BWCA First BWCA trip, entering at 20. Route thoughts? Boundary Waters Trip Planning Forum
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deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/09/2018 08:28AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
The only entry point on the western side we were able to snag last minute was 20. We've heard the Boulder Bay/Lake Agnes area is fatastic, so we really wanted to make it over that way. Can you give feedback on my group's proposed route?

Group: 4 people
Equipment: 2, 2-person canoes
Dates: 8/6 thru 8/11(Noon departure)

Day 1: EP #20 -> Beartrap Lake
Day 2: Beartrap Lake ->Stuart Lake
Day 3: Stuart Lake -> Boulder Bay
Day 4: Boulder Bay (Chill day, explore the bay)
Day 5: Boulder Bay -> Lake Agnes or Nina Moose Lake*
Day 6: Lake Agnes or Nina Moose Lake* -> EP #16

*We did want to leave around noon on Saturday, so one thing we're not sure of is if we should stay at Lake Agnes the night before or if we should camp a little closer to EP16, like at Nina Moose Lake?

Thanks.
 
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OtherBob
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07/09/2018 08:53AM  
As long as you made it to Boulder Bay, you should hop across the Bottle Portage and paddle a couple of miles to see the spectacular Curtain Falls.
07/09/2018 09:28AM  
Which entry point is #20?
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/09/2018 09:44AM  
OtherBob: "As long as you made it to Boulder Bay, you should hop across the Bottle Portage and paddle a couple of miles to see the spectacular Curtain Falls. "


I see Bottle Lake and Bottle Portage over in Canada, kind of between Boulder Bay and Iron Lake, but I'm not sure where the Curtain Falls are exactly? Is it over Canadian waters?

Did the rest of our route see reasonable? We're not trying to go the wrong way on any of these rivers or anything?
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/09/2018 09:47AM  
jwartman59: "Which entry point is #20?"


EP20 is about a 600 rod portage from Angleworm Lake.
07/09/2018 02:08PM  
Single portaging you might be able to make beartrap lake in your time frame, double will be tough. From beartrap to Stuart lake involves some seldom used portages. I was on these in the seventies and eighties, no plans to go back. River currents are not an issue in this area. I’m not sure what type of canoeing background you have and your physical condition but your first two days are about as tough as it gets up here. After doing the angleworm portage you’ll most likely be ready to call it a day, the lakes northeast of here are prime. Enjoy them and maybe exit through Herman, you will probably not want to do the angleworm again though the angleworm-tease portage is almost as bad.
VoyageurNorth
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07/09/2018 10:38PM  
With the rain we have had this year, (unless it doesn't rain for a full month, which is highly unlikely) you should be fine with the Beartrap River this year but you'll most likely have a few extra portages over some trees/deadfall from the wind storms we've also been having.

If you want to camp at Nina Moose your last night, make sure you get there by noon. The reason is that Nina Moose often fills up because people are thinking the same thing and if you get to Nina Moose and it is full and 3-4 pm, the only way to go then, is out.

If you will be leaving your car at #16 Moose River, at least you'd be able to come back to town if that happened.

Curtain Falls is just east of Iron Lake. Very beautiful all the time and this year the water flow is even nicer. Do the 80 rod Bottle portage on the Canadian side, which is legal to do & no special permits needed. (if you plan to go to Boulder Bay through Iron Lake?)
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/10/2018 02:00PM  
VoyageurNorth: "With the rain we have had this year, (unless it doesn't rain for a full month, which is highly unlikely) you should be fine with the Beartrap River this year but you'll most likely have a few extra portages over some trees/deadfall from the wind storms we've also been having.


If you want to camp at Nina Moose your last night, make sure you get there by noon. The reason is that Nina Moose often fills up because people are thinking the same thing and if you get to Nina Moose and it is full and 3-4 pm, the only way to go then, is out.


If you will be leaving your car at #16 Moose River, at least you'd be able to come back to town if that happened.


