May 14,th 2011 Day 1
Sean McWay, our fourth man, never showed up to the motel in Grand Portage Minnesota, the last town before the Canadian border. After getting thoroughly intimidated by some tough locals, the other two interns, Zach and Nick, decided to celebrate the life they had left with a drink. To quench their thirst they had to perform the old “turn around” in Canada, where they bought their booze in our dry county and it gets delivered to them in Canada. However, there was some confusion, and they ended up crossing the border twice, and got thoroughly questioned both times as to where their passports were. While they traveled abroad, I held down the fort. I heard a knock on the door and answered to see two gentlemen that said I was in their room. We simultaneously produced keys bearing the number 4. First come, first serve. I had been given the wrong room to go with the reservation I had made, that the motel desk staff denied existed earlier. Grand Portage was the last frontier and it seemed that it wanted nothing to do with us tenderfeet.
On to the boat, we rolled up to the Voyager II with a pick up truck pilled high, and asked every solo man we met if he was Sean. After one more hasty rescue party mounted around the casino and gas station, we gave up, headed back to the boat, and found Sean unloading his minivan. Now, we had envisioned Sean to be about 60 years old, not able to speak English, and being confined to a wheel chair. Instead, he was a lanky redhead of the ripe old age of 19, who appeared to have full function of his legs.
As our bags were loaded on the boat, our imaginations took off again as a gentleman standing next to us appeared to be blind. He stood with dark glasses, staring off at an odd angle, perhaps listening to the boarding directions being given by the captain. He gingerly stepped onto the boat, after some ambiguous taps with his walking stick, and sat facing me in a school bus style bench.
We weighed anchor in the 34 degree water and coasted forth from the border town into the deep blue freshwater of Lake Superior. I was absolutely delighted to learn that the Voyager could defend its title as the “Barf Barge,” as the 8-12 foot waves sent a half dozen passengers to the back railing to give up their breakfast to the pitching surf. The shivering figures curled over the edge, the mullet of the first mate, and the all around inspiration in the air, lent me to take out my camera. A miracle! The blind man was not blind, he cracked a smile as I zoomed in on Seany heaving himself free of his sickness.
Eventually, the ride came to an end, and the traumatized travelers took to the windy dock of Windigo Harbor to learn about the courtesies of the island. John and Leah, the head researchers for the Wolf Moose Study, met us on the dock, and helped us hump our gear back to their yurt (a Mongolian circular shelter). It was a modest home that held a queen size bed, a table set for six, and two work spaces for each of the respective scientists. We stashed out gear in the garage next to the radio collars and modified dogsleds used to move gear for the winter study. Leah instructed us on how to measure growth on the balsam furs after our lunch of crackers and a peanut. The four interns were then released into the wild with a GPS and data sheets to perform a short afternoon of basic data collection to work out any kinks and questions.
Hearty chili for dinner. Then we moved to a campsite down the trail. After setting up our sleeping bags, we wandered through the empty harbor like a pack of stray dogs, tossing a Frisbee, peeking into buildings, and laughing loud at brand new inside jokes. We discovered the trail crews rec room, furnished with a scarred pool table and deflated sports equipment. Then we moved to our shelter for a night of chilled rest. Nick snored again, and Zach shivered as the last light faded behind the white spruce.
May 15th Day 2
Woke up at 8:02 (we were supposed to meet for breakfast at 8:00), and so we scrambled up the trail for hot oatmeal, followed by our first detailed balsam fur growth plot. It took about 5 hours to accurately log the data for our 50 trees. We were successful though, finding a full bull moose skull
, adorned with huge moss covered antlers, and a skeleton of a smaller cow moose. We returned for a late lunch and were treated to a good conversation (with all meals) about the work of John and Leah. We broke into two teams and packed food and fuel for out next junior assignment of two nights out. Lasagna for dinner, and then an interesting party game of knot tying and discussions on funding. Listening to the frogs croak, birds call; the sun retreats toward the trees and it is bed time. 
May 16th Day 3
Again we woke up at 8:02; frost had settled on some young plants but the air was not frigid as we hurried up the trail. Ten-grain oatmeal and hot cocoa suited me fine for breakfast. So we learned our last task, sampling moose pellet plots, and secured our gear for our next two nights out.
