Anyone have any stories about sharing camp with a stranger (or strangers) you met while tripping? Thought about this the other day when I read about a solo trip where the paddler had to search for a campsite for over three hours. Another post indicated they ran into Dan Cooke in the BW and stayed with him a few days. Personally, I’d offer up a place to stay if sites were full.

Never on a canoe trip but it is not uncommon on backpacking trips especially on popular trails.

I've had several situations where I/we shared a camp. I never have had to ask to come into someone else's camp but on 4 different times I've had a group come by and knowing there were no other sites available offered respite. It was always a pleasant experience and a chance to meet other like minded paddlers

My favorite was on Wind Lake. We got the last site pretty early in the afternoon and about 2 hours after we set up, a group of 4 coeds from U of M came and asked if they could stay. It was a no brainer for us (2 single guys)!

Very good experience near Tiger Bay. Late arrival with nothing available for a family of 5 were asked to stay if they wanted. They did. we were leaving by 6:00 the next day and they were planning to stay. we offered and they had accepted our several suggestions for improving their first time in BWCA and we got some free medical advice from a MD. I would do that again.

In 2021 we were camped on the north end of Bald Eagle in July. About 6pm we had a HUGE storm come through with 50+ mph wind, hail, lightning and sheets of rain. (This was during the last fire ban). We had a Luci light string that gave us some night light.

About 10pm that night, we look out on the lake and can see a headlamp's light way off in the distance. It kept getting closer and finally we see a family with a mom, dad and two little guys completely soaked, cold and very tired. Dad and Mom had been to the BWCA before several years back, but this was the first for their two little guys (8y/o and 10 y/o). Anyway, they had put in at the Little Isabella River (a bit late) and got caught in the big storm while they were before the portage into the Snake River. They had to hunker down while the storm passed, got cold and wet and pushed on after the storm.

All the campsites were full on the rivers and by the time they made it to Bald Eagle it was almost dark. Long story short, they were denied the request to share a site by some at the south end of BE, so they continued on. Then it got dark (like pitch black BWCA dark)and they could not see or find any other campsites along BE. They finally saw our Luci light string and paddled towards us. When they reached our campsite, all they asked was if we could point them in the direction of an open site? We, of course invited them in to our campsite. The little guys hadn't eaten supper, so while mom and dad set up a tent etc, we took their boys, who were shivering, got them some hot chocolate and warmed them up under our tarp in our chairs. (no fires for warming).

They were so thankful. I was absolutely shocked that others would not let them stop at their sites on the south end of the lake. Anyway, we were up early to go on our way and as we were fishing on Gabbro they paddled their way out and swung by to thank us (multiple times). Here is a picture of the two little guys warming up under our lights and tarp. I'm sure we will never see them again, but it does go down as one of my most memorable nights in the wilderness.

Awesome, wxce!

These stories were sweet, and fun to read. I haven't been in that position (yet) but would gladly share the campsite I was on. What are we here for anyway? Thanks for sharing your stories!

Dave

WXCE - that is a great story! What a fantastic thing to do!!!!!

We did, one time in Lake Superior Provincial Park. There was only one campsite on the lake we were headed to. We passed a canoe on the way, so we suspected they'd have nowhere else to go. Sure enough right at dusk, they paddled up and asked if we'd let them share the site. And of course we did. They were very nice guys, and very thankful. They even offered us $$, which we did not accept. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

That said, I'd be mortified if I ever had to do that to someone else. I will do everything in my power to never put my party in that position!

Shared twice. Once was on Ogish during a bad storm. We had paddled all around trying to find an empty site with a horribly scary front bearing down on us. We finally found a spot and then saw a father-daughter also searching frantically. We invited them to stay since lightning had started. They initially refused and went to check a further south site but pretty quickly turned around and took us up on the offer.

The 2nd time, we had taken the last site on South Temperance and knew North Temperance was also full. A pair of young women came paddling along at full speed clearly hoping our site was empty. They visibly deflated when they saw us. We called them over and invited them to stay. They had come from Baker Laker that morning and hadn't passed any open sites. We had a great time chatting with them.

