Luke: I once ran into Bob at a coffee shop in Ely. I recognized him and told him what a fan I was and he sat down and talked for about twenty minutes. At the time he must have been close to 80 and was still competing in XC ski events and dog sledding. I was really taken by his zest for life and enthusiasm for all things outdoors. He actually grew up in Joliet IL, not far from where I live, and as a child he explored some of the same waterways that I traversed as a young boy. Before we parted, I made sure to let him know how much I appreciated all his writings and what an inspiration he was to me, personally. Thanks for watching and providing these meaningful comments.
Wow Schmitty, how lucky are you to be able to spend time in the wilderness with three generations! That is priceless. Thanks for watching and your comments.
Absolutely love your vids, along with sharing your vast knowledge!!! I'm a frequent traveler of the bwcaw and would enjoy traveling along your side. Keep it coming my brother!!!!
Troy, I'm sorry I missed your comment from a year ago but thank you too, for watching and commenting. Check out this latest one, the best yet. . . th-cam.com/video/yCYMYnCimM8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=AMFxnauNMXQV9Gb6. I came to this video site today to respond to the comment just above yours which came in yesterday--it's amazing, check that out too. If you want to talk about a joint expedition just reach out anytime at markpotaczek@gmail.com. I'm going up with a group next week that I met through the channel--I'm taking a Viet Nam vet back into Kawnipi so that he can leave some ashes from his childhood paddling buddies on their favorite island. It's the same guy (Doug) from a former video about Basswood in SEP. We were supposed to do the Kawnipi trip then, but he wasn't physically capable so I changed it to just Basswood base camp. Then I hope to go back up in mid-OCT and do a BWCA sweep from west to east, if I can work out the transportation, which can be tough that late in the season. Thanks again and hope your get back up there soon!
Thanks, Donald. I was never really interested in that story until I happened across her island. Once I started researching, I couldn't get enough. I wish I had met her, but she died the year after my first Quetico trip.
John, you should take one of these trips sometime. You are always welcome and I have all the gear. No phone, no computers, no crowds. In September, I took a gentleman who had gone up for many decades but had to quit because most of his companions are now gone. He had since moved to AZ, so this past fall he flew into Duluth and I picked him up enroute and we did a two week basecamp fishing trip. It was phenomenal--great weather, scenery, fishing, and this guy had me laughing the whole time. Here is the link for the trailer which just went up and I'll be producing a video this winter to document the trip. th-cam.com/video/VMcToc8Kw6M/w-d-xo.html.
I used to know a Steve Richard but he is much more handsome than you. He is actually one of my "Quetico Recruits", a group of about a dozen people who I intentionally brought into the park because I knew they would love it and carry on the voyager tradition. Coincidentally, last year while paddling across Basswood, I ran into a paddler who is a dead ringer for his wife, Millie. If you check out this video from SEP of last year, th-cam.com/video/g-muZrZmoH8/w-d-xo.html and go to the 53 minute mark, you will see her. Thanks for your kind remarks and I hope you enjoy many years of exploration and adventure in the great Northwoods.
@@markpotaczek Hi Mark, I just watched the video you from your Sept 2020BWCA trip what an adventure! Millie and I just returned from a week cabin trip at Bob's in early July which included two days on Basswood. Derrick was there to meet us at the dock every day! :) You certainly had a lot of paddling on this trip. I have a new appreciation for the vast expanse of Basswood and a 25hp motor! :) Hope to see you soon!
@@steverichard3863 Glad to hear you got up there! Hope the weather treated you well and given your angling prowess, I know you caught plenty of fish! Thanks for watching and always appreciate your comments.
Spent some time in that area. Thanks for the history; I wish I had known the locations of the cabins. Actually spent a night and had an unusual experience at the campsite on her island.
@@markpotaczek Hey Mark, didn't mean to leave you hanging. My buddy and I had a couple things happen. Into the evening, a lamp seemed to get bumped off of a tree limb, though there wasn't anything but a slight breeze, and it tumbled down to the only tree that stopped it from rolling all the way down the hill to the shore. Later, a pot lid again seemed to be pushed off of a pack on its own. The air had a particular "electricity" for a couple minutes... nothing malevolent, but it was definitely unusual.
Man... all the years paddling Knife, it's always been a big and angry body of water... good memories, Knife and it's surrounding lakes were my last BWCA trip pre'Covid. Had been loving Quetico the last several years. I had to laugh, when you pulled up to the portage landing on Melon, can't tell you how many Peanut M&M's of mine rolled down that flat rock haha
That is such a good descriptor for Knife--"angry". And great story about the Peanut M&Ms rolling down the rock. . . I knew that a lot of people would recognize many of the easy portages that connect those lakes as well as some of the very unique rocks and ledges that are encountered along the route.
