14th June and our last day in Hay river. All being well we will be on the river tomorrow. Our equipment was held up in Edmonton awaiting custom clearance. But the extra day here was needed. Michael had a tummy bug, requiring recovery time and there is blockage on the river near Fort Simpson (about 200K) due to unusually high floods so getting there too soon would not be a good idea. The weather is cooler than usual for this time of June but temps likely to increase very soon. There is still ice on the Great Slave Lake and winds coming off there are fresh.
We spent most of today sorting out our gear, which finally arrived yesterday afternoon. Thankfully Canoe North are looking after us and gave us the use of their warehouse to pack the barrels etc. We have already met so many people and have been made so welcome. I asked the local supermarket manager if i could borrow a trolley to transport some stuff - "sure, no problem, just bring it back".
We will be glad to get going tomorrow. It seems a long time ago since the planning began and finally the journey is about to begin!