Got the canoe out, got some greenwood fire practice, got a good day in

I was in one of those moods where I needed a spot no one else would be at, taking the canoe to the back of a remote lake is a good bet on that being the case. It was windy and 40's but I was out. Spring colors haven't quite come in. I think we're close though.

after put in and making some head way

I brought the fishing gear, I tried probably 30 throws with the castnet at various places, not a single fish of any kind. If I can't catch baitfish that's usually a bad sign for finding active fish. I did try a few spots but no luck. Still relaxing though

I paddled to the back of the lake, it's on overgrown mess of trees

 

I went to find some greenwood for some fire practice, into the trees

found a suitable tree, Elm, I would later regret this decision

I'm really liking the old Plumb Cedar axe. I limbed the tree and brought back with me. I sawed up a few logs with it and proceeded to break it down. The bigger log in this picture turned out to be the biggest PITA to split down.

after this swing I was surprised it didn't split and knew then this was going to be interesting

 

I tried laying it sideways and splitting it from that angle, axe was penetrating all the way through fine. Fibers just would not let go. I've never seen any hold together as tight as this one. So I made a quick wedge to drive through

seriously? This was turning into one of those battle of wills, or whits I should say. Course I can't lose to a log...

finally apart. I kept a good sense of humor through this. Never thought a log of this size could put up this much of a fight.

proceed to split down with the knife

at this point I knew this greenwood fire with this piece would not happen. Every part of the wood was wet to the touch. Even the inner most parts. Not damp but wet. So I decided to use one of the smaller pieces towards the top of the tree and see if that was dry

much better but not completely dry. But worth a shot

Now I'm not the best at making curls but I'm not the worse. The twisting grain of this tree made it not curl worth a darn. I made up a pile of shavings and set them in the sun to dry

broke down smaller pieces and set them out to dry as well

some summit goodness, really like this pack. No fancy kuksa cup here. Need something with a lid when wanting to enjoy a hot cup while canoeing

After about 20 minutes I got impatient and decided to get this going

curls went up pretty easy

I put the smaller pieces on top as they were starting to catch and then I put the bigger pieces over. But then the little pieces didn't sustain and it all died out pretty quick. Still a little too damp, more drying time would have helped a lot, as would more curls and more smaller pieces. Lessons learned...

After that it was time to go. Loaded up and headed out. Here's some parting shots on the way back

Thanks for looking...