Hello all,

I did a search for "Racers Portages," and came across a few threads referring to some fellas who cut their own portages to help them win a race or two. Seemed like an interesting story. :)

Are these portages still in usable condition? If so, do I have to worry about those false spur-trails they cut? :)

Story

They cut the portages in the 60's. They are now official portages with the names Sauvage and Bonhomme.

No worries about old trails from these 2. 50 years later anything that wasn't maintained will be reclaimed by the forest.

Get the Chrismar map. It is the most accurate on park maintained portages. Covers the whole park, not something I'd use for navigation but good for planning.

T

Yep, I've got the Chrismar Map. That's how I learned about them. But I've neither heard nor read anything about the portages, so I was wondering if the portages were actually passable.

It was fun to read the story again, I have heard it first had from both Barry Bain and Don Beland. To bad the race isn't still happening today!

Yep the portges are passable. I've never doen them but had a buddy a few years ago do them.

T

Bonhomme and Sauvage portages are doable. We did both of them several years ago they are quite swampy and long.

The racer portages are outside the park going from Pickerel into Gillnet lake into a small unnamed lake then into black bay of Nym lake I have no first hand knowledge of these portages.

Hope this helps.
Anthony

I worked for Don Beland years ago with his sled dogs .interesting fellow. I think these were cut to do the ely to atikokan race he said the would fell trees after they past through to slow other racers . That was in the back when most outfitters were woodsman and this was a test of there skills . I arrived at the end of this era. Good old. Days, sort of.

The above post is mine forgot to register. Does anyone know the last year the ely to atikokan race was held?

quote Miami1: "The racer portages are outside the park going from Pickerel into Gillnet lake into a small unnamed lake then into black bay of Nym lake I have no first hand knowledge of these portages."

I skied over those portages years ago. They were in great shape, and used by local snowmobilers.

The Bonhomme and Sauvage Portages were indeed cut for the Ely to Atikokan races. One of the guys (Sauvage, if I recall correctly) was the Quetico ranger, Joe Meany, from the Lac La Croix Ranger Station back in the day. Joe told me that story himself back in 1979 when a buddy and I stopped at the ranger station while on our first Quetico trip (I turned 18 on that trip).

*Bump*

Sorry to bring this back up, but plans have resurfaced and I'm now set to enter the Q in about two weeks. One option is to enter through Nym, and we're looking at looping south to Sturgeon and then back up through Pickerel. Ideally, we'd come up through the Racer Portages to avoid having to backtrack through the Narrows on Pickerel.

My question from last year was a bit confusing. On my Chrismar map, the "Racers Portages" lead from Pickerel north and west to Nym. I wasn't referring to the Bonhomme and Sauvage ones, though I can see the source of the confusion.

Has anyone gone through those linking Pickerel and Nym?? Any news on their condition?