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Gmorgan
member (39)member
  
09/05/2014 03:26PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Looking for thoughts from experienced paddlers about a route a tripping partner asked me about: [Prarie Portage start, Man Chain to Falls Chain, Kawnipi to Kahshahpiwi Creek, Kahshahpiwi to Sarah to Robinson and out the Basswood River and back to Prarie Portage]. I mapped it out and it is about 100 miles on the nose. Our current group has done two trips to the Q in the last couple of years and both routes were ~ 50 miles (1 trip 5 days, 1 trip 6 days). It's a pretty fit group of guys and we have done 20 mile days. Questions:

1. What is the minimum number of days you would need set aside to do this type of route (how many layover days would one plan).
2. Never been on a trip longer than 1 week. What's week 2 like?
3. I have done many parts of this route on shorter loops, but would love to hear from anyone who has done this entire route.

 
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starryridge
member (7)member
  
09/05/2014 09:28PM  
Hello Gmorgan,

My longest trip in Quetico was 16 days, on a route very similar to yours. I spent 19 days in Algonquin traversing the park from West to East and back. I loved long canoe trips when I was younger.

I allow one layover day for each three days of travelling. This is very comfortable for me and enough to hole up during bad weather and to enjoy a particularly nice day to rest, fish and swim. I've met many others who like to travel as fast and as far as possible and only take layovers when they can't paddle. Each to their own.

After a week I get very hungry as I burn fat. Make sure you take extra calories. I end up eating 4000 calories a day and continue to lose a little weight.

I quickly get very bored with freeze dried food, so for long trips I dehydrate my own. It's very easy with a few racks, cookie sheets and parchment paper. I dehydrate in my gas oven, keeping the temp about 150F with the door cracked. I enjoy making the food almost as much as eating it. The biggest problem is protein. I take lots of preserved meats like summer sausage, but I also dry/preserve hamburger, turkey and chicken. Ghee stays fresh and hard cheeses are excellent. Avoid supermarket cheddar or eat it fast. There's quite a bit of info on the web about foods for hiking and canoeing.

So, directly to your questions:

1. I would plan at least 12 days for your trip: 9 days travelling and 3 layover days.

2. I get a little bit of depression around end of the first week, but then I get into the flow and start really enjoying the solitude, the woods, the water and the loons. For me, the second week is better than the first. I have to wind down and it takes a few days.

Enjoy your trip.
09/05/2014 10:39PM  
In 2003 we did most of this route - Prairie Portage, Man Chain, Falls Chain, Kawnipi, Kahsh Creek to Kahshapiwi, but then out via Yum Yum to North Pay and back to PP. We spent 9 days (all travel days) doing it, and I remember we were kind of tired, though I think despite now being in our 50s we would do it more efficiently. The addition of Sarah to Robinson to Basswood River and Lake would add a day or two, I guess, compared to going out via Yum Yum.

You might consider going back to Basswood from Robinson via Kett instead of the Basswood River. The river has scenic falls, and you go by the awesome Crooked Lake pictos to get there from Robinson, but Kett is also scenic and it's an all-Quetico route, meaning you continue your comparative solitude longer. If you go along the Basswood River, you will be sharing the route with BWCA campers, and that means MUCH more traffic.

The longest trip I've done in recent years has been 10 nights, but as a teenager I did a 3-week trip and a 4-week trip. As I recall, the longer the trip, the more it becomes your life - in a good way. But I have no idea how we managed to carry enough food.

09/05/2014 11:02PM  
an example of mileage. in the fall of 2011 I soloed hunter island (150+ miles) in 12 days...being an out of shape 52 year old double portaging. I didn't have a layover day per se, but I did lose at least a full day due to wind, twice having to lay up early. id say 9 days for your plan would work fine, including 2 layovers.
Gmorgan
member (39)member
  
09/07/2014 06:23AM  
Thanks for the input. Will share with my group. Like the Kett idea and I have not been through that lake.
billconner
distinguished member(8608)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberpower member
  
09/07/2014 07:25AM  
I'm 62, dbl portage, and don't fish. Over a number of trips I average 10 to 12 miles per day - that's all travel, weather, layover, all together.
canoegal
distinguished member (148)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
09/07/2014 07:00PM  
Week two is even better than week one, until we're nearing the end of week two; then it's a bummer. I could stay out there a LONG time and not get bored - there's so much to see and experience. We're leisurely travelers as we enjoy photography, so I won't comment on layovers or a reasonable distance per day.
 
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