Take Time to Enjoy the People!

One of the best things about a trip to Isle Royale is the fact that you can meet some really great people (if you are open to that). Some of these people can even become your good friends. Thus, I would encourage everyone--even those introverts who come to Isle Royale for solitude -- to spend at least some time interacting with other people while visiting Isle Royale.

Leave me Alone!
I understand the desire to have solitude while on Isle Royale. By nature, I am an EXTREME introvert.  However, in my professional life over the years (pastor of a congregation, military officer and chaplain, small-town mayor, and certified substance abuse counselor), I have always had to outwardly function as an extreme EXTROVERT. (And, the introvert part of me just "hates" that!).

As an extreme INTROVERT, being with people for long periods of time drains me and exhausts me. One of the big reasons that I come to Isle Royale once or twice each year-- is to be alone. I leave my wife and kids at home and I travel to the Island ---alone. I get nearly 10-12 hours of being alone in my car while driving to the ferry or seaplane and another 10-12 hours of being alone on the drive back home. When I am at Isle Royale, I usually hike alone. I usually camp alone. I typically like to be alone on Isle Royale--in order to reflect, to pray, and to simply "recharge my batteries".  We introverts don't usually "hate" other people--but we really DO need our time alone in order to rebuild our energy.

One time (during a peak season on Isle Royale) I somehow managed to go for 28 consecutive hours of hiking and camping on the Minong Ridge Trail without seeing another person. That extremely rare situation --28 hours with no human contact (during peak season)--was GLORIOUS! 

I, as much as anyone, understand the need and desire to be alone while on Isle Royale.

Yet, There Are Many Great People on Isle Royale!
Every year, several thousand very interesting and delightful people come to Isle Royale between April and October. Some of them come to Isle Royale to work. Others are a part of families that have been coming to Isle Royale for generations. The biggest percentage make the journey across Lake Superior just to visit the Island for a brief while. Whatever their reason for coming to Isle Royale, the vast majority of them have had some very interesting life experiences and they have great stories to tell.

Spending too much time alone (and going out-of-your-way to avoid everyone) can cause you to miss out on experiencing one of the greatest things that Isle Royale has to offer --encounters with these really great people --and hearing their interesting stories. (Sometimes, you may even meet people who eventually become your friends).

Finding the Balance

I have had to find ways to balance my need/desire to be alone in the wilderness--with the reality that it is impossible to be absolutely alone (for very long) in a National Park. I have also learned to embrace the reality that many of the people (that I might encounter on Isle Royale) have some great life experiences to share (and that my life is better for having met them).

What works well for me, is I try to obtain significant time alone while I am hiking on the trail (or while paddling on the water). For the most part, you can actually spend quite a bit of time not encountering other people on the trails and waterways of Isle Royale. On the occasions, when I do encounter other people, I can be very friendly, polite, and pleasant--spend 30 seconds to a couple of minutes sharing information about trail conditions and what lies head--and then go back to enjoying my own solitary way. During an 8 hour hike, it is very easy to spend all but about 15 minutes of that time alone--but still be pleasantly engaged with the people that I encounter on the trail. Even if I spend 30 minutes (out of 8 hours) chatting with folks on the trail or on the water--I still have had 7.5 hours of time alone. That's a huge percentage of time to myself.

Even when am hiking or paddling with other people (which I sometimes do) --that doesn't mean that we have to be actively "engaged" with each other all of the time while we hike or paddle. It is entirely possible to hike or paddle in silence--and just enjoy what the Island has to offer and enjoy being in the other person's presence. A six hour hike (or six hour paddle) does not HAVE to be a six-hour non-stop conversation. With most of my hiking partners, we don't actually even hike "together". They hike at their pace and I hike at my pace--and we meet at a couple of designated checkpoints during the hiking day to make sure that each other are O.K. (We also share a campsite and spend considerable time together in camp). We are alone ... together.

I also tend to find time to be alone--by typically having my own separate tent, hammock, or tarp when I am on trips with other people. Even when I am traveling with other people, it is still pretty easy for me to spend 16+ hours (each day) alone or in silence.

Docks, Filtering Water, Campfires, Ferries

Some of the best places to interact with other people are at locations where people congregate to filter water. This may along a shoreline. It may be at a dock. (Docks, in general, tend to be great gathering places where conversations occur). Some campgrounds have a communal fire ring--and someone may have a fire going for everyone to enjoy. People (in neighboring campsites) sometimes engage in conversations while someone's dinner is simmering. Conversations also tend to happen on the ferry rides to and from the Island. I have enjoyed many great conversations at all of these types of places.

It has been my experience, that conversations (which start between complete strangers--in the above locations) can often result in further conversations breaking out as you encounter the same people later in the same day or later in the same trip. There are also people that you encounter again-and-again on multiple trips to Isle Royale over a period of years.

Sharing Campsites/Shelters (and August 2010)

Sometimes, overcrowded conditions (or bad weather) will "force" you to share tent sites--or cause someone to offer to share a shelter with other people. As a severe introvert, I sort of "cringe" at such scenarios (because I like my privacy). However, I will admit, that every instance (on Isle Royale) where I have shared a tent site or shelter--has turned out just fine.  At worst, it was a "neutral" experience and (at best) it has created relationships where I am still in contact with some people 12+ years after sharing a campsite. The people have all been interesting and they have all had great life stories to share.  I could write multiple blog posts about the interesting people that I have meet through sharing tent sites and shelters on Isle Royale.

