BWCA How long does it take - Moose-PP-Agnes? Boundary Waters Trip Planning Forum
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bombinbrian
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01/15/2019 02:03PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
If I'm putting in on Moose and going through Prairie Portage, May 20th, how long does it take to get to Agnes and camp sites? I know its an opened question, with many variables, just a rough idea
 
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billconner
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01/15/2019 03:07PM  
2 to 2 1/2 hours Moose EP to PP; probably 4 to 5 hours PP to Louisa Falls if wind, rain and waves don't interfere. That's via Bayley, Burke, Sunday, and Meadows. The two Meadow's portages are not short but are well worn. They have never bothered me but probably close two hours from Sunday landing to Agnes landing - all in - double portaging.

Bayley Bay can be rough.
bombinbrian
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01/15/2019 03:31PM  
Thanks, I think we can get it done single portaging. It's just my 18yo son and me with two or maybe three packs. Just trying to make a tentative schedule.
flynn
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01/15/2019 03:44PM  
I highly recommend taking a tow on Moose Lake. It will save you a ton of time even if Moose is completely calm. I know my vacation time is quite limited so I'm more than happy to pay for the tow; it pays for itself. You should be able to get to lower or even mid Agnes on the first day, even double portaging, if you get going early and take a tow. I intend to get up there maybe next year.
01/15/2019 04:28PM  
You can save time (and avoid some of Bayley) by taking the portage from Sunday Bay into Sunday Lake. Never really understood the notion of paddling five miles to avoid 1/4 mile of portage.
01/15/2019 04:48PM  
Banksiana: "You can save time (and avoid some of Bayley) by taking the portage from Sunday Bay into Sunday Lake. Never really understood the notion of paddling five miles to avoid 1/4 mile of portage."

I agree here. The tow, at least going in, is well worth it. Your packs will be heavy the first day and you might even want to camp on Sunday or Meadows before getting to Agnes. Take it from me - don't overdo it on the first day or you could be in for a lot of pain the 2nd and 3rd days. Make sure to drink a LOT of water.

marsonite
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01/16/2019 05:47AM  
If the wind is up, you can skip Bayley Bay altogether and go through Poacher. I did that on a solo (double portaging) and made the narrows on Agnes the same day. That was with a tow to Prairie. I'd go that way every time if I could talk my wife into the 300 rod portage to Poacher.

I have gone both ways...tow to PP and paddled. I've come to like paddling up there. It's only a few hours, and realistically, a tow isn't THAT much faster, when you consider you have to fit into the outfitters schedule, arrive early, etc.
billconner
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01/16/2019 06:53AM  
marsonite: "If the wind is up, you can skip Bayley Bay altogether and go through Poacher. I did that on a solo (double portaging) and made the narrows on Agnes the same day. That was with a tow to Prairie. I'd go that way every time if I could talk my wife into the 300 rod portage to Poacher.

I have gone both ways...tow to PP and paddled. I've come to like paddling up there. It's only a few hours, and realistically, a tow isn't THAT much faster, when you consider you have to fit into the outfitters schedule, arrive early, etc."

I was not going to post that I prefer to paddle Moose rather than tow, but will support marsonite. I go to BWCAW to paddle, why tow? It's just two hours for us to paddle from CCO to PP or reverse.
bombinbrian
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01/16/2019 07:24AM  
I read on another post that if you want to leave early, you can beat the tows to PP. I'm sure that we will be leaving early. I probably won't be taking the tow as my son will want to "paddle it all" like I did back in the early '80's.

