Following the Blue Blaze - People I Met

---

People I Met on the Trail

The one thing I found out from the very first day of my hike is that you will meet some very interesting people along the trail. Everyone has a story of how they enjoy the SHT. Many are on a mission to hike the entire trail whether it’s a through hike or hiking it in smaller sections. The underlying theme is a love of the SHT, the North Shore of Lake Superior and northeastern Minnesota. Also when asked most people said they enjoyed the fall season the most with its spectacular colors, usually more temperate weather and the relative lack of bugs compared to other seasons. Below is a brief account of my interactions with people I met on the trail. I told most of the people I met that I was blogging about my experience and asked if was ok to use their pictures and stories. Everyone I asked said yes and thought it was a neat idea.

At my first campsite I met Heidi, Tom and Julie from the Twin Cities. They had arrived at the Woodland Caribou camp before me and were very welcoming. Tom and Julie are married and Heidi is a hiking friend of theirs. You could tell they had a good friendship and that they really enjoyed hiking trips together. There were stories of trips past and comparisons about different sections of the trail. Tom was close in age to me and Heidi and Julie a little younger so we talked of the aches and pains of backpacking. It does favor the younger bodies but us old timers do a good job of holding our own. We had good conversation around the fire while cooking dinner and again at breakfast in the morning. I was packed up and hit the trail before them. We talked about camping together about 11 miles down the trail but I pushed hard that day and did 19 miles making it to Magney State Park.

After I had set up camp at Devils Track River West camp, I grabbed my camera and was heading toward the river to get some late day pictures when I encountered Travis from Virginia, MN on the trail. As we were chatting we discovered we were both through hikers. Travis was the only other through hiker I talked to on my trip. He was on about day 18 of a south to north through hike. I picked his brain about things like mental and physical fatigue. He said he went off trail for a night at Lutsen and got a room and had a restaurant meal. He told me that wet feet can be an issue because it is sometime difficult to dry your boots. I certainly found that out later in my trip. Travis said he was going to continue on that evening and I wished him well for the few days he had left.

For me, one of the highlights of my trip was taking four days off trail and going to the BWCA with my good friend Kurt and my son Erik. We have an annual BWCA trip the last weekend of September that includes some lake trout fishing and grouse hunting. Its always a fun trip with lots of good stories and laughs and this year was no different. It was a great experience to have someone pick you up off the trail and take you on a different trip and then drop you off with new provisions in the spot they picked you up.

After Kurt and Erik dropped me off, I hiked only about a mile to Lake Agnes camp. I arrived around 4pm with lots of day hikers on the trail and a few in the camp. About a half hour after I arrived Kirsten and Vanessa from Madison and Milwaukee arrived. Since I had taken the best tent spot, they chose the second best spot. After we had set up our tents and had dinner, we moved to the fire area and Vanessa built a nice fire and we had really good conversation while watching cowboy tv. There is something about sitting around a fire that feels good and is very relaxing. The full moon rose while we were chatting. Vanessa and Kirsten were former teammates on the rowing team at UW Madison and I could tell they had a good friendship and enjoyed outdoor activities. They both were familiar with Duluth and Kirsten said she wouldn’t mind moving there. I gave them both the hard sell. Duluth can always use more outdoors minded young professionals. After breakfast and packing the next morning, we said our good byes. There were heading in the opposite direction from me. I read in the trail log at the Lake Agnes overlook that they were good friend enjoying the beautiful fall season together.

I met an older gent whose name I didn’t get as he walked past West Leveaux camp and stopped to chat. He had come about 9-10 miles that day and was quite tired. He was looking to find a place to hang his hammock and retire early to read his e-reader. He continued to East Leveaux camp on the other side of the beaver pond. I talked to him after I finished pumping water and he said he found two properly spaced trees for his hammock. I admire his desire to still get out and backpack.

After a long hike of about 15 miles, I made it to Fredenberg Creek camp and saw it was already occupied. Adam and Jenny from St Paul were camped there. They were hiking both north and south to better be able to shed unneeded gear and pick up additional provisions. We had a great conversation over dinner. Jenny lived in Duluth for a few years and was familiar with a lot of people and organizations that I know. Adam’s work also delved into areas I had worked in over my last career. You could tell they enjoyed the outdoors and being able to hike the SHT. I got up and going at my normal 8-8:30am timeframe the next day and I left after we had another great conversation over breakfast.

I'll have another post to finish describing the people I met on the trail.

---

Photos

Camping Companions
Tom and Julie at Woodlands Caribou camp

IMG_3110
Heidi at Woodland Caribou camp

The Three Cowboys
Kurt, Erik and I in the BWCA

IMG_3295
Kirsten and Vanessa at Lake Agnes camp

IMG_3380
Adam and Jenny on a chilly evening at Fredenberg Creek camp