Today is the drive up to Clearwater Historic Lodge & Outfitters in Grand Marais, MN. Excited to be checking out the Gunflint Trail this time. For my group of 8 (all males in our early 30's), we had 3 "groups" of people.[paragraph break]

Myself and my hometown friend (currently in San Diego) who also came on the 2022 trip. He had flown into Appleton, WI the day prior (Friday). We left my place around 8:45AM and ended up making it to Clearwater by 6pm, which was pretty good time for the stops we had. The most important stop was the Holiday gas station in Tofte, MN to get leeches. [paragraph break]

Another group, that we can just call the Milwaukee Mischief's are 2 of my friends from college who are from and still live in the Milwaukee, WI area. They made it up around 730pm. A longer drive than I had but there was a moment in the day I thought they might beat us. [paragraph break]

The last group is the Madison Crew, all high school friends from the Madison area. Although only 2 of them live there now (both of whom were on the trip in 2022), the others flew in from Washington D.C. & Boise, ID. My friends had to pick both of them up on their drive at the Twin Cities airport, which led them having the longest day. They made it up by around 9pm. [paragraph break]

Clearwater Outfitters was a beautiful outfitter with a pretty view of the lake and palisades. The outfitter itself was much more laid back than the one in Ely. While this was nice at times, it also felt a little strange. I checked in and immediately, I knew it was going to be a long night in the bunkhouse. Compared to the 2-story bunkhouse we got in Ely...this was a shocker for everyone. It doesn't help that we will have at least 2 guys snoring (and yes, I am not counting myself in this because I'm telling the story). Add in the heat and humidity, nobody is going to sleep well tonight.[paragraph break]

Strange how quiet it was here compared to staying in Ely…you already start to feel like you’re in the wilderness. After getting settled in, we walk around the property, look at gear and wait for the next 2 vehicles in our group to trickle in. There was feelings of excitement and nervousness once all had arrived. Laughs and stories were shared. As would be a requirement being from Wisconsin, a few beverages were enjoyed into the night. Maybe later than we planned to, but I don’t think anyone wanted to try and sleep in the bunkhouse. No other choice at this point. [paragraph break]

Sunday would be our first official day of the trip. While I wasn't initially loving Clearwater Outfitters, the breakfast made up for a lot of that. Being able to have a hot and hearty meal in their lodge was a perfect way to start the day. Our group of 8 took a large table and enjoyed laughs over breakfast. [paragraph break]

Considerable time was taken to pack our portage packs, barrels, and BWJ food pack. As the trip leader, I take a lot of the blame for this. Between myself and another group member who came last time, we handled the majority of the food. It was hard trying to determine portions for a trip like this. How many people drink coffee? Will everyone eat breakfast? How big of a lunch is needed? How much trail mix do I need to make? As much planning and research as we did, it was impossible to get the correct amount. I mention this now because a lot of the packing time was us determining what to bring as we both over-packed on food just in case. You don’t want anyone to be hungry. [paragraph break]

We are on the water around 11AM with the goal of making it to Mountain Lake and camping there. It is a gorgeous paddle leaving the outfitter with the palisades in your sights the entire time. We were fortunate to have the wind to our backs at times during this paddle. Clearwater Lake really lived up to its name![paragraph break]

The portage from Clearwater to Mountain was okay. Shorter than most of the portages we would have but the elevation adds an element. After portaging, we would have lunch on the Mountain Lake side of the portage. The first lunch of the trip would be fresh cheese curds, mozzarella whips, and smoked salmon. Food tastes great in the outdoors and it tasted even better after the portage. You'll notice throughout this report I will mention a lot of our meals. I took the time to plan and we carried the extra weight to have more fresh meals. Everyone would agree it was well worth it. Especially compared to having our meals outfitted last time! We will never forget just how bad spaghetti can be. [paragraph break]

