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 Boundary Waters Quetico Forum Trip Planning Forum For those over 60 Reply
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| Previous Messages: | |
| Author | Message Text |
| JJ396 |
12/30/2017 07:23AMI have an article coming out soon about paddling Crown Land, Pete. I'll try to remember to send it to you. " Please let me know too. I have been intrigued by crown land. Thanks, JJ |
| Frenchy |
12/24/2017 12:42PM 63 and have always done most of the planning and prep for our groups. Most years are from 2-4 in our group, and we base camp/ move by majority. Last year we had six and this year we may have eight members. I really don’t think it will be as much fun. |
| Frenchy |
12/24/2017 12:42PM 63 and have always done most of the planning and prep for our groups. Most years are from 2-4 in our group, and we base camp/ move by majority. Last year we had six and this year we may have eight members. I really don’t think it will be as much fun. |
| overthehill |
12/24/2017 06:32AM Over 60 here. Largest group is 4. That is plenty for me. We go where we want but it takes us longer. Yet to single portage. Mostly basecamp. I think youngsters are a great thing, but have no desire to plan or guide for a large group. |
| mutz |
12/23/2017 08:50PM I hate to admit that our group is slowly moving to boat in trips to Canada, either to secluded cabins or in a tent. Eight to ten hours a day in a canoe is getting to hard on the old bones, and it’s just easier to fish out of a boat. We will continue to trip in a canoe, just not as often or as long. |
| Pinetree |
12/23/2017 08:25PMmyceliaman: "Wow at 51 I feel young in this group!!! I prefer groups of 4 or less period. Makes for easy planning and just less stressful..." There is a lot of OLD GEEZERS on this forum. But were still ticking and paddling onward. At least for awhile. |
| myceliaman |
12/23/2017 07:21PM Wow at 51 I feel young in this group!!! I prefer groups of 4 or less period. Makes for easy planning and just less stressful... |
| Pinetree |
12/23/2017 11:08AMnctry: "First thing I did was buy four canoes, tents, packs up the Ying yang... And so on. I took groups out all summer long for a couple years. Probably twenty some trips with groups back when the max size was ten paddlers. Then I saw the impact such a group has on campsites and all. I started taking smaller groups and I saw a closer bonding between the group and the surroundings. Solo I think is something everyone should do a couple times minimum. Smaller groups have less impact on the land and make for a much greater experience for all. And the best part of you want to take lots of people in, you just have to take more trips. Haha. I love solo paddling a lot. But there are so many good canoeists on this board. It was fun to paddle with each person I've paddled with. Like magicpaddler, it works very good to have everyone bring their own food and such. I learned that to be valuable after being chewed out for having too heavy of meals. We're just all different. Newbies need to be pampered a bit, but getting seasoned one needs to be self sufficient. That helps you get a better experience all the way around. I get that some people can't do much for themselves. Cater to them if you will, but especially in my fifties and now sixties, it's so relaxing to go smaller, even solo. Solo? More work? Not if you've been leading groups. Your always helping with this and that. You don't get enough relaxing to yourself. Never lead a big group? No! Plan one here BV and there. You'll appreciate your smaller group experience more. Good Write or comment. |
| ockycamper |
12/23/2017 10:59AM Over the years our groups acquired more and more gear. Big breakfasts and dinners. Typically 6-8 in a camp site with our groups split up in 3 groups. My day would start at dawn getting breakfast ready for my group. By the time everyone had eaten and gear washed and put away it would be 9 AM. Had to start dinner by 4:30 PM (we go in mid to late September) due to light. Often cleaning up in the dark. Some guys were great and helped out a lot. Others would drop off plates thinking the BWCA fairies would wash them. However, the down side of everyone bringing their own food and cooking gear is a LOT of gear, much of it duplicates with others. And despite what anyone says, no one eating a Mountain House meal out of the bag looks at the guy eating something prepared in the dutch oven and says "I really love this Mountain House stuff!" So this least year I modified things to no longer bring fresh foods, but a lot of dehydrated stuff. We still cooked and used the dutch ovens, but breakfasts and dinners were much simpler. I really spoiled the guys 7-8 years ago when we started baking muffins in reflector ovens around the fire at night. That got cut out as well as no one wanted to help clean up afterwards. |