Sean and I were tasked to complete two basic balsam fur growth plots, one detailed plot, and one moose pellet plot. Our range was the peninsula north of Washington Bay. We hiked about a mile with full packs until we came to a fork in the trail. Zach bungled his loose gear deeper into his bag and our two teams split off and prepared to enter the back country. We skirted the ridge line and carefully skipped across some creeks and swamps. After a couple hours of moving through the spruce and cedar, our GPS told us we had arrived. Stripping off our sweaty shirts, we applied liberal amounts of sunscreen to our well wintered skin. The temperature had risen into the high 60’s we presumed, and we performed out next plot with the sun free to strike our backs.
As we settled in for lunch on a downed cedar, Sean stepped deep into wet mud. He then told the mud “You’re going to pay for that with tuna juice drippings.” He then proceeded to open his bag of tuna and squeezing intensely, produced several droplets into the mud. I commented that it wasn’t very much and he replied “Yeah, but it is completely foreign. The bacteria will just be going crazy.”
Our second plot was only was only a half mile away, so we heaved up and down some ridges to the location. We then set up camp nearby and prepped for an early dinner. Sean burned “all the hair” off his hand as he lit the stove and we dabbled with mixtures of rice, noodles, and potatoes to fill the void hiking had placed in our bellies. When sitting still for long enough, we got approached by a variety of curious little birds. A winter wren sat a couple feet from our dinner with his own dinner in his beak, and just stared at us for a minute or two.
We climbed a ridge to our north to try and spy the water. We found Superior and the shores of Canada on the horizon. I glanced down the ridge and noticed a bleached white moose antler sitting on the lichen alone. 
May 17th Day 4
We got into the tent before the sun had fully set, and conversed about the main ideas of the day until almost 11pm. We didn’t unzip the tent again until 10:30 the next morning. Luckily, Sean doesn’t mind missing breakfast at dawn. We were in no rush as we cooked our oatmeal and drank the warm brown water left over from boiling. A large slash hissed from my plush sleeping pad, and I knew I would be demoted to the army sleeping pad I had spied in the base camp garage.
We set out for the day, walking northeast along a high ridge, with a detailed plot and a pellet plot on the agenda. I heard clatter of noise from behind me as Sean tumbled over a rock. His pack flew over him and he was down for the count with a severely rolled ankle. We weighed the severity of the injury, and the possible courses of action. We were limited. Sean rose to his feet with his daypack, and I strapped his backpack onto mine. We hobbled slowly through the back country towards the only trail. After crossing our third swamp (a risky procedure for both of us), we suddenly emerged onto the beautiful trail. We also happened to be only a couple hundred feet from where we needed to do our detailed plot. Sean gritted his teeth for the next three hours as we documented some stubby Christmas trees. I then left to do the pellet plot for about an hour. When I returned we continued our journey; Sean limping like an old shaman with a waling stick, and me loaded down like his trusty sherpa.
Several hours later we summated the last hill (which nearly bested me), to return to base camp and take John and Leah by surprise. We had arrived at around 7, one day early, but luckily not too late for dinner. Sean told the tale as I drank water for the first time in several hours. We were added to their dinner table, and Sean sat with his foot in an ice cold water bath and waited for the pain killers to kick in. We set up two brand new cots in the garage after some trial and error. Then we saw a fox, and took showers. It has been 5 days since I have paid too too much for gas.
May 18th Day 5
The garage was cold; Sean and I tossed and turned for several morning hours avoiding the inevitable. Finally, we opened the door to a gorgeous day. We had just finished breakfast when Zach and Nick retuned, ready for lunch. The events for the day included: planning and packing for our next five day trip, going for a trail run, boiling a garbage can full of rotten old moose bones. I ate for four men at dinner, and then we played a rousing game of Bananagrams. I am sitting at dusk next to Washington Creek, listening to the birds call. I believe I just saw a bat skim the water for a drink.
