Boundary Waters, Trip Reports, BWCA, Stories

2022 Annual Trip Snowbank to Ima
by Mdschlu

Trip Type: Paddling Canoe
Entry Date: 08/11/2022
Entry & Exit Point: Snowbank Lake (EP H)
Number of Days: 4
Group Size: 2
Trip Introduction:
My tripping partner moved out of state last year so we had to cancel our 2021 trip. Luckily he was able to get back this year so we could get out for a couple days into the BWCA! I picked him up at the airport on Wednesday morning and we headed up to Duluth where we enjoyed a couple beers at Bent Paddle and then headed up to camp overnight at Fenske Lake Campground.
Day 1 of 4
Thursday, August 11, 2022

We broke camp at Fenske and were on the road to the Snowbank entry point by 6:45 AM. Less than an hour later we were on the water heading for the portage into Disappointment. Beautiful weather for paddling as it was in the low 50's, sunny, and almost no wind which we were thankful for as we crossed Snowbank. The portage into Disappointment definitely got the blood pumping with the initial uphill climb. The bugs were pretty thick but we were moving fast so it wasn't too bad. We quickly loaded the canoe and were off heading across Disappointment. 

We were up and over the portage into Ahsub with our destination for the day being a site on Jordan Lake. We didn't see any other groups until we got to the end of the Jitterbug-Adventure portage where we saw a group of three canoes heading around the corner to Cattyman. Then when we got to the Cattyman-Jordan portage it was like a main corridor for canoeists as there were 4 or 5 groups coming and going through. I figured all the sites on Jordan were probably taken given the amount of groups....and turns out they were all full! 

We regrouped and decided that our next best option was to head over to Ima to see if there were any open sites. We decided to check if the site in the first bay on Ima was open and as we turned the corner a group was just heading out and told us the site was available. We jumped at the opportunity and headed right for it. It was about 12:45 so we had lunch and set up camp. 

We sat around the rest of the afternoon enjoying some bourbon and catching up. Had a nice sunset and then ended up diving into the tent at 9pm when the bugs descended on us. ~Snowbank Lake, Disappointment Lake, Ahsub Lake, Jitterbug Lake, Adventure Lake, Cattyman Lake, Jordan Lake, Ima Lake

Lakes Traveled:   Snowbank Lake, Disappointment Lake, Ahsub Lake, Jitterbug Lake, Adventure Lake, Cattyman Lake, Jordan Lake, Ima Lake,