Southern Quetico - Around the Horn
by Beaverjack
Trip Type:
Paddling Canoe
Entry Date:
06/11/2013
Entry Point:
Quetico
Exit Point:
Quetico
Number of Days:
14
Group Size:
1
Discuss Trip:
View Discussion Thread (7 messages)
Day 10 of 14
Thursday, June 20, 2013 I left camp at 7:20, arriving at McNiece precisely 2 hours later. Hot and buggy portage. My mukluks did not do well on the dew covered rocks, logs, etc. Nearly fell down a big rock with the canoe and a pack. That would have been bad. The soles don't grip. 
Much of McNiece has burned. There's a nice campsite on the NE end (below the little lake), but I find burns depressing, so I moved on. In hindsite, even though I was less than 3 hours from my previous camp, I wish I would have stayed.
Here's the campside on the west end.
Shots from east end of lake.
Here's the camp on the northeast end:
The rain finally let loose while I was crossing Grey Lake. It felt good, but only lasted a scant 20 minutes. The portages between McNiece and Shade are mostly short (and buggy), with the exception of the one from Grey to Dell, which is long and swampy (and buggy). 
Shade lake is very pretty, but I’m battling the wind, so I head straight for the far shore where the marked campsites are. As I paddle to the south of an island, it looks like there might be a nice site there, but I’m intent on getting camped and getting out of the weather. Once I make it to the far shore, I select the best looking site from my vantage on the water. The landings for all 3 sites I look at are rocky and unprotected from the wind. I quickly pitch my tent, pick up the tuna and sardine cans, and make a filling meal. Just before dusk, I venture down to the shallows and catch 3 small bass right off. I take the opportunity to experiment with some minnows where I can see how the small bass react to my lures. They don’t seem to care for the perch coloring, but will hit the gray/silver minnows in a frenzy. The green tubes are also irresistible. Man, I’m stoked for getting on the water. I haven’t seen the bass this hungry. I see some bigger fish come out of the water near dusk just to the north of my camp. Once the bugs finally drive me into my tent, I doze off with visions of monster bass and the whine of my reel’s drag. Just after dark, a wolf was bawling to the north, maybe a half mile off in the forest. Very cool.
Much of McNiece has burned. There's a nice campsite on the NE end (below the little lake), but I find burns depressing, so I moved on. In hindsite, even though I was less than 3 hours from my previous camp, I wish I would have stayed.
Here's the campside on the west end.
Shots from east end of lake.
Here's the camp on the northeast end:
Shade lake is very pretty, but I’m battling the wind, so I head straight for the far shore where the marked campsites are. As I paddle to the south of an island, it looks like there might be a nice site there, but I’m intent on getting camped and getting out of the weather. Once I make it to the far shore, I select the best looking site from my vantage on the water. The landings for all 3 sites I look at are rocky and unprotected from the wind. I quickly pitch my tent, pick up the tuna and sardine cans, and make a filling meal. Just before dusk, I venture down to the shallows and catch 3 small bass right off. I take the opportunity to experiment with some minnows where I can see how the small bass react to my lures. They don’t seem to care for the perch coloring, but will hit the gray/silver minnows in a frenzy. The green tubes are also irresistible. Man, I’m stoked for getting on the water. I haven’t seen the bass this hungry. I see some bigger fish come out of the water near dusk just to the north of my camp. Once the bugs finally drive me into my tent, I doze off with visions of monster bass and the whine of my reel’s drag. Just after dark, a wolf was bawling to the north, maybe a half mile off in the forest. Very cool.
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