Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: Little Indian Sioux River Questions
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thlipsis29 |
I've only done one trip through EP 14 into Shell Lake, but thinking about going that way this summer with my kids. Pretty easy paddle up to that point and though the portage into Shell is long, it's not really difficult. If you're thinking about getting up to Lac La Croix, however, I've done EP 16 (Moose River North) several times up to the Boulder Bay area of Lac La Croix. It takes about 3.5-4.5 hours depending as to the group's experience. While not brutal by any stretch of the imagination, the portages tend to be longer, 160 rods, 95 rods and 75 rods with a few shorter ones. If you opt for the 65 rod portage from the Boulder River into Boulder Bay, that one is a steep up-and-over that we have dubbed the Widow Maker. The Moose River isn't difficult to paddle, it just twists and turns quite a bit. But I love the area and had some of my best fishing up in the Boulder River and Boulder Bay. There are also a few times we just opted to stay on the north end of Lake Agnes instead of going all the way up and still had some phenomenal fishing. If you want any additional information, feel free to email me. |
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jwartman59 |
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treehorn |
2 years ago we were paddling out from Shell and I could not believe the amount of groups coming in. I think anything past Shell you're good to go though. I can't speak to the area north of Pauness, but if you go in the direction I'm speaking of, I would target Heritage or Lynx on your first day...very doable and you'll likely get away from crowds. |
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butthead |
Personal favorite is starting at Oyster, Pocket, Finger, Thumb, Beartracks, Eugene, Step, Section, South, Slim, to Little Loon. You will hear planes on LaCroix, but lots of potential seclusion. A site search of "Little Indian Sioux North" will bring up reports and info. butthead |
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billconner |
Nice area. I wandered around Fishstakes Narrows and the numbered islands a previous trip and really liked those areas. |
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RT |
I have another question. Are motor boats allowed on Lac La Croix? I notice that the Canadian side is not part of the Quetico (or at least I think so based on the maps I am looking at). Dealing with other canoes is fine, but I would really prefer not to have to deal with motor boats. |
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wetcanoedog |
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thlipsis29 |
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RT |
For the last decade my group and I have been exploring the eastern side of the BW. We usually enter on Big Sag off of the Gunflint and paddle that area (Ottertrack, Eddy, Knife South, Wisini, Tuscacora, et al). I am looking for a new area to explore that no one in my group has been to and is not out of the Gunflint or Ely side of thing, so I was looking at going further West. Who has been out of Entry Point 14 (Little Indian Sioux River)? From viewing the maps going into Loon Lake and Lac La Croix, or going over to Lynx and Oyster Lake, the area looks interesting. But I have never been in that area. Info, anecdotes, and pics of that area would be awesome if you have any to share. Thanks RT |
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anthonyp007 |
Feel free to bounce any other questions off me as I've gone through many of the EP's in this area as it is my favorite section of the BWCA. Here's the link to the trip report... LIS Tony |
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BigBearArlich |
The Paddle in was fun too, except when we lost our leech locker on a portage, and a pretty nasty storm kicked up right after we arrived at our campsite so we couldnt go back for them until the next day, and they were gone. Might have been why my fishing report isnt better. MN DNR shows a healthy walleye population in Lynx, though that report is old. And the wild rice lining the river the whole way in. Im still finding wild rice wedged in my pfd from 2 years ago... I dug up a few pictures from our trip. |
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schweady |
A few other times we've entered there and base camped on Shell, having a great time without sensing a huge amount of traffic (and this was in late July/early Aug). Good fishing, too, around Con Island especially. During the years chaperoning kids (moving every day), we twice did a loop - in at LIS, out at Stuart. One year was through Oyster, Agnes, LLC and that was an awesome trip (maybe because it was my first ever) but my favorite was 2 years later, following the northern route that butthead described. Quiet, little lakes. Some of the clearest water ever. Both of those trips included viewing the pictos on LLC and they are etched in my memory, even these 40-some years later. |
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4 adults and their 3 children. LIS, U. Pawness, L. Pawness, Shell, Lil Shell, Lynx, Heritage Camped on U. Pawness, first site west of long portage (One night...Ok, good for star gazing, but traffic like an interstate hotel) Then Lynx, Campsite 62, (Base for 3 nights, Nice...Landing rock that is flat with one side protected from main lake, sandy bottom...spread out site, good shade, but from pines, so wind can still move through to help with bugs, shore trail around lake for lots of possible shore fishing) Then Lower Pawness, Peninsula Site (One night on the way out, Decent site, but hot...elevate about 10' from water...landing was tricky) Portages- Not bad at all: Portage from parking is easy in, but tough out. It drops toward the water, so the incline hits on the way out. Imagine rocks would be slippery. Along LIS, these are beautiful. Lots of "dropped" items though. Wife caught a "trophy" perch just north of these near the little falls. Between pawness lakes, there is a good ridge with decent elevation, that was tough on the kids. Long one into Shell has a bog drain that you have probably have to paddle through, frustrating to unload and reload to paddle 100 feet. Lynx to Heritage is nice and flat, but poorly maintained. With a 21' canoe on my 6'1" shoulders, I was glad we only had daypacks. Nothing else notable. Highlights: -These small to medium lakes have natural character, different vegetation below water, different water flow areas, views from campsites, etc. -Devils Cascade is impressive, but you have to go into the campsite at the top of the ridge to get the best view. The slope into the gorge is steep and sheer...be mindful of young-lings. There was a mill stone placed as a stepping stone across a spring here. That interested me more than the falls, honestly. -Blueberries enough to add to pancakes around campsite on Heritage. Our pace was too fast to really enjoy this area to its fullest with the age of our kids (too young to really contribute on portages and paddling). We are considering returning soon. |
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cyclones30 |
anthonyp007: "I did a solo trip up that way last year, and I wrote a trip report with an attached video report if you'd like to check that out. I went up through, Loon and Little Loon, to Slim, Fat, Eugene, Beartrack, Finger, Pocket, Ge-be, Oyster, Hustler, Ruby, Shell and back out in 5 days. It was easy traveling and very scenic. I didn't see another person from the time I left Little Loon (day 1, 10am) until Oyster (Day 3, 3pm), 3 days of having every lake to myself. I went towards the end of July and the fishing was just ok, but that wasn't my main goal anyway. Some people complain of hearing float planes on Lac la Croix in this area, but I never heard any. I really like this route. We did our last trip to this EP and had some great experiences and some not as great. Loon is open to motor boats, you will see one most likely. Many are running to the Beatty portage where they go over on the rails to LLC. (Where they need to be in Canada from Snow Bay east) We got a good start from the parking lot on the first morning and were at Snow Bay campsite that afternoon but it was our goal and we worked for it. If I went that route again I'd go for Slim which is really cool and do the small lakes listed above. Snow Bay from there is nice too. Beatty portage is cool to see but can get rough in windy days and boats are annoying. |
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boonie |
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SouthernExposure |
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