First timer here. Would love to hear weather experiences from trippers in the first two weeks of September. We are four, September 6-13.

My favorite time. I've been lucky and have had generally good weather. Shouldn't be snow till end of September. Can fip to freezing.

I usually check the weather averages for the week I'm going, as well as the record high and low. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. Weather's always a bit of crapshoot, but odds are you'll have pretty good weather then. That's been my experience - but not every time ;).

Both of my trips so far have been 2nd or 3rd week of September. We’ve had highs in upper 70s and the 50s in the same week, but overall very comfortable. As mentioned I would keep an eye on the forecast a week ahead of time to make sure that your clothing is adequate. I’ve enjoyed he timing of these trips, lesser crowds, cooler weather, and the bugs haven’t seemed to be as bad.

For several years we've done BWCA/Quetico trips in late-August thru early-September. We love the lower bug count, the lower people count, and the weather has generally been good. Sure, we've had a couple cold, wet days, and in 2023 had a couple days around 90 degrees, but overall nice weather.

TZ

I've only been up there once in early September, but the weather that year was great. Highs upper 60s and lows in the 30s. Very few bugs, but lots of people where I was. One thing to keep in mind is that you'll often have morning fog on the lakes that time of year, especially on chillier mornings. It can be very dense and last until mid-morning at times.

Kneebuckler: "First timer here. Would love to hear weather experiences from trippers in the first two weeks of September. We are four, Sep 6-13. "

Welcome to the Board! Glad that you are here.

Be prepared with layers. NIghts are getting longer (more batteries) and colder, yet daytime temps can still be quite warm. Have your rain gear ready as both rain gear and wind shell as the shoulder seasons can be windier.

My first September trip was awesome. The only thing I wasn't prepared for was the silence. Everything is in transition. Few/no birds singing. Even the loons are not as noisy. The mergansers were noisy swimmers along our campsite shores. We had more wildlife encounters - otters. Water was too cold to really swim in. Stand knee deep and splash some of the days' grime off is about all.

Last year we went the last week of Sept and it acted like August. Hot and windy at the beginning. The last day we paddled out with glass calm lakes with temps above 80*. I would never count on that though.

Roughly 15 or so years ago we took a newbie and her husband with us on that exact week. On our way up from Ohio the transmission went out. On the second night it snowed and the wind howled. We did end up with a nice sunny day but when we got back to the landing we discovered someone had siphoned our gas tank dry.

Needless to say she was not anxious to return to the BWCA. But this year with two kids approaching teenage she consented to go with her husband and family again. This time the weather and trip was great.

Bottom line….early September is the best time of year to go unless you just have to have the best fishing.

I agree with everyone, fantastic time to go, bugs dwindling down, crowds dwindling down, water is warm, days are still fairly long. The nights in particular will start to get colder and you can often see below freezing temps. The negatives would be somewhat slow fishing on average and the weather can start to be less stable, but overall good and sometimes fantastic.

That same week in 2024 was one of the most spectacular weeks of weather I've ever experienced. Not a drop of rain, light winds, highs in the 80s, lows in the 50s. We are putting in a week later this year and I feel like the law of averages means we will get wet lol

We go those exact weeks every year. Dress in layers and have raingear handy. Cooler at night so if you are a cold sleeper like me be prepared with long underwear and a warm bag. Most years it is perfect weather but we have seen the extremes like everyone else. Just take what comes with a smile. Maybe we will see you. Good luck and have fun!

The best thing about that time is that most of the bitting insects are gone by then, and the weather is still pretty temperate.

We planned a trip in early/mid September in 2023. Normally we go in mid june, but wanted to see if we could capitalize on less bugs, less crowds and moderate temps. One thing I really looked forward to was not being forced into our tents around 9:30-10pm due to the mosquito infantry that comes in at that time in June. With that said, here's how are trip went (keeping in mind, the temps were probably lower than normal).

We spent a week coming in from Poplar Lake. The highest temp we encountered during the week was around 55. We also encountered misty/wet weather for the first three days making it feel like 40-45 degree temperatures during that time. However, the sun came out for the second set of 3 days with temps hitting the mid 50's. The bugs were indeed nearly nonexistent. With that said, we were in our tents by 8:30ish nearly every night as it was dark by then and the temps would drastically drop as the sun sunk below the horizon line. We got down to 34 one of the nights.

Positives: Beautiful time of year. Way less bugs. Less traffic. Fishing was good for half the trip.

Negatives: Was cold and wet. Actually went to bed earlier than we would have dealing with bugs in June. Weather is a bit more bipolar in September than June.

Final take. I'd like to try a September trip again, but the safer route imo is mid June. Since it's a once a year (9 hour drive) trip for me, I'll probably err on the side of the safer route.

Darin

Michwall2: "

Kneebuckler: "First timer here. Would love to hear weather experiences from trippers in the first two weeks of September. We are four, Sep 6-13. "

Welcome to the Board! Glad that you are here.


Be prepared with layers. NIghts are getting longer (more batteries) and colder, yet daytime temps can still be quite warm. Have your rain gear ready as both rain gear and wind shell as the shoulder seasons can be windier.


My first September trip was awesome. The only thing I wasn't prepared for was the silence. Everything is in transition. Few/no birds singing. Even the loons are not as noisy. The mergansers were noisy swimmers along our campsite shores. We had more wildlife encounters - otters. Water was too cold to really swim in. Stand knee deep and splash some of the days' grime off is about all.


Last year we went the last week of Sept and it acted like August. Hot and windy at the beginning. The last day we paddled out with glass calm lakes with temps above 80*. I would never count on that though."

I went up the Echo trail many times in September. One year I was driving in a cold rain. I hoped it was not raining at the entry point when I got there. It was not... it was snowing. It can be anything that time of year. Be prepared for cold nights and always be prepared for cool, wet and windy, prime hypothermia time. If its hot and sunny thank your lucky stars and break out the shorts and enjoy. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.

I did a solo trip the third week of Sept 2024 and it was AMAZING!!!! No bugs, weather in the 70s, just perfection!!!! The year before, I did the same thing and it was cold and rainy. It just varies on what Mother Nature wants to do.

Either way, just go!! Even in the worst of weather it is better to be in the BWCA than not!!

To piggyback on to what loneranger said regarding how weather can be different from one year to the next, we took a fall trip a number of years ago - 3rd week of September. The first night, it was so hot, I slept in my underwear ON TOP of my sleeping bag until I finally crawled inside at around 2:30 am. The next night, it was raining and so cold, I wore longjohns to bed and zipped my down mummy bag right up to my chin. The change in 24 hours was dramatic!

You have to plan for all extremes. Better to "have and not need" than "need and not have". :)