Day 7 took us through more wetlands and a very twisty section of the river. We were thrilled to be out of the lakes and the very shallow part of the river and expected to make good time. We aimed for a campsite 30 miles down river and chose one 27 mi down as backup.
The weather showed a chilly day with possible showers in the afternoon. Luckily the wind was out of the NW and we were headed primarily SE. So, the wind was mostly helpful, though we did catch it in the teeth a couple of times going around bends.
We stopped for lunch under a highway bridge just as the sprinkles were starting. We put on our rain overalls and jackets just in case and put lily's life jacket on her to keep her warm. We tried using our spare rain slicker to make a shelter for her in the canoe, but ended up just tying the arms around her neck to make a cape. She seems to tolerate that pretty well and when she curls up in the bottom of the canoe she stays out if the wind an pretty dry. A doggie blanket is also on the way which should help keep her warm on days like this.
Along the way we saw several boats loaded with guys in camo. We asked one if they'd had any luck, but they we just out scouting. When we landed for the night there was a young guy pulling his boat out who said opening day wasn't until Saturday. He said the boats would be 20 deep waiting to put in by 3 am and the whole area we had just paddled through would be packed with bird hunters.
By the time we were approaching the 27 mi mark, we were cold, wet and tired and decided to call it good. We made camp, had some pasta and beans and we in be early. We stayed at Schoolcraft State Park, which was a pretty little campground with a bunch of pines and an old fashioned hand pump for water.
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