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June 26th, 2002 We were on the water by 8:00 am and paddled across a glassy devil Lake amid a thick smokey haze. There were fires burning to the north toward the Brabant area. The approach to Otter Rapids appeared quickly as a majestic gateway into another magical section of the Churchill river.
Our decision was much more conservative. The rapids would have been fun to run empty, but the thought of portaging our gear and walking back to the canoe was less inviting than lining the loaded canoe partially down the rapids. We were slightly bow heavy, and in a sluggish boat for whitewater. In this case, discretion was the better part of valour and we lined down the river to a point just below the bridge, paddling the remainder of the rapids. The last six kilometres across the glassy surface of Otter Lake was a pleasure. The lake was alive with human activity with boat and aircraft traffic moving back and forth from Missinippi. After landing at the public beach at Missinippi we shook hands, thanking each other for companionship on the journey. The relentless physical demands on our bodies were over. Ron, Owen and Natasha, our transportation support crew, were less than 200 metres from shore staying in a nicely appointed summer cottage. The truck parked at the cottage meant no delays in getting back home to Air Ronge. We sat and recounted our experiences over ice cold beverages and eventually packed up the truck and drove down the highway into the afternoon sun. This was the trip that flew in the face of Murphy's Law and will remain beyond compare in my memory for years to come.
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We
dutifully scouted the rapids and weighed our options. Chris and Bella decided
to run the rapids fully loaded. Due to the low water conditions the main flow
and their intended route was rather indistinct. We watched from shore as they
bobbed along like a cork through the haystacks and standing waves.