Mother And Child Reunion

Swamp Lake, BWCAW
July 9, 2006

Piloting a solo canoe has its own charms. The slightest movement results in a counter-movement, the smallest breeze will try persuading you to explore in another direction. Fishing from a moving canoe will offer you a chance to see a lot of a lake, especially the downwind side.

I had just caught a nice 2-pound Walleye, dinner for two, as it turned out. I began paddling upwind to let the canoe drift back over the same spot when an inhuman groan/grunt came from behind me. I turned and saw a majestic mother moose bellowing out over the water. She was evidently calling to her delinquent offspring who was swimming in the middle of the bay. The mother swam out and chastized the calf, and as she turned to go back toward shore she called as if to say: "Come on!" to which the calf responded in a similar voice (about an octave higher): "I'm coming!" The pair continued this conversation until they reached shore, with one final warning coming from Mama when the calf took an interest in my tiny craft. They retreated to the woods, I resumed my fisherman's toils, and peace was restored again to this corner of the BWCAW.

-Mark Trail, AKA