I had the privilege to meet Dorothy, just 4 months before her passing in 1986. If I recall correctly, I think we came in from the east, landing on the north side of where her summer cabin was with a tan canvas roof. I was present when her last official photograph was taken by our guide & photographer at the time, Dale Swenson from Braham MN, now also gone. Looking at the map now, I was apparently turned around? I could have sworn I was told Canada was just across the lake? She had some ducks she was feeding & Dale had a rather sever feather phobia, from an incident he had as a child. I like to think the cash in her hand in that photo, was the $5 bill I gave her for a Snickers candy bar as a protest against the bastards within our own government giving her a hard time & attempting “against the will of the people they are supposed to represent” to force her out. ✊ The root beer I got was flat without any fizz yet, struck me as weird/odd, as a yeast flavor could definitely be tasted. She had a couple of her “nephews?” Helping her at the time. I had no clue at the time also, that I was meeting & speaking with the legend she became. I have many stories to tell the grandkids from my many trips up there! ❤️
Wow, I'ver never read such an interesting comment. That is an amazing story, and I can't wait to look at that photograph you mentioned. Here's a strange coincidence as well--Dorothy was born and raised only about ten miles from where I was reared and she is buried in a cemetery along with many of my relatives. When I first started going up there in the mid-eighties, I really had no interest in checking her out and actually paddled right by there on a one-month long solo circum-navigation of the park. I paddled right by. I'm so pissed about that, to this day. Thanks for sharing that fascinating story, and if you're willing to share any photos I'd love to see them at markpotaczek@gmail.com. Thank you for sharing that great experience!
The SPOT personal locator beacon. When you activate it, it takes about ten minutes to send your eight digit grid coordinates to a satellite for distribution to your designated email recipients. It blinks until the signal has been sent. In my case, my wife and a few friends get those nightly "OK" emails, which also provide your spot on a map, pinpointed to within 20 feet! It's amazing technology and all for under $200. If you have an emergency, there is another notification that you make, basically an SOS signal that will result in a helicopter or floatplane evacuation, but must be during daylight hours and it will be an expensive ride home.
@@brentandellesoutdooradventures That's a good one, about twice the cost of the SPOT. One time, I was on a solo on Kawnipi, and another soloist--a nice guy from Edmonton who just had twin girls and came to Quetico for a rest period-- shared a campsite and he had one of those Garmins. Every night, his wife would send him the current weather forecast. Since we were sitting up by the fire talking about this, he asked if I wanted to send a text to my wife, and I did. She later told me she was shocked to receive it because she knew from my SPOT notifications that I was deep in the park on Kawnipi. It makes me think back to the early days, when I would disappear into the park alone for weeks at a time and nobody had any idea where I was. . . Technology is amazing!
@@markpotaczek I often think the same thing. Are you heading into BWCA this year? We’ve had our Spring Quetico trip cancelled twice due to Covid. Heading in at Nym Lake on Sunday for 2 weeks. Hoping to head down through Sturgeon to Tanner and down to Crooked, then across to Basswood and back up through Agnes. But right now there are some fires around Crooked.
@@brentandellesoutdooradventures I just returned from a two week jaunt from Lac La Croix to Prairie Portage. I hit the bass spawn right on, and was amazed at how great the fishing was on La Croix and the absence of others in select areas. I really get jealous of your ability to get into Quetico, especially when you talk about my favorite area of Sturgeon Lake. . . Having said that, I'm learning the ropes of the BWCA and am prepared to explore every lake in that system if I cannot get back into my beloved Quetico. While I'm at it, I should also add how much I enjoy YOUR videos. Please keep them coming!
Great video!
I stumbled upon Bob Cary’s Root Beer Lady at our public library, and I definitely recommend it. What a life she led. Thanks for sharing.
Luke: I once ran into Bob at a coffee shop in Ely. I recognized him and told him what a fan I was and he sat down and talked for about twenty minutes. At the time he must have been close to 80 and was still competing in XC ski events and dog sledding. I was really taken by his zest for life and enthusiasm for all things outdoors. He actually grew up in Joliet IL, not far from where I live, and as a child he explored some of the same waterways that I traversed as a young boy. Before we parted, I made sure to let him know how much I appreciated all his writings and what an inspiration he was to me, personally. Thanks for watching and providing these meaningful comments.