There have been several instances, but the most memorable one was a few years ago on Crooked Lake, after several very rainy and cold days. We had set up on an Island and were relaxing under a tarp, it had been raining almost constantly for 3-4 days. Just before dark, a young lady walked up and asked if we could show her where we were on the map. She was relieved when we showed her where we were, but it was getting dark and she looked very cold. She said she was there with her wife and dog, and that they had become lost when their GPS died, and had been wandering most of the day, she said they had even wandered quite a ways in to Canada (we were in BW). This was their first trip and they were not prepared with decent rain gear, map reading skills, or much else as far as wilderness skills. They were soaking wet, mildly hypothermic (dog included), their lighter got wet so they could not cook, they had no way of even drying off, and their canoe was so full of water we could barely roll it over. They were a sad sight. We got them all straightened out and led them out the next day, but I often wonder what would have happened if they hadn't found us. The temperature at night was low 40's, and the rain and cold continued for a couple more days. It could have gotten downright dangerous. I don't really understand not helping people that need help, as irritating as it can be sometimes. It is literally the wilderness ethic, so be nice!

At first when I saw the title, I thought "Absolutely Not!", but emergencies are a completely different story.

Some of the situations I have read about on this site where they had to share camp with strangers sound like a nightmare. People used to backpacking that just expect to share a site without asking and people showing up thinking the campsite is unoccupied then basically refusing to leave are some examples that come to mind.

If it was an actual emergency though, I would gladly offer a place to regroup and warm up, wait out a storm, or spend the night if there were no other options. That's just basic empathy and as a bonus you get a nice story out of it.

My son and a friend were searching for a site when a big storm blew in. Everything was full, and the lightning was getting close so they pulled up to a site with only 1 tent / 2 people on it and asked if they could share. They were told no. So they ended up finding a spot just down the shoreline big enough for a tent.

MichiganMan: "We did, one time in Lake Superior Provincial Park. There was only one campsite on the lake we were headed to. We passed a canoe on the way, so we suspected they'd have nowhere else to go. Sure enough right at dusk, they paddled up and asked if we'd let them share the site. And of course we did. They were very nice guys, and very thankful. They even offered us $$, which we did not accept. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.


That said, I'd be mortified if I ever had to do that to someone else. I will do everything in my power to never put my party in that position!"

The way to make sure this never happens to our camps is to pick a site in the morning, or early afternoon at the latest. Those that paddle all day and into the evening to "get in the miles" accept the responsibility of no sites. I am totally on board for sharing the site for families described in this thread. Not so much for those that are paddling by choice into the late evening and then want to bunk up when there are no sites.

ockycamper: "The way to make sure this never happens to our camps is to pick a site in the morning, or early afternoon at the latest. Those that paddle all day and into the evening to "get in the miles" accept the responsibility of no sites. I am totally on board for sharing the site for families described in this thread. Not so much for those that are paddling by choice into the late evening and then want to bunk up when there are no sites."

I do not agree with this. Maybe this is an Ely vs Gunflint difference, but expecting people to be done traveling by noon-1PM is unreasonable. Sounds to me like someone that gets up at the crack of dawn or earlier and thinks that everyone that isn't is lazy.

Some people are early morning people, some are not. There is nothing wrong with paddling into the late afternoon. The issue is their destination lake being overcrowded, which is a planning problem, not how far they travel a day.

You are correct in that our groups hit the water by first light, then look for camp sites by 2-3 pm. I realize everyone is not that type of camper and didn't mean to offend those that aren't. Probably is an age thing. Our guys are in their 50's and 60's and always get up at first light.

What I was referring to is the groups trying to make it to "that lake" and paddle right up to dark to find "that spot". . . then when everything is full, want to share a site. . .when those currently on the sites stopped earlier to insure they had a site to camp on.

I've only encountered this once. It was on Perent Lake. My group was just setting off down Hog Creek when a father with a couple young teens showed up and started loading their canoe. We said hi and all that and then my group was off. We had a hard time finding a site but we did. About 4 hours later that same group pulled up and asked if they could stretch. I said yes of course and even offered them to pitch a tent until the next day as it was around 6pm I think. They declined the invite and set off after about 10 minutes.

