BWCA Advice needed on Agnes loop Boundary Waters Trip Planning Forum
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mountaingoat
member (23)member
  
05/02/2018 09:17PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
We are considering a loop up Agnes to Kawnipi and coming down Cairn, Sark, Keefer to Kahshahpiwi, Yum Yum to North Bay. Doable in 5 nights? We have been on Agnes but not all the way up North. Are Cairn and Sark nice lakes? Thanks for any input! We are trying to see new lakes this year.
 
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05/03/2018 06:51AM  
Almost 80 miles, 65 if you get a tow to PP. Doable for experienced paddlers. You may have to hump hard a few days if you get some wind against you.
05/03/2018 04:44PM  
wow.....5 nights? Seems like you're going to have to hustle and not have much time to fish or do anything else. On the wrong day(s), it could take 2 nights just to travel Agnes.
mountaingoat
member (23)member
  
05/03/2018 10:48PM  
Good insights...we don’t fish but we do like to hang out in camp....so this might be too ambitious.
marsonite
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05/04/2018 07:52AM  
mountaingoat: "We are considering a loop up Agnes to Kawnipi and coming down Cairn, Sark, Keefer to Kahshahpiwi, Yum Yum to North Bay. Doable in 5 nights? We have been on Agnes but not all the way up North. Are Cairn and Sark nice lakes? Thanks for any input! We are trying to see new lakes this year. "


I did that loop in six nights, with a tow in to PP and paddle out. Did it in reverse of your plan. We were single tripping the portages. We like to cover ground, and we had bad wind on the last day, though we still made it from the main body of Agnes to Basswood that day. Also, on the first day we only made it to North bay. So five nights is fairly ambitious but doable. If you got up there and decided you didn't want to travel that much, there are several options to go from Agnes to Kashawapiwi via Trant.

Cairn and Sark are decent lakes, but nothing special. Kevin Callan talks up Cairn in his book on the Quetico but I didn't see the appeal. Khashawapiwi is the nicest lake in that little chain of lakes IMO (Cairn, Sark, Keefer, Khash).
GraniteCliffs
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05/04/2018 08:39PM  
I think your route is very doable in five nights. That assumes everyone is in pretty good condition, experienced and single portaging-----with favorable winds.
I am heading on this exact route solo in mid August. I will be towed to PP early the first day. I will head up Agnes to start and hope to come down on the Piwi side to camp back on Sunday Lake on night five. Now, of course, I said hope. I like to paddle and portage slowly most of the day when on a solo, which helps.
As Marsonite pointed out if you head this way you would have options if you decide not to go all the way up and around. What I call the Trant Lake Cut-off will bring you to Trant and Piwi. You can also head further up Agnes and out, but turn and head back down Hurlburt and Payne. I did this on a solo a few years back when I had lousy and windy weather. These alternatives make the route appealing to me since you can change your mind at anytime and still get over to Piwi.
mountaingoat
member (23)member
  
05/04/2018 11:23PM  
Excellent ideas about how to shorten if needed...I like all the options to head to the “piwi” side!
carmike
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05/06/2018 11:13PM  
That loop is certainly doable in five days.

For reference, I've done that exact loop multiple times, and sometimes our plan for the last day--*if* there is no problematic wind forecasted--is to camp on Sark our last night. Exit day is certainly a full day, but an early wake up with neutral (or helping) wind gets us to PP by about 4:30 (where we call LaTourell's to come get us for a tow...or we paddle out). Give or take a bit. That's single portaging everything and not dilly-dallying at portages. I don't know if many people cover that much ground, but I've done it with my wife and a few different friends, none of whom run marathons or compete in triathlons, so it's certainly doable.
05/07/2018 10:18AM  
You could do it in 3 nights if the wind doen't get you. Agnes the first day. Kawnipi on day 2 or even Cairn. Than so forth. The Agnes wind sometimes are brutal so plan accordingly like maybe earlyh paddling day 2 or if conditions right on day 1,take advantage of it.
We have made the north end of Agnes from Moose lake with no Tow a couple of times. The wind determines how far we get.
Much depends on how much fishing if any you will do.

I will say the route your taking ranks right up there with my favorites.
mountaingoat
member (23)member
  
05/07/2018 07:21PM  
Thanks everyone for the good comments. We are not single portagers, so we may need to add a night, and hope that the wind is at our back on Agnes. We are also considering heading East from Kawnipi and coming back down Kenny, McEwen and Louisa.
05/07/2018 08:38PM  
One alternative to avoid wind is that you can always go thru shade to Silence than Agnes(pretty nice campsite on Agnes just out of Silence. I will say tho, lower Agnes is one of the prettiest areas I have ever seen.

Have Fun.
 
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