Hey All, planning on doing the Frost River Loop (from the south) in May. I want to swing to Wine as I circle around, and to get there via known routes will take 2 hours from the Hug to Duck portage (1.7 miles paddling, 1.7 miles assuming double portage).

Looking at the maps, it looks like bushwhacking from just south of the Hug to Duck portage on a S/SSE bearing would be around 1200'. A bit of elevation, but on the MN aerial it looks like more hardwoods than conifers, which if mature canopy I would expect easier going in May due to less understory.

So two questions... #1, does anyone have experience bushwhacking with this section, and #2, is it worth going off the beaten path 1200' to save 3.5 miles?

Part of the draw is an added adventure element, the other I prefer to avoid backtracking which I would have to do from Zenith to Wine and then Wine to Zenith to head out.

I am familiar with the "best practices" for bushwhacking... observe LNT, wear long sleeves, eye protection, gloves; trust your compass and use flagging if necessary to mark your trail if making multiple trips (and retrieve it).

Thanks for your input!

What did you end up doing? I'm curious about this myself.

It doesn't look easy. I am curious too!