BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
July 01 2025
Entry Point 34 - Island River
Island River entry point allows overnight paddle only. This entry point is supported by Tofte Ranger Station near the city of Grand Marais, MN. The distance from ranger station to entry point is 19 miles. Two small portages leading to Isabella River. No portages on Island River.
Number of Permits per Day: 2
Elevation: 1564 feet
Latitude: 47.7912
Longitude: -91.3332
Island River - 34
Number of Permits per Day: 2
Elevation: 1564 feet
Latitude: 47.7912
Longitude: -91.3332
Island River - 34
A jaunt around the numbered lakes with Julia Child
by dogwoodgirl
Trip Report
Entry Date:
July 26, 2006
Entry Point:
Lake One
Number of Days:
5
Group Size:
7
Trip Introduction:
Our 3rd annual family trip- My hubby and son and I take other trips each year, but we also take one with another family. The pace is slower, and the pleasures of another sort. Well, you'll see!
Day 1 of 5
Island River - 34
Day 4 of 5
Thursday, July 27, 2006
I was awakened by the sound of people moving around the campsite....guess my new job working
overnights at the Emergency Vet Clinic has ruined me as far as being the first one up! I was last up
every morning on this trip..weird but true. Anyhow, I got coffee and breakfast going while the rest of
the crew packed up camp. Breakfast was scrambled eggs with ham and fried potatoes, bagels toasted
over the fire, french press for the grownups and "crappucino" for the youngsters. We discovered last
year that 1/2&1/2 can be frozen, which has improved morning coffee for us- it separates but otherwise
suffers no ill effects, so if you don't mind it looking odd it tastes just fine.
We waved goodbye to Sam and headed for the "freeway", as we affectionately dubbed the portages
between Lakes One and Two. After the relative quiet of the portages around Confusion, it was a shock!
We spent a fair amount of time trying (in vain) to comply with the 9 and 4 rule, and finally just made a
break for it. As we finished the second portage, Alex's pack finally gave up the ghost...after 20 years of
service, the straps broke. I managed to tie them back to the pack, but it was clear that this pack wasn't
taking on many more portages. We talked about it and decided that with the congestion and the pack,
we would hunt for a base camp and take daytrips for the remainder of our trip.
We paddled through Lake Two and into the start of Lake Three, and saw a beautiful site perched up on
a big outcropping of granite just as Lake Three begins to open up. Some members of our group wanted
to try for an island campsite, but we agreed to drop most of our group off to hold the spot while Jesse,
Alex, and I paddled around to check it out. Sure enough, every site we passed was taken- and it was
early in the day, probably before noon. By the time we got back to camp, the kids were busy swimming
and we decided that this was going to be a fine base camp. The tent pads were shady, the kitchen area
was flat and out of the afternoon sun, and there was a huge white pine gracing the latrine. I set up 1
tent while Bob and ML set up the other, and Jesse and Alex went off in search of wood. We lounged
round camp eating beef jerky, gorp, and oranges, taking naps in our shady tents, and getting settled. I
was astounded at the shear volume of canoes that kept pouring past our camp....I have no idea where
all those folks camped that night!
Finally the kids started looking kinda hungry again and we got dinner going- a huge pot of chicken wild
rice soup and fresh biscuits with butter. It had been a hot day but the night was pleasently cool and we
fired up the french press again. We hung out by the fire drinking coffee and telling stories- the kids
never tire of hearing stories about the old folks when we were young, especially stories about my
adventures on the canoe trails as a kid. Night descended and the stars came out, and eventually the
kids got tired and went to bed....we weren't too far behind them.
I was awakened by the sound of people moving around the campsite....guess my new job working
overnights at the Emergency Vet Clinic has ruined me as far as being the first one up! I was last up
every morning on this trip..weird but true. Anyhow, I got coffee and breakfast going while the rest of
the crew packed up camp. Breakfast was scrambled eggs with ham and fried potatoes, bagels toasted
over the fire, french press for the grownups and "crappucino" for the youngsters. We discovered last
year that 1/2&1/2 can be frozen, which has improved morning coffee for us- it separates but otherwise
suffers no ill effects, so if you don't mind it looking odd it tastes just fine.
We waved goodbye to Sam and headed for the "freeway", as we affectionately dubbed the portages
between Lakes One and Two. After the relative quiet of the portages around Confusion, it was a shock!