May 19th Day 6
The mosquitoes have begun. We started out early today. I performed a necropsy on the two moose I had found earlier. Then spent an hour lost looking for a previously found skull. I did a pellet plot and hiked 9 miles with a heavy pack. There were a number of downed mature trees on the trail which means that there is going to be some work for the trail crew this year. We are camped on a beautiful lake for two nights, but we have a lot of ground to cover and not enough time for our bodies to fully recover. Saw my first snow shoe hare. Tons of sign of moose, maybe we’ll see one tomorrow morning.
May 20th Day 7
High hopes for the day. If everything works out, I will complete 4 balsam plots and a pellet plot. It will require constant movement, and still result in a long day, but sean will be hiking to meet us tonight, and every plot my partner can skip will help his ankle heal a little better.
My spirits were not beaten but at least a little injured as I hiked off trail through swamps; fruitlessly battling around a beaver pond for hours with my GPS constantly saying .49 miles. I was close, but the swamp hindered almost all forward movement, and I didn’t have time to waste. My slow noisy march drew up a swarm of the seasons first insects to toy with my patience.
Next, I approached a field of blown down trees. The aspen and spruce looked like they had been clear cut and left lying for miles. They had me hurdling and tip toeing for more than an hour until I reached my next plot. There I saw a Black backed Woodpecker.
The next trip was a mix of swamp and blown down trees. I was balancing on a thatch work of logs, about four feet off the ground, and as I took my next step, CRACK! The log I was trusting was rotten. I plummeted face first onto a bed of nails. I was being stabbed everywhere, and so, luckily, no one place broke the skin. I hoisted myself up and continued. It was beautiful on the walk home, and….I saw a moose. It ran forward on the same path I was on, and so I came up to it again. Eventually, it ran off down the trail, but I was a little leery about every sharp turn I took, lest I come face to face with a charging moose. Sean was in camp when I returned. We overate, then headed down to the shore of Superior, about a half an hour away to watch the sunset and fill water. The beach was warm with small dark pebbles. We sat past dark, tossing stones and talking about lighthouses. We walked back for as long as we could without using our head lamps, but a series of downed trees and steep slopes ended our night vision run. We hopped in our tent, and then we heard frogs hopping onto our tent. We saw one. Long day.
May 21st Day 8
We have been having an interesting experience as a group of interns. There is far too much time to think, and eventually we discuss our musings. Yet, on several occasions in a row, our conversations have foreshadowed the near future. It has been anywhere from seeing moose, predicting weather, to Sean talking about choking an animal with his backpack straps. I think it might be slightly superstitious, but it is just too soon to say. We woke up late today, and realized that we didn’t have the data sheets needed to document our plots, and so we went straight to our next campsite just 10 miles away. It was muggy, but very beautiful along the Feldtmann Ridge, until the rain came. Luckily, there were shelters at the end of our lazy day. I hope I don’t have parasites in me.
May 22nd Day 9
Slightly embarrassed, slightly defiant, Sean and myself woke from our slumber at noon. Our counterparts had been up and working for several hours as we finished our breakfast. We sauntered down the trail, toward the two plots we were supposed to have done yesterday with our heads high and our boots light. Soon we turned south off the trail, approaching the broad stretch of land that the map showed could contain swamp. Well, the map was right. In no time, we were dodging puddles created by last night’s rain, and correcting our azimuth toward higher ground, we came to the edge of a lake and hoped our troubles would be over. As we followed the shoreline, it disappeared before our very feet; swamp to bog. We were on floating islands of moss and vegetation, getting swarmed by bugs, and making about a half mile an hour. It took over two hours and some heroic leaps of faith to get through it all. We emerged from the ooze with absolutely soaked feet, and a little less gas in the tank. We then found the shore of Lake Superior, and walked for two hours together on the sand;
spotting agates and watching waterfalls materialize from swamps and drain into the Great Lake while traveling to our next plot.
The next was a long plot, but we hoped that if we finished and got back in time, that we could sneak ahead and beat the other group home by hiking through the night. This dream faded with the roll of thunder. As the heavens unleashed, and we still had many more trees to measure, I let out a murmur of 
disbelief. A moose skull, full antlers, sat five feet from me, and I could not imagine anything I would like to see less.