Curtain Falls is just east of Iron Lake. Very beautiful all the time and this year the water flow is even nicer. Do the 80 rod Bottle portage on the Canadian side, which is legal to do & no special permits needed. (if you plan to go to Boulder Bay through Iron Lake?)"


We'll be getting transported in and out, so we'll need to make getting a campsite Friday a priority. Any idea how long it would take to get from either Nina Moose Lake or the South end of Lake Anges to out Exit Point 16? We were estimating about 4 hours.

I see the Bottle Portage on the Canadian side of the map, I must not have noticed it before because I was looking for the yellow lines. I didn't know that would be a legal thing to do. The plan is to go to Stuart Lake from Beartrap Lake on Day 2, and then from Stuart lake to Boulder Bay.
VoyageurNorth
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07/10/2018 04:46PM  
From Agnes, about 4.5 hours to exit point, from Nina Moose about 2 hours.

But remember if you want to go to Nina Moose because you want a shorter last day, get there early enough to find an open site. It is busy, but if that doesn't matter as much as getting out in less time, then go for it.
billconner
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07/10/2018 05:51PM  
"We'll be getting transported in and out"

Do you mean "shuttled" to ep? You may know but you don't have to exit at the ep you entered at. Might make it easier on what I percieve is a tight out day.or i completley misunderstood and apologize.
07/11/2018 10:11AM  
How are you getting from Beartrap to Stuart? Up to Iron and then down through Dark/Rush/Fox......or through Sterling and the PMA? Just curious...
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/11/2018 10:18AM  
cowdoc: "How are you getting from Beartrap to Stuart? Up to Iron and then down through Dark/Rush/Fox......or through Sterling and the PMA? Just curious..."


We were thinking of Beartrap/Sterling/Bibon/Nibin to get to Stuart.

But Stuart was never really a destination for us, just a way to get to Boulder Bay. We were actaully looking at this last night and were thinking about going Beartrap/Sunday/Crooked instead. Then the next day going from Crooked/Iron/Bottle Portage/Boulder Bay, which would allow us to see Curtain Falls on the way and seems like it would be a more fun route to travel.
07/11/2018 10:57AM  
Good idea, the sterling route is not maintained by the forest service, a very experienced friend was here several years ago and commented on how difficult it was. Beartrap creek also a nonmaintained route but it is fairly easy by comparison. A more typical route here would be gun lake to papoose. Much of the area northwest of angleworm is in the sundial primitive management area, I wouldn’t recommend these areas for a first time tripper.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/11/2018 11:58AM  
jwartman59: "Good idea, the sterling route is not maintained by the forest service, a very experienced friend was here several years ago and commented on how difficult it was. Beartrap creek also a nonmaintained route but it is fairly easy by comparison. A more typical route here would be gun lake to papoose. Much of the area northwest of angleworm is in the sundial primitive management area, I wouldn’t recommend these areas for a first time tripper."


Thanks for the info. I think we might plan to skip Sterling and go North to Crooked instead. We'll expect Beartrap River to be a little more difficult, but if it gets us out to Crooked and ultimately to Boulder Bay and lake Agnes it'll be worth it!

As for the alternate Gun Lake/Papoose route, how would one get from Niki to Chippewa Lake? I don't see a portage or river between them. Also, what do you mean by sundial primitive management, out of curiosity?

Thanks!
inspector13
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07/11/2018 12:27PM  
deandiggity:"...what do you mean by sundial primitive management, out of curiosity?"

The US Forest Service manages certain areas of the BWCAW as un-maintained Primitive Management Areas. There are twelve of them. Anyone can visit these areas, or pass through them during the daytime, but to camp in one you must get a special PMA permit. Also, Leave no Trace principles need to be followed while visiting these areas.