Great video. Thx for sharing! I was lucky enough to take my son and father through the knife area this spring. Enjoyed the his story in your video!
Wow Schmitty, how lucky are you to be able to spend time in the wilderness with three generations! That is priceless. Thanks for watching and your comments.
Absolutely love your vids, along with sharing your vast knowledge!!! I'm a frequent traveler of the bwcaw and would enjoy traveling
along your side. Keep it coming my brother!!!!
Troy, I'm sorry I missed your comment from a year ago but thank you too, for watching and commenting. Check out this latest one, the best yet. . . th-cam.com/video/yCYMYnCimM8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=AMFxnauNMXQV9Gb6. I came to this video site today to respond to the comment just above yours which came in yesterday--it's amazing, check that out too. If you want to talk about a joint expedition just reach out anytime at markpotaczek@gmail.com. I'm going up with a group next week that I met through the channel--I'm taking a Viet Nam vet back into Kawnipi so that he can leave some ashes from his childhood paddling buddies on their favorite island. It's the same guy (Doug) from a former video about Basswood in SEP. We were supposed to do the Kawnipi trip then, but he wasn't physically capable so I changed it to just Basswood base camp. Then I hope to go back up in mid-OCT and do a BWCA sweep from west to east, if I can work out the transportation, which can be tough that late in the season. Thanks again and hope your get back up there soon!
Great info about Dorthy, and good music choice while at her island.
Thanks, Donald. I was never really interested in that story until I happened across her island. Once I started researching, I couldn't get enough. I wish I had met her, but she died the year after my first Quetico trip.
Man I love the BWCA I'm a supporter of your channel now too!!! 😜
Awesome video man 👌🏼
Thanks Josh! Hope you get up there soon.
Thanks Josh! Hope you get up there soon.
You are a true wilderness man, Mark!
John, you should take one of these trips sometime. You are always welcome and I have all the gear. No phone, no computers, no crowds. In September, I took a gentleman who had gone up for many decades but had to quit because most of his companions are now gone. He had since moved to AZ, so this past fall he flew into Duluth and I picked him up enroute and we did a two week basecamp fishing trip. It was phenomenal--great weather, scenery, fishing, and this guy had me laughing the whole time. Here is the link for the trailer which just went up and I'll be producing a video this winter to document the trip. th-cam.com/video/VMcToc8Kw6M/w-d-xo.html.
Hello Mark! I just found your videos here on TH-cam and will watch them all. Thanks for the continued inspiration!
I used to know a Steve Richard but he is much more handsome than you. He is actually one of my "Quetico Recruits", a group of about a dozen people who I intentionally brought into the park because I knew they would love it and carry on the voyager tradition. Coincidentally, last year while paddling across Basswood, I ran into a paddler who is a dead ringer for his wife, Millie. If you check out this video from SEP of last year, th-cam.com/video/g-muZrZmoH8/w-d-xo.html and go to the 53 minute mark, you will see her. Thanks for your kind remarks and I hope you enjoy many years of exploration and adventure in the great Northwoods.
@@markpotaczek Hi Mark, I just watched the video you from your Sept 2020BWCA trip what an adventure! Millie and I just returned from a week cabin trip at Bob's in early July which included two days on Basswood. Derrick was there to meet us at the dock every day! :)
You certainly had a lot of paddling on this trip. I have a new appreciation for the vast expanse of Basswood and a 25hp motor! :) Hope to see you soon!
@@steverichard3863 Glad to hear you got up there! Hope the weather treated you well and given your angling prowess, I know you caught plenty of fish! Thanks for watching and always appreciate your comments.
Spent some time in that area. Thanks for the history; I wish I had known the locations of the cabins. Actually spent a night and had an unusual experience at the campsite on her island.
Matthew, you can't leave us hanging. What was unusual about it?
@@markpotaczek Hey Mark, didn't mean to leave you hanging. My buddy and I had a couple things happen. Into the evening, a lamp seemed to get bumped off of a tree limb, though there wasn't anything but a slight breeze, and it tumbled down to the only tree that stopped it from rolling all the way down the hill to the shore. Later, a pot lid again seemed to be pushed off of a pack on its own. The air had a particular "electricity" for a couple minutes... nothing malevolent, but it was definitely unusual.
@@mattwinthewoods Thanks for sharing that interesting story. What a great way to describe it--a particular "electricity". . .
Thanks Mark. That is another camp we both stayed at last year. Your site the first night was where I stopped two days after the island on Lac Lacroix.
