Hey all,

Hope everyone is as excited as i am for their upcoming trips this year. My group will be heading into the BWCA through EP14 in late may. A few questions i hope some of you can answer...

1. Should we expect smooth sailing up the river in May (higher waters), or will we still run into some beaver dams?

2. Is Shell Lake typically pretty crowded?

3. How long do you think it will take to get Little Shell or Lynx Lake?

4. For those who have camped on Loon Lake, have you seen any boats?

5. Lastly, What the heck are these buildings for? (https://www.google.com/maps/@48.2771034,-92.2943568,530m/data=!3m1!1e3)

Thank you!

My experience was,
1 - no prob
2 - yes, a lot of thru traffic
3 - 3,4 hours - halfa day
4 - no experience on Loon Lake, but prob not enough boat traffic to bug you.

We base camped on the island. Some real nice campsites on the north end. Not one of my fav spots, but my son was in a funky mood when we went, which might have had something to do with it.

Go for it. Have fun.

Cheers, scat

tom9:"5. Lastly, What the heck are these buildings for? (https://www.google.com/maps/@48.2771034,-92.2943568,530m/data=!3m1!1e3)
Thank you! "

You might want to ask the Beatty Railroad Portage Company.

I appreciate your optimism about a Mat trip.

1. I think there is still a beaver damn right before Lower Pauness, You may have to get out in the reeds on the right side of the river and pull the canoe over.

2. It can be. The last 3 times we have been there in May at least half of the sites were taken.

3. 3-4 hrs.

4. Haven't been

5. ?

1. shouldn't have any real problems

4. We went through Loon on our entry day in August a few years ago and saw a boat or two headed to/from the rail portage. We then stayed a night on Loon on our way back out a week later and saw plenty of boats from through traffic and from people camped on the lake, including a waterskier that next morning. I don't recommend staying on Loon in the summer, but you'll be there in cold water so probably only going to see someone wanting to fish if any.

5. See #4, there's a mechanical rail portage to get boats onto LLC from Loon and back. You can portage your canoe for free, the assisted portage costs $$.

The only bad spot on the trip in was a mud hole right before Shell Lake. Too shallow to paddle through and a tad too deep to want to walk through. I snapped my bending branches paddle in half there trying to push off. Had to gorilla tape it together to have a functioning blade. Also, the short portage before that has a tough spot to get over with a canoe and pack. The rocks are like a 5’ step up. The longer portage is an easier go.

I've been through Shell each of the past 2 years. I like that trip, and I especially like the Lynx Lake area. Lynx has a few very nice sites.

Expect a half day to get to Shell from the parking lot.
Very smooth sailing on the river, no issues or beaver dams to pull over.
It can be tricky to meander your way through the reeds to find the portage to Lower Pauness, however, you should be able to find a few canoe paths to follow.
As you navigate through the narrow portion of Lower Pauness, there is an area before the lake opens up where you may need to pull your canoe over a few rocks. 2 years ago I was able to float over, but last year we needed to get out.

There is a beaver pond about halfway through the Lower Pauness - Shell portage. Both of the last 2 years, I've left my gear in canoe and pulled across.

Shell can be fairly busy, but I've always found open sites.
Little Shell has a nice little site that I've usually found is open.

There is a small portage between Little Shell and Lynx, however, the last 2 years I've been able to float through the narrows without getting out.

1. The river should be pretty good, especially in higher water. I've been on the route several times. I recall beavers starting to put dams together an perhaps a carryover of one or two. However, i wouldn't expect too many problems.

2. I can't say that Shell is crowded , but it's a good weekend get away that is relatively close to the entry point. I think Shell ends up being more of a pass-through lake than a destination lake.

3. Three or four hours at the most, depending on your portaging ability.

4. I have not camped on Loon Lake though I have canoed it. I've seen a couple of boats but nothing noteworthy enough that I can remember telling myself that camping on this lake would be a non starter. But boats can be a deal killer in terms of camping. There are also time when there are more boats than other times.

I really like the area. I've soloed in there as well as canoed with my wife in the area. It is true that the portage between Lower Pauness and Shell contains a beaver pond. When I soloed there a couple years ago it was too deep to walk through but almost too short to paddle. I remember floating the canoe across and then swimming the little distance from one end to the other. It was on that portage that I misplaced my paddle and walked the entire length of the portage two additional times… only to find my paddle propped up against a log on one side of the beaver pond. During my frenzied reconnaissance I swam that little beaver pond twice. The Pow Wow Trail also intersects the portage trail. Look for it.

The portage between Shell and Little Shell is very short, but not easy. It's very rocky on the Shell side, and take out is not as convenient as it looks. Little Shell has lots of bass on the western edge among the rock debris. You'll see it.

I would recommend a side exploration of Agawato Lake. It's like a big pond with lots of standing dead trees (at least when I was last there.) It was kind of eerie.

Hustler Lake has two campsites that are very nice.

Hope this helps.

Mike