To Shoen (which means "beautiful" in German and oh my is it ever) Lake: Oct 14

French toast with apple-raisin compote to start the day, hey, before a walk to see more of the river.

At the risk of making you flee with my tree tales, look at the size of this downed monster...and check the tree growing off the left edge.

Here's a close-up.

And a look down at its relentless root system.

And up!

Some people from the fish hatchery up the road are netting spawning salmon so they can somehow maximize this process back at the hatchery. Someone's going to have to explain to me me how this all works.

I'm a tree frog.

We hit the road to Campbell River for propane and maybe a co-op where we can by some good food. Art says dream on but look what we see...

It feels good to stock up for the next few days.

 Smart to replenish the propane tank too--it powers our stove, fridge (also DC and AC), water heater, and furnace (rarely used).

There's nothing on our map between here and Schoen Lake (on Route 19 N+W), shown in yellow. Look at all that water.

When you spend a little time here, you realize one thing quickly: the lumber industry is apparently king. From wholesale clear-cutting to more selective harvesting, we begin to feel the fragility of the relatively small spaces that are off limits. I haven't made a lot of pictures of this because it makes me sad.

You see a lot of this:

We're driving through some beautiful areas, though.

And after the turn-off and about 11 miles of sometimes narrow gravel road...

...we arrive.

It's just as gorgeous as it was 11 years ago, and this time we're staying. The old-growth trees are astonishingly large.

And there's great diversity.

Click the next two to read the history.

We find a primo water site. Hey--there's nobody else here and only 9 sites to start with. This is a real wilderness camp and it is dead quiet.

And absolutely still. Please note the mountains below. You'll want to remember them for an upcoming post showing the same peaks after some overnight drizzly rain. The lake is 6 miles long round that bend.

I'm making a fire. There's a ton of kindling around here.

Art gets his trusty umbrellas latched onto the table, but the light rain is beautiful and hardly bothersome, blowing in in misty waves and then stopping.

Checking under the hood for more loose cables?

Supper tonight: spinach salad with bacon and yummy organic veggies from Campbell River.

Schoen Mountain stands guard as we nod off in perfect peace.