On Friday we got up, boiled water for breakfast, packed up and headed out.  We took the BMM36 trail west, which turned into BMM37 somewhere near Whitney Lake.  We were able to see Whitney through the trees to the north, but there really wasn't a trail to it.  The guide book says there are no campsites near the shore, which seems pretty strange for a lake this size.

In any case, we decided to go down the side trail to the lean-to on Sampson Lake just to see what it looked like before pushing on, with a plan to spend the night somewhere in the West Canada Lakes area.  Man, were we surprised!!!

In the photo on the right, there is a loon couple, swimming with two chicks.

This lean-to was beautiful.  It had a brand new broom, a little shovel, a great fireplace, and a canoe that only leaked a little, complete with paddles and flotation cushions.  We both decided on the spot to spend the day and night here since it was so nice.  Even though we had only hiked 3.3 of the 5.8 miles we planned for the day, we decided it was worth it to either bag the plan altogether or catch up the next day.  We hung the bear bag and launched the canoe.

I paddled while Bob tried to fish.  The loons were swimming around but keeping their distance.  We paddled across and down the lake, near an island, then back up current away from shore.  It was early afternoon, maybe still morning, and the fish weren't biting at all.  I was getting a little sunburned, so we headed back to shore.  We decided to have a swim, and we went West down the shore to a big rock with a little sand beach to get in the water.  We swam probably over 1/4 mile east to another big rock across the lake, and got out of the water to sit on the rock in the sun.  There were signs of fisher people there -  empty beer cans, lead sinkers, etc.  After a little sunbathing we swam back.

We decided to have a little lunch, which then led to a nap in the lean-to.  When I woke up I heard the loons nearby, so I grabbed camera and ran to the shore to see what I could see.  There swam the two loons, and with them, two loon chicks.  The chicks were still brown colored.  (See photos above).  After that, Bob decided to fish and I went for a run.  I ran over to the place we intended to camp, crossing the West Canada Creek on rocks, since the bridge had been washed out.  I went on to the South lake lean-to.  Past that, at the beach, there was a couple tent camping.  I said hello, then headed back to check the lean-to.  There was a fellow there with an inflatable canoe, and we talked a little.  He had been at Sampson Lake the nights before, and said the lake was just hopping with trout about 7:30 in the evening.  I ran back to tell Bob.

Bob was still fishing when I got there, and I went in for another short swim to rinse off.  Then we had dinner.  In addition to our usual dehydrated fare, Bob cooked corn bread, a real delicacy, and it was good.  It really went well with my chili-mac with beef.

We went and sat on the rock that faced west and watched it get dark and the stars come out while we drank our hot cocoa.  Then back to the lean-to.  It got pretty cold this night, getting down to 46.  I had to get up in the night and don my rain-gear jacket and extra shirts, since I had brought only my 60 degree bag liner trying to keep the pack weight down.

It was a really great day and night.  Click here to go on and read about the next day.