Everything is coming together

Gerry and I got together at my place last night for the final gear check and pack-up. We assembled everything we are bringing (from equipment to food) in an attempt to divide the weight evenly. We started by laying everything out on the floor, so it would be easier to see it all and as we packed each item, scratched it off the gear list we had created a few months ago. We then did the same thing for the food list.

I think this system worked well, 'cause after we had everything packed I went through the gear list and circled the things that were left, as a reminder to either get it or forget it.

After all the packs were....well....packed, we brought them upstairs to be weighed. In my kids bathroom I have an old school Doctors office scale and this was perfect for finding out how many lbs. of crap we were going to be hauling around Algonquin.

Gerry' Pack 53 lbs (with full water bladder)
Jim's Pack 47 lbs (with empty water bladder)

It is worth noting that our food weight was just under 30 lbs, so as the trip goes on our packs will be getting much lighter. With 30 lbs of food to eat, I think it is same to say the same can not be said of Gerry or I.

Lastly, Gerry and I have changed our travel plans a bit. The original plan was to leave at 4 pm on the Thursday, drive to the entrance road at Brent and sleep in the car, so we could get an early start Friday morning. Well that sounded like a great idea a few months ago, but the thought of waking up with a soar back has changed our minds. So instead, we will be leaving a little earlier (2 pm) and have made reservations at a motel about 30 minutes from the Brent service road. The $60 for the night is nothing, and well worth it when you consider asoar back wrecking a trip we have been planning for over a year.

Today I am going up to my parents place with the kids. They have a pool and the kids love it there. On the way I am going to pick up my fishing licence and a few other things.

You know as I sit here trying to figure out what to say next, I am just blown away that we leave in 5 days...we have been planning this trip for so long and now it just a few days away. It is hard to beieve. We are both very excited and know that this will be the trip we have both always wanted to do. JUST FIVE DAYS PEOPLE!!!!!!

5 days 3 hours and 35 minutes....tick, tick, tick....:)