Thanks for the information. Now to decide which of the 3 routes to take to reach Sunday Lake.
Minnesotian
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01/16/2019 08:46AM  
bombinbrian: "I read on another post that if you want to leave early, you can beat the tows to PP.
Thanks for the information. Now to decide which of the 3 routes to take to reach Sunday Lake. "


Just remember that the office at Prairie Portage doesn't open until 7:45 or 8 am. And make sure you already have your fishing license and fishing card. Getting them at Prairie Portage takes up some time. If all you have to do is pick up your permit, you can be in and out in 10 min.
bombinbrian
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01/16/2019 08:50AM  
Minnesotian: "
bombinbrian: "I read on another post that if you want to leave early, you can beat the tows to PP.
Thanks for the information. Now to decide which of the 3 routes to take to reach Sunday Lake. "



Just remember that the office at Prairie Portage doesn't open until 7:45 or 8 am. And make sure you already have your fishing license and fishing card. Getting them at Prairie Portage takes up some time. If all you have to do is pick up your permit, you can be in and out in 10 min. "


That's my plan. My outfitter said he will make sure that I have everything I need.
01/16/2019 09:55AM  
The Poacher route is a decent option. Not sure exactly where it fits in the speed spectrum, probably about the same time as the direct route through Sunday (Sunday Bay to Sunday Lake) with your time consumed with portaging instead of paddling. Pretty creek into Sunday.

Most of the time when I enter through Agnes I camp on Louisa (about 1/3 of the way up the Louisa Lake) for the first night. With decent weather it takes me about 6.5 hours from camp on Louisa to Moose Lake, double portaging traveling solo.
flynn
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01/16/2019 09:55AM  
billconner: "
marsonite: "If the wind is up, you can skip Bayley Bay altogether and go through Poacher. I did that on a solo (double portaging) and made the narrows on Agnes the same day. That was with a tow to Prairie. I'd go that way every time if I could talk my wife into the 300 rod portage to Poacher.

I have gone both ways...tow to PP and paddled. I've come to like paddling up there. It's only a few hours, and realistically, a tow isn't THAT much faster, when you consider you have to fit into the outfitters schedule, arrive early, etc."

I was not going to post that I prefer to paddle Moose rather than tow, but will support marsonite. I go to BWCAW to paddle, why tow? It's just two hours for us to paddle from CCO to PP or reverse. "


No right or wrong way to do it! My June trip was quite windy last year and we estimated that with the 10-15mph headwind on our first day, it may have taken us 5 or 6 hours to paddle Moose/Newfound/Sucker. On the way back from my Sept trip, we had a ~20mph headwind coming back on Birch, and there were some small whitecaps on Sucker. Our tow didn't have an issue with this, but it would have taken us a LONG time to paddle back and I would not have been happy about it.

As for arriving early, I have always driven up the night before, stayed in the bunkhouse, and gotten up early. There's no waiting on anyone - by the time I'm awake, dressed, organized, with a little food in my belly, the outfitter was ready to tow us.

I will probably continue to use a tow for the foreseeable future when possible, because it can save me half to an entire day of paddling on a large lake with motor traffic (which I didn't come to do either - spend time around loud motors). All of my time ends up being spent in the quiet, no-motor wilderness, except for the tows themselves of course. I can see why people don't want to use tows and I may opt out of one here or there based on my intentions for a trip, but right now my intentions are "spend as much time as deep in the forest as possible" and paying somebody $60 round trip to help me achieve those objectives is well worth the money and IMO not detrimental to the "spirit" of the trip/the wilderness (considering those boats will be on the lake whether you're taking one or not).
billconner
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01/17/2019 06:26AM  
As a regular paddler of Moose from entry point or further south to PP, I've never experienced the "outboard highway" that can't seem to. I've counted and it's usually 2 to 4 tow boats, and usually on the opposite side of the lake. Only rarely do we experience any wake.

