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06/27/2018 09:51AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
How are the portages and creek passage on this route in the Fall usually? We will plan on staying on Glacier for one night.
 
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06/27/2018 12:08PM  
Its been since 2002 and it was a June trip, so I can't comment on water levels. I was able to avoid one portage by running a little rapid, but I was going the opposite direction. Glacier is a wonderful lake and this is wonderful, little traveled route. I look forward to returning some day. The journal entries below are better then my memory. One of the portages ran along a ledge that would turn a missed step into quite a tumble. I've been on a lot of portages in 50+ years of touring and I obvious felt some of these were rough. I was traveling alone, however, and really aware of risk. I didn't see anyone from Louisa Falls to the Maligne River.

22 June Louisa-Edge 7 miles 6 portages

On the water at 7:45AM and just in time, too. The wind and waves were already getting interesting as I reached the Louisa-Arp portage. The bogs on Star Lake and McEwen Creek upstream of Fauquier are fantastic. Lots of pitcher plants, swamp pink orchids, sundews and cottongrass. I spent hours poking around the bog edges. There were wolf tracks on two of the portages.
Fauquier Lake had a different appearance. The shoreline was mostly sloping rock outcrop with very sparse and stunted forest. I felt like I was in a place much farther north near the treeline.
After 6 portages, I was stopped on Edge Lake by a very threatening storm with an abundance of lightning. I threw my outfit ashore on a peninsula at the north end of the lake and was surprised to find a rarely used, barely comfortable campsite. I got the tarp up as the rain began and settled in to watch the storm with level ground and a nice sitting rock beneath the tarp. The remaining outfit was left packed to stay dry if the weather got really messy. I read and made hot tea for 4 hours. It rained so hard I couldn't see beyond the tarp. I set up the tent at 9:45 with more storms threatening. On a quick paddle between storms on the misty lake I saw my first moose of the trip.
The Louisa-McEwen route is wonderful, but difficult. A couple of the portages are down right dangerous. I move carefully and deliberately on the portages, but I have no anxiety about traveling alone.


23 June Edge-McEwen 6 miles 4 portages

It stormed often during the night. I packed up slowly as the camp was very wet. I'll not be in a hurry today. It is cloudy, but not raining. I walked the loaded canoe down the creek out of Edge Lake, easy. Three more portages got me to Glacier lake, long and narrow surrounded by high hills and ridges. Some of the cliffs and headlands have talus slopes at the bottom - very different. One more portage and an easy rapids made for an easy day. The remainder of McEwen Creek was another bog wonderland. I took several hours to float a couple of miles to the Lake. The cloudy day turn misty while on the creek, making it all the more enchanting.
I stopped early at an island campsite in southern McEwen Lake with big red pines and a gravelly beach. The sun soon appeared with a good breeze. I dried the outfit thoroughly, bathed, swam and rinsed out my sweaty shirt. Clean body, hair and dry, clean clothes felt good after last nights storm camp. The sunset and moonrise were so nice I couldn't decide which side of the island to sit on. I ended up moving back and forth trying to elude the flies. This was another good day in the bush. I saw no people at all, but lots of loons, otters, eagles and another moose.


tumblehome
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06/27/2018 12:20PM  

You might more responses if this was in the quetico forum.
billconner
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06/29/2018 03:21PM  
Not bad portages a couple years ago and my favorite route. Hope to do it again. Stayed at falls by Wet, a night on Glacier, and half way down Louisa the next night. Should have gotten to falls but Louisa was white caps.
 
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