Day 9 Chisolm Brook to Sweeney Brook

Day 9
We woke up at around 8:30 and got up at 9 PM. As we packed up camp we decided to have snack crackers for breakfast and move on.
Two rangers showed up to check the cells and check the privy, so we had a nice little chat with them. They left with there motorboat and we were off shortly thereafter. It didn’t take long for me to have a crummy mood. The weather was overcast and dreary, and no wildlife was out. I think we saw 2-3 loons all day. The birds in the forest also must have bummed because we hardly heard a sound. This certainly didn’t make the long paddle across Umasaskis lake, the thoroughfare, and Long Lake a fun one. Even the name Long Lake was irritating me.

We made it to Long Lake Dam (or what’s left of it) and pulled over to left to check things out like the ranger had suggested. We knew we didn’t want to run it, with all our belongings, and we talked about going to the other side and staying at the Long Lake Dam campsite. Suddenly another canoe came into view and our decision was made. We were going to rope the canoe through the old dam. Metal spikes were still in place from the dam, so even roping it down with our gear was sketchy in places. It turned out fine.
We had a fun river run after the dam, and then more of a meander. As we got closer to our camp target, Sweeny Brook, we came across another cow moose feeding in the middle of the river. She was unimpressed, and we got a couple pictures while drifting by.

We made it to Sweeney Brook campsite. It had been trashed. Likely, humans did the damage, but possibly fallen trees were the culprits. The post above the picnic table had been smashed, rocks from the firepit had been scattered, and it was not a pretty sight. However I was tired and grumpy and ready to stop.
My mood began to change quickly. First I spotted a pretty little spruce grouse on the edge of the campsite. Then both Dana and I spotted some snakes. After setting up camp, Dana went to collect firewood, and I found the snake’s hideout…an old fallen tree that had become a gardner snake condo.
There were moose footprints all over and around our campsite, and they looked fresh.

Dana got some sticks for cooking hotdogs over the fire, we ate, and he went fishing behind some islands in the middle of the river. When he got back we played a few more rounds of solitaire and I crawled into the tent. Dana was finishing boiling some drinking water and was also on his way to bed when he heard a noise. I could hear him whispering something, so I sat up and said, "What?", "moose" he whispered.

As I looked out of the tent I saw Dana backing up towards the tent and a large cow moose came out of the woods and into our small campsite. She looked right at Dana and paused for a moment, and turned and walked down to the river. I handed Dana the camera and he tried to get a couple of shots, but it was dark and the camera flashed so you can only see her silhouette.
We went to bed even though Dana was whinny about having to sleep standing up….since we had our tent on a slight slant. There just weren’t any flat spots for a tent at Sweeney Brook.