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Mitch19
  
09/02/2018 09:22AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Hello everyone,
Little background....I’m originally from NE Iowa and moved to Texas back in 2003. I own a bass boat but am looking at selling it in favor of getting kayaks for my son (13) and me. I’ve been thinking how memorable it would be to take him to the BWCA sometime before he graduates HS. I’ve fished LOTW before and a few other lakes up north, but have never experienced the wonder of the BWCA.

I’m more inclined to not use an outfitter and do this on our own. I’ve read through some of the trip threads on here. Just hoping to get advice on anything anyone wants to chime in about. I don’t want to be around other people on this trip.

Any lakes in particular I should begin to look at?
 
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09/02/2018 09:44AM  
Maybe you already know this, but canoes are definitely king in the BWCA. That's because they can hold more gear and are much easier to portage.

That said, there are people who kayak in the BWCA. There are very few BWCA routes that never involve portages so you'll want to figure out a good way to portage. Bow-and-stern carry isn't a good way to portage, as even the easiest BWCA portages involve a fair amount of elevation change and obstacles. You want one person carrying one kayak.

You'll most enjoy the benefits of a kayak, and minimize the hassles of a kayak, by looking at big-water routes with few portages, preferably without a portage to the entry. You might check out some of the big Ely lakes - Moose, Snowbank - as they'd get you right into the bigger water. I once took a touring kayak in at Lake One, and while it worked, even the two extremely simple portages between Lake One and Lake Two were a real buzzkill with a kayak.

If I were to take a kayak again I think I'd be inclined to enter at Moose and head up to Basswood. Prairie Portage would be kind of a challenge, but that's literally the only portage, and it's not too bad. Once you're across Prairie Portage, you've got open water all the way to Basswood Falls.
09/02/2018 09:56AM  
Sorry, I just saw your "I don't want to be around other people" comment. If that's important, I highly suggest ditching the kayak idea and going with a canoe. In the BWCA you don't get any solitude until you're crossed a few portages. There's plenty of solitude to be found on the far side of some half-mile portages, but not on the big water.

Of course, it depends on your definition of "solitude" - on the bigger lakes like Basswood you'll see plenty of people passing through, but you can certainly find campsites where you won't have to hear, or interact with, others.
09/02/2018 02:46PM  
I've done several Kayak trips in the BWCA. Couple of things I would recommend considering:
1. Spray Skirts (unless it's pretty hot weather and you've got quick dry clothes)
2. High quality Dry bags with backpack straps (to keep gear on top of Kayak under the bungees and help make portaging easier)
3. Look into detatchable Kayak Yoke (unless you plan on double portaging every portage, having two guys carry one kayak together each pass through the portage). If you're just doing really short portages, this isn;t really necessary.
4. Either buy clamp on Rod holder, or you can have one installed into the kayak. Without this, trolling in a kayak can be pretty darn difficult, but with it, fishing can be really fun. If you're not planning on fishing, then no problem! :)
4. Pack LIGHT
There are several routes you can take (Like the Granite River from Gunflint to Saganaga) that are fun on a kayak and only have short portages. There are a couple of portages (that go around rapids) on that route you can skip if you're in a Kayak (like the rapids entering into Gneiss Lake). We even went over Sag falls in our kayaks which was a blast (we portaged our gear over the short portage before going over the falls). You'll just need to do some research or contact outfitters for recommendations on good kayak routes.
Long portages with a kayak are pretty brutal (did it on one trip...never again), but as mentioned before, are the best way to find solitude if that's your goal. However, with some research I think you can find what you're after.

Mitch19
  
09/02/2018 06:16PM  
Wow thank you so much for the in depth response. Being away from people isn’t that big of a thing I guess. I just want my son to catch some fish. We are going to use our kayaks. That’s something he will definitely want to do. I know portaging a lot isn’t an option and that’s okay. Basswood allows gas motor boats correct? Just don’t want to get ran off the lake by gas boats. He would be just excited to fish and camp in the wilderness. Catching fish would be a huge bonus. Getting him a smallie or some walleyes, northerns, panfish, perch....it honestly doesn’t matter.
09/02/2018 08:21PM  
I wouldn't worry much about the motor boats on basswood. There aren't really many of them, and the motor restrictions are pretty small so nobody's moving too fast. I do prefer the non motor lakes, but the motors aren't likely to bug you.
BuckFlicks
distinguished member(628)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
09/03/2018 03:29PM  
Mitch,

I live in DFW also.

Have you been to the Buffalo River in north Arkansas? I think if you're set on a kayak trip, that might be a more fun trip than BWCA. Especially the kind of kayaks you might be used to while fishing in TX. Fishing kayaks generally weigh 80 pounds or so on the average, don't have an easy portage carry position, and don't carry a lot of gear. A two man kevlar canoe weighs 35-40 pounds, is infinitely easier to portage (by one person, at that) and carry a lot more gear comfortably.

I don't want to talk you out of the BWCA because it's a magical land. I love both the buffalo and the BW, but I'd have to think long and hard about it before agreeing to a kayak trip in BW. Like others have said, it can be done, but it's not ideal or even average kayak territory.

Since you've already decided, definitely stick to big lakes and avoid portages if possible. I like Sawbill - it's large and has lots to see, with lots of campsites, and you can get easily get to Alton (another large lake) via a relatively short portage. But if you want to get into isolated wilderness, you're going to have to lug those yaks across some serious portages.
 
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