| nctry |
12/23/2017 03:44AM First thing I did was buy four canoes, tents, packs up the Ying yang... And so on. I took groups out all summer long for a couple years. Probably twenty some trips with groups back when the max size was ten paddlers. Then I saw the impact such a group has on campsites and all. I started taking smaller groups and I saw a closer bonding between the group and the surroundings. Solo I think is something everyone should do a couple times minimum. Smaller groups have less impact on the land and make for a much greater experience for all. And the best part of you want to take lots of people in, you just have to take more trips. Haha. I love solo paddling a lot. But there are so many good canoeists on this board. It was fun to paddle with each person I've paddled with. Like magicpaddler, it works very good to have everyone bring their own food and such. I learned that to be valuable after being chewed out for having too heavy of meals. We're just all different. Newbies need to be pampered a bit, but getting seasoned one needs to be self sufficient. That helps you get a better experience all the way around. I get that some people can't do much for themselves. Cater to them if you will, but especially in my fifties and now sixties, it's so relaxing to go smaller, even solo. Solo? More work? Not if you've been leading groups. Your always helping with this and that. You don't get enough relaxing to yourself. Never lead a big group? No! Plan one here BV and there. You'll appreciate your smaller group experience more. I always say... I get a kick out of comments like. Our group of nine are looking for a trip where we see no people. Oxy moron... Want to see less people? Take less people. Smaller group trips are a much better experience for all. |
| OldGoat |
12/21/2017 12:54PM 69 Here with similar background leading groups. I no longer find being responsible for someone else to my liking. I go solo or with family or a few close and very experienced friends. Currently planning a trip with my Son In Law and grand daughter, but I'll still pack like I am solo. Another note -- the portages get longer after 65! Goat |
| bwcadan |
12/20/2017 05:45PM 70 here: Usually just college friend for a week. A son once in every 8 years on another date, same year. Hope that increases as time passes. Base camping with day trips still works for us. |
| bhouse46 |
12/20/2017 10:54AM At 71 I mostly solo. I have never been a big group sort of person with wing night gatherings one of the rare exceptions. I have done small group trips but quickly found satisfying others and getting them on the same page is a hassle. Mostly the ability to get away on short notice and the physical ability to participate have limited potential group partners. I met up with Amarillo Jim on a solo a couple years ago and appreciate that style of meeting up to share a meal and conversation, but also going off alone to enjoy the solitude. I intend to post future trips on this site and will invite anyone who would be in the area to reach out and perhaps we can meet up. |
| Chicagored |
12/20/2017 10:14AM I am 63, and age, so far, has not affected where I am willing to go. However, these days I want to keep my group between solo and four, and I no longer will take a newbe unless its a significant other of one of my kids. I like my solo canoe and hammock. I don't have a regular tripping partner, but there are a few I've met through this bulletin board that I will invite along from time to time. I am no longer willing to expend the psychic energy to be the "scoutmaster." |
| jhb8426 |
12/20/2017 12:37AM I'm 70+. Gave up serious tripping a few years back. Now solo base camp in SNF, usually Sawbill. Day trip in. Prefer solo so I can just do what needs to be done (mostly what I want to do). Previously did scout groups, then later with a friend. Prefer the solo, even if it is car camping mostly. |
| boonie |
