Hey everyone!

I'm very much looking forward to canoe season this year and I'm quite torn on where to go. I want to get to all of these places eventually, but I can't decide which one for this year.

Ideally I'm putting in on June 8th for 8 days. I learned on my first solo last year that I enjoy a slower pace than my usual group trips where we travel for 8-9 hours the first day, and have more of a "journey, not destination" mindset. That being said, I intentionally planned a super easy flexible route for my first solo. I'm not opposed to covering more ground.

Prioritizing photography and bass/pike fishing, I'm stuck between two options:

1. Baker Lake EP -> S. Temperance base camp: Get in and out in 1 day. Seems like a beautiful place to explore islands and various perspectives, with smallmouth and walleye fishing. Would allow me to day trip to N. Temperance, Cherokee (oof about the Sitka portage though), and Brule (maybe Wench as well). I worry I might get a little restless on this route, so maybe it would be better for a shorter trip, like 5 days?

2. Crab Lake EP -> Cummings (4-5n) -> Crab (3-4n): Get a tow to the Crab portage to avoid paddling big water solo (building some confidence on Cummings later), then push to Cummings on day 1. Stay there for a few days and fish hard, checking out small nearby lakes and moving water spots. Then head back to Crab for a few days and fish, explore, check out Lunetta (maybe even do a day loop through Hassel/Saca). The campsites on this route look excellent and it seems like it doesn't get much attention or pressure from people. I've read mixed reports about the bass fishing though, some saying they only caught small fish, others saying it was excellent with several large fish. Scenery seems mixed, some islands but not much elevation. This route seems to offer some good exploration opps, but the big water on Cummings might give me pause on a windy day.

I've looked at many other options and many have some appeal, but I'm kind of stuck on these. If anyone has recommendations for other areas I should heavily consider, and why, please let me know!! I need a little help. lol.

Both are excellent options, TR, in my opinion. I'm assuming they are both new areas for you?

A few thoughts to consider in case you haven't...

Baker: maybe stop for a few nights on Jack - if it's open on your way in, that could be an option. Good walleye fishing and you'll catch a pike or two as well. I do think there is plenty to do and see from South Temperance if you do choose to base camp there. I haven't fished passed Weird Lake (yet!) so others can chime in there.

Crab: I really like this area! Lots of options to find relative solitude. Cummings has excellent smallie fishing for numbers but not size - but that is a sample size of one time being there. We caught fish on every lake we visited except Little Crab. Some good-sized fish on Crab, pike and smallies. Anyway, really cool area with small lakes and awesome rivers.

If I were to suggest another option to consider...I'd go with Cross Bay Lake. Plenty of options from Long Island Lake and you could go to Cherokee as well. I was there in October and didn't catch any fish but didn't try all that hard either. Smaller water with simpler portages.

Enjoy!

If you do go to Cummings, paddle to west end and cross the short portage to Otter and fish where the rapids dump in.

YetiJedi: "Both are excellent options, TR, in my opinion. I'm assuming they are both new areas for you?


A few thoughts to consider in case you haven't...


Baker: maybe stop for a few nights on Jack - if it's open on your way in, that could be an option. Good walleye fishing and you'll catch a pike or two as well. I do think there is plenty to do and see from South Temperance if you do choose to base camp there. I haven't fished passed Weird Lake (yet!) so others can chime in there.


Crab: I really like this area! Lots of options to find relative solitude. Cummings has excellent smallie fishing for numbers but not size - but that is a sample size of one time being there. We caught fish on every lake we visited except Little Crab. Some good-sized fish on Crab, pike and smallies. Anyway, really cool area with small lakes and awesome rivers.


If I were to suggest another option to consider...I'd go with Cross Bay Lake. Plenty of options from Long Island Lake and you could go to Cherokee as well. I was there in October and didn't catch any fish but didn't try all that hard either. Smaller water with simpler portages.


Enjoy!"

All new water for me, yep! I hadn't considered stopping on any of the lakes up to South Temperance because that's ultimately my destination and it has more options for branching out. Long skinny lakes don't really pique my interest but perhaps I could throw a line in on Jack, and stop there if weather sucks on my entry.

Sad to hear your experience on Cummings was with smaller bass. It's fun to get lots of action but after about your 20th 12 incher, you long for a better fight. I don't need trophies every cast, but my solo last year in South Kawishiwi was essentially a dinkfest with only one nice bass the entire trip. Biggest pike was like 24 inches. So I'd really like some better size! You'd think with how large Cummings is, it would be a great habitat for giants, but maybe it's the typical problem of it being so large they're just harder to find. Perhaps I'd be better served just base camping on Crab and spending more of my time exploring the little lakes nearby.

As for Cross Bay, I'm actually hoping to do that with my usual group to finally check out the Frost River, about 3 weeks prior. We'll see if that sticks - if not, I would like to explore that area. I've thought about camping on Snipe and visiting Cross Bay and Missing Link on day trips, but since it's such a small area, and Snipe reportedly doesn't have much for fishing, I might try it on a shorter trip in the fall.

Thanks Yeti!!

cowdoc: "If you do go to Cummings, paddle to west end and cross the short portage to Otter and fish where the rapids dump in."

That's one of the spots I read about and would try to get to. It's quite a haul from the east side which is probably where I'd be camped, but wind permitting, I'd have plenty of time to try! Thanks cowdoc.

