Someone here made a comparison recently to an area in Maine they believed was similar to the Quetico. I searched but could not locate it? Anyone remember it?

Don't know. But if it's for real I'd be tempted to take the third boxcar midnight train.

I used to live in that area but miss molly would be one of your experts to tap as she's there now. They could be thinking of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. Moosehead Lake is popular. Ain't never been there, they tell me it's nice.

Well, I've never been to Maine
But I kinda like the music

Paging Miss Molly to the white courtesy phone.

One significant difference, for all Americans, is that Maine is open and Canada is closed.

Jaywalker: "One significant difference, for all Americans, is that Maine is open and Canada is closed. "

Unfortunately that's not entirely true. When it became apparent our Quetico trip was not going to be possible, Allagash/Maine was the first alternative we looked at. However, their governor has mandated that all out-of-state visitors quarantine for 14 days once they come into the state. This pretty much makes trips impossible for any out-of-state visitors.

I know many businesses in the tourism industry sued the government regarding this order, as they are really hurting, but as of today it still stands. However there is now one exception - if you can produce a negative COVID-19 antigen or PERC test within 72 hrs of your visit, you are allowed to forego the quarantine.

You might want to look into the St Regis Canoe Area in upstate NY as an alternative.

Maine has a wealth of great canoeing and camping opportunities. The Allagash Wilderness Waterway is justly famous and there are other river venues such as the St. John, Penobscot and Moose Rivers. Maine is second to Minnesota in the number of lakes in the state so there is no shortage of water for paddling. With some pretty nifty mountains as a bonus.
The closest thing to Quetico is the North Maine Woods. It is more accurate to compare it to Canadian Crown Land in that it is widely traversed by logging roads. The land is largely privately owned by forest products companies and through a partnership with the various stakeholders, the non-profit North Maine Woods organization has established a fee-based system whereby individuals can access the multitude of lakes and rivers in this vast tract of woodlands. Hopefully in 2021 things will have eased up to make this a viable alternative.

https://www.northmainewoods.org/

Plenty of water, but if one looks for a semi-wilderness multi-day trip experience, I don't think either Maine or Adirondacks in NY could be compared to Quetico. US areas are either too small or too developed for that purpose. I canoed Upper West Penobscot in Maine and William Whitney Wilderness in ADK - both of them could be traversed in 3-4 days with not many options for side trips (and hordes of people in ADK).

Eddy - I agree - not the contiguous wilderness close to the Q or BWCA.

None the less, the little I've seen is nice, and I have started planning a through paddle of the NFCT, Old Forge NY to Ft Kent ME. Not all wilderness by any means.