12/19/2017 10:22PM I usually end up going solo or with one other person. I have come to really prefer it that way, especially now that I'm 66. I occasionally try to plan something for a few people, but it usually falls apart and is just frustrating, to say nothing of complicating the process exponentially. I live about twice as far away as you and that adds a layer of work and complications. As 4 keys noted, it's a lot of work and most people just don't seem to understand or appreciate that. I don't basecamp (not a fisherman) and still like to travel most days, although usually just 4-6 hours or about 8-12 miles. Maybe you should just try a trip solo or with one other person (like your NFCT trip that you enjoyed) and see how it goes. You've done plenty and maybe it's time to "retire" from trip planning and do your own. Let some of the others take over. |
| schweady |
12/19/2017 08:57PMockycamper: "...A couple of years ago one of the younger ones looked in the dutch oven when I was cooking dinner and announced he did not like what I was cooking. I asked him to turn around slowly and look in all directions. Then I asked him if he saw any golden arches." :-) Yes, even as rewarding as they were, my 5 BWCA trips involving chaperoning of church youth is one arrangement to which I will say, "Been there, done that." |
| deerfoot |
12/19/2017 08:46PM Much like many others in this thread I also used to like to organize and travel with larger groups. I have introduced my children along with other extended members to canoe tripping. At age 70 I no longer care to travel with large groups nor do I care to be in charge anymore. I am still physically capable of ambitious and extended trips but I only want to travel with a few experienced friends who can take care of themselves. I particularly enjoy the solitude on my Canadian trips which I have been taking for past 11 years. |
| schweady |
12/19/2017 08:43PM Over 60, but in comparing the 40 trips done, I don't feel that age has made a lot of difference in my approach. Oh, maybe the fact that they are now all base camps trips, but that transition happened decades ago. Our men's groups are 8-9 guys, our family trips are 4-6, and trip #3 each summer is just me and my wife. They're all pretty much the same game plan: equipment, food, personal items. Oh, maybe it does get easier when it's just the two of us... conscious effort to keep it simple with bear vault/Mountain House/WindBurner stove meals... but the concept is the same: be the person who packs the least, helps the most, and is out there to enjoy the wild surroundings. |
| missmolly |
12/19/2017 07:22PMJackfish: "missmolly: "I'm 61 and solo. I paddle Crown Land where you can park right beside a wilderness lake that's entirely yours, so there's not much need to portage, but I still do that on occasion." I have an article coming out soon about paddling Crown Land, Pete. I'll try to remember to send it to you. |
| Pinetree |
12/19/2017 06:32PM ockycamper " I was cooking. I asked him to turn around slowly and look in all directions. Then I asked him if he saw any golden arches". Love your reply. Also on a personnel level my stress tolerance is not what it use to be. I would get worn out much more like now(age 68) than even 15 years ago. It sounds also like others should be picking up some of the slack. |
| ockycamper |
12/19/2017 06:05PM taking 14 to 20 people up usually means I start planning and packing 6 weeks in advance. Order entry permits 3 months in advance. Reservations at outfitter for canoes and lodging in the bunkhouse for the whole group 3 months in advance. Then the fun part. Dividing them into groups they will live with. Pretty much centers around who are the best cooks and what they will be cooking (we eat REALLY well). Then figuring out how much to charge everyone for entry permits, lodging, rentals, food. Then there is who is driving and how to carry all the gear. I have accumalated a lot of gear over the years and typically have tents and hammocks lent out on each trip. The way we have been doing it was designed to get new guys and their teenage and younger sons to go. . .so they typically just bring clothes, tent or hammock, sleeping bag and fishing gear. I organize all the meals (we cook breakfasts and dinners in each camp) and they just bring lunches. What really gets old is that on returning it takes a week to dry out all the hammocks and tents, and clean up the packs, cooking gear, filtration equipment, etc. I used to enjoy all of this. What I have found now that I am older is that I come home worn out. This last trip the weather got really bad. Our camps were in commuication by radios and I called it a day early and got everyone off the lakes. All the gear came back soaked and muddy. One humerous story. We always bring young guys (elementary and middle school) with us and teach them the outdoors. A couple of years ago one of the younger ones looked in the dutch oven when I was cooking dinner and announced he did not like what I was cooking. I asked him to turn around slowly and look in all directions. Then I asked him if he saw any golden arches. |