Doing our duty, we heaved the head back to camp after scouring the area for bones and finishing our plot. We made it back to our shelter well past dark, glad to stay a second night under the safe lean-to roof. And, our spirits were not entirely trampled by the hard day.
May 23rd Day 10
Sean and I failed to learn our lesson of the late wake up yet again. At 1:30, we heaved our packs and moose up for an 11 mile and one plot journey. We wore our pajamas and rain gear. As the day heated up on the ridge, we shed the bulky hot rain gear and prepared to prance into base camp with only b-ball shorts for Sean, and running tights for myself. We tried to take a short cut, and ended up stepping gingerly through another swamp as our exposed bodies got scrubbed by the off trail brush. Dinner was sitting on the stove and we took our much needed showers.
May 24th Day 11
Where are you right now? Today is my day off, and at the moment, I am sitting naked in a private sauna, journaling by candle light to the crackle of the wood stove I lit. We did laundry, retrieved some bones, had great food, played horse shoes and whiffle ball, and now it is getting too moist to write, So Adios.
“Saunassa Vaivat Haihtuu”
“In the sauna, the pains disappear”
May 25th Day 12
Got up at a reasonable hour to finish packing before our next long hike. We switched partners, and so Sean and Zach took the Voyager north east to their next assignment, and me and Nick will be returning to the swamp. The mission for the next eight days is to find and retrieve as many moose bones as possible. Nick and I stashed our packs (I have over 25 lbs of dehydrated food), and headed over the ridge. We looked in a “known” area for a long time. Then, disillusioned, and unmotivated, we settled down for an hour long siesta. That changed our luck. We then found three dead moose, three antler sheds, and saw six nowshoe hares, and after dinner, two Sandhill Cranes dancing for each other, and a cow and calf moose.
I received a letter from my love today, and all of the other boys were jealous.
May 26th Day 13
What to say about today? We did almost nothing successfully besides eat and sleep. We hiked poorly, navigated inaccurately, and found nothing. This is the kind of vacation I need, which is disappointing because we are trying to accomplish specific tasks. Although food is plentiful, it feels like my body is detoxing. There is limited electronics (headlamp, GPS, and camera), no music, media, or any loud or distracting forms of entertainment. The environment is always affecting the moment, and that is a great place to be. My dreams have been challenging and have made my sleep restless. They seemed so realistic and confrontational. But my mind must be doing some growing there because my thoughts during the day are not overly exhausting. I think that this is a very healthy lifestyle, and I am near enough to choosing it for myself. Nick is a good companion, and this retreat we are on doesn’t bother him too much either. Time is flying now, and the rest of summer, and fall semester are large blips on the radar. We keep thinking we are losing things, but really we are finding them.
May 27th Day 14
We woke up earlier than usual, but still lacked some of the urgency needed to impress anyone with our time out of the gate. Zigzagging back and forth between highlands and lowlands, we only discovered one antler shed,
and no bones.
We think we traveled over 4 miles, and we are in the planned region, but the moose aren’t biting. Spring was in full swing a couple days ago, but after several cold nights, everything is frozen in time. The maple leaves are small and droopy as if they need a long drink of water, and the ferns are caught midpoint in their uncurling process. Dinner was delish, but there isn’t good water where we are camped, so tomorrow morning we will be thirsty until we find a place to pump.
May 28th Day 15
It started raining at 3 in the morning and has intermittently continued until tonight. We are soaked. We were sort of prepared before we went to bed, but things just never completely let up, leading to soggy feet and very damp sleeping bags. We found 4 antler sheds, but still no bones. “Don’t lose your head! Lose a shed! We’re collecting them!” We found a very little one, and a great big grampa antler. The terrain was good, but our lack of success at finding bones made us leave the swamps edge area, and head for the coast, where we will arrive tomorrow. We had a big dinner and no more trials or failings than the other group did I’m sure. Life is slow but good. There is a snowshoe hare watching us eat, and is now sleeping 20 feet from our tent. Nick and I talk about books and the future a lot, but rarely decide anything. Maybe the sun will come out tomorrow and dry everything up. No worries.
