1.  Access Point 12 is at the 49.9 kilometer point on the south side of Highway 60. Access to Pinetree Lake is directly down a 1850 meter portage. Here's one of my 'double carry' rest-points.

2.  I was confronted with a number of old logs across the Pinetree Lake put-in. I changed into my 'water slippers' and hoisted everything over the logs.

3.  On overly bright mid-days, my tendancy is to concentrate on getting where I'm going and not take photos until I've made camp. Here's my camp ... the southmost on Pinetree Lake.

4.  Finally, sitting on my collapsable campstool with a strong reviving cup of coffee at hand, I turned my attention to the view across the south bay.

5.  Here's the campsite's view due west, right over the firepit to the setting sun. It was a real heatwave that week. The wind out of the SW helped to keep the worst edge off the temperature and to keep the pesky black flies away.

6.  The next morning revealed a tranquil view across the south bay. The late-hatched black flies took full advantage of the lack of wind. On went the tucked-in slacks and long-sleeved shirt!

7.  Here's the second campsite on the south bay ... on the northwest shore, just to the right of this island as seen from my campsite. Its open area under the pines is lit by the rising sun.

8.  The pine trees' pollen produced interesting effects on the lake's surface. The still water, pollen film and sun rising over the ridge combined to make this weird impression. However, with the temperature passing 80 degrees (F) by 8am, there was no mistaking this for the last vestiges of spring ice.

9.  This is the southmost campsite's north-facing point which provides super views of both sunrises and sunsets ... as well as a handy canoe landing.

10.  With absolutely no clouds in the sky, the sun and blue sky produced a too-bright 'arch-lighting' effect. This view is looking north up the narrow channel that joins Pinetree Lake's north and south bays.

11.  This pair of mergansers were relaxing in the channel's cool shade. Having the camera always at the ready and someone else doing the paddling would have been a definite advantage.

12.  I returned to the incoming portage put-in with my collapsible saw and some spare rope. By the end of an hour I had managed to dislodge and relocate one large log, re-aligne a second and cut apart two smaller ones. The result was a much improved landing area.

13.  The second morning's dawn sky had thin clouds which were quickly burned off by the rising sun. This is the view from my campsite's point, looking to the northeast.

14.  Finally, the rising sun broke over the ridge that surrounds the north and east sides of Pinetree Lake's south bay.

15.  Roughly 10 hours before, the warm light of the setting sun had lit the campsite from the opposite direction. Now it was the rising sun that painted the eastern sides of the pines' trunks.

16.  There's a time early in the mornings of clear-sky days, when sunlight just starts to warm the shadows. And there are steep, deep places where the landscape's edges bring the light and shadows together for fleeting moments. Seen from a gliding canoe, these interplays of light and shadow offer up magic moments to capture with the camera.

17.  Whether the interplay of light and shadow involves a small shelf of rock and a few small trees ... or an entire cliffside and countless trees ... the potential for capturing a dramatic landscape is there.

18.  Rooting and poking' about shoreline nooks and crannies can reward one with fleeting glances of wildlife. But it also provides quietly unique sights ... such as this floating accumulation of pine tree pollen.

19.  Early morning and late evening, a beaver swam by my campsite ... irritatingly just beyond camera range. However, evidence of beaver activities is everywhere around Pinetree Lake. Here, a beaver had industriously felled a tree only to have it hung-up between other trees and the overhang of a cliff.

20.  Paddling on around the northwest shore of the south bay, I came ashore at the bay's other campsite. This is the view from under its pine canopy ... looking south.

21.  At the NW corner of Pinetree Lake's west bay is the 915 meter portage to Rose Lake. This is the view looking NE across Rose Lake, from the portage's put-in.

22.   Returning from the west bay to the south bay, one paddles through another twisted narrows. Approaching the final opening, one can just see my tent's blue tarp amongst the pines across the bay.

23.  Back at camp again, relaxing through another sweltering afternoon, stretched out under the pines ... between the warm water and the hot wind off the lake, trying to stay cool.

24.  Finally, the morning of departure. I stop the canoe to take one last picture of the campsite point. As always, the question ... 'Will I ever return this way?

25.  In typical reluctance to leave too quickly, I drifted down the channel to the north bay. My attention was drawn to this solitary wildflower. I wondered how many other flowers had escaped my attention while I'd scanned the treetops and distant shores. It's really impossible to take it all in.

26,  And there, at the very line between sunshine and shadow ... more flowers. A fitting end to another trip's images.