Josh, that is wild! This spring, I'm actually gonna combine both trips over two weeks. Hopefully, this time I'll enjoy prevailing westerlies!
Man... all the years paddling Knife, it's always been a big and angry body of water... good memories, Knife and it's surrounding lakes were my last BWCA trip pre'Covid. Had been loving Quetico the last several years. I had to laugh, when you pulled up to the portage landing on Melon, can't tell you how many Peanut M&M's of mine rolled down that flat rock haha
That is such a good descriptor for Knife--"angry". And great story about the Peanut M&Ms rolling down the rock. . . I knew that a lot of people would recognize many of the easy portages that connect those lakes as well as some of the very unique rocks and ledges that are encountered along the route.
Nice omage my family is from Ely and my grandfather was a bush pilot
Great job! Thank You!!
I had the privilege to meet Dorothy, just 4 months before her passing in 1986. If I recall correctly, I think we came in from the east, landing on the north side of where her summer cabin was with a tan canvas roof. I was present when her last official photograph was taken by our guide & photographer at the time, Dale Swenson from Braham MN, now also gone. Looking at the map now, I was apparently turned around? I could have sworn I was told Canada was just across the lake? She had some ducks she was feeding & Dale had a rather sever feather phobia, from an incident he had as a child.
I like to think the cash in her hand in that photo, was the $5 bill I gave her for a Snickers candy bar as a protest against the bastards within our own government giving her a hard time & attempting “against the will of the people they are supposed to represent” to force her out. ✊
The root beer I got was flat without any fizz yet, struck me as weird/odd, as a yeast flavor could definitely be tasted. She had a couple of her “nephews?” Helping her at the time. I had no clue at the time also, that I was meeting & speaking with the legend she became.
I have many stories to tell the grandkids from my many trips up there! ❤️
Wow, I'ver never read such an interesting comment. That is an amazing story, and I can't wait to look at that photograph you mentioned. Here's a strange coincidence as well--Dorothy was born and raised only about ten miles from where I was reared and she is buried in a cemetery along with many of my relatives. When I first started going up there in the mid-eighties, I really had no interest in checking her out and actually paddled right by there on a one-month long solo circum-navigation of the park. I paddled right by. I'm so pissed about that, to this day. Thanks for sharing that fascinating story, and if you're willing to share any photos I'd love to see them at markpotaczek@gmail.com. Thank you for sharing that great experience!
Hi Mark. What were the flashing lights?
The SPOT personal locator beacon. When you activate it, it takes about ten minutes to send your eight digit grid coordinates to a satellite for distribution to your designated email recipients. It blinks until the signal has been sent. In my case, my wife and a few friends get those nightly "OK" emails, which also provide your spot on a map, pinpointed to within 20 feet! It's amazing technology and all for under $200. If you have an emergency, there is another notification that you make, basically an SOS signal that will result in a helicopter or floatplane evacuation, but must be during daylight hours and it will be an expensive ride home.
@@markpotaczek I see. We use a Garmin Inreach the last few years. Good idea to have some something.
@@brentandellesoutdooradventures That's a good one, about twice the cost of the SPOT. One time, I was on a solo on Kawnipi, and another soloist--a nice guy from Edmonton who just had twin girls and came to Quetico for a rest period-- shared a campsite and he had one of those Garmins. Every night, his wife would send him the current weather forecast. Since we were sitting up by the fire talking about this, he asked if I wanted to send a text to my wife, and I did. She later told me she was shocked to receive it because she knew from my SPOT notifications that I was deep in the park on Kawnipi. It makes me think back to the early days, when I would disappear into the park alone for weeks at a time and nobody had any idea where I was. . . Technology is amazing!
@@markpotaczek I often think the same thing. Are you heading into BWCA this year? We’ve had our Spring Quetico trip cancelled twice due to Covid. Heading in at Nym Lake on Sunday for 2 weeks. Hoping to head down through Sturgeon to Tanner and down to Crooked, then across to Basswood and back up through Agnes. But right now there are some fires around Crooked.
@@brentandellesoutdooradventures I just returned from a two week jaunt from Lac La Croix to Prairie Portage. I hit the bass spawn right on, and was amazed at how great the fishing was on La Croix and the absence of others in select areas. I really get jealous of your ability to get into Quetico, especially when you talk about my favorite area of Sturgeon Lake. . . Having said that, I'm learning the ropes of the BWCA and am prepared to explore every lake in that system if I cannot get back into my beloved Quetico. While I'm at it, I should also add how much I enjoy YOUR videos. Please keep them coming!