May 29th Day 16
The rain finally gave up. We crawled out of our tent mid morning and “Things are lookin’ up.” We spent time eating breakfast, washing clothes, and letting everything thoroughly dry. We took the trail away from the small lake we had stayed on, passed where the Moose Watch expedition was looking for bones, toward the southern shore of Isle Royale. As soon as we hit the heavy incline to mount a ridge, we realized, “Things are lookin’ bad.” We were hot and tired, still without moose bones, and worst of all, the rain and sun had teamed up to resurrect the black flies, which choked us and crawled into our ears all day. It seems that we will have them with us for the rest of our time, but I am holding onto hope for a freak snowstorm. We found a single antler shed, then arrived at our wonderful back country campsite.
We are secluded by white spruce, but only moments from the waterfront, where you could easily entertain guests for dinner. You’ll have fun throwing rocks for hours. Then you will see a rainbow. Finally, you will get cold, snuggle up in your plush down sleeping bag, next to your (research) partner, and pray that the looming clouds and high winds won’t bring a terrible storm that will flood your tent and wash you out to sea. Only $15 a day. I think they are wall clouds.
May 30th Day 17
Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy wealth and wise. Found a calf skeleton and a shed.
May 31st Day 18
Up and out was the plan; just find some bones. The plan actually worked, and we were sauntering through the pines when the weather unleashed its plan. We paused in some caves as the fog rolled in heavier that pea soup, and the thunder trembled with all its might.
Our snack time under a cedar, as it poured rain was made busy by the swatting of mosquitoes and although our hearts and eyes were in the right place, someone forgot to tell the moose where to R.I.P. But our days are never all bad; Nick and I throw rocks, play stickball, and stack rocks all on one of the most beautiful and remote beaches in the country. We haven’t seen or talked to anyone in about a week. Today however, we did hear a far off boat blowing its fog horn. I admire Nick’s passion and demeanor. He is an excellent example of how a man can display emotion without being rude. His main exclamation is “Holy Moses!” A good joke or a well thrown rock is met with a classic compliment like “The King!” and some hearty groans of pleasure. The company you are with so greatly dictates the mood and actions of free time. Nick and this beach, however painful sometimes, are exactly what I need right now.
June 1st Day 19
Our last day to search for the coveted bones on this segment, (tomorrow will be all travel), and so we headed out, hoping to make it count. Our plan was to do several miles off trail, and then intersect the trail for another 5 miles to Siskwit Bay. We literally put our rally caps on, and started spying moose sheds cause there was no tomorrow. We found 11 antler sheds, bringing our week’s average up to 3 a day, and we found 2 moose skeletons; an absolutely productive day of work in our opinions. 
We even got in some rock throwing before we left the shore. Arrived in Siskwit Bay and bagged a shelter. The outhouse had toilet paper! (Both of us had run out several days ago.) We ate chocolate pudding for dinner. Clearly rations were running low. Apparently my +25lbs of food was not enough. There were two snowshoe hares hanging around the shelter which we tried to lure into the shelter with a piece of tortilla. Nick had never killed an animal before, but he mentally prepared himself to do extremely humane (“eat the beating heart after punching it in the legs”) things to this happy little rabbit. Our bait failed, and so we headed down to one of the few fire rings on the island, and had a small bonfire until it was dark. We then took one of our first looks at the night sky and saw a couple shooting stars. One more day that is hard to beat. Bring it on Sean and Zach.
June 2nd Day 20
Well, Sean and Zach brought it. They plowed into base camp laden with skulls and 85lb packs. Nick and I had arrived several hours earlier from our 11.5 mile homeward bound hike (we averaged 3 mph). It was a beautiful sunny day, and I wore shorts. We got into camp and ate cheese and took showers. I am wearing all clean clothes and things are lookin’ up. We told our stories over dinner and chatted up the yurt until dark. Good to be home.