07/11/2018 12:34PM  
Niki to Chippewa has a creek connection that may have some very short portages depending on water levels and beaver dams. More than likely just a lift over or Wade canoes between rocks.
Also, Beartrap river dumps into Iron lake, not Crooked. The Beartrap would cut off a good chunk of mileage, but you'll have to backtrack on Iron to see Curtain Falls then. Watch out where all the Curtain outflow finally dumps into Iron. It's a tricky little chute with sideways current that dumps a lot of people in the drink.
heavylunch
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07/11/2018 04:29PM  
Some random "opinions":

There are some challenges early on in that route. Is your group a pretty seasoned and relatively fit group? Double portaging Angleworm is going to take some time.

There are many who wouldn't even be able to make that portage without stopping and resting 2 or 3 times each trip.

I agree the Boulder River is pretty but it is also somewhat congested, so be prepared for that and look early for campsites. Agnes and Nina Moose too.

Curtain Falls is worth seeing if possible. I think Bottle portage is safe, I would personally make sure everyone in the party has their fishing rods mostly put away while in Canadian waters (no lures on lines or fish on stringers). I was personally checked there once by the Canada rangers. They were ok but didn't seem like the type to joke around.

07/11/2018 10:04PM  
Bored tonight....did some maps and math. Angleworm to Beartrap, to Niki/Chippewa to Friday Bay/Crooked to Iron to LLC to Agnes to Nina Moose to e.p. 16 is roughly 45ish miles. The kicker is that the total length of portaging is close to 7 miles. If you double portage......that will be 21 miles of slogging gear. This may not be the route you had in mind......your postings have been a tad unclear. 21 miles of portaging is a fair amount.(unless you single portage.....but I doubt you will single portage if you're toting outfitter gear/food) You'll either be hardened, well seasoned trippers when done........or you'll never want to see the place again. Curious to know if you have an idea of what the portages are like??
Go over your maps again and post an accurate intended route and maybe we can give you some clearer ideas.
Try these online/interactive maps out for planning. Voyageur Maps
07/12/2018 01:06AM  
I never used to plan trips. We’d drive from Duluth and see what was available. I’d bring my box of maps and plan it from there. I’ve entered from angleworm at least a dozen times. It’s a gorgeous lake, one of my favorites. It might be 600 rods or maybe 720. It doesn’t matter. It’s seriously long, not that difficult though. Just really really long. It becomes a mind game. Where is that freaking lake???? Kill me...
So yeah this will be a great intro to the bwca. But after that portage, which really isn’t that bad, I’d suggest enjoying those perfect lakes just northeast of angleworm.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 07:43AM  
cowdoc:
Also, Beartrap river dumps into Iron lake, not Crooked. The Beartrap would cut off a good chunk of mileage, but you'll have to backtrack on Iron to see Curtain Falls then. "

The plan was to take the Portage from Sunday Lake to Crooked Lake, but I guess just taking Beartrap River to Iron is an option. Like you said there would be some backtracking involved to see Curtain Falls.

Any idea how the portage from Sunday to Crooked is? Or what the rest of Beartrap river, from Sunday Lake to Iron Lake is like? Just wondering if one is significantly more challenging.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 07:47AM  
heavylunch: "Some random "opinions":

There are some challenges early on in that route. Is your group a pretty seasoned and relatively fit group? Double portaging Angleworm is going to take some time.

Curtain Falls is worth seeing if possible. I think Bottle portage is safe, I would personally make sure everyone in the party has their fishing rods mostly put away while in Canadian waters (no lures on lines or fish on stringers). I was personally checked there once by the Canada rangers. They were ok but didn't seem like the type to joke around.
"


We're planning on single portaging. It makes sense to us, but maybe we're too optimistic?

There's 4 of us with 2 canoes, so we'll have 2 people carrying each canoe. As for gear, we'll each have a 50-60L pack on our back, but nothing else. I don't see any reason, other than getting tired, that we couldn't single portage? If we did double, we'd have 4 people carrying 1 canoe. What are your thoughts? I'd say my group is in above average shape overall and we're young.