Back on the water and it's time to look for a campsite. Heading East on Mountain Lake, I was hoping for the 3rd campsite (721) and my backup was the 2nd one (717). These seemed to be the best sites to handle a group our size. We paddled only to see every site had people at them. I knew Mountain Lake would be popular but after seeing the first 3 sites taken, I started to get worried. The 4th site was open but there was no chance it was fitting us (we are all tent camping, 4 tents total). We get to the 5th site, 722 which will be a tight fit but could work. It's a small site right along some serious elevation. The walk to the shitter is a workout. We make do and set up camp. Two guys (I gave up halfway, screw that hike) decided to take the path all the way to Pemmican Lake. They were ultimately disappointed. Some other guys stood along the rocky shoreline and put the fishing poles to work. Bass and northern were caught, smaller than eating size sadly. But catching is still fun.[paragraph break]

Dinner tonight is a classic. Fresh steaks, asparagus and mashed potatoes. Cooking 4 steaks last time was something but 8? That was a challenge in and of itself. Relying on just the fire, it took time and patience. I will say, this is the last time I'm doing steaks on a trip. I love a good steak but it is so hard to cook in the wilderness. It’s just not worth it anymore. I had some great grass-fed ribeye’s and New York strips. Only for maybe half of them to turn out decent. There are plenty of other options for a great first night dinner. [paragraph break]

It was another hot and humid night so the sleep wasn't good. The humidity would prove to make it very difficult to find any dry firewood. Hard to get a fire going which is not great when I'm hoping to cook over the fire for a lot of our meals. The first camp breakfast would be bacon, farm fresh eggs, and hashbrowns. Much needed fuel for the day.[paragraph break]

We hit the water hoping to make it to Moose Lake and camp there. I have to say, paddling these lakes provides great scenery with the surrounding elevation. A totally different feeling than our trip in 2022. We also found enjoyment (and plenty of jokes) with paddling border lakes and I look forward to paddling more border lakes in the future. We say goodbye to Mountain and begin our 3 portages for the day. [paragraph break]

The first portage to Fan Lake led us to an absolute muck fest (though the middle portage would prove to be the worst). Horrible....standing in knee deep mud. It was at the end of the first portage that we ran into a solo paddler that we will call Detroit John. Talking to him we learned he was at the 2nd site on Mountain Lake. He had been to the BWCA many times before and was reminiscing on past trips with his daughter. Detroit John was doing the same route we were, which would prove to be a blessing in time, but had me worried we may be fighting for sites. He would end up passing us here, with the intention of camping on Moose Lake. We would be shortly behind him. Double portaging 4 full canoes takes time. [paragraph break]

The final portage to Moose Lake called for a much-needed lunch break. Lunch included 2 different flavors of hummus and pita bread to slap it onto. Tasted great and enough for everyone to be satisfied. This was our last planned portage for the day so we took our time at lunch. At one point, I thought I heard people coming up the trail behind us. Worried we would be fighting for campsites, we decided to pack up and start paddling Moose Lake.[paragraph break]

From my planning, it seemed like most of the sites on Moose Lake would be difficult with a group of our size. I figured we would still be able to work something out. As we paddle down Moose Lake, we once again noticed that every site was full. I knew this route would be fairly popular but I didn't expect it to be THIS popular. Panic and stress started to set in. As we approached the 3rd site (741) we were greeted by Detroit John. We paddled near him and he informed us that the next site was taken but the last one was open. He scouted ahead for us and determined the last site would be more accommodating for our group. It was at that moment we were grateful to be doing the same route as John. And it was a sigh of relief knowing that there was a campsite open on Moose Lake. If not, we would've had to push to the Fowl Lakes which would’ve made for a long day. [paragraph break]

The last site on Moose Lake (743) was okay. It was bigger than our site last night but difficult to find tent areas that weren't covered in roots. The landing did not allow for much fishing from the site either. After setting up tents and unwinding a bit, it was time for dinner. I had made a batch of chicken fajitas in advance and then froze them. Threw that in a pot with a little bit of water to prevent it from drying out. Another pot had some Spanish rice heating up. Take some of each and throw it on a tortilla. This was the meal I was the most worried about. I ate the recipe before but never made it myself. I was fully prepared for it to not turn out well. To my surprise, everyone loved it. [paragraph break]

Everyone was pretty tired after the portages today and the feeling of not being able to find a site. One went out and did some solo fishing with no luck. As we went down to bed, we got hit with a little bit of rain, maybe 20 minutes of some sprinkling. In the distance (looking North towards Canada), we could see what looked like heat lightning. Thankfully, we didn't have any storms. [paragraph break]

