Dad and I wake up before the sun to get in some early morning fishing. After a long day of mostly just paddling, we were both more than eager to wet our lines. We have moderate success, reeling in a few walleye and bass here and there, but nothing to write home about. We return to camp to find the women casually sipping on their morning coffee and enjoying the morning sun. We eat breakfast of eggs and bacon and make the decision to press on to Kawnipi today. Usually my Dad and I make the travel decisions and the wives just go along for the ride. I guess they trust us! During the night both my wife and I smell quite an odor and cant determine the source. But, while breaking down camp discover the source. A huge pile of animal scat directly behind our tent. It was rather rank smelling.

We set off at about 10:30, in no particular hurry knowing our goal is to merely reach Kawnipi at some point today. We traverse the final four portages of the Falls Chain, ending with Kennebas Falls and see the eastern arm of Kawnipi. I cast a few lines at that spot and reel in a couple of bass and a nice walleye we decide to keep for dinner. Pressing on, we take the first site we come to and claim it as our own. Not a great site, but spacious and we intend to return to the falls to fish later. With camp set, Dad and I return to the falls area and wrangle in many more fish and keep one more Walter for dinner. Fileting finished, under the watchful eye of an eagle and some gulls, we eat a fantastic meal of steak and fish. Surf and turf, how can you beat that in the middle of nowhere?

The four of us get in the canoes so the ladies can try their own luck at fishing. It doesnt take long and they are both reeling them in while the stern paddlers control the boats in the moving water. My mother had the biggest catch of the day. That rod and reel she retrieved from the river put up quite a fight. The video was hysterical, we thought she had a monster fish on the end of her line. We fished til the moon came up and the skeeters came out, and decided we had enough for our second day. Paddled back to camp while catching fish along the way, mosquitoes were quite feisty this evening and they drove us to our tents at dark. Pressing on westward on Kawnipi in the morning.