Good advice on paddling through Canadian waters, I'll remember that!
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 07:57AM  
This message has had HTML content edited out of it.
cowdoc: "Bored tonight....did some maps and math. Angleworm to Beartrap, to Niki/Chippewa to Friday Bay/Crooked to Iron to LLC to Agnes to Nina Moose to e.p. 16 is roughly 45ish miles. The kicker is that the total length of portaging is close to 7 miles. If you double portage......that will be 21 miles of slogging gear. This may not be the route you had in mind......your postings have been a tad unclear. 21 miles of portaging is a fair amount.(unless you single portage.....but I doubt you will single portage if you're toting outfitter gear/food) You'll either be hardened, well seasoned trippers when done........or you'll never want to see the place again. Curious to know if you have an idea of what the portages are like??
Go over your maps again and post an accurate intended route and maybe we can give you some clearer ideas.
Try these online/interactive maps out for planning. Voyageur Maps "


We were planning a single portage. We'll each have a 50-60L backpack with all out food and gear in it. We'll tie up our lifejackets and paddles into the canoes and then we'll have 2 people carrying each canoe. Does that seem doable? If we double portaged, what would that be like...carrying packs to the end to drop off and then coming back for the canoes? We don't know what the portages are like exactly, but we know they aren't clear path trails.

Here's the updated route we have, each line representing a day:

EP20 ->Beartrap Lake
Beartrap Lake -> Crooked Lake
Crooked Lake -> Boulder Bay

Boulder Bay -> Lake Anges
Lake Agnes -> EP 16

We have it all calculated out in a Google Doc sheet and the total came in just under 40 miles total, single portaged.

deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 08:09AM  
jwartman59: "I never used to plan trips. We’d drive from Duluth and see what was available. I’d bring my box of maps and plan it from there. I’ve entered from angleworm at least a dozen times. It’s a gorgeous lake, one of my favorites. It might be 600 rods or maybe 720. It doesn’t matter. It’s seriously long, not that difficult though. Just really really long. It becomes a mind game. Where is that freaking lake???? Kill me...
So yeah this will be a great intro to the bwca. But after that portage, which really isn’t that bad, I’d suggest enjoying those perfect lakes just northeast of angleworm."


Good to know! I think we just planned of moving through this area as fast as possible the first day to get further North into Iron and Boulder, but we'll enjoy this as well.

If you're familiar with the area, is Beartrap Lake named that for any particular reason? I've heard Agnes is known for bear sightings, just wondering about Beartrap Lake/River.
07/12/2018 08:44AM  
I've never been on it, but as far as I know, the "portage" from Sunday to Crooked is not maintained. It's not an official portage and may be not much more than a well marked bushwack. Maybe somebody has been on it recently and can give you better info. Staying on the Beartrap river all the way to Iron is definitely the easier way. But like I said earlier, if you want to see Curtain Falls, you'll have to paddle back east on Iron.
Just to clarify on your portaging plans....you stated that 2 people will carry a canoe. Does that mean one person under one canoe (x2), or do you mean 2 people per canoe (a person at each end of the canoe)?
07/12/2018 10:02AM  
As far as I know the portage north out of Sunday lake no longer exists. I believe that in the past it was used as a winter route to supply resorts at curtain falls. Single portaging is very doable if you plan for weight. The areas you are visiting see light to very light use, Bears are not an issue.
07/12/2018 10:14AM  
I wondered the same thing as cowdoc. It's much easier to just have one person portaging the canoe; that's why they have yokes and pads in the middle. You may want to rearrange your gear so that 2 people carry a light pack and a canoe each and the other 2 carry a heavier pack. You can alternate the carries.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 11:01AM  
cowdoc: "I've never been on it, but as far as I know, the "portage" from Sunday to Crooked is not maintained. It's not an official portage and may be not much more than a well marked bushwack. Maybe somebody has been on it recently and can give you better info. Staying on the Beartrap river all the way to Iron is definitely the easier way. But like I said earlier, if you want to see Curtain Falls, you'll have to paddle back east on Iron.
Just to clarify on your portaging plans....you stated that 2 people will carry a canoe. Does that mean one person under one canoe (x2), or do you mean 2 people per canoe (a person at each end of the canoe)?"