They are both good options. You may want to consider going to Cherokee, which is quite scenic. You can go up the west side from Sawbill and not have to do the Sitka-Cherokee portage. You'll come in on Cherokee Creek which is a nice little paddle. To the north it's just a hop to Gordon, which is actually prettier than I expected it to be with lots of granite. Just a portgage from Gordon to Frost or a short trip on up to Long Island. To the east you could daytrip to Town. If you come back by Sawbill you could detour to Kelso and up the river to the Dolmen. I don't fish so can't speak to that.

I did the Cherokee loop from Baker in 2019 and it's not a long loop - about 32 miles double portaging. Four half days of travel. It would be a short shuttle from Sawbill to Baker.

If you go in Crab to Cummings, don't miss a short paddle up towards Silica and Coxey. Korb was nice too.

I like the Crab Lake Cummings option. I think you'll find more solitude there than the other option.

I did my first solo trip last summer (wasn't planned as a solo trip) and base camped on Snipe. Came in through Missing Link and out Cross Bay - 4 days/3 nights. Had the northernmost campsite on Snipe (very nice sight). I only paddled and fished on Snipe. Very nice lake, not so great fishing. Did catch a enough for one night's dinner though. Was very peaceful. Hardly saw anyone (was late June) while on Snipe. Was good for the length of time I was there but I was itching to move by the last day. Staying on the east side of Snipe would give easier access to Cross Bay and other lakes to the south.

This trip we stayed on Jack the first night on the island campsite which is nice. Caught some nice fish from shore and enjoyed the evening. Headed up to South Temperance the next day and found most campsites taken but the site in the NW bay was open which was perfect as it is the most secluded site on the lake. We hardly saw anyone in our time there. Took a daytrip over to Brule one day to see the famous rockslide cliff and took the portages to Cam Lake and Wench Lake just for fun...pretty cool day.

The site is nice, the views are great and hiking in the woods around and behind camp was the most productive place i have ever been to in terms of photographic opportunity. That's a big deal to us as photography is one of our bigger goals along with solitude, fishing and relaxation. Had a great time there.

Here is a trip report with many photos to give you a feeling of the place...highly recommended:


Baker to South Temperance

boonie: "They are both good options. You may want to consider going to Cherokee, which is quite scenic. You can go up the west side from Sawbill and not have to do the Sitka-Cherokee portage. You'll come in on Cherokee Creek which is a nice little paddle. To the north it's just a hop to Gordon, which is actually prettier than I expected it to be with lots of granite. Just a portgage from Gordon to Frost or a short trip on up to Long Island. To the east you could daytrip to Town. If you come back by Sawbill you could detour to Kelso and up the river to the Dolmen. I don't fish so can't speak to that.


I did the Cherokee loop from Baker in 2019 and it's not a long loop - about 32 miles double portaging. Four half days of travel. It would be a short shuttle from Sawbill to Baker.


If you go in Crab to Cummings, don't miss a short paddle up towards Silica and Coxey. Korb was nice too.
"

I've been meaning to do a Cherokee trip via Sawbill with some friends, but it's not really my destination for this solo, so I think I might end up doing it as a day trip if I go with the South Temperance option. I saw some photos of Gordon a while back that looked very pretty, so I definitely want to check that out if I'm in that area. I also was thinking of doing a day loop through Town/Vesper/Cam as it looks quite striking with all the rock. Thanks boonie!

Speckled: "I like the Crab Lake Cummings option. I think you'll find more solitude there than the other option."

While I love my solitude, on only my second solo I think I might not hate having people at least in the near vicinity... as long as they're not hooting and hollering across the lake I'm fine.

Jefflynn06: "I did my first solo trip last summer (wasn't planned as a solo trip) and base camped on Snipe. Came in through Missing Link and out Cross Bay - 4 days/3 nights. Had the northernmost campsite on Snipe (very nice sight). I only paddled and fished on Snipe. Very nice lake, not so great fishing. Did catch a enough for one night's dinner though. Was very peaceful. Hardly saw anyone (was late June) while on Snipe. Was good for the length of time I was there but I was itching to move by the last day. Staying on the east side of Snipe would give easier access to Cross Bay and other lakes to the south."

Sounds like pretty much what I'm hoping to do! It seems heading to Cross Bay is the right move if you're in any way serious about the fishing. I think the shorter days of fall would make Snipe a more cozy experience, building fires and just relaxing on the small intimate lake. That's my hope anyway.

lindylair: "This trip we stayed on Jack the first night on the island campsite which is nice. Caught some nice fish from shore and enjoyed the evening. Headed up to South Temperance the next day and found most campsites taken but the site in the NW bay was open which was perfect as it is the most secluded site on the lake. We hardly saw anyone in our time there. Took a daytrip over to Brule one day to see the famous rockslide cliff and took the portages to Cam Lake and Wench Lake just for fun...pretty cool day.


The site is nice, the views are great and hiking in the woods around and behind camp was the most productive place i have ever been to in terms of photographic opportunity. That's a big deal to us as photography is one of our bigger goals along with solitude, fishing and relaxation. Had a great time there.


Here is a trip report with many photos to give you a feeling of the place...highly recommended:

Baker to South Temperance "

This is pretty much my exact trip plan! You got some wonderful photos on your trip. The fog on the water on South Temperance, with the islands poking through, blue skies above, looks like a dream. Thanks very much for sharing; you may very well have sealed the deal for that route this year!