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By Dawn Slade
Mille Lacs County Times
A 17-day, 200 mile solo trip through the Boundary Waters was “vacation” to Stellar Mason.
She stands at the fort at Grand Portage National Monument. Behind the gate is Lake Superior.
Most people might consider that an awful lot of work, not to mention downright scary. But, Mason, a 1989 graduate of Milaca High School says, “Traveling the back country is the one place in the world where I am most completely at home - nothing standing between me and whatever’s out there.”
Mason took her 17.6 foot, 37-pound Wenonah Voyager canoe, an 85-pound pack, and 25 pounds of food through the state’s most pristine wilderness earlier this summer, from Voyageurs National Park to Lake Superior.
“I have a stressful job and I was long overdue for a vacation,” the Gander Mountain Assistant Store Manager said.
Mason has been doing guided trips for over a decade and has completed solo trips before, but never of this magnitude.
Traveling solo brings about different issues, such as having to double portage.
What that means is that every time Mason was faced with a portage (having to carry a canoe on land rather than paddle in the water), whether it was two miles or eight miles, she had to make the portage twice.
Because of the amount of gear mentioned earlier, she would carry half of it roughly one mile, leave it, then run back and get the rest of the gear and her canoe - hence the double portage.
Her longest portage, the Grand Portage, which is part of the historic trade route of the voyageurs, is an 8.5 mile foot path. For Mason, it ended up being a 25 mile portage that took 10 and a half hours.
“It was wonderful,” Mason said with enthusiasm. That portage, however, turned into a challenge as she ran out of water four hours into it.
While the first part of her adventure saw high winds, cold rain, drizzle and big waves, the latter part of the trek was dry.
“There was no rain on the eastern half,” Mason said. “The creek beds and rivers into Superior were dry.”
Needless to say, she realized she needed to adjust her portage by slowing down her pace - in other words, walking instead of running back to her equipment.
“I had to regulate my core temperature and ensure I didn’t overheat,” she said.
She came upon three nearly dried up creek beds, but she couldn’t purify what little water was there, so she soaked her shirt and hat in it instead to prevent overheating.
“The wilderness is no different than the world in which we live,” Mason noted. “There are elements outside our control. It’s a lesson in adaptation and requires your complete attention. It’s hard to worry about work when the necessities of survival are paramount - heat, hydration, sustenance.
“Everything we take for granted every day demands your focus. It heightens the senses.”
Mason is willing to try new things and isn’t afraid of a challenge.
Two years ago, the St. Thomas graduate climbed Mount Rainier in Washington - a 14,410 foot climb.
“That was probably more difficult than this trip,” she admitted.
That trip was for a purpose as well. It was a fund raiser for Big City Mountaineer’s “Summit for Someone,” which benefits inner city youth who attend an eight-day hiking, canoeing, wilderness mentor-based adventure.
But, the daughter of Warren and Bonnie Sjoberg didn’t start out the avid back country adventurer.
In high school, she was into theatre.
When she entered her 20s, she started cross-country skiing, which brought her to the BWCA for the first time. She’s on skis nearly every day in the winter.
“It was more physical than mental on this trip,” Mason said of her solo adventure. “But I’m quite at home traveling independently, especially in this particular region.”
Training for her 200-mile trip consisted of a once a week, self described “killer” work out.
That’s it.
Mason maintains a strict, carb-free diet at home, but out in the wilderness she was eating almost every hour, constantly refueling with carbs (rice, beans, pasta). But no protein.
“When you’re burning that many calories in that type of environment, the body requires more carbs and it takes more to break down proteins,” she added. “It’s fun to work this hard, you can eat whatever you want!”
People ask if her family was worried about her.
“My mother knows better than to worry about me,” Mason commented. “This is my life...it’s how I live.”
Mason was well-prepared to adapt to different weather climates having to utilize her wool socks and neoprene gloves. But more importantly, she had the fearlessness, boldness, skill and experience it takes to go it alone.
After obtaining her permit, which let authorities know the location and approximate date she would be finished with her trip, her only form of a communication was an emergency radio called SPOT that uses GPS and satellite communication.
“It was the first trip I actually carried one with me,” Mason said of the radio she never had to use. She also had a marine radio with her for weather conditions.
Mason joyfully took in all the wildlife encounters, including beaver, otter, Trumpeter swans and eagles.
But the one that stands out most was with a much larger species.
“I had a fantastic moose encounter,” Mason recalled. “He was standing down stream in my direction of travel. We played a cat and mouse game for 15 minutes. Then he finally decided to give me the right of way.”
Mason’s older brother Todd is also an outdoor enthusiast. He recently completed his fifth RAGBRAI® (The [Des Moines] Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa), which is an annual seven-day, 500-mile bicycle ride across the state.
Mason chose the BWCA route from Voyageurs National Park to Lake Superior because “it’s steeped in tradition.”
The Grand Portage became a major gateway into North America for exploration, trade and commerce. During the late 18th century, it served as the inland headquarters for North West Company and was the location for a summer rendezvous of Indian families, French voyageurs, Scottish clerks and fur traders. It was designated a National Historic Site in 1951.
“Step outside your comfort zone,” Mason recommends. “Force yourself to try something new. Get outdoors. There’s always something to discover about yourself and the world around you, you just have to step outside.”
Stellar quoted naturalist John Muir, who once said, “Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness.”
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