| KarlBAndersen1 |
12/19/2017 05:52PMmutz: "At 66 I see no reason to change anything, almost always four in group, occasionally six, never more. We always base camp, our main reason for our trips is the fishing. We have talked about a trip where we travelled and moved every day, but that would interfere with our fishing and for our group if we’re not fishing why be there. " Exactly!! |
| lars54 |
12/19/2017 05:44PM The older I get the more I like going solo. |
| mjmkjun |
12/19/2017 03:57PM I'm 67 and have only done solos and will continue to do only solos. About 3 yrs ago I sorta had that same 'don't enjoy it as much' feeling. I skipped a year. That did it. I was eager to get back to the woodsy solitude and leisure paddling. Jeez......12 years.....mostly sizeable groups. I don't fault you a bit if you're feeling a burnout. Perhaps quieter trips with a good buddy, or two, is what you like best, anymore. Do what YOU like. |
| Pinetree |
12/19/2017 03:55PMockycamper: "I have been taking groups up to BWCA for the last 12 years, both Ely and Gunflint. Typically 2-3 groups at at time (men from our church). I used to enjoy the planning, outfitting those with no gear, and cooking. The last two years I really don't enjoy it anymore. You answererd the question yourself. Downsize your numbers. As you get older you like the silence and go at your own pace. Still nice if you can help youth groups. |
| Jaywalker |
12/19/2017 02:27PM 60 is still a few years off for me, but I do have a couple thoughts for you: 1 - You've done a great service for your church and it's members by doing the planning for 12 years. Maybe its time for you to let another member learn, grow, and shine. They know where to reach you for help if needed. 2 - So who are the 2-3 people on your past trips you've enjoyed having around on past trips the most? Maybe have coffee and ask them if they are feeling the same way. Perhaps you are ready to enjoy the BWCA in the solitude of a much smaller group. |
| Laketrout58 |
12/19/2017 02:26PM I am 63and trip with my son and one more. We base camp and fish daily. Sometimes if it is windy we explore an area for a half day. We have lots of fun playing cribbage at camp between outings. Hopefully there will be many more trips ahead. My favorite species to go after is brookies! Sometimes it gets futile but once in a few blue moons we score big time! Good day, young peoples! Marc. P. S. A voice is telling me to go winter camping next week and try for brookies. We will see. I am cold thinking about it. |
| Jackfish |
12/19/2017 01:35PMmissmolly: "I'm 61 and solo. I paddle Crown Land where you can park right beside a wilderness lake that's entirely yours, so there's not much need to portage, but I still do that on occasion." That sounds very intriguing to me. |
| missmolly |
12/19/2017 01:21PM I'm 61 and solo. I paddle Crown Land where you can park right beside a wilderness lake that's entirely yours, so there's not much need to portage, but I still do that on occasion. |
| I-Hawk |
12/19/2017 09:57AM I'm 63 and was lucky my daughter went with me last year. Most of friends that would like to go physically aren't capable so I solo most of the time. I am a bit of base camp for a few days of fishing and rest then move on to another lake. I hit it hard the first day and usually the last day. It was really good you introduced so many to the wilderness outdoors. |
| Wally13 |
12/19/2017 08:35AM Turned 63 this year. I have been going up to Quetico every year since 1979. I just like tripping up north. Sometimes I am solo but most of the time I am with a group ... 4 to 6. Hope I can stay in shape and be healthy enough to go to the Q in my 70’s.... like Magic Paddler. Retirement can’t come soon enough. |
| 4keys |
12/19/2017 07:54AM If you don't enjoy planning the big groups anymore, then definitely don't do it again. I used to take scout groups car camping (couldn't get any parents to go any more primitive). I do not miss the stress of planning, gear cleaning/sorting after the event. I don't think others really understand or appreciate how much time and effort it takes to coordinate large groups. I am not quite 60, but definitely prefer just 2 (husband and me) or 4 (us plus our kids or 2 others). 6 total would be pushing the limit. We are at the point where we don't just take anyone who wants to go. We really consider compatibility, whether they can deal with the thunderbox, drinking lake water , mud, bugs, and share the chores. Let's face it, not everyone is ready for a week in the BW (thankfully). |
