August is Here

     August is a scary month for me.  It makes the end of summer feel like it is just around the corner and that makes me anxious.  The days are getting shorter, the nights longer and soon school will be starting.  That means my summer staff begins to leave and  I only have 31 days to do everything I wanted to do during the summer that I haven’t gotten around to yet.   

<%image(20070730-fallpaddlesm.jpg|350|233|Paddling the BWCA)%>

   Luckily for me August, September and October are beautiful months to be on the Gunflint Trail.  Boundary Waters trips this time of year are made more enjoyable by the lack of bugs, people and traffic.  I hope to get out and camp this month while the portages are dry, there’s berries to be picked and the water is plenty warm for swimming.  I also want to be able to get out in September and October when there are even fewer people, the colors are changing and the fish are biting aggressively.

     August may signal an upcoming end but it is also a new beginning. School starting and birds migrating means creatures on their way to a brand new start..  Some wildflowers are just starting to bloom now while others are taking a different shape after their bloom.  Thimbleberries become abundant and leaves begin to change to their new colors.

     Change is inevitable and the best way to face it is with an open and positive mind and a canoe paddle or ski pole in your hand.