Thanks for the info! Maybe staying on Beartrap River to Iron is the better route.

We'd have 2 people carrying each canoe, but if that isn't ideal and it's easier for 1 person to carry it, then we'd have 2 people that could switch out of the 1-man carry.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/12/2018 11:08AM  
boonie: "I wondered the same thing as cowdoc. It's much easier to just have one person portaging the canoe; that's why they have yokes and pads in the middle. You may want to rearrange your gear so that 2 people carry a light pack and a canoe each and the other 2 carry a heavier pack. You can alternate the carries. "


That makes sense. It looked like there was just one set of portage pads on canoes, but I didn't know if it were different for a 2-person canoe. Carrying it alone and switching off every 15 minutes or so should be fine.
07/12/2018 01:32PM  
I don't know if you're renting kevlars or not, but you'll find it easier either way. The kevlar canoes are very light - around 42 lbs. +/-. Once up on your shoulders they are pretty much at the balance point and the weight is centered directly over you. Even I can pick one up onto my shoulders and carry it solo, even for a long portage, and I'm neither young nor strong. There is a technique though for picking it up that you should become familiar with.


Here's one video.
Z4K
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07/17/2018 12:36AM  
Very good advice from everyone! I worry you are not heeding the questions about your group's experience level.

How many in your group have canoe tripped before? Backpacked (extended trips)? Navigated lakes and rivers? Any athletes? Military Veterans?

I believe your route choice is overly ambitious and could be disastrous if the answers to the above questions are less than 50% Yes.

I would not suggest this route to anyone with less than 5 BWCA or similar trips under their belt, backpacking-level gear and a lightweight canoe.

That being said, I entered EP20 in June of this year with a BWCA newbie and my yellow lab. He had light gear and I was very confident in his physical fitness and even more so in his mental toughness. We single portaged with 45# packs each (20# on the canine) and traded off carrying the 45# canoe (with seats, LJs, etc probably putting it closer to 55) with the other guy carrying exactly 3 fishing rods and 3 paddles. Like this, we traveled much faster than I have ever traveled in the BWCA before. The other guy runs, trains MMA, does hot yoga, and basically lives to destroy his body on a daily basis. I just canoe all the time. I should also note that the summer solstice was day 3 or 4 so we had maximum daylight.

I should just write up a trip report but for now, here's a summary.

After picking up our permit at Piragis around 7pm we portaged the Angleworm Trail and camped at one of the first backpacking sites. I had been monitoring the backpacking permits (EP21) for a few days so I figured they would be completely empty and they were. This was quite the workout and we were all three glad that the day ended after this portage alone.

Day 2 we got the canoe wet for the first time in Angleworm around 7 and pulled into camp on Beartrap Lake before 11am. Easy peasy. Here I will endorse your plan for the first day of your trip.

Day 3 we were about to push off down the Beartrap River when another group came paddling by, headed for our portage. We decided to give them a good hour of a head start so we waited around camp until 830 or so. Most of an hour long lunch break at Sunday Lake and a half hour long accidental detour into the south arm of Peterson Bay put us at the first campsite in Peterson Bay around 4pm. But it was occupied. As were the next 8 sites. We were getting awfully tired when we stopped for a snack and pictures at Curtain Falls. We ended up setting up camp around 9pm close to Saturday Bay on Crooked after over 12 hours of travelling (with an hour and a half of breaks). On the bright side, there was little difficulty in traversing the Beartrap River, and we managed to catch dinner in about 5 minutes after setting up camp. We did not fish at all prior to setting up camp, and other than the two breaks we were either paddling or portaging all day.

The next two days held over 700 rods of portaging each. They were both painful. Made it back to the car alive. Even the dog was exhausted.

