Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Quetico Forum :: Route Ideas
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johno |
quote MattM: "...My friends and I have really been getting into doing kayak trips out of Bahía de los Ángeles (small village on the Sea of Cortez side of Baja). We strap our sea kayaks on the trucks and take highway 1 all the way down. That kayak trips sounds great!. Sea kayaking is on my bucket list, I'll get in touch when I get into it. Your Quetico trip: I'm a big fan of moving water and therefore I'd recommend paddling to Bald Rock in the Falls Chain on your first day and spend 2-3 nights there. The campsite next to Bald Rock Falls is fantastic and I love listening to the falls. The next day could be spent exploring the rest of the Falls Chain. The fishing at Bald Rock can be good, too. And then I'd follow bobbernumber3's suggestion of exploring the North Arm and the east end of Saganagons. Dickie's portage has me intrigued. Have fun with both your Baja and Quetico trips! |
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bobbernumber3 |
Wed, Thur, Fri site is the Bonsai Site, real nice spot. |
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MattM |
This is fantastic! Thanks again. |
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sedges |
My typical entry at Cache Bay is a stay at Way of the Wilderness outfitters bunkhouse the night before. Setting the alarm for 4:15 and getting on the water by 5:00. Its a three hour paddle to Cache Bay Ranger Station. Two portages, Silver Falls and a very short lift into the Man Chain gets you off the heavily traveled Falls Chain route the first(long) day. Thats probably about 16-18 miles of paddling. I did the Man Chain in late June in 2002 and saw not a soul from Saganagons to Carp. Man Chain is very scenic. I typically get a dozen donuts at the famous donut place in Grand Marais and eat a few of those on the morning paddle and leave the rest for the Cache Bay Ranger. You said your buddy is warming up for a big ocean paddle. He might welcome the extra time on the water. I know Sag can be a rough traverse and the tow avoids delays caused by rough weather, but it is so pretty in the early morning. Knife Lake would be the other big water needing cautious travel. Again, early morning would be best. |
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MattM |
Small world. Sorry, I did not see your reply until tonight. I'm leaning toward one of bobbernumber3's suggestions. I've really enjoyed the solitude and great paddling out of beaverhouse, but I think I should try a new area. The Dickies portage sounds interesting. Off Topic: I'm not sure if you are into sea kayaking, but if you live in San Diego I thought you might be. My friends and I have really been getting into doing kayak trips out of Bahía de los Ángeles (small village on the Sea of Cortez side of Baja). We strap our sea kayaks on the trucks and take highway 1 all the way down. We paddle out and spend our nights on variety of volcanic islands fishing, spear fishing, and snorkeling. The fishing, paddling, and scenery are amazing! Kayaking with whales is an awesome bonus. If you are interested in information on this type of trip send me an email. I can set you up with good route options, fishing spots, great campsite locations and very reasonable pre and post trip lodging. My Brian who lives in San Diego would be more than happy to meet up with you and discuss trip plans if you are interested as well. I'm headed to Bahia again the first week of April. Truly an epic trip. |
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johno |
quote MattM: "...My tripping partner is flying in from San Diego and this will be a bit of a "fun/training" trip for him before a paddle race around the island of Kauai later in July."I agree with bobbernumber3's recommendations as good routes (one of these days I've got to explore Dickie's portage). AdamXChicago and I both live in San Diego and we are getting together for lunch on Wednesday to discuss our tripping plans for 2018. Your tripping partner is welcome to join us and we could tell him more about our experience in that area of the park. I'd also like to hear more about the paddle race around Kauai! |
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bobbernumber3 |
The Man Chain in 5 days works, but you don't have much wiggle room for delays or layovers in case of wind or bad weather. You could make the trip in 4 overnights with all things going well. Your plan for staying two nights at two sites would probably not work and you would have to plan on traveling each day early in the trip and laying over if possible later in the trip depending on your progress. You would cover some beautiful territory. It is a popular route, so expect to see people each day and sites may be occupied. Then there will also be the decision of a clock-wise vs. counterclock-wise route! A Hook Island tow is still recommended. Oh, I see by your profile that you are under 40 years old. Man Chain, no problem. |
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bobbernumber3 |
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MattM |
I've gone through Beaverhouse the last two years and really love that area and the seclusion; but I've never entered from the south, and I'm looking to try something new. My tripping partner and I will only have 5 nights for this trip. My ideal trip would entail two nights at two sites and one night at our last or first site. We are both experienced, in good shape, and welcome covering a good deal of miles on travel days. Looking for seclusion if possible. We will be traveling the the week of 6/24. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks guys! |
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bobbernumber3 |
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MattM |
Thanks so much for the advice! I took a quick look at my maps, and it looks like the first route you suggested would include some nice paddling distance (which I'm looking for), but less seclusion than the North Arm of Ottertrack. Is that correct? Forgive my ignorance, I've not been in this area of the park and I'm just starting to plan the trip. My tripping partner is flying in from San Diego and this will be a bit of a "fun/training" trip for him before a paddle race around the island of Kauai later in July. I keep looking at the Man Chain and wondering if that could be an enjoyable trip with only five nights. I'm thinking that would be pushing it...thoughts? |