Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Voyageurs National Park: Hiking a Frozen Daley Brook

Today I wanted to get out of the house and enjoy the outdoors, so despite cold temperatures and snow on the ground, I headed over towards the Ash River section of Voyageurs National Park. My goal was to hike to the Hike to Health rubbing post on the west section of the Kab-Ash Trail. I have hiked the entire Kab-Ash Trail previously, but I had forgotten to bring the passport book last time.

It was an uneventful drive to the trailhead. I saw 2 bald eagles on the way. I parked the car and quickly hit the trail. I had brought my microspikes, but was too lazy to put them on. I just wanted to get moving. I made fast time to the rubbing post, got my rubbing,
and decided to move on to the interesting bridge that crosses Daley Brook. Once I got to the bridge, the ice on Daley Brook looked pretty solid and so I thought it might be interesting to hike on the frozen ice surface.

I soon passed another branch of the brook
that I knew led to a section of the Kab-Ash Trail that crossed a the branch on a snowmobile bridge. I would make that my return route. For now I was headed north towards Kabetogama Lake. I passed a snow covered beaver lodge
and then signs of wolf got thick. There were a few piles of fur-filled scat frozen to the ice.
There were also tracks; lots of tracks.
This place must be a veritable wolf highway at times. I continued to a sharp bend in the brook and then the ice started to look a little bit sketchy and so I turned around and started to make my way back.

I passed some interesting refrozen holes in the ice
and then followed the other branch of Daley Brook
back to the Kab-Ash Trail for the return hike back to the car.

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