June 3rd Day 21
A rewarding day off. We slept in late, without feeling guilty about wasting time. We had a king’s breakfast of scrambled eggs and potatoes au grautin. Then we went directly into lunch with extra delicacies like fruit and chocolate getting added to the shmorgasbord. As we finished up lunch, Rolf and Candy Peterson (the couple that has lead the Wolf Moose Study for the last 38 years) dropped by with some freshly baked desserts. The rest of the afternoon was spent conversing about research, the island, past trips, and the meaning of life. We were then honored to go on a bone finding expedition with the famous Rolf Peterson, where we found nothing. Then, a big dinner, jokes, merriment, healthy living, packing for our next excursion, planning escape routes off the island, and heating up the sauna. It is 2 a.m. and everybody is long gone to bed. I am avoiding my sleeping bag and the lonely hours of restless insomnia I have been having. I know the life here sounds simple and stress free, but I have to take a permanent look at this lifestyle, and future careers. This moment, and this summer will probably dictate the projection of the rest of my life. And so I can’t sleep.
June 4th Day 22
I made it into the shelter just in the nick of time last night as the drizzle turned to an absolute downpour, and I was glad to be in my zero degree sleeping bag and soon joined the chorus of snoring young men. In the morning, we finalized our plans for the return voyage (like back to the mainland) that was fast approaching. The night before, we were allowed one phone call to orchestrate our rides. The phone is a party line for the entire island. Then that line is radio transmitted to the Keweenaw of Michigan, and apparently you can pick up that transition with any old AM/FM tuner, so I am sure that there is a great deal of juicy gossip in the wild social world here. I called Oslo to tell her when I would be stopping by for my car. “Hello…..Hallo….Can you hear me?....I can’t hear you….. It is Will!....I wonder who it is?...” Somebody told me to yell louder into the receiver, but she had already hung up. I called back and glanced around at the room of people a little sheepishly and yelled my mediocre message through to my Norwegian friend. With that business settled, Leah hugged us goodbye and waved as we boarded the ship to go across the island.
Sean and Nick went to McCargo Cove, and Zach and I cruised all the way to Rock Harbor. We unloaded and filled water and set off for our first pellet plot of the new week. On our way, we watched a man grill cheeseburgers, and barely controlled our urges to commandeer his meal. Then we hiked down to Three Mile camp ground and ate dinner in our shelter. The camp is empty and we are watching water birds dive. There is love in the springtime air as the pair of birds dive and surface in synchrony, almost as if they don’t want to spend a moment alone.
June 5th Day 23
The one day! The one day I forget to bring a camera, I …. We slept in til mid morning before we began our ascent up Mt. Franklin. We had an 11 mile round trip planned with 2 temp and 1 detailed plot. We hiked along the hot Greenstone Ridge some 400 ft above our shelter, until we got to our farthest plot and came to a realization; from the ridge, all of our plots would be along the steep cliff side, and we would have to battle up and down hill though dense vegetation. It was some rough stuff, and the mosquitoes were the worst they had been so far. But we had some extra successes: two sheds, three wolf prints, nine wolf scat, and one moose skeleton (named Cliff, because the part we found was on the very edge of the ridge, and the part we didn’t find, wasn’t.) As we finished our work and were just beginning the trek home, Zach sneezed, and spooked a moose out in front of us as we came down the trail. I saw the moose look back in dismay and remembered that John said that if you talk to a moose, it calms down, because then it knows you’re not a wolf. So, as we approached this giant chocolaty bull with its antlers in velvet, I began to talk. “Hello Mr. Moose, we are not wolves, and we don’t want to eat you.” This seemed to put his mind right at ease, I was impressed. He began to eat while keeping an eye fixed on us, and then he began to walk closer. “Wow, you’re big; we might have your father Cliff here. You sure are getting close.” Zach and I dodged behind a large tree as Mr. Moose moved forward, about 15 ft away and coming on fast. I changed my tactics. “We are wolves! If you get any closer we are going to eat you!” He stomped his hooves. “Okay, we aren’t wolves…” As we backed up, a branch snapped and the moose flinched. We had found his weakness, and started breaking branches. He became frightened and started to retreat. “That’s right, not so big anymore are you?” He glanced back and we jumped behind the tree again. There you are, you are going to have to take my word, no pictures.
