1) Now when I was a younger lad - Solo
Scrape and we'll haul - Chorus
Well, I took the good and left the bad, - Solo
We're bound for Mackinaw - Chorus
But now I call myself a man - Solo
Paddle til we're raw - Chorus
And I take whatever I God damn can - Solo
We're bound for Mackinaw. - Chorus
Chorus: Yes, we'll scrape and we'll haul
And we'll paddle til we're raw
Cuz we're bound for the Straits of Mackinaw
Yes, we're bound for the Straits of Mackinaw.
(Add alternating chorus lines to following verses)
2) We left Montreal four months ago
And the rivers were high from the melting snow,

And ropin' the rapids well you had to be quick,
(Chorus)
3) The lakes were rough we'd fight the wind,
And once you got wet 'twas as cold as sin.
The whitecaps wash us night and day
But the boy's will stroke if they want their pay.
(Chorus)
4) My canoe is packed with goods of trade,
And I got my eyes on a Chippewa maid.
She's the fairest in the northern land,
And I'll return whenever I can.
(Chorus)
5) Now, I left my kin and I left my home,
But someday I will cease to roam.
But the port ahead she calls me now,
I can make her out clear across the bow.
(Repeat Final Chorus)