Nobody needs to be told that these go fast and have been largely snapped up again this year for the most popular EPs for most of the season. I just thought I'd post a statistical accounting of a hand-picking of this year's most popular spots for the 4 months from May 15 - September 15. The data was collected on March 26th, two months into the reservation season.

Maybe it will help those looking for the spots that you had better think of reserving right away when it opens next year... or those looking for places to totally avoid.

Thank you for compiling this. I'm bewildered by the Stuart River entry being booked out. As little as 4 years ago I could get a permit there almost anytime of the year I feel like. The 480 rod opening portage doesn't lend itself to the newer BWCA crowd.

Great data, thanks.

MidwestFirecraft: "Thank you for compiling this. I'm bewildered by the Stuart River entry being booked out. As little as 4 years ago I could get a permit there almost anytime of the year I feel like. The 480 rod opening portage doesn't lend itself to the newer BWCA crowd. "

Bingo! That shocked me a bit too.
Thanks Schweady. Very good info.
PF

Absolutely crazy! Pre-Covid, I remember booking an EP mid June for a mid August Entry and many of those were available on a friday entry, with nearly all available for mid week entry. I also remember many years past, booking for a may trip, maybe a week or two prior to entry and having a choice of many EP's, with some of the more popular being available. Crazy!

Great summary - thanks for putting it together.

I still believe the folks who have continually maintained that the east side is quieter than the west. The latest surge notwithstanding, this is may still be valid. This focus, however, exposes some obvious pockets of concentration in the east. Probably due to the ease with which one can get in and get to a relatively enjoyable site and some decent fishing.

That is just crazy but also shows how critical the quota system has become.
Not long ago there was occasional talk about how the BWCA was losing users year after year.

I’m curious how many permits get cancelled too or go unused. Probably a lot.
Tom

Thank you schweady. I’ve always booked my permits less than 3 weeks prior to my trips. Looks like that will need to change. Some of those trips were to entry points from this list that were completely booked up right away.

MidwestFirecraft: "Thank you for compiling this. I'm bewildered by the Stuart River entry being booked out. As little as 4 years ago I could get a permit there almost anytime of the year I feel like. The 480 rod opening portage doesn't lend itself to the newer BWCA crowd. "

I'm guessing people use it as an alternative when Moose River north is full.

Porkeater: "

MidwestFirecraft: "Thank you for compiling this. I'm bewildered by the Stuart River entry being booked out. As little as 4 years ago I could get a permit there almost anytime of the year I feel like. The 480 rod opening portage doesn't lend itself to the newer BWCA crowd. "

I'm guessing people use it as an alternative when Moose River north is full. "

Possibly, but it's booked out in the first 15 minutes! Just for fun after I get my permit I look at which entry points are filing up and how far out. 15 minutes in and Stuart was booked out into September!

Nice work thank you!

Even Angleworm is booked solid from mid July. I'd be looking for bodies along this portage.

EddyTurn: "Even Angleworm is booked solid from mid July. I'd be looking for bodies along this portage."

Not sure where you are getting your info. Using the same data compilation criteria as above and number of permits pulled as of today, Angleworm shows:

20 - Angleworm Lake
Daily Quota - 2
Permits Taken - 99
Permits Available - 149
Percentage of Permits Taken - 39.92%
Number of Days Filled - 34
Number of Days Not Filled - 90
Percentage of Days Filled - 27.42%

Nowhere near the 90-100% numbers seen above.

Thanks for putting this together, Schweady! It's great information.

Will you be adding an updated version?

wanderingfromkansas: "...Will you be adding an updated version?"

I have thought of doing a similar snapshot just prior to the opening of the reservation season, but the only change I'd anticipate would be those permits cancelled in May due to concerns about this year's late ice-out. It might also expose some cancellations season-wide made by overly-aggressive users who made more reservations than they can possibly use, I'm not sure. That would mean going back to creating comparison views of the 5-month calendars for every EP, and there is another paddling site that displays this quite well already.

Was there something in particular you might want to see?