One such experience does stand out far above the others.  In August 2010, due to overcrowding, I ended up sharing a tent site at Feldtmann Lake with two guys in their 20s. (I would soon turn age 49 and I was hiking solo). We were eventually joined in the campsite by a young woman in her 20s. That night, the young men were going to Rainbow Cove to watch the sunset--and the young woman and I were invited to join them. We chatted for 2-3 hours on the beach at Rainbow Cove. We watched the sun go down in front of us and the full moon rise behind us.  We intentionally walked back to Feldtmann Lake using only the moonlight (we kept our flashlights turned off). After leaving Feldtmann Lake the next morning, I ran into the young men as they took a lunch break at Siskiwit Bay--and the young woman and I both stayed at Siskiwit Bay campground the next night--at separate campsites,

For some reason (maybe to share some photos) I had contact information for each of them. I have stayed in touch with them and even became Facebook friends with each of them. It has now been 12+ years since we shared that campsite at Feldtmann Lake. In addition to occasional Facebook contact, I have also run into each of them (totally unplanned) on Isle Royale at various other times. They were each single and "child-free" when I first met them at Feldtmann Lake in 2010. They now all have young children. (Seven children between them). My own two children are now adults. In several more months, I will become eligible to receive Social Security.

With the two young men, I have actually had planned trips to Isle Royale with each of them (separately). In 2016, I hiked the Minong Ridge Trail with one of the young men and his wife. In 2019, I also hiked the Feldtmann Loop with him, his wife, and his father-in-law.  (We are all in the photo at the top of this article posing at the Windigo sign).  With the other young man, I (a pastor) was invited to officiate at his Isle Royale wedding on the Windigo dock in 2018. (He had met his future bide on the Windigo dock. He proposed to her on the Windigo dock. They got married on the Windigo dock).  I happened to run into him on the trip when he met the woman and I was on the same ferry back to the mainland with him and his fiancee--just moments after he had proposed. Totally unplanned encounters. IRONY: On the day that he and his bride-to-be were arriving on Isle Royale for their Windigo wedding--the young woman (with whom we had shared the Feldtmann campsite back in 2010) was also at the Windigo dock--getting on a ferry to depart the Island.  It is a small world.

The Rock Concert at Chippewa

In 2021, I spent two nights at Chippewa Harbor. I could write multiple blog posts about those two days and the people that I encountered at Chippewa Harbor. We were a very diverse group of people--sea kayakers, a three generation family with a sail boat, a couple of hikers, three couples on a recreational fishing boat. (They prepared a roasted lake trout meal for me that was PHENOMENAL!).  One night, one of the sea kayakers got out her ukulele and some song sheets. One of the folks on the sailboat got out a small guitar. For about two hours, a small group of us had an impromptu concert and sing-a-long on the big rocky area at Chippewa Harbor. We sang children's songs, campfire songs, and Top 40 classics from roughly five decades. Some of the songs included Elvis' "I Can't Help Falling In Love With You"; Camila Cabello's "Havana"; Broadway show tunes; 1950s and 1960s "Doo Wop" songs; Kermit the Frog's "Rainbow Connection"--which I began to hear as a waltz--and I waltzed alone on the rocks at Chippewa Harbor to this song--lol; "Don't Worry ... Be Happy"; small portions of "Rapper's Delight"--by the Sugar Hill Gang); "Proud Mary"--by Tina Turner; "Dock of the Bay"; "Lean on Me"; "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"; "Oh What a Night (December 1963)"; and many others.  The "Rock Concert at Chippewa" was a great night.

CONCLUSION: A 2021 TRIP REPORT STATEMENT

Probably the best way to wrap up this blog post is to share the following passages from my August 2021 Isle Royale trip report:

I had some great discussions and interactions on each of the 16 days that I was on the Island in 2021. I can't possibly list them all here. Some of my more "unique" 2021 discussions included listening to a three-year-old explain the finer points and nuances of throwing rocks, sand, and sticks in the water (on one end of the continuum)--and discussing people's Ph.D. dissertations (on the other end of the continuum). There were discussions of people's past outdoor hiking and paddling trips -- from short trips in local parks to trips to the Himalayas, Europe, the Appalachian Trail, Yukon River, Pacific Crest Trail, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Superior Hiking Trail, North Country Trail--and so many others.

There were discussions with engineers, bankers, lawyers, doctors, teachers, and nurses. There were also discussions with unemployed persons, retired persons, persons in the service industries, college students, factory workers, farmers, retail store workers, restaurant workers, and self-employed people. I met people who were enjoying their first trip to the Island--all the way up to someone on their 33rd trip to Isle Royale.

People talked about life, health, joys, sorrows, illnesses, birthdays, anniversaries, religion, science, hopes, and fears. People discussed "what's for dinner", which outhouse to use (and which to avoid), moose and wolf sightings--as well as talking about seeing beavers, foxes, squirrels (and other critters). We talked about trail conditions, blue-green algae, COVID-19, wildfires, fishing, retirement issues, and job issues. I also had some intense discussions with young people regarding their favorite (and least favorite) subjects in school--and the impending starting dates for the new school year. I accepted two dinner invitations during this trip.

I spent nearly 10 minutes intently listening to a two-year-old--(who was still learning to talk)--as he enthusiastically described things to me. I only understood about a quarter of his words--but his intensity, enthusiasm, and animated nature were captivating as he told his Isle Royale stories.

To everyone that I encountered on this trip--whether it was for a few moments or a few days--I thank you for the experience. It was (and is) greatly appreciated. The people were my favorite part of this year's Isle Royale trip. Who knows, maybe some of the people (that I met this year) will still be a part of my life a decade from now--just like some of the people from my earlier trips. Again, to all the people that I encountered on my trip --thanks!