June 6th Day 24
Not too much to report. We did two plots, couldn’t find any balsams for the third. It is definitely mosquito season, they were even worse today. It was hot and we found a shed and a skeleton of a cow moose. I have probably been eating more pure butter than most men could ever dream of. My fingers are so cold that I can hardly write, and I saw a huge painted turtle. I think I am going to start giving jars of pickled eggs as gifts. Which is cooler? Dragonflies or praying mantises. Lots of shelters say honeymooners’ names, but I think this would be a very smelly honeymoon. Night.
June 7th Day 25
“The sun will continue to rise as long as someone is there to watch it. Today, I was there.”- Me
Then I went back to bed. Zach told me it was noon, so I crawled back into the waking world. We got ready for the day of work, and I looked at my watch and realized it was only 9:45. Well done sir. Hiked up Mt. Franklin for the umpteenth time and down the other side. 
We pushed into the back country along thick ridges with almost impenetrable vegetation. We were bordered by swamps, and eventually we dove down into the tall grass. By bounding and picking the driest mounds, we almost made it to our plot with dry feet. But then, it began to pour. I had cleverly worn two pairs of pants, a long sleeved shirt, sweatshirt, and gloves to combat the bugs, but both me and Zach had left all of our rain gear behind. Later, we asked ourselves “Why?” Laziness. We had the beginning symptoms of hypothermia. Everything was wet and cold, and we were still 2-3 hours from camp. We ran across another set of swamps, and gave in. We let both feet get completely soaked as we took, as the mosquito flies, the shortest route back to the trail. There was a deep euphoria as the water rushed up and passed our knees and our heart rates rose as we pressed forward. Indeed, we took the path less traveled, and moved through about a mile of swamp. Finally, a revelation: even in the most miserable conditions, in nature, I am truly happy. We found the trail and our way home. I forget my passion sometimes, but now I am writing it down. I want my career to be here.
June 8th Day 26
We both got up for the sunrise today, but it didn’t come, so we went back to bed until noon. Then I was privileged enough to enjoy the experience of sliding my warm dry feet into cold wet socks. We headed toward two plots as a beautiful mist fell on the hill around us.
Again it turned to rain, and we became cold. Today, there was no swamp to frolic in, and we trudged somberly back to our shelter. I am having a good day, but with everything wet and cold, and the end so very near, there is little for constructive conversation. So we read and reread the shelter’s graffiti.
Long Live the Spider Web
“Seven years’ words wasted
waiting on the spiderweb:
seven years’ thoughts
harkening the host,
seven years’ lost
sentience naming images,
narrowing down the name
to nothing,
seven years’:
fears
in a web of ancient measure;
the words dead
flies, a crop
of ghosts,
seven years’:
the spider is dead.”
Allen Ginsberg
“Gin
the
only
way
out”
Anonymous
“I hate granola eaters who write poems about flowers and write their addresses here on the walls. I am going back to the city to be around meat eaters, and drive my car.”
Anonymous
June 9th Day 27
Left camp and set out on the open trail toward plots, where we found the skeleton of Suzy Q. near Daisy Farm. A large campground, bustling with hikers, and at this time of the year, little blue and white daisies pad the paths.
One more day of work, some bone hunting, and our trip is over. I will be on the boat back to Houghton for better or worse in less than a week.
June 10th Day 28
Finally reunited, the four interns bed down after a long day of hiking, bone finding, and balsam measuring. Plans and memories were exchanged at a communal dinner. The work is done, and we embrace the island life. 
Are we competitive? Yes. Today, Zach got lost for about an hour, walking parallel with the trail we needed to be on. I knew exactly where we were, but didn’t say a word because I wanted more time to look for moose bones.
Is there competition? Heck no. We roasted Sean and Nick, they had nothing but blisters and bug bites to show for their pitiful week. Go Team Scorpion!
June 11th Day 29
New record! We got up at 4:30 am to climb up to Ojibwa Fire Tower for the sunrise. Our weary caravan moved up the slope in the pre dawn, happy to have made it out of our sleeping bags. We arrived almost exactly on schedule, but the sky was overcast.