We spent a fair amount of time trying (in vain) to comply with the 9 and 4 rule, and finally just made a
break for it. As we finished the second portage, Alex's pack finally gave up the ghost...after 20 years of
service, the straps broke. I managed to tie them back to the pack, but it was clear that this pack wasn't
taking on many more portages. We talked about it and decided that with the congestion and the pack,
we would hunt for a base camp and take daytrips for the remainder of our trip.
We paddled through Lake Two and into the start of Lake Three, and saw a beautiful site perched up on
a big outcropping of granite just as Lake Three begins to open up. Some members of our group wanted
to try for an island campsite, but we agreed to drop most of our group off to hold the spot while Jesse,
Alex, and I paddled around to check it out. Sure enough, every site we passed was taken- and it was
early in the day, probably before noon. By the time we got back to camp, the kids were busy swimming
and we decided that this was going to be a fine base camp. The tent pads were shady, the kitchen area
was flat and out of the afternoon sun, and there was a huge white pine gracing the latrine. I set up 1
tent while Bob and ML set up the other, and Jesse and Alex went off in search of wood. We lounged
round camp eating beef jerky, gorp, and oranges, taking naps in our shady tents, and getting settled. I
was astounded at the shear volume of canoes that kept pouring past our camp....I have no idea where
all those folks camped that night!
Finally the kids started looking kinda hungry again and we got dinner going- a huge pot of chicken wild
rice soup and fresh biscuits with butter. It had been a hot day but the night was pleasently cool and we
fired up the french press again. We hung out by the fire drinking coffee and telling stories- the kids
never tire of hearing stories about the old folks when we were young, especially stories about my
adventures on the canoe trails as a kid. Night descended and the stars came out, and eventually the
kids got tired and went to bed....we weren't too far behind them.
Day 6 of 5
Friday, July 28, 2006
We were a little slower getting out of bed this morning- Alex and ML were not accustomed to getting as
much of a workout as we'd had and were both feeling pretty sore. This ended up being a layover day.
We had a couple leisurely cups of Joe, and I made apple pancakes for breakfast with butter and maple
syrup. Somewhere during this process, we discovered that one of the lovely cedars in our kitchen area
had a nest of paper wasps living inside of it! Wasps were busy flying in and out of the base of the tree.
One member of our group, who will remain nameless, thought it might be possible to burn, smoke, or
otherwise exterminate the little buggers, but commonsense prevailed and we realized we'd just have to
co-exist. In the guilty party's defense, s/he HAD just been stung, hard, on the ankle at the time that the
murderous thoughts transpired!
We spent the better part of the day playing water Frisbee, laying in a large supply of firewood, going
over the route for our daytrip the next day, and attempting(in vain) to catch some fish. For some
reason, we never have much luck in the BWCA, although Jules is a pretty good fisherman otherwise. We
did get a visit from the Rangers- my first ever permit check. They were real nice, and ended up knowing
Bob from the DJing that he used to do around Duluth, so we had a good chat about bluegrass, the
Grateful Dead, and music in general. We also discovered that we had a pretty active local population of
turtles, mostly painted turtles and one big snapper who got named "Big Head Todd".
Dinner was pretty simple- scalloped potatoes with summer sausage, and for dessert....peanut butter
brownies. There is nothing like a fresh, hot brownie by the fire-MMMMM good! It was too windy as
night came on to keep the fire going, so we retired to our tents for the night.
We were a little slower getting out of bed this morning- Alex and ML were not accustomed to getting as
much of a workout as we'd had and were both feeling pretty sore. This ended up being a layover day.
We had a couple leisurely cups of Joe, and I made apple pancakes for breakfast with butter and maple
syrup. Somewhere during this process, we discovered that one of the lovely cedars in our kitchen area
had a nest of paper wasps living inside of it! Wasps were busy flying in and out of the base of the tree.
One member of our group, who will remain nameless, thought it might be possible to burn, smoke, or
otherwise exterminate the little buggers, but commonsense prevailed and we realized we'd just have to
co-exist. In the guilty party's defense, s/he HAD just been stung, hard, on the ankle at the time that the
murderous thoughts transpired!
