Unload and Reload

Is it possible to unload and reload a boat at the

same time? Well... It was my first trip to the

Rainy River to go fishing with my husband, Jeremy. He goes every Spring with a group of friends to catch a trophy Sturgeon. We enjoyed a long, relaxing drive through the great northern landscapes of towering pines and majestic lakes. As we reached Birchdale, a campground on the borderwaters of the United States and Canada, we decided to scope out the campsites available.

We were fortunate enough to find a beautiful, private campsite, tucked just under a stand of red pines. It had an amazing view onto the river, private boat access and was close to the biffy.

After unloading our main gear from the back of the pick up, we headed for the boat landing.

When we approached the parking lot, there were a huge gathering of people standing around, drinking beer and chatting with friends. As it was the 4th of July weekend, many people had gathered for a weekend of family fun and fishing. Waiting for our turn to unload, I was mesmerized by the grandeur of the water and sky. I got out of the truck and walked to the shore to guide the boat back. That was our ritual, he backs it into the water, I dock it. We have done this a million times in the last eight years. As he starts to back the boat up he tells me, "don't let the boat go too far out, the current is too strong." I was a little apprehensive after this statement, as this was the largest river I've ever been on. I thought the Mississippi was big, the Rainy is bigger! At least in this state. The river was alive, white caps danced across the surface. You could hardly see the other side, just a short treeline twinkled in the sun.

We proceeded to back the boat into the water, as always, I unlatched the hook from the trailer and grabbed the rope. The boat had released from the trailer and ready to dock. Jeremy had reminded me not to let it out too far, as he drew the trailer back out of the water. Before I could turn my head back, the trailer had caught the front side of the boat and started to drag it back up to shore. I immediately started to scream, "stop! stop!" My efforts were hopeless as the bass thumping sound of David Allen Coe was echoing in the truck. I tried with all I had to push the boat back in, but with no success. The trailer came out of the water, as well as did the boat. It was turned on its side, wedged between a rock and a log. A sudden silence came upon the campground. The gentle breeze echoed the chuckles from over here, and the oh's an ah's over there. People seemed as though they had seen a terrible wreck in a demolition derby. In my efforts to humor my embarrassment, I told the people standing near me, that I was attempting a first time emergency evacuation method. Jeremy, got out of the truck and walked toward me as though he was going to put me out of my misery. Not many words were spoken, just some very dangerous looks. Luckily, some bystander's were nice enough to help us unlodge the boat and get it back into the water. Yes, there was damage, but not enough to ruin our fishing. Needless to say, I was glad to have picked a very private campsite. We were too embarrassed to be seen by the other campers. Many lessons could be learned from this, but I say that next time, we'll turn the radio down when unloading the boat!

My first trip to the Rainy river was a memorable one. Our weekend of fishing was successful, I caught my very first Sturgeon, 49 inches. It was worth the embarrassment!