I've been on over 30 overnight canoe trips (14 in the BWCA) and this was by far the most ambitious and downright difficult. We pulled through and had a good time doing it but my partner was THE ONLY GUY I KNOW who could handle it with a smile on his face. The weather was perfect. Anything else and neither of us would have been smiling.

As for Day 3? Day 3 was a dumpster fire. Don't have a Day 3. It might have been very different if we were on the water at 5am. It might have been the same.

Traveling every day like you are planning is tough on anyone that is not in very good physical condition, and a bad day like our Day 3 will straight up break your will. Throw a day or two of rain in there and none of you will want to go back to the BWCA again.

If you have confidence in your group and you fill most of the criteria I mentioned at the beginning of your post, I say GO FOR IT. Next year or the year after. Do something easier for your first trip, and make sure to plan at least one extra day for exhaustion/weather.

Getting the PMA permit for Sunday Lake on Day 2 would be a great help to you if you must travel on unmaintained routes. Gotta get that from the ranger station day-of. You can sleep 4 uncomfortably at either site on that lake. Maybe backtrack on day 3, spending a couple days working your way towards Mudro or Hegman. The Angleworm/Trease portage is a doozy. Or head from Sunday towards Agnes/Nina Moose like you wanted, but cut out Boulder Bay. Or just go from Angleworm to Crooked via the conventional route and then back to exit Angleworm/Mudro/Hegman. If permits were really that booked up when you got yours, expect to have a hard time finding campsites so move EARLY. Remember that the Horse/Fourtown/TCM area has a reputation for being busy.
deandiggity
member (15)member
  
07/17/2018 01:57PM  
Z4K: "Very good advice from everyone! I worry you are not heeding the questions about your group's experience level.

How many in your group have canoe tripped before? Backpacked (extended trips)? Navigated lakes and rivers? Any athletes? Military Veterans?

I believe your route choice is overly ambitious and could be disastrous if the answers to the above questions are less than 50% Yes.

I would not suggest this route to anyone with less than 5 BWCA or similar trips under their belt, backpacking-level gear and a lightweight canoe.

That being said, I entered EP20 in June of this year with a BWCA newbie and my yellow lab. He had light gear and I was very confident in his physical fitness and even more so in his mental toughness. We single portaged with 45# packs each (20# on the canine) and traded off carrying the 45# canoe (with seats, LJs, etc probably putting it closer to 55) with the other guy carrying exactly 3 fishing rods and 3 paddles. Like this, we traveled much faster than I have ever traveled in the BWCA before. The other guy runs, trains MMA, does hot yoga, and basically lives to destroy his body on a daily basis. I just canoe all the time. I should also note that the summer solstice was day 3 or 4 so we had maximum daylight.

I should just write up a trip report but for now, here's a summary.

After picking up our permit at Piragis around 7pm we portaged the Angleworm Trail and camped at one of the first backpacking sites. I had been monitoring the backpacking permits (EP21) for a few days so I figured they would be completely empty and they were. This was quite the workout and we were all three glad that


Thanks for the write up! Really good information that we'll have to take into consideration. We've been talking about altering our route or maybe adding another day or day and a half to the trip to then accomedate the route we currently have planned.

To answer you question about our group, we've been on extended backpacking trips, have been on canoe trips, and I would say we're athletic. Former athletes who stay in shape at least. We're not Vets and we have experience in a canoe, but navigating rivers and lakes is limited.

A couple questions:

When you say you we monitoring the backpacking permits, what does that mean? Are you talking about the permits/day for an Entry Point? There are no permits for campsites, right? That's just first come, first serve? Just making sure.

Are you saying that getting to Beartrap Lake from EP20 in one day is something you endorse? We would be starting as early in the morning as possible, so with a solid 8 hours, is that doable?
Z4K
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07/17/2018 03:52PM  
deandiggity:When you say you we monitoring the backpacking permits, what does that mean? Are you talking about the permits/day for an Entry Point?