In regards to our sleep last night, I will just say again how much I hate the humidity. We're used to it in the Midwest but I find it makes camping to be extremely uncomfortable because there's really nothing you can do. Just hope to be able to fall asleep. Breakfast was bacon, eggs and hashbrowns again. They turned out well and didn't take too long. The bacon just ends up being a pain to clean up because of the grease on the pan. As we had breakfast, there was discussion about what our plan was. My original plan was for us to get to John Lake. Seeing how busy it had been on Moose & Mountain so far; I knew getting a site on John Lake would be difficult. It was a group decision that we would try to move quicker than prior days. [paragraph break]

We head out onto Moose Lake and start paddling towards North Fowl Lake. I thought the portages between Mountain & Moose were muddy but the landing onto Fowl was worse than anything I've experienced. Waiting for everyone to finish portaging you were basically standing in deep mud that smelled horrible. It was so unpleasant that a few of us waiting for the rest decided to paddle out a bit just so we didn't have to wait there. Our good friend Detroit John ran into us on this portage. We discussed our plans once again and we were both planning to stay on John Lake. We thanked him for scouting the site for us earlier. I think there was a mutual appreciation between our group of 8 and John being a solo paddler. It's nice knowing there's friendly paddlers nearby. [paragraph break]

Continuing to head South through the Fowl Lakes, we saw a few cabins on the West side of the lake. This was a first for us and I think I can speak for the group when I say we weren't the biggest fans. I know it was a potential with this route but it takes away from the feeling of being in the wilderness. Maybe that feeling was stronger because someone at a cabin was running a chainsaw. Oh well, we will keep on paddling towards Royal River/Lake. A lot of tall grasses and shallow water forced us to get out of the canoe and walk through the weeds looking for the portage into Royal Lake. Once we made it to Royal Lake it was super weedy with tall grasses again. We had a general sense of what direction to head but it wasn't easy to see where the river exited on the other side of the lake. It was a lot of hard paddling to make it through the weeds. [paragraph break]

After another portage, we finally approached John Lake. The first site on the right (748) was occupied and once again, I started to get nervous. Thankfully, the site on the peninsula (747) was open. This site was the first site that actually felt like it was meant for a group our size. Plenty of room, decent tent pad areas, and good seating around the fire. Tents were set up and it was time for lunch. Lunch today would be pita bread, cheese, and salami. Some of us heated it up over the fire and that really brought the meal to another level. It's always nice seeing the mood of the group improve after a meal. The rocky shoreline of our site led to decent fishing. A few pike were caught but nothing noteworthy. Detroit John would come past us and I told him I thought the last site (749) was open. He would end up camping there. [paragraph break]

One thing we worked on at this site was building a 3rd bench. Fun to have a few guys working on a project like that. We took a tree that was already down, cut it to length and then cut notches in it so it would sit level. Turned out pretty good if I say so myself. Additional seating is needed with a group our size. Today it would prove to be slightly colder and windier so we were huddled closer to the fire. As I started to prepare dinner, a father and daughter came past in a canoe (from MacFarland Lake) and asked if any other site was open. I told them they were all taken to my knowledge. He then asked about East Pike Lake which I had no idea on. Mind you, it's after 4pm right now and his daughter was under 10 if I had to guess. Could be a long night if they don't find a campsite. [paragraph break]

Tonight’s dinner would be the redemption of spaghetti. On our first BWCA trip, we did a complete outfitting package and one of the meals was spaghetti. My dad had warned me from his BWCA trip that the spaghetti was awful. His warning was confirmed for us in 2022. This year, I was determined for that not to happen. I brought noodles, had bagged up spaghetti sauce and picked up meatballs from an Italian deli. We also made some garlic fry bread and had a garlic herb spread to go with it. Let me just say, it turned out incredible. I could not have been happier. Plenty of food for everyone and a warm plate of spaghetti goes a long way when it's a little chilly. As we were finishing dinner, the dad and daughter would come past again, heading back towards MacFarland Lake. They must not have been able to find a site. As we saw them, there was discussion about allowing them to stay at our site. We would be breaking BWCA rules (2 permits and a group of 10 at a site) and we didn't want it to be uncomfortable for them. Again, we are 8 dudes in our 30's, we're enjoying ourselves having some liquor and might not be the right vibe for them. In seriousness, I wasn't sure what the right thing to do was. They would end up going past and there would be continued discussions on if we should have offered. I can tell you now that in the future, I would at least make the offer. [paragraph break]

