Wikipedia states: "From Fort Charlotte the canoe route then went west up the Pigeon past the mouth of the Arrow River to the east-west Mountain Lake. The old Indian route went north, with a drop of 125 feet (38 m), to the east-west Arrow Lake. The voyageurs, with their heavy freight canoes, cut a new route that ran west over the Petit Neuf or Watape Portage to Watape Lake which is in the Arrow River drainage. Then through the Petit Detroit to Rove Lake and the Grand Neuf or Long Portage to Rose Lake at the west end of Arrow Lake."

No source is given.

I'm looking at Mountain Lake and Arrow Lake, and I don't see a good potential portage between them. Anyone know what this was?

I think the wording is messed up. The best way would have been up the Arrow River to the Arrow Lakes and then to Rose. So maybe the sentence should read: “The old Indian route went north (up the Arrow River), with a (rise) of 125 feet (38 m), to the east-west Arrow Lake.”

Here is a thread that discusses this route. Looks like jwartman59 knows the scoop. Maybe you could e-mail him.

I re-read and looked at maps, so it does seem jwartman59 is saying somewhat of the same as the Wikipedia quote (minus the Arrow River part), but I must be wrong about traveling up the Arrow River. There are several places where there are falls and rapids and it really doesn’t make sense to take that circuitous route.

From the topo map and existing trails (roads?) it doesn’t look too bad to go from Mountain to Arrow Lake through West Wabindon and Little Whitefish Lake. But I am just speculating.

inspector13: "From the topo map and existing trails (roads?) it doesn’t look too bad to go from Mountain to Arrow Lake through West Wabindon and Little Whitefish Lake. But I am just speculating."

To further speculate, there's a secondary road that heads straight north from Mountain Lake towards West Wabindon for about half that distance, perhaps this is follows part of the old portage trail. West Wabindon to Little Whitefish may be a navigable creek.

To my eyes, looking at the topo (and admittedly not being on the ground), Mountain to West Wabindon, then east to Wabindon and then over the narrow strip of land to Arrow is also a possible route.

Alternatively, there's that big swampy area with a creek between Wabindon and Mountain. If that was followed east, it would connect to the Arrow river a few miles downstream from Arrow lake. Would that creek be navigable? Maybe, especially with a lightly loaded small solo canoe. Which, now that I think about it, may be the reason for the Voyageur's detour - perhaps whatever route it is, a small solo canoe could be paddled for most of it, but the larger Canot du Nord at 20 '- 25' may not be able to, thus encouraging the Voyageurs to find a new route.