| Northwoodsman |
12/19/2017 07:38AM Short of 60, but 4 is the maximum. 2 is perfect. I like to do the planning, but can see that coming to an end sooner than later. |
| MagicPaddler |
12/19/2017 07:20AM I am 70+ and I do not plan gear and food for a group any more. If I go with a group I bring my own food and gear. Others take care of themselves. |
| AmarilloJim |
12/19/2017 07:04AM I like the group solo concept. Use 1 permit or multiple. Do the same route or have intersecting routes. You get isolation and camaraderie to your own degree of liking. |
| ducks |
12/19/2017 06:23AM I'm not over 60 (46) but I want to take the time to give you props for all your years of organizing big groups and helping those people get to the bwca. I'm guessing a lot wouldn't have experienced it without you. Organizing groups that big doesn't sound fun to me. All of my trips are solo or tandem and I love it that way. Solo, daddy/daughter, and trips w/ my wife are extremely easy to plan. The 2 tandems when I brought a friend I found a pain to plan and that was w/ only one other person. I sure hope I'm canoe tripping when I hit 60 and beyond. |
| mutz |
12/19/2017 06:19AM At 66 I see no reason to change anything, almost always four in group, occasionally six, never more. We always base camp, our main reason for our trips is the fishing. We have talked about a trip where we travelled and moved every day, but that would interfere with our fishing and for our group if we’re not fishing why be there. |
| bwcasolo |
12/19/2017 05:45AM 62 here, i have been meeting people and either base camping at a snf campground and doing day trips into the bwca, or i have gone solo for a few nights close to that campground, and then returned, and stayed a few nights at other snf campgrounds, or camping locations. i do plan on other solo trips in the future. on the way home from sawbill this past october, i did stay lakeside at temperance state park right on superior. it was awesome. |
| FOG51 |
12/19/2017 12:32AM Well I'm well over 60, and I try to plan at least 1-2 trips with my son and his future wife, the rest of my trips are solo. FRED |
| Savage Voyageur |
12/18/2017 08:40PM Base camp, 6-8 guys, leaves more time to fish, smoke cigars, drink brandy. |
| billconner |
12/18/2017 08:39PM Almost 66 and first choice one of my sons, after that one friend - always different - one repeat. If no one we're available, I'd solo, and have owned a solo for almost a year. |
| scramble4a5 |
12/18/2017 08:04PM I'm not quite 60 but here is my .02. I go with one other guy, a friend from work. I don't think I would like a big group. We have a familiar rhythm so it works. No drama at all. I don't blame you for wanting to dial it down. |
| Ausable |
12/18/2017 07:39PM I've gone with 1-2 other guys the last several years. Enough for conversation and help with camp chores. My best trip was with one friend in Woodland Caribou. I'm thinking about a solo trip in 2018. You have my admiration, ockycamper, for doing so much work prior to this, but it sounds like it is time to dial it way back so that you can enjoy it again. I prefer traveling, not base camping. I want to see things. |
| GraniteCliffs |
12/18/2017 05:55PM I have several small groups of friends and brothers to trip with. I have found that I much prefer smaller groups now that I am in my mid sixties. I don't even like five guys much in that the campsites get noisy and crowded. Planning is also tougher with large groups as you mentioned. I travel with either 2 or 3 other guys or go solo. |
| ockycamper |
12/18/2017 05:41PM I have been taking groups up to BWCA for the last 12 years, both Ely and Gunflint. Typically 2-3 groups at at time (men from our church). I used to enjoy the planning, outfitting those with no gear, and cooking. The last two years I really don't enjoy it anymore. What do you guys over 60 do for trips? How many go with you? Portages or base camps? I'd like to give BWCA and the Gunflint area another shot. But just can't handle a group of 15 to 20 (we split into 3 groups each year at the outfitter). Best trip I have had in the last 5 years was a 60 mile trip on the Northern Forest Canoe Trail in the Adirondicks with just a friend of mine and my canoe. |
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