I’m planning a somewhat last minute trip for mid-August, many of the entry points have been taken for the day we want to go in, but plenty were open for Fall Lake, I know this is a busy area with motorized boats and this continues into Basswood Lake. I've been up this area a few times but in really late fall so the area wasn't very busy, at least from what I was expecting.

What are people's thoughts on this route, will we be overwhelmed with motorized boats, having 8 days I'm hoping we can take our time do some side trips maybe more every other day, ect. and get into some more solitude areas.

Attached is a rough route we plan on taking, thanks in advance...

I think once you get to the amazingly easy portage going into Back Bay of Basswood you will be fine people wise. I think that portion from Back Bay to Basswood falls is really pretty I have not really ever seen very many people on that stretch.

I suspect you will see more people on the Basswood Falls to Crooked Lake portion, especially after the Horse River. Could be wrong though.

Jealous

I did PP to LLC and EP14 in July, with a Q permit, and Basswood River was pavked on US side. It seems to be a very popular area. Many seemed like base campers.

look's good to me, basswood is so impressive, and you are in the interior quite a bit. sure to be busy in there.

Did that exact loop last week only we exited Mudro.

8 days is perfect. We did it in 6 and weather made it seem rushed.

Looking back I’d pay for the tow service through the motorized zone if it gave me more time in Friday bay.

Basswood is i95 for boy scouts and everyone on the planet. So much traffic on the portage’s last week.

Friday bay was quiet. Wednesday Bay was quiet. Really didn’t get busy again until Fourtown.

Jealous. I’d do the trip over again in a heartbeat.

I agree with the others' comments so far. I did a similar route last summer but went farther into Quetico from the BW falls area through Kett to Tuck. I made Crooked (Moose Bay/Wed. Bay area) to upper BW falls in a day and not moving all that fast. The next day was just the long 5 or so hour paddle from the falls back to Fall Lake. That was the only part where I was really thinking a tow would have been nice. Boats, music blairing from radios, civilization...on Pipestone. Crooked through the falls area was not crowded but it was early June.

Thank you all for the insight, so you think the tow is really worth it...seems expensive to just save 5hrs or so of paddling

jamdemos: "Thank you all for the insight, so you think the tow is really worth it...seems expensive to just save 5hrs or so of paddling"

Hypothetical:

5 hours on a perfect day paddling you will be somewhere on basswood.

Or towed for 30 mins. You might be beyond the horse portage after 5 hours.