I then thought of it. I am not sure I would feel comfortable to paddle up to a site and ask. Therefore I think that anyone that does ask is probably having a really bad time and could use some help and I would almost always say sure unless I had a 6th sense kind of feeling.

I think there's a some differences in how people approach this based on if they are veteran BW/Q paddlers or not. The one time I heard of a group just pulling up and assuming they could share was a newbie BW group with lots of backpacking experience. It's a whole different culture. Most every backpacking campsite is open to multiples. My friends said that the arrivees were welcomed but then embarrassed to learn that a presumption of open sharing wasn't a BW thing. I prefer not to share but will welcome folks on the "any port in a storm" principal. I'd hate to have to ask an occupied site if I can join them and am glad it's never happened yet. Things have changed significantly in terms of high occupancy. I'm afraid that sometimes a group can plan to be done at 2 or 3 and still be paddling past full-up sites at 5. At some point, that is not the group's bad planning at all.

All of this is the reason our groups moved to mid-late September.

All of this is the reason our groups moved to mid-late September.

I think I'd be more inclined to disperse camp at a portage with an alarm set very early instead of asking someone else to make room for us. I hope that never comes about.

ockycamper: "The way to make sure this never happens to our camps is to pick a site in the morning, or early afternoon at the latest. Those that paddle all day and into the evening to "get in the miles" accept the responsibility of no sites. I am totally on board for sharing the site for families described in this thread. Not so much for those that are paddling by choice into the late evening and then want to bunk up when there are no sites."

Some come to the wilderness paddle a bit and to camp a lot. Some come travel across the wilderness, to soak in as many sights and sounds as can be wrung from each day. I'll always risk a lousy campsite for a bit more adventure out of the day.

ockycamper: "All of this is the reason our groups moved to mid-late September."

Very much so. Even October is a great time.

okinaw55: "I think I'd be more inclined to disperse camp at a portage with an alarm set very early instead of asking someone else to make room for us. I hope that never comes about."

This is a likely possibility for me tomorrow :/

I am hopeful to find one but I am hitting the water late bc of reasons... anyway I know a portage nearby that won't likely be used and since no fires it is just set a tent and sleep until like 6am and then get up and try some more.

"Long story short, they were denied the request to share a site by some at the south end of BE, so they continued on."

^This^ reminds me of a family who were turned away from an inn. I don't think they were paddlers, but still....

Because I paddle Crown Land, there are no campsites. You just camp where you want. So, one day, we camped on an island near the put-in and late that evening, in the dark, some Canadians arrived and also camped on the island. It was a small island, so they were quite close. They didn't ask for our permission and needn't have done so, for it wasn't our island. It was actually their island for they were Canadians. They built a fire and talked softly, a few feet from our tent. It was nice to have them there.

In Norway and Sweden, if you own land, others may hike it and pick berries. You don't need the landowners' permission.

In Maine, even though we all own the lakes, those who own the shoreline can keep paddlers from reaching the public water. That makes me grit my teeth.

"Some come to the wilderness paddle a bit and to camp a lot. Some come travel across the wilderness, to soak in as many sights and sounds as can be wrung from each day. I'll always risk a lousy campsite for a bit more adventure out of the day."

I agree with OCDave. Many times, I've paddled into the dark, unable to find a place to pitch a tent. These memories are so vivid. I've never felt so alive, so charged with the moment. I was actually paddling at night two nights ago.

#It'sathrill,butdon'tspill

Speaking of spilling, I tipped this spring. It happened so SUDDENLY. Luckily, I managed to fall into the water without tipping the canoe, but my thigh did strike the gunnel and it still hurts.

So, there I was, submerged in the cool water and my first thought was, "This is how people die."

And my IMMEDIATE, second thought, "But I'm wearing a life jacket, so not me. Not today."

