Jim Lake & Jim Creek Kayak

 It's a beautiful sunny day and I have only taken my kayak out a couple of times all summer. I've wanted to go paddle Jim Creek but keep waiting for someone to do it with me. It's September! Summer is officially over in Alaska. So, guess I'll have to go alone. I took Bella of course. The road is in great condition. The place where you put a boat into Jim Lake is extremely muddy though. The lake level is pretty low, and the smell of rotting salmon wasn't too pleasant. But I managed to get into the boat without getting muddy or wet. I took off straight across the lake towards Pioneer Peak as usual but ended up wandering around trying to find the portage. I usually head for the tall spruce trees. But I didn't find it near the few spruce trees I saw. It was hard to get very close to the shore due to the low water level. The shore was full of fallen trees and logs, so I had to keep my distance to avoid getting stuck or turned over. I finally decided that somehow, I had missed it after going quite a distance to the left side. I then went a much longer distance in the opposite direction hoping to maybe find the little stream that actually connects with Jim Creek. I wasn't able to find that either. Disappointed, I elected to just paddle back and go all around the lake. I was surprised when I finally did come upon the portage. There were no spruce trees nearby and it was farther east than I had remembered. I pulled in and carried the boat the short distance to Jim Creek. It was so nice and peaceful on the creek. No wind, and calm water. Bella had been pretty restless while out on the lake, but she seemed to calm down on the creek. I think she prefers being closer to the shore. She got really hot, so I dipped her in the water to cool off. Now we were both wet, but she stopped panting. We drifted downstream gently, listening to a few cackling ravens, watching a couple of fish jump and an eagle fly by. I had hoped to go to the spot where the creek from Swan Lake joins the main creek, but I noticed that clouds were moving in, and it was starting to get windy and cooler. I turned around and had to paddle harder upwind and upstream. I think Bella sensed that we were now heading back and I think she was happy about it. She got a bit anxious and kept shuffling around in the boat, making it harder to paddle. She was delighted when we got back to the portage, and she leaped right of the boat onto the shore. I was a little worried about the wind out on the big lake, but it wasn't too bad. I did have to work a bit harder to keep straight because it was quite a crosswind from the left. But we got to the parking lot fairly quickly. Bella got very excited when she spotted the cars and nearly fell out of the boat. I keep her leash attached to both her harness and her life jacket and she is also connected to me, just in case she does fall in or jump in. Back at the boat ramp the mud seemed much worse than when we left. I had no choice but to get out still in about a foot of deep soft black mud. Bella jumped out and I stepped out into the mud. My left foot stuck and forced me to my knees. Now I was a soaking wet muddy mess, just like Bella. I managed to drag the boat and everything else to the car. I wrapped Bella in a blanket and strapped her into her car seat. I put a towel on my seat to try to protect my car. The boat was quite a mess. I quickly folded it up and tossed it into the back of the car. My boots were full of mud and water, so I didn't even try to take them off. I didn't want my muddy feet in my clean shoes. Back home I hosed off Bella's feet, then took off my pants and hosed my own legs off. It took a while, but I finally got the mud off of everything. Then it started to rain. Looks like I timed my turn around just right.

The Portage from Jim Lake