i am planning a two or three week canoe trip with my daughter this october. she has just finished getting her u of mn degree in biology and she thinks that this might be her last chance to screw around for a while. she is probably right.

the bwca is old stuff to her, and she has spent months in alaska. she is looking for something different. as am i, always.

has anyone canoed the coast of lake superior?, i've done many day trips on it, it is indescribable. looking most specifically for pukaskwa park.

also i know that october is not the best month on the lake, pukaskwa is exposed to the entire west. a canoe trip here in october would certainly be something to remember.

this is a extent of my plan so far. if anyone wants to join in, email me.

thnkss

Yes I have paddled Superior. But after Aug 15 the storms come from the west and the west waves just pummel the coast.

I have done Puskaskwa twice.. It is possible that you will not be granted a permit to travel that late in the season. You do need a permit and orientation at Hattie Cove.

An open canoe and two people only is very risky. We did that combo one August and with drysuits on.. Which was good because we did flip at the mouth of the Dog River..operator error! Thankfully we have a lot of open ocean kayak experience (some 25 years) so the ten foot waves of Superior were just scary...not terrifying ala sphincter pinching.

Our last Puk trip was only seven days from Hattie Cove to Michipicoten Harbor. With three weeks available its possible you might need all of the time. We simply were lucky.

But check with the Park first whether this venture will even be allowed. Also call David Wells at Naturally Superior Adventures and listen to his wisdom. He lives there and runs a kayak tour service as well as shuttles for private parties.

you are right on, this was just an idea, more like a dream. most probably it would have resulted in a nightmare. I still want to go there, but under better circumstances.

thanks

I would highly recommend going. It's a spectacular place. I dream of going back again when my kids get older.

Coastal Paddling route closes Sept 30. We just finished a 12 day trip from Hattie Cove to Michipicoten River.



This at the mouth of the White River at the start of our trip. Two weeks later a canoeist drowned here in high standing waves. The day of this pic the water was relatively calm on the lake and the standing waves at the outflow of the river less than a foot.

quote yellowcanoe: "Coastal Paddling route closes Sept 30. We just finished a 12 day trip from Hattie Cove to Michipicoten River.





This at the mouth of the White River at the start of our trip. Two weeks later a canoeist drowned here in high standing waves. The day of this pic the water was relatively calm on the lake and the standing waves at the outflow of the river less than a foot."

Did you canoe or kayak? Get wind bound any days? See any other groups out there?

We took some 12 days to cover the hard to measure miles..it comes out to 160 miles if you explore every nook and cranny and 120 if you don't.
Wind was a factor most days. Some days ended early ..about 12 noon as seas got too high for us and were often broadside..which is the most uncomfortable position.

We never started later than 9:30 AM save for the two days we never started. One was because I hate getting up in the pouring rain and making breakfast. We could not find a suitable tarp hang spot .it was all alders. The wind came up which made a dandy excuse. Same for two days later. Though the wind never came up our tarp was a handy and quite delightful shelter for reading while monsoons came down. That was a matter of choice.

We did not have a schedule. I think thats where most people get in trouble. Because they may have to have a deadline they are inclined to push on where they should not ( and would probably rather not!)

If you do have to adhere to a schedule because your boss insists that if you like to keep your job you will.. a better option is to paddle out of Hattie Cove, see how it goes and paddle back. Rarely do things look the same way twice.