We spent the better part of the day playing water Frisbee, laying in a large supply of firewood, going
over the route for our daytrip the next day, and attempting(in vain) to catch some fish. For some
reason, we never have much luck in the BWCA, although Jules is a pretty good fisherman otherwise. We
did get a visit from the Rangers- my first ever permit check. They were real nice, and ended up knowing
Bob from the DJing that he used to do around Duluth, so we had a good chat about bluegrass, the
Grateful Dead, and music in general. We also discovered that we had a pretty active local population of
turtles, mostly painted turtles and one big snapper who got named "Big Head Todd".
Dinner was pretty simple- scalloped potatoes with summer sausage, and for dessert....peanut butter
brownies. There is nothing like a fresh, hot brownie by the fire-MMMMM good! It was too windy as
night came on to keep the fire going, so we retired to our tents for the night.
Day 9 of 1
Saturday, July 29, 2006
The day dawned clear and lovely, and promised to be a great day to explore! It was also Jules's 13th
birthday and we had the best meal of our trip in store for us when we returned to camp. I fried up a
huge pile of potatoes, onions, and summer sausage with melted cheese on top and we were ready to hit
the water. It was nice to be able to let the duffers stretch out in the canoes, and I resolved yet again not
to go next year without the 3rd canoe.
With the kids in the bow of the canoes, we headed across Lake Three, winding between islands and
checking out cool rocks. By the time we'd gotten to the far end of Lake Four, the kids were bushed, hot,
and hungry again, so we stopped for lunch. We swam and explored the campsite we had stopped at,
which was very pretty and already stocked with firewood for the next lucky camper. Lunch was simple
but good- crackers and cheese, spearmint leaves, and trail mix.
Jesse and Jules decided to stay put while the rest of us headed over to Bridge Lake to continue
exploring. What a pretty paddle, and a welcome change from the open expanses of the numbered
lakes- it was narrow with high banks and rocky outcrops, and I got some great photos of lichen and
this cool rock that looked like an upside down park bench. We also saw a bald eagle and a deer
drinking by the side of the water. Best of all, we were paddling back to rejoin the rest of the group
when we saw what looked like loon and a smaller duck. As we got closer we saw that it was an adult
loon and a baby- still fairly fluffy and about 1/2 the size of the adult. The adult dove and the baby
swam around pepping pitifully, then the adult surfaced pretty close to our canoe, looking mightily
pissed off. We paddled off quickly! We collected Jesse and Jules and began to paddle back to camp- by
this time it was mid to late afternoon. A group of canoes was huddled together looking at their maps,
and I paddled over to see if they needed anything. They were hunting for an open campsite and looking
pretty frustrated, so we directed them to the site we had just left and wished them well, then paddled
back home.
As I mentioned before, this was a special birthday dinner for Jules. We made 3 cheese tortellini with
Alfredo sauce, sundried tomatoes, and pouched chicken and it was stupendous! Thanks, I think, to
Arkansas Man, who suggested the tortellini. For dessert we had another suggestion from the recipe
forum- openface blueberry pie made, of course, in the jello mold oven. Holy Cow! I'm not sure I have
ever felt quite so decadent in the wilderness. We sang goofy versions of the birthday song and
treasured our last night in the woods together.
The day dawned clear and lovely, and promised to be a great day to explore! It was also Jules's 13th
birthday and we had the best meal of our trip in store for us when we returned to camp. I fried up a
huge pile of potatoes, onions, and summer sausage with melted cheese on top and we were ready to hit
the water. It was nice to be able to let the duffers stretch out in the canoes, and I resolved yet again not
to go next year without the 3rd canoe.
With the kids in the bow of the canoes, we headed across Lake Three, winding between islands and
checking out cool rocks. By the time we'd gotten to the far end of Lake Four, the kids were bushed, hot,
and hungry again, so we stopped for lunch. We swam and explored the campsite we had stopped at,
which was very pretty and already stocked with firewood for the next lucky camper. Lunch was simple
but good- crackers and cheese, spearmint leaves, and trail mix.