After dinner, most of the night was spent by the fire keeping warm. With the clouds, we weren't able to see many stars. Knowing that we have been running into a lot of people, we decided to look at the map and make a plan for tomorrow. Originally, my plan was for our last 2 nights to be on East and West Pike Lake. It would be pretty easy to get to East Pike tomorrow so it was suggested that maybe we try to make it to West Pike. I knew there were a few awesome sites on West Pike and the group seemed to agree, let's make a push for West Pike Lake tomorrow. [paragraph break]

With lower temps and less humidity, I was finally able to sleep well through the night. Because we were trying to get moving this morning, breakfast was oatmeal. We aren't usually quick movers on any trips unless absolutely necessarily. Probably could've heated up some precooked bacon but I knew we had 2 big portages today and wasn't sure if we'd be fighting others for a site. [paragraph break]

The portage to East Pike Lake would be tied for the longest of the trip @ 210 rods. It was long but the path was nice. Once we got to East Pike, we had the wind to our backs which really made for a quick paddle. There was at least 1 group camping on East Pike but I wasn't keeping a great eye out so there may have been more. As we finished the portage to West Pike, we huddled quick to discuss campsites we should target. My priorities were the last 2 (725, 726) or the island site (2017). Once I mentioned island site, that's what the group wanted, rightfully so. [paragraph break]

As we approached the island site, we noticed our friend Detroit John had taken the island. This brought the mood down for a moment as everyone really liked the idea of camping on an island. We ended up pulling up to site 726 (which I had marked as my #1 choice for West Pike) and it couldn't have been a better site. This was our first quintessential BWCA campsite of the trip. Plenty of room, tall pines and lots of water access. One great thing about this site was there was a rocky shoreline on the West side with a bay which happened to be out of the wind, making it feel like a hot summer day. [paragraph break]

Spirits were high at our camp on West Pike Lake. We would only have 1 portage left for the entire trip and we had the best campsite of the trip. Tonight's dinner would be chili prepared by my friend who dehydrated all ingredients. Similar to how I was nervous about the fajitas, he was worried about the chili. It turned out excellent. It was during dinner preparation that I noticed we still had ice in the Boundary Waters Journal Food Pack. Very satisfied with the performance, it will be a staple of all future trips. [paragraph break]

Tonight, would also be our first night of an incredibly clear sky and great view from our site. Probably the best stars any of us have ever seen. Countless shooting stars and the it felt like you could reach out and touch the Milky Way if you were a bit taller. Hard to truly express how great the view was, the photos will never do justice. Reflecting on this moment of the trip, it was a feeling of bliss to remember standing on the rocks and just looking up in awe. [paragraph break]

It's the coldest morning of the trip and it is this exact moment I am regretting the following items: base layer tops & bottoms, hat, and gloves. The forecast never predicted it would get lower than 50 so I figured I was fine. Better believe I'll be bringing at least base layers next time. Me being a little chilly, I slept in which was much needed. I got woken up mid-morning with a delivery of breakfast sandwiches and coffee. Can't get much better than that. [paragraph break]

Today is a first for us. We don't have anywhere to be...kind of an odd feeling. It led to a slow and lazy day around camp. There's talk of day trips but not many takers. One canoe did end up checking out Gogebic Lake for a bit. Naps, lounging, journaling, and plenty of wood gathering. You can't forget about the fishing! A lot of lines were cast with the rocky shorelines of this site. Leads you to asking questions like "how many Mepps are at the bottom of this lake? " [paragraph break]