The hardest part was by the time I'd reached the shoreline towing my canoe, I was spent. Getting out of the water was hard and getting back into the canoe without retipping was even harder.

missmolly: ""Long story short, they were denied the request to share a site by some at the south end of BE, so they continued on."


^This^ reminds me of a family who were turned away from an inn. I don't think they were paddlers, but still....


Because I paddle Crown Land, there are no campsites. You just camp where you want. So, one day, we camped on an island near the put-in and late that evening, in the dark, some Canadians arrived and also camped on the island. It was a small island, so they were quite close. They didn't ask for our permission and needn't have done so, for it wasn't our island. It was actually their island for they were Canadians. They built a fire and talked softly, a few feet from our tent. It was nice to have them there.


In Norway and Sweden, if you own land, others may hike it and pick berries. You don't need the landowners' permission.


In Maine, even though we all own the lakes, those who own the shoreline can keep paddlers from reaching the public water. That makes me grit my teeth.


"Some come to the wilderness paddle a bit and to camp a lot. Some come travel across the wilderness, to soak in as many sights and sounds as can be wrung from each day. I'll always risk a lousy campsite for a bit more adventure out of the day."


I agree with OCDave. Many times, I've paddled into the dark, unable to find a place to pitch a tent. These memories are so vivid. I've never felt so alive, so charged with the moment. I was actually paddling at night two nights ago.

#It'sathrill,butdon'tspill

Speaking of spilling, I tipped this spring. It happened so SUDDENLY. Luckily, I managed to fall into the water without tipping the canoe, but my thigh did strike the gunnel and it still hurts.

So, there I was, submerged in the cool water and my first thought was, "This is how people die."

And my IMMEDIATE, second thought, "But I'm wearing a life jacket, so not me. Not today."

The hardest part was by the time I'd reached the shoreline towing my canoe, I was spent. Getting out of the water was hard and getting back into the canoe without retipping was even harder. "

Technically you don't own the lakes. I am an appraiser and deal with property rights. EVERY land and lake is owned by some entity, either private or government. Many lakes are in fact owned by power companies. Others by federal entitities and others by state or local. Just because you are a citizen of Maine does not mean you own the lakes. The only person or entity that owns any real property is the one whose name is on the deed.

I have lived over seas. Frankly I would hate the system where anyone can come on private property and help themselves. Property ownership and usage rights are one of the foundations of our country that make it great. The European system is more aligned with socialism.

A1t2o: "At first when I saw the title, I thought "Absolutely Not!", but emergencies are a completely different story.


Some of the situations I have read about on this site where they had to share camp with strangers sound like a nightmare. People used to backpacking that just expect to share a site without asking and people showing up thinking the campsite is unoccupied then basically refusing to leave are some examples that come to mind.


If it was an actual emergency though, I would gladly offer a place to regroup and warm up, wait out a storm, or spend the night if there were no other options. That's just basic empathy and as a bonus you get a nice story out of it."

I had a similar thoughts as you. But I’ve offered to share with people in over their heads or helped them find an open site. Never have shared in the end. I’d have to be desperate to approach an occupied site myself.

I also agree with Okycamper as well that there are people out there that purposely plan poorly and impose on others unnecessarily. Arriving to entry point late in the day on purpose, paddling in to an exit/entry lake in the evening and expecting to share is a poor plan. I’d be annoyed if I was enjoying a camp with my family on a nice day like on Disappointment and someone expected to share a site. Not sure what I’d do? Me personally I did that once…I came into Disappointment at about 3:30, got lucky found the last site—my backup plan was to exit early—not share with others. As we were looking it over a group of exasperated middle aged women came rolling in desperate for a site…My wife and I gave it to them and an hour later we were having a Burger and beer in Ely :) We lied and said we were leaving our site :). Felt good to make their day…and for good Karma nailed a 25 inch walleye on the way out!

T

"Technically you don't own the lakes. I am an appraiser and deal with property rights. EVERY land and lake is owned by some entity, either private or government. Many lakes are in fact owned by power companies. Others by federal entitities and others by state or local. Just because you are a citizen of Maine does not mean you own the lakes. "

A quick Google search and much data, similar to the following statement, popped up:

"The State of Maine owns the land below the natural low water mark, held in trust for the People."