However, the plans for the day did not include going back to sleep like my body wanted. Nope, we celebrated the freedom of our day off and hiked into Rock Harbor then out to Scoville Point. Then we had to come back to Daisy Farm , all before 3 pm. (21.4 miles). There we were picked up for dinner by Rolf and Candy, who treated us to the first fresh greens we have had, as well as fresh homemade rhubarb pie.
We saw the antlered bull collection,
hiked down to the old fishery and lighthouse to explore.
The light house was fascinating with some excellent historical information, and of course, the huge winding staircase.
Then Candy gave a captivating presentation on the Daisy Farm dock to the public.
Later, some local Houghton fishermen brought us out on their boat for the dusk troll.
Nick caught our only fish and it was clearly a complex experience, as he aided in the first intentional killing of an animal in his life.
We were lucky enough to have them fillet and cook the fish for us all to have a bite. Cameron, a poet from Northern who had been traveling along side us for several days, came running up with news of moose. So I followed him into the woods and watched a cow graze from 10 feet away. Zach just said it makes you realize how much you can get done in a day. What a day.
June 12th Day 30
Ah, Superb! As my last night in base camp winds to a close, there is a bittersweet aroma of goodbyes in our words. John and Leah have truly gone above and beyond their roles as researchers. They have opened their yurt to us, answered all of our obscure questions, shared every minute that we are in camp with us, and treated us like family. Their knowledge is motivating, and their wisdom is inspiring. The time spent here on the island is memorable, and the impact of these role models will undoubtedly shape my future for the better. Sean, Nick and Zach: P is for party. The flood of emotions makes specific memories of the day smear together.
June 13th Day 31
Final base camp breakfast and farewell before we boarded the Voyager back to Rock Harbor. I tried to sleep during the long ride, but gave up and moved to have a conversation with a man who runs the Grand Portage Park Service. He was coming to collaborate with the island on cultural and historical matters and we talked for several hours, in depth, about most everything we could think of about Isle Royale, wilderness, and the future. He was clearly another wise man, and was extremely encouraging to me passively and actively. Let off in Rock Harbor, I carried my last freshly emptied pickled egg jar; marking the 60th egg devoured by me and my associates this month. A woman stopped me to take a picture of my yellow knit cap, and then Nick and I headed to Three Mile to meet up with the starving poet we had become acquainted with earlier. After a string of bad luck that left him with a bad knee, missed resupply of food, and having spent several stints short on water, we were sure he had plenty of creative inspiration. So we talked through dinner and the night, telling old stories and poems, allowing an artistic bond, rather than scientific, to marinate into the Isle Royale experience.
June 14th Day 32
We spent the day in conversation, eating, joking, and enjoying each others company. Hiked to Rock Harbor and spent my last $10 on a whitefish sandwich, and convinced the waitress to bring me the pasty back that had been rejected by the costomer next to me. Cameron bought Nick and me a beer, and we clung to our slice of civilization until Rolf’s presentation, our final research engagement. The boat takes off tomorrow at nine, but we might try to catch the sunrise in the morning. The moon is full with a yellow haze around it, I wonder what it looks like in Chile.
June 15th Day 33
Made it to the boat on time, and loaded our bags.
Met Paul Anderson on the boat, a Park Ranger who is filled with the spirit of Isle Royale. He played his guitar for us as we sailed across Lake Superior one last time. As we entered the Portage Canal, he played The Edmund Fitzgerald, and we were glad that the weather had been good.
The lift bridge let us through, and we were docked. I said Adios to Cameron and Nick and pickedd up my car and my adventure was over.
*Note: I ate 8 sticks of butter and around 52 pickled eggs on the trip. And I saw the following animals: Trumpeter Swan, Osprey, Bald Eagle, Red Squirrel, Blue Jay, Chipping Sparrow, Common Merganser, Red Breasted Merganser, Common Loon, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Black backed Woodpecker, Herring Gull, Sandhill Crane, Black Duck, Canada Goose, Great Blue Heron, Belted Kingfisher, Great Horned Owl, Red Fox, Gray Jay, Moose, Black Throated Green Warbler, Winter Wren, Oven Bird, Painted Turtle, American Bittern, Snowshoe Hare, Garter Snake, Deer Mouse and a Mosquito.
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