Yes, I was watching permits for EP21, which is for hikers/backpackers only. Look on Recreation.gov to see available permits and subtract that from the quota for the EP to find out how many groups plan on entering there that day (and a few on either side) to have an idea how many sites will be full in the area. Some groups might camp 20 miles away on their first night, but far more go in a handful of miles and stay put for a week. You might want to check this out for your exit point too, especially for the night that you plan on camping close to it.

deandiggity: There are no permits for campsites, right? That's just first come, first serve? Just making sure.


Correct. The only campsites that require permits are the ones within PMAs, and even then you're not reserving a site; you are reserving an area of the PMA to spend the night.

deandiggity: Are you saying that getting to Beartrap Lake from EP20 in one day is something you endorse? We would be starting as early in the morning as possible, so with a solid 8 hours, is that doable?"


I think I edited poorly there, but yes, you should try it, and it will tell you how well you can travel. EP20-Beartrap is like 3.5 miles of portaging and approximately that much again paddling. Most paddlers consider that a big day because of all those miles on foot. Use it as a litmus test for your group. If you make it there in 6 hours, you did it faster than we here think first-timers can go and the rest of your plans are within reach. If you end up staying on Home after 8 hours - scrap all your plans for the week, make a plan B, and find some cell service in the next couple days to notify the outfitter.

deandiggity:We've been talking about altering our route or maybe adding another day or day and a half to the trip to then accomedate the route we currently have planned.


Absolutely add a day. Or two. Weather is unpredictable and crowds are somewhat unpredictable. You never know when you'll run across 9 full campsites in a row or the wind will blow you into camp for two days (Keep that in mind when you're choosing a site on a big lake) or a rainstorm will keep you in your tent for a couple days/require a layover day to dry everything out. Expect your plans to change.

Sounds like a great trip! Very ambitious for first-timers, but backpacking experience is a big plus. Be safe!
gopher2307
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07/17/2018 11:45PM  
Short and sweet opinion...based on your line of questions I think you should pick a different EP.

This is not some elite-ist blog talk, though I recognize it sounds like it. Bdubs just takes a couple trips to get the hang of and you are headed for a black diamond when you may want to learn on at least a medium difficulty path.

Consider a Moose Lake entry and a big loop through Knife and Kek. Or go Lake One to Insula/Alice and back out Snowbank. Those areas allow your ambition to remain in terms of distance, but also backup options to shorten should a mutiny be brewing.
07/19/2018 07:11AM  
We've hiked the Angleworm Trail (ep21, physically the same as 20 but for backpacking permits) several times and I can tell you the two miles from the entry to the lake is pretty easy by backpacking standards, but it's going to be a tough portage. Consider single or at most 1.5 portaging - double or more would take all day. Also, there's a place about halfway through where the trail divides, with both trails heading north, and the left trail is low and flat while the right trail goes up. You want the right one - the left is for canoe access to one of the ponds before Angleworm and you don't want it if your goal is Angleworm.

It's a beautiful area and doable if you pack right. I wouldn't recommend it to a novice - heck I keep talking about paddling it but have put it off. But plan for it and you'll be fine. I think your schedule is doable if weather is good but if you can give yourself an extra day or even two it'll be more fun.

Lake Agnes is a safer bet for finding a site before your exit day, but it's a good paddle from even the southwest end to the entry point. Many sites on Nina Moose are very nice but they are heavily used and many groups don't move once they're there. You certainly shouldn't paddle to Nina Moose without a plan for what you'll do if they're all taken. But it's a nice, quick, easy paddle out from there.
07/19/2018 09:14AM  
Chuck at spring Creek used to get up into Sunday lake in a day going in that ep. Sunday lake is in the PMA so you'd need a permit there. And then go to iron and see curtain falls. I don't know why you'd even consider portaging Sunday lake to crooked. I guess I'm a little confused... Walleye s gallor there. Haha.
 
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