I am one of the people.

"The only person or entity that owns any real property is the one whose name is on the deed."

There is no deed for any Maine lake over 10 acres. Property ownership ends at the water.

I'll write no more about this since it's off-topic.

The issue is referred to as "riparian rights". These were rights regarding lands leading up to the waterfront that often change with flooding.

While you are correct that there are no deed or titles for lakes or rivers, there are for lands bordering them which limits who can access those lakes and rivers.

When it comes to lakes the key is if they are navigable or have an economic benefit, commercial use, etc. There are in fact many privately owned lakes. In the US, the large lakes are in fact owned and managed by the Army Corps of Engineers.

One last point. . .you are correct that lakes in Maine (by far the most liberal state in terms of property rights) state lakes are held in the public domain and trust. However, that does not mean you. The public in fact votes for the legilatures that manage those entities and set the rules. So in essence. . . .if you don't have access to a lake because of land ownership of restrictions on use . . . you have in fact. . .through your representatives. . .entrusted them with taking actions that limited your rights.

that is why you can only use the BWCA via entry points set up to limit access. The people of Minnesota do not own the BWCA lakes any more then you own those in Maine.

Ok - You want to share a campsite and some good karma, bring it on. I suppose there might be a chance the people are clueless weirdos, but that’s half the fun isn’t it.

We were on Emerald Lake in Quetico in 2019 crossing the lake to the campsite on the far eastern shore, being chased by a huge black storm cloud and lightning in the distance. A man in the campsite in front of the site motioned us over to invite us to get off the water. It was a nice gesture, but we knew the site we wanted to stay at was about 50 yards further, behind the island. We told him thanks, but we would try for the other site and paddled as hard as we could, fighting the rising wind to the thankfully open site. We bailed out of the canoe, drug the packs up the hill and threw a tarp over them and got the canoe tied down right before the storm hit. We huddled under the tarp with the bags for a while in the rain and finally rigged up the tarp so we could set up camp. We appreciated the offer of the man on the island, and it probably would have been wiser to stop there, but it rained so long we were glad we kept going and found our own place.

ockycamper: "All of this is the reason our groups moved to mid-late September."

My problem was I already paddled mid September. I enjoyed utilizing open water season from May to October... never in the 45 years I paddled the Bwca did I not find a campsite. I was in the three to four o’clock club. I enjoy my mornings and my coffee. On the water by 7 or 8. Always made good time. But usually got in past the folks that clog up the entry lakes.

I usually travel solo and I'm always happy to give up some space in my site if I can, especially in the bwca.

OneMatch: "I've had several situations where I/we shared a camp. I never have had to ask to come into someone else's camp but on 4 different times I've had a group come by and knowing there were no other sites available offered respite. It was always a pleasant experience and a chance to meet other like minded paddlers


My favorite was on Wind Lake. We got the last site pretty early in the afternoon and about 2 hours after we set up, a group of 4 coeds from U of M came and asked if they could stay. It was a no brainer for us (2 single guys)!"

Wow, Jerry - that beats our Kawishiwi Lake site-sharing with four Packer fan Wisconsin dudes!
That was fine too though - being the last night of our trip and the first for them, we traded my leeches for some of their eggs. Worked out well.

okinaw55: "I think I'd be more inclined to disperse camp at a portage with an alarm set very early instead of asking someone else to make room for us. I hope that never comes about."

I think I would do the same, Dave, unless it was an emergency, such as injury, hypothermia, etc. considering my near phobic fear of imposing on people and my fragile ego.

I've never had anyone ever ask me if they could share a site. I've seen LOTS of paddlers who I may have offered to share...couples trying to outrun a storm, or people out in the lake, out of earshot, paddling in white caps late in the day. Unsafe things. But if it's clear that the request to share is due to poor prior planning....I dunno. That's all I'll say lest I sound judgmental.

