SHT: Day 9
Superior Hiking Trail: Day 9
8/24/2023
Two Harbors - Silver Creek Camp
SHT miles: 5.5 mi
Bonus miles: 1.7 mi
Total miles hiked: 7.2 mi
Elevation gained: 285 ft
Animals seen: deer
Elevation chart created on AllTrails.com
We didn’t set an alarm this morning but were still up and moving around by 8am. My hiking boots and I spent some quality time with the electric hand dryer in the bathroom. It wasn’t quick but finally the interiors were dried out. We took our time packing and getting ready. We still needed to pick up our resupply so brekkie was leftover trail mix and carnation mix.
While leaving the campground we met Jerry, who quickly made friends with Leinie. Jerry is an 80 yo unhoused lady. She had purchased some dog treats at the gas station for another dog she had met the day prior but the family had checked out before she had the chance to drop off the treats. She told us about the shelties she used to have and the memoir she is writing while Leinie enjoyed the dog treats.
We stopped at the gas station to resupply what Jake has started calling my pharmacy (it’s the first aid kit) with more bandaids, nsaids, and benedryl. I also picked us up a lunch of deli sammies. While I was inside, Jake scheduled a transit ride to our resupply at Granite Gear. They picked us up and dropped us off at the store, 1.5 miles away and charged us a whole $3. Hey, miles are miles and we already have a fair amount to walk ahead of us.
Granite Gear was closed for lunch or errands so we parked ourselves outside and scrounged for any remaining snacks to eat. The store manager wasn’t gone long and was super friendly while we unpacked our box and repacked the bear keg and our packs with “fresh” food. Jake was able to consult on the fit of his pack since it was tearing up his sides. After a few adjustments we were back on the road.
The transit doesn’t take anyone past a certain point beyond town so we were out of luck using it to get to the trailhead. Instead we instantly stuck out our thumbs for a hitch. We were luckier this time and only a mile down the road Bobby pulled over and picked us up. She was on her way to clean up a rental cabin her sister owns. While we were exiting the car, she told us what to say the next time we get a hitch. “Be sure to ask if they [driver] is a serial killer. When they say no, respond with ‘Good, what are the chances there would be two of us in one car.’ “
I was willing to skip over the following tidbit of information I am about to share, but Jake is guilt-ridden and struggled even while we were hiking. The Reeves Road trailhead leads to a very short section of road walking to the next section of trail (I think it’s less than a quarter mile) but Bobby drove us to the trail and not the trailhead so we technicially skipped that portion of the official SHT. I didn’t give it any thought since we had done so much bonus mileage in the last 24 hours. Jake was very concerned this would be considered cheating. So we leave it up to the court of public opinion. That’s a lie, I still don’t care. Hike your own hike.
We were on trail around 1pm and doing an okay pace with our heavier packs. To our luck (or lack of) we arrived at the next road crossing to find out the next portion of trail was closed. It’s located on private property and my best guess is new owners didn’t want people hiking through their land. So until a new trail is made, we had a road walk reroute to do. The problem was the reroute skipped our intended spot to camp tonight and would bring us to the next trailhead. The next campsite on trail was an additional 6 miles. The other option was to hike 1.2 miles (technically backtracking) to our intended campsite, only to rehike those miles tomorrow morning. Ugh.
We mulled over the option while road walking the reroute. And mulled, and mulled. Indecision, you dastardly fiend. When we arrived at the trailhead and had to make the decision we instead stopped for a snack break. It was after 3pm and realistically we wouldn’t make the campsite down trail before dark. So we hiked the 1.2 miles towards Silver Creek Camp, effectively going backwards.
The trail was overgrown for a portion and poison ivy was present. Jake was not in the mood for it so he carried Leinie through that portion in an attempt to prevent him from picking it up and spreading it in the tent. Once at camp I set up the tent and sleep systems while Jake attempted to make dinner. It was not his night. First the dinner pouch broke while he was cooking. Then the replacement bag broke while he was eating spilling a not small amount of dinner (buffalo chicken mac) on his pants. Then while filtering water he almost fell backwards out of his chair. Sometimes fate is just not on your side.
Jake prior to falling
Looking ahead at the map, we have campsites with awkward spacing again. We are currently a day behind our projected schedule. While the schedule isn’t set in the stone, we do have cabin rentals that would need to be adjusted and a boundary waters permit that is not adjustable. I’m learning to take this trail one day at a time. Current goal being the next resupply in Beaver Bay. We have four days of food to get there. That’s all I have the mental bandwidth to handle at this point.
See all Superior Hiking Trail posts
Our band of heroes is drying out from the sogginess that was the SHT. They ponder their experience on trail, the people the met, what their hiking future looks like…