No right or wrong, but for newbies, I'd like them to have an accurate sense of the this paddle.
QueticoMike
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01/17/2019 08:41AM  
We typically make it to Louisa Falls for lunch. Don't know how long it actually takes to get there because I don't have a watch on. When up there, there are only a few times, daytime, fishing time, eating time, and nighttime. We 95% of the time we make it to the top of Agnes, set camp and eat before dark. The other 5% didn't make it the whole way due to winds. Other times we made it past the top of Agnes in the day. We double portage now and go through Bayley Bay, Burke, Sunday, Meadow to get to Agnes. Used to do the North Portage decades ago and it used to be a real mess, but I have heard that portage is better now. Someone mentioned that you have to paddle an extra 5 miles by going through Burke, but if you look at a map it looks like maybe a mile more paddle? The portage from Bayley Bay to Burke is probably one of the easiest in the park. I don't see saving much time going through the North portage and the other way is a lot easier. To each their own. It is all fun!

Do you plan to go to the top of Agnes or peeling off into the S-Chain or just hanging out at the bottom of the lake? You shouldn't have any problem finding a decent camp spot.
bombinbrian
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01/17/2019 10:00AM  
QueticoMike:
Do you plan to go to the top of Agnes or peeling off into the S-Chain or just hanging out at the bottom of the lake? You shouldn't have any problem finding a decent camp spot. "


Eventually, we will be at the top of Agnes, then to Kawnipi , around the corner and down to Kahshahpiwi
QueticoMike
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01/17/2019 10:31AM  
bombinbrian: "
QueticoMike:
Do you plan to go to the top of Agnes or peeling off into the S-Chain or just hanging out at the bottom of the lake? You shouldn't have any problem finding a decent camp spot. "



Eventually, we will be at the top of Agnes, then to Kawnipi , around the corner and down to Kahshahpiwi"


How much traveling do you plan on the first day? I guess I should ask how long do you want to travel before looking for a campsite? There are decent spots all the way up the lake. I've made it from the bottom of Agnes to the top in 2.5 hours with a good wind at my back, but it has taken me 9 hours coming back down the lake with waves white capping over the bow and the only time we stopped was to pour the water out of the canoe. So you never know.
bombinbrian
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01/17/2019 12:41PM  
QueticoMike: "
bombinbrian: "
QueticoMike:
Do you plan to go to the top of Agnes or peeling off into the S-Chain or just hanging out at the bottom of the lake? You shouldn't have any problem finding a decent camp spot. "




Eventually, we will be at the top of Agnes, then to Kawnipi , around the corner and down to Kahshahpiwi"



How much traveling do you plan on the first day? I guess I should ask how long do you want to travel before looking for a campsite? There are decent spots all the way up the lake. I've made it from the bottom of Agnes to the top in 2.5 hours with a good wind at my back, but it has taken me 9 hours coming back down the lake with waves white capping over the bow and the only time we stopped was to pour the water out of the canoe. So you never know."


We'll go until we decide to stop. Sunday lake by the first Portage to Agnes at a minimum, then we'll see. If we feel we have enough in us to go do those two portages, we'll carry on. I don't have any notion to make the North end of Agnes though. My second or third night I want to be at the top where we start back down. I would like to stay at the campsite there that I stayed at in the early '80's.
bombinbrian
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01/17/2019 12:41PM  
QueticoMike: "
bombinbrian: "
QueticoMike:
Do you plan to go to the top of Agnes or peeling off into the S-Chain or just hanging out at the bottom of the lake? You shouldn't have any problem finding a decent camp spot. "




Eventually, we will be at the top of Agnes, then to Kawnipi , around the corner and down to Kahshahpiwi"



How much traveling do you plan on the first day? I guess I should ask how long do you want to travel before looking for a campsite? There are decent spots all the way up the lake. I've made it from the bottom of Agnes to the top in 2.5 hours with a good wind at my back, but it has taken me 9 hours coming back down the lake with waves white capping over the bow and the only time we stopped was to pour the water out of the canoe. So you never know."


We'll go until we decide to stop. Sunday lake by the first Portage to Agnes at a minimum, then we'll see. If we feel we have enough in us to go do those two portages, we'll carry on. I don't have any notion to make the North end of Agnes though. My second or third night I want to be at the top where we start back down. I would like to stay at the campsite there that I stayed at in the early '80's.
 
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