Though not exactly the same, we invited two very cold and very wet paddlers into our camp on Upper Pauness on a mid-May trip a long time ago. It was a mid-morning, hard rain, and these two got caught in it unprepared. We made coffee for them. We chatted, they changed into dry things, and they were on their way.

Mike

Yep, I have friends from decades back that I met on the JMT in the Sierras.

wxce1260: "In 2021 we were camped on the north end of Bald Eagle in July. About 6pm we had a HUGE storm come through with 50+ mph wind, hail, lightning and sheets of rain. (This was during the last fire ban). We had a Luci light string that gave us some night light.


About 10pm that night, we look out on the lake and can see a headlamp's light way off in the distance. It kept getting closer and finally we see a family with a mom, dad and two little guys completely soaked, cold and very tired. Dad and Mom had been to the BWCA before several years back, but this was the first for their two little guys (8y/o and 10 y/o). Anyway, they had put in at the Little Isabella River (a bit late) and got caught in the big storm while they were before the portage into the Snake River. They had to hunker down while the storm passed, got cold and wet and pushed on after the storm.


All the campsites were full on the rivers and by the time they made it to Bald Eagle it was almost dark. Long story short, they were denied the request to share a site by some at the south end of BE, so they continued on. Then it got dark (like pitch black BWCA dark)and they could not see or find any other campsites along BE. They finally saw our Luci light string and paddled towards us. When they reached our campsite, all they asked was if we could point them in the direction of an open site? We, of course invited them in to our campsite. The little guys hadn't eaten supper, so while mom and dad set up a tent etc, we took their boys, who were shivering, got them some hot chocolate and warmed them up under our tarp in our chairs. (no fires for warming).


They were so thankful. I was absolutely shocked that others would not let them stop at their sites on the south end of the lake. Anyway, we were up early to go on our way and as we were fishing on Gabbro they paddled their way out and swung by to thank us (multiple times). Here is a picture of the two little guys warming up under our lights and tarp. I'm sure we will never see them again, but it does go down as one of my most memorable nights in the wilderness.


"

We were once the recipients of the same kindness you extended to these folks. God Bless you! Kindness of Strangers trip report

You're always welcome to stop by at me camp if only to visit. If there is a storm you can hang out until the storm passes. If it's too dangerous to be on the water you're welcome to spend the night. Be warned however, if you overstay your welcome you might get paddled!

My group shared a site with TWO extra parties a while back. It was the second night of a Saganaga-Seagull loop and we decided to make camp early on Hanson Lake (Summer of 2021, we were already seeing congestion). By late afternoon we observed three canoes zig-zagging their way across the water–unsuccessfully trying to find an open site.

The first boat to arrive had a young-ish couple who asked if we knew of any open sites (we didn't but steered them toward a short portage to secluded lake with a site just down the shore). There was some tension in the boat but with plenty of daylight they paddled ahead.

Soon after the second pair of boats approached. Before they got to shore one of the women pointed and me and exclaimed "I know you!"–which was honestly the last thing I wanted to hear on a trip we took to escape craziness at home. Turned out she was a bartender at our neighborhood brewery with some friends on their first BWCA experience. My group assessed the time (starting to get late), did a quick head count (4+4) and invited them to share our site for the evening.

The friends made camp a short hike from our tents and we were all chatting over dinner when the couple in the first boat reappeared. Their situation had obviously deteriorated. The husband and wife were unable to locate/navigate the portage (she'd apparently injured her ankle earlier in the day) and unfamiliar with the environment and their gear had become overwhelmed by their situation. With the sun setting we helped them pitch a tent and hang their food before the mosquitoes swarmed and we all called it a night.

The next morning my group–preferring more solitude and being over the limit for people & watercraft at the site–decided to set off for more remote lakes. We said goodbye to the friends and couple (who despite celebrating their anniversary hadn't spoken a word to each other all morning). We didn't see them again but hopefully they all found their ways in the wilderness and had a positive BWCA experience.

Just returned from a short trip on north end of Kelso. Group of 4 with a dog came up to the north side looking for a site but nothing available about 5pm. Offered for them to stay with us as we were leaving in the morning but they looked at us like we were crazy lol.