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06/18/2019 10:34PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Since our trip last year where we successfully bushwacked to Larsen Lake by foot, and Moon Lake by canoe, I had been planning my next bushwack destination. A quick search led me to Batista Lake, and I set my target on getting there during my 2019 trip.

Well, on June 10th on the second day of our trip, that planning led to a successful excursion overland to Batista Lake. We did not attempt to get there by water, instead opting for a through-the-woods approach by compass and gps. We took the portage out of the Boulder River almost to the end at the Dahlgren River, and started heading east near the high point before the portage trail drops back down to the river. Our planned route was just over 1/2 mile and had several elevation gains and drops. Unfortunately, there is no way any sane human is going to carry a canoe the route we took, and we quickly gave up on pursuing that part of the plan.

Here is what we learned. Batista is fairly dark stained with a defined shoreline along the area we landed. There is a lot of bushy vegetation in the water for the first 3-5 feet, making getting to the waters edge a bit tricky, but it was less "boggy" than I expected it to be on the shoreline. The lake seemed to drop off fairly quickly to a least several feet deep not far outside of those bushes, but with no canoe along with us, I can't confirm depths.

We could see the campsite area listed on most maps up the shoreline, but it was about 1/2 mile away and with a light rain starting to fall, we didn't want to get that much further way from our route back to the Dahlgren portage. I wish we would have had time/conditions to get over there, but it just wasn't meant to be that day.

We did bring in our fishing poles, but no extra tackle (that was a mistake). One line with a jig and twister tail was bit off by a pike right near shore on the first cast. The same pike (I could see the orange twister tail hanging out of its mouth) hit my spinnerbait but I lost it right near shore. It was in the 22-24" range. Two casts later (my 5th cast overall), another pike hit my spinnerbait and cut my braid after a short fight. It felt similar in size to the first fish. Batista definitely holds hungry pike, although the question still remains if large fish can be found there. My hunch says they are there.

All in all it was a fun and challenging hike through the woods and something I would certainly do again. Maybe someone else can get there with a canoe from the river and find out more than we did, but I'm happy being able to add this info to get someone else started.

I included a screenshot from my huntstand app that we used to make sure we were staying on the proposed compass route. You'll see we ended up about 150 yards north of where I planned to get to the lake. The Inreach screenshot shows where we sent an "ok" message to verify we had made it there.


Other photos in order as follows- looking south, looking NE, zoomed in to the NE about where the campsite should be on the point, looking almost straight east across the lake.




 
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heavylunch
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06/19/2019 07:06AM  
Sounds like a fun experience. I am jealous.
06/19/2019 08:06AM  
Nice. I am trying to find a good one to get into. I am thinking Sunlow or maybe Placid. Both look hard but a canoe can go through more than you think :)
airmorse
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06/19/2019 08:33AM  
I was with NB12 it was a fun bushwack. Next time we will bring inflatable tube floats.
AG4
member (45)member
  
06/19/2019 10:40AM  
My buddy and I made it there on Friday the 14th. We had the same experience as you. Caught a couple pike and got bit off. We each only carried our rods and a water bottle.

Our first thought was to try the route you guys did, but decided against it. We ended up walking the edge of the high ground. It was tough, buggy, and wet at times. It would be tough trying to get a canoe back there with our route as well. We saw plenty of moose sign and even the bones of what appeared to be a young bull. It was right at the edge of the water where we came out on Batista.

The beavers dammed the creek that flowed out to the Dahlgren. No wonder it closed up.

I kept telling my buddy that it was an adventure and nobody had been there in a long time... except you guys made it back just days before us! I'm still glad we did it.

airmorse
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06/19/2019 11:47AM  
I would love to know where the original portage is/was.
06/19/2019 12:08PM  
AG4: "My buddy and I made it there on Friday the 14th. We had the same experience as you. Caught a couple pike and got bit off. We each only carried our rods and a water bottle.


Our first thought was to try the route you guys did, but decided against it. We ended up walking the edge of the high ground. It was tough, buggy, and wet at times. It would be tough trying to get a canoe back there with our route as well. We saw plenty of moose sign and even the bones of what appeared to be a young bull. It was right at the edge of the water where we came out on Batista.


The beavers dammed the creek that flowed out to the Dahlgren. No wonder it closed up.


I kept telling my buddy that it was an adventure and nobody had been there in a long time... except you guys made it back just days before us! I'm still glad we did it.


"


Glad to hear you guys made it back there as well. I remember in another thread that our attempts were going to happen during the same week. We toyed with going in the way you went as well. Good to know a water approach is still not possible.
06/19/2019 07:54PM  
Have been looking forward to this report. Thanks! Would love to go in there with my inflatable kayak and check it out sometime!
 
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