Jesse and Jules decided to stay put while the rest of us headed over to Bridge Lake to continue
exploring. What a pretty paddle, and a welcome change from the open expanses of the numbered
lakes- it was narrow with high banks and rocky outcrops, and I got some great photos of lichen and
this cool rock that looked like an upside down park bench. We also saw a bald eagle and a deer
drinking by the side of the water. Best of all, we were paddling back to rejoin the rest of the group
when we saw what looked like loon and a smaller duck. As we got closer we saw that it was an adult
loon and a baby- still fairly fluffy and about 1/2 the size of the adult. The adult dove and the baby
swam around pepping pitifully, then the adult surfaced pretty close to our canoe, looking mightily
pissed off. We paddled off quickly! We collected Jesse and Jules and began to paddle back to camp- by
this time it was mid to late afternoon. A group of canoes was huddled together looking at their maps,
and I paddled over to see if they needed anything. They were hunting for an open campsite and looking
pretty frustrated, so we directed them to the site we had just left and wished them well, then paddled
back home.
As I mentioned before, this was a special birthday dinner for Jules. We made 3 cheese tortellini with
Alfredo sauce, sundried tomatoes, and pouched chicken and it was stupendous! Thanks, I think, to
Arkansas Man, who suggested the tortellini. For dessert we had another suggestion from the recipe
forum- openface blueberry pie made, of course, in the jello mold oven. Holy Cow! I'm not sure I have
ever felt quite so decadent in the wilderness. We sang goofy versions of the birthday song and
treasured our last night in the woods together.
Day 11 of 1
Sunday, July 30, 2006
We piled out of our tents to find a different sort of day than the ones we'd had so far- rain was threatening
and it was kind of chilly. We had a good paddle ahead of us, so I knew breakfast was needed but it was
quick. While I cooked and made coffee, the rest of the crew broke camp and packed our gear. By the time
the breakfast dishes were washed and the kitchen pack was ready to go, lightning and thunder and rain
were in full possession of the sky. We huddled in the woods watching lightning strike the islands across
the lake from us and trying not to get crabby. During one break in the downpour, ML and I quickly
grabbed everyone's polypro and wool socks and made sure the kids put theirs on. Alex discovered why I
tried to talk her into buying good raingear instead of borrowing my poncho- she got pretty wet from the
knees on down.
Finally the worst of the electricity seemed to have passed us by and we piled into the canoes in the rain
and headed for the portages that would take us home. As we paddled the rain mostly quit but it was
pretty cold, and we switched paddlers a few times to keep folks from getting too cold duffing. We made
good time, and before we knew it we were coming around the final bend and the landing was in sight.
We had just got the canoes and gear loaded into/on the cars and had changed into our clean dry
clothes when the sky let loose with more rain. We headed into Ely and returned our life jackets and got
a great recommendation from Voyageurs North for a place to eat, Ely not being our usual entry point.
We had a huge meal at Verteens(sp???) and by the time we left Ely it was hot and sunny again. The miles
flew by too quickly, and before we knew it we were unloading the canoes and talking about next year.
We piled out of our tents to find a different sort of day than the ones we'd had so far- rain was threatening
and it was kind of chilly. We had a good paddle ahead of us, so I knew breakfast was needed but it was
quick. While I cooked and made coffee, the rest of the crew broke camp and packed our gear. By the time
the breakfast dishes were washed and the kitchen pack was ready to go, lightning and thunder and rain
were in full possession of the sky. We huddled in the woods watching lightning strike the islands across
the lake from us and trying not to get crabby. During one break in the downpour, ML and I quickly
grabbed everyone's polypro and wool socks and made sure the kids put theirs on. Alex discovered why I
tried to talk her into buying good raingear instead of borrowing my poncho- she got pretty wet from the
knees on down.
Finally the worst of the electricity seemed to have passed us by and we piled into the canoes in the rain
and headed for the portages that would take us home. As we paddled the rain mostly quit but it was
pretty cold, and we switched paddlers a few times to keep folks from getting too cold duffing. We made
good time, and before we knew it we were coming around the final bend and the landing was in sight.
We had just got the canoes and gear loaded into/on the cars and had changed into our clean dry
clothes when the sky let loose with more rain. We headed into Ely and returned our life jackets and got
a great recommendation from Voyageurs North for a place to eat, Ely not being our usual entry point.
We had a huge meal at Verteens(sp???) and by the time we left Ely it was hot and sunny again. The miles
flew by too quickly, and before we knew it we were unloading the canoes and talking about next year.
discuss this trip report (6 comments) - last post on August 12, 2009