route selection. We stopped for a late lunch looking at Twisted Mountain. Back on the river it wasn't long and a late channel selection was made. Bill and I managed to make the ferry needed, but Ken and Judy weren't able to. They went left, and we went right. After a couple of kilometers we were joined up again as the channels converged. We started looking for campsites. My impression is that Ken, Judy, and Bill desired to reach Nahanni Butte for the night. At one point we decided to paddle the 23 kilometers and 3-4 hours to reach the town (outpost?). Very shortly after that Judy asked to check out another campsite and said she needed something to eat. I could feel the groups strength and cognitive abilities weakening - certainly mine were. After the previous events of the day, I was becoming concerned about safety and suggested we call it good for the day. Bill identified a campsite on a gravel bar with a sand dune formed by a now buried tree. Ken did his McGiver thing and set up a sun shade using driftwood for uprights and four deadmen buried in the sand. Bill enjoyed walking through the sand in his bare feet and we all tried to stay cool. Ken and Judy took fully clothed plunges in the river and let the clothes dry on them. We have long unobstructed views from our gravel bar in the middle of the river that includes one of the late evening sun turning the Nahanni Butte mountain north of us red. We did 53 kilometers on the river today. There is talk of using a water taxi from Nahanni Butte to Blackstone campground if one is available at a reasonable priced. If not, we'll likely need to camp at Swan Point tomorrow night or push to do about 61 kilometers.

10 August 2017 (day 24) Thursday

The team jumped to this morning! We were on the river by 9:15AM. I believe that was the earliest of all the days on the trip. The desired goal was Blackstone Territorial campground where Ken and Judy's car was parked. The South Nahanni river was slow and smooth from the start and only became slower. The river path took a couple of gigantic loops that at one point had the river separated by a few hundred feet but we went many kilometers and over an hour to get back to almost the place we'd been at. For part of our paddle we were looking at the mountain of Nahanni Butte and for part we were looking away. By the end of he day we will have traveled to the other side of the mountain. Shortly after noon we arrived into the village of Nahanni Butte. This town lies between the South Nahanni and the even bigger Liard river. The only access is to take a boat across the Liard in the summer or use an ice bridge in the winter once the river freezes over. It's a small place. The general store is only open on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We arrived on a Thursday. Bill's hope of a coffee, pastry and coffee were dashed. Even the Park office was closed for lunch upon our arrival. I'd watched the park ranger head home for lunch on her ATV. When she was headed back to the office an hour later, she had her son on the machine with her. We sat in a pleasant shaded and grassy area immediately adjacent to the river where we'd parked our canoes and had the lunches we'd brought. The river has dropped such that now the shore line is just quick mud. It was messy getting in and out of the canoes. Ken, Judy, and Bill walked the two dusty blocks back to the Park station and signed us out so that the Park service knew we'd made it out alive. They chatted with someone else about a water taxi to Blackstone campground to spare us paddling the remaining 40 kilometers from Nahanni Butte. The cost quoted was $400 which we declined. At 1:30 in the afternoon we oozed our way into the canoes for the last leg of our journey trying to minimize the amount of mud we dragged into the boat. The South Nahanni joined the Liard after a few kilometers. What had became a very large river was now huge. All the rocks, drops, boils, eddy lines, and standing waves were reduced to an occasional muddy swirl in a seemingly massive lake. Sharp eyed Bill spotted a black bear on river right and the Ken spotted a second and then a third. One of the bears wandered out and sat in the river to cool off. It was entertaining to watch even at 200 yards or more away. The wind came up as we rounded Swan Point creating the contrast of a sand storm while we're floated in the river. A short cut we hoped to take wasn't passable at the level the river had dropped to. We found ourselves on quiet waters with a sky friendly and turning slightly orange from the sun passing rough smoke that seemed to be coming from the south. It was a tranquil last few kilometers to the end of our voyage down the South Nahanni. The paddle stayed wet today as it was 60 Kilometers of slowly moving water. We were all feeling a bit tired when it finished. I felt matured as I looked at our final destination and thought back to the uncertainty, slight trepidation, centeredness, and determination I felt while standing on the shore looking in the direction that I was now paddling from. Patrick was there to greet us. We enjoyed hot showers and noted that the mosquitos had thinned considerably since we left this place three weeks ago - a small and welcome change. Most days I stopped to find my center, to feel grounded within myself, to let any fear or unease fade, to know that I could accomplish the rapid or task at hand safely or deal with what ever situation might arise in an affective manner. If I went into the river that was what was the adventure that was supposed to happen and it would be ok. I let myself feel connected to the whole such that it's strength was my strength.