Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: Sawbill Family Trip
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quark2222 |
Never been through the flame lakes. Could be decent. Cherokee would be good, but it would be kind of a trek with small kids unless they are real troopers, especially if the water is low on the creeks. A beaver dam blew out on one of the former paddle-across lakes a few years ago, and there is a portage, but it is a real rock garden now. Tomster |
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ddccaarr |
I think we will try the Cherokee/Temperance loop. Quick question for Michwall2 -- You recommend starting by heading east to Burnt/Kelly for the first night. Is there an advantage to going that direction vs. going north to straight to Cherokee? I am guessing that it is due to the difficulty of finding a campsite late in the day at Cherokee. Just thought I would ask....super helpful thanks! |
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Michwall2 |
This is a lovely route with good wildlife viewing chances. With one or two notable exceptions the portages are relatively flat and well maintained. Have a great trip! |
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Bannock |
You are right going east first rather than north. Once you leave Sawbill the next campsite is Cherokee and that is your longest stretch. Decent fishing on all the Fire lakes and the Temperance River system. |
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mjmkjun |
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mjmkjun |
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ddccaarr |
I have done a number of BWCA trips but it has been about 15 years. My wife and I have a good deal of wilderness backcountry experience (Alaska, western US, Amazon, etc) - including some of it with the kids. This will be our first family BWCA trip. We are canoeing most weekends and getting excited to get out! Any thoughts on routes would be appreciated. Thanks! |
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Jaywalker |
quote Bannock: "...Once you leave Sawbill the next campsite is Cherokee and that is your longest stretch...."Just to clarify Bannock's point a tad - once you leave Sawbill LAKE (not landing or outfitter) there are no campsites until you get to Cherokee. I have a couple times when getting a late start just paddled up Sawbill Lake and camped somewhere on the north end before going to Cherokee the next day. That said though, I still think Michwall2's advice to head east first is a good idea. More flexibility to stop where you want, and easier to pick up information along the way. Oh, and welcome to the the forum! |
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jfinn |
Frost has some beaches. Research and trip there. We based for a few days on Cherokee and went East and south through the fire lakes heading out with a night on Burnt. DON'T stay on the island site on Burnt. While good tent pads and space where there, the trees were cut to hell, the water was very silty around the shallow landing area and tough to find a tree for the food pack. After a great site on Cherokee, it was a big bummer. Let me know if you need anything else. Tripping with kids is great, but like with adults, keeping everything in packs makes loading/unloading and portaging easier, faster and much more enjoyable. Enjoy, John |
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fishinfool71 |
Depending on your crews stamina on day 1 I would suggest getting to Kelly. The 230 from Burnt to Kelly is a difficult one. If you stay on Burnt, and then try to get to S Temperance you will have 2 long portages on day 2. Staying on Kelly breaks up the portages to one each day. There are 3 nice sites of the 4 on the bay around Kelly. Definitely check out the gold mine between Kelly and Jack lakes. When you set your canoe down on the Jack side of the portage walk back to the tree and you will see a path back to it. It is only 50 yards into the woods or maybe slightly longer. The portage from Sitka into Cherokee beware. It is only 165 but it is extremely difficult for one that size. One of the guys I took that way claimed he earned his Mountain Goat badge. Just when you think you can't climb another hill....well..... Cherokee back to Sawbill is pretty decent, good luck fishing. Hope this info is helpful. |
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Michwall2 |
quote Jaywalker: "quote Bannock: "...Once you leave Sawbill the next campsite is Cherokee and that is your longest stretch...."Just to clarify Bannock's point a tad - once you leave Sawbill LAKE (not landing or outfitter) there are no campsites until you get to Cherokee. I have a couple times when getting a late start just paddled up Sawbill Lake and camped somewhere on the north end before going to Cherokee the next day. That said though, I still think Michwall2's advice to head east first is a good idea. More flexibility to stop where you want, and easier to pick up information along the way. Yes. That is my reasoning. Couple of relatively easy flat portages brings you to a nice part of the BW with good fishing and nice scenery. Second day will feature a couple of longer portages. The first (Burnt to Kelly) is the toughest with some ups and downs. The last into South Temperance is more flat and follows the river. I love the view of ST from the end of the portage. Just a cool picture of a lake. You can go the other way if you want. Start early to get to Cherokee in time to get a campsite. I would still take my layover here and visit Frost Lake. Hope you have a great trip! It's one of my favorite routes. |
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ddccaarr |
quote mjmkjun: "Amazon? That's impressive. Would love to read a trip report of that adventure." The Amazon was amazing...well technically it wasn't the Amazon but the Madre de Dios (a major tributary) in Manu National Park Peru. We were lucky enough to see the giant river otters among other things. One of the highlights of my life. I also worked for 6 months in French Guiana looking for bird nests - totally virgin, never cut rainforest - just north of Brazil. Technically not the Amazon again but totally amazing. We are ecologists and have had some great wilderness experiences - for career and vacation. Kids and jobs becoming more desk oriented has slowed us down a bit. Great to be here on this forum - a lot of experience wilderness folks! |
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ddccaarr |
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