By midafternoon we saw that there was some rain in the forecast overnight. Putting on the rain flys and we will be keeping an eye on the weather. Unlimited weather updates with the Garmin. While it is windier today, that West bay on our campsite (which we named Brandon's Bay) was blocked from the wind and a solid 10+ degrees warmer than the main part of the site. That's actually where the outline for this report was written. After watching my friends cast on that bay and taking a break, I decide to start journaling for a trip report and watch my friends’ line. Just a leech on a bobber. All of the sudden I look up and the bobber is gone. As I grab the rod and start reeling it in, I'm shouting loud so the camp can hear me. My first fish of the trip, shortly after I started writing up this report. An incredible feeling. Better yet, it's an eating size smallmouth...is there a chance we fry up some fish tonight?[paragraph break]

Dark clouds in the distance but still no report of rain until tonight. Out of nowhere we get about 10 minutes of light rain. Camp gets cleaned and organized up quickly when things can get wet. Not too bad though, our fire was maintained and we were back to fishing and preparing dinner. Caught a few more, eating size but nothing special. Dinner tonight my friend would be taking care of again. Adequately named "chef's surprise" in memory of the tuna mac we had on our last trip. This was a mac with ground beef instead, all dehydrated and seasoned by my friend. Turned out wonderful. He really knocked it out of the park with his meals. The sun is starting to go down, I am hoping for 1 more fish so everyone can get a decent portion of fish. Finally, one guy comes out and decides to throw a Hail Mary cast. Sure enough he hooks into a nice smallmouth, we're going to be having some fish![paragraph break]

Hard to believe it's the last night and we are about to enjoy our first fish fry of the trip. A storm is coming through and it began to rain while the fish were still being cleaned. A light rain but it was nice to finish packing things down. It'll only make it easier tomorrow as well. We start frying up the fish, all huddled around the fire in the rain. The fish tastes great and it couldn't be a more fitting end to this trip. We would put a few more things away and head to bed as the rain picked up. If it had been nice out, I'm sure we would've stayed up late tonight. You never want times like this to end. [paragraph break]

It's the last day of the trip and you can feel it throughout camp. We take a group picture before our final portage to Clearwater Lake then back to the outfitter. Another 200+ rod portage. People may say that portages get easier towards the end of the trip...but that only applies if you're carrying a food pack. Overall, it wasn't as bad as what was about to come. [paragraph break]

We get our boats on Clearwater and the wind was really pushing against us. The most difficult padding I’ve ever done. Absolutely draining. Maybe the hardest I've ever worked on any of our trips, backpacking included. All in all, it took us almost 4-5 hours to get across Clearwater Lake. Brutal. I could go on and on about just how grueling and demoralizing of a paddle it was. [paragraph break]

Honestly...it was the worst way to end a trip. The entire mood of the group was ruined. One canoe actually stopped at the put in point/boat launch and WALKED the gear back to the outfitter. It was that bad. [paragraph break]

As we get back to the outfitter at different times, one vehicle heads out for their long trek home. The rest of us waited for the canoe that stopped at the launch. We would end up having a post trip meal in Grand Marais before heading our separate ways. I would be spending the night in Duluth with my friend so he can fly out the next day. The other car would do the same in the Twin Cities. All in all, a fantastic trip and I hope I can take this group on the next one. [paragraph break]

Random post trip thoughts:[paragraph break] At one point my friend said "I'm eating better here than I do at home". Couldn’t ask for a better reaction to the meals than that. It was great paddling along with Detroit John. I hope he's reading this! This was my first trip utilizing the Garmin InReach and it was perfect for updated weather reports and check-ins. The weather was worse than our 2022 trip, which was also the week before Labor Day. Not enough swimming this year. I am incredibly blessed and thankful to have 7 other friends to come along on this trip. The Boundary Waters is not for everyone and this group kicked ass. After this trip I have to ask, is 8 too many people? I'm not sure. I think we would have had better luck (mainly more space) with campsites in a different area of the wilderness. Maybe if we were hammock campers it would’ve been better. Regardless of site space, the food needed for a group this size is insane. I am regretting not documenting the portions brought along as this would have been extremely useful information for future trips. Overall, I think 6 people is a sweet spot for a larger group. [paragraph break]

Paddle planner link to our route: https://www.paddleplanner.com/tools/route.aspx?routeid=34027[paragraph break]