I was just kind of wondering. Has anyone ever ran into a Forest Service ranger in a PMA? I would think they don't go through PMAs very often I know I never have and I've been in a lot of them.

I have overnighted and travelled in PMA's on several trips. Never saw a ranger nor another party in those. Did see footprints in some places, not too old.

I’ve only been to a few, but I’ve not seen anyone.

Never, I think that’s part of the reason they make you check in at the Ranger station if you plan on overnighting in a PMA. I don’t think there’s any planned Ranger routes through PMA’s, which makes complete sense because 95% of the Rangers in the field are doing campsite and portage maintenance which isn’t required in PMA’s. I just think they want to know if you’re going to be in a PMA so that if you get reported lost, they know where to look. Just my opinion.

Tony

GopherAdventure: "Never, I think that’s part of the reason they make you check in at the Ranger station if you plan on overnighting in a PMA. I don’t think there’s any planned Ranger routes through PMA’s, which makes complete sense because 95% of the Rangers in the field are doing campsite and portage maintenance which isn’t required in PMA’s. I just think they want to know if you’re going to be in a PMA so that if you get reported lost, they know where to look. Just my opinion.


Tony"

Looking for lost people is probably the biggest reason I agree

We used to go to Raven Lake yearly, ran into Rangers a couple of times. Apparently it is a popular lake for people to camp on illegally without a PMA permit so they check it more often.

T

timatkn: "We used to go to Raven Lake yearly, ran into Rangers a couple of times. Apparently it is a popular lake for people to camp on illegally without a PMA permit so they check it more often.


T"

I guess that does make sense, I've been there several times also.

One of my fs buddies said that ever so often he strikes out on foot and visits several lakes within a pma in a short amount of time - mostly viewed through binoculars. They're used to bushwhacking for miles while scaling timber so it's not a big deal to them. So if you're back in there and feel like you're being watched...

PortageKeeper: "One of my fs buddies said that ever so often he strikes out on foot and visits several lakes within a pma in a short amount of time - mostly viewed through binoculars. They're used to bushwhacking for miles while scaling timber so it's not a big deal to them. So if you're back in there and feel like you're being watched..."

Are you the one who does the trail clearing. organizing. If so I would consider helping in the future. I used to live in Isabella, keep me in the loop please. Thx

LindenTree: "

PortageKeeper: "One of my fs buddies said that ever so often he strikes out on foot and visits several lakes within a pma in a short amount of time - mostly viewed through binoculars. They're used to bushwhacking for miles while scaling timber so it's not a big deal to them. So if you're back in there and feel like you're being watched..."

Are you the one who does the trail clearing. organizing. If so I would consider helping in the future. I used to live in Isabella, keep me in the loop please. Thx"

Yes, I arranged trail clearing trips for a number of years but do to my wife's poor physical condition I haven't been able to arrange a trip for a few years. Whenever/if ever I can start up again, I will announce it.

Visited Raven in 2011?. My wife received a call a few days after from a FS personnel. (ranger?) He had a few questions regarding our trip. From her description it didn’t seem/feel like some sort of feedback survey. She invited him to call back when I was available but he never did. I would have been glad to share how it went. Of course I’ll never know for sure what the inquiry was for. (I am confident we respected the PMA reg’s and LNT. So I like to think he was asking for his own personal trip intel.)

mcsweem: "

timatkn: "We used to go to Raven Lake yearly, ran into Rangers a couple of times. Apparently it is a popular lake for people to camp on illegally without a PMA permit so they check it more often.



T"

I guess that does make sense, I've been there several times also."

After my brother and I talked to the Rangers it was always on our minds. We put ion on Snowbank in the AM and get to Raven in the early PM. “What if we get there and some group is camped illegally there” That would suck and be awkward, there weren’t many options for camping. Before getting checked by the Rangers never thought of it :) There was always a tiny bit of anxiety when you finished the last portage if we would run into anyone after that. Especially one year got a late noon start and didn’t arrive until 9pm.

T

A few years back we were headed south on the Beartrap River from Iron Lake and camped on Sunday Lake in the Sundial PMA area. We had a PMA camping permit for that day. Only 1 is issued per day.

About mid afternoon a storm passed thru and in the middle of the storm a crew from the LL Summers Boy Scout Hig Adventure Base showed up also heading south. There was lighting around so I called them over to our camp to ride out the storm. I asked their guide what their plan was and he said they plan was to stay the might on Sunday Lake. He was not aware of the one camper PMA rule.

By the time the storm passed it was too late to push on to Beartrap Lake so they camped on the other campsite across the lake.

I was quite surprised the Charlie Guide was not better informed about the PMA rules.

I ran into a DNR team once who were coming out of the Tick Lake PMA doing a study on microflora. This was on the Fairy portage out of Gun.

If I was young and a ranger I’d be all over the PMAs. When I took young guys and they’d seem to have too much energy to “behave”, I’d take them off the beaten path. Places that are now PMAs... I had studied maps and such and knew of places I always wanted to explore. I’m guessing in 99 some of those got messed up in the blowdown. If you could acquire some real old fisher maps some showed portages that are no longer used.

nctry: "If I was young and a ranger I’d be all over the PMAs. When I took young guys and they’d seem to have too much energy to “behave”, I’d take them off the beaten path. Places that are now PMAs... I had studied maps and such and knew of places I always wanted to explore. I’m guessing in 99 some of those got messed up in the blowdown. If you could acquire some real old fisher maps some showed portages that are no longer used."

I have the old maps, just not the energy to go to those "difficult" places.