Hey everyone, just wanted to plop in a new post looking for any information on the route from Neewin lake to Niswi lake, or any old maps/books/grandpappy's stories about the Niswi, neesh, bezhik chain. We're heading into the BWCA EP4 on 8-28, and have a PMA endorsement for 9-1 to 9-3 in that area.

Past posts looking for information on that PMA have come up dry, but I'm hoping someone out there knows something. Feel free to PM me if you'd prefer to not post it here.

I've looked at some of the old maps I can find, and the only hints about the portage is that it starts on the southern edge of the peninsula with the campsite in Neewin, then heads up the hill and crosses lengthwise across the small saddle. Google maps and earth show significant blowdown in the area.

We're going to try and make one hike in without our gear (just essentials in daypacks) first to see what condition the route is in, and depending on our success come back and portage our equipment in on the 1st.

Any information, even wild speculation, is appreciated! Thank you for your time everybody!

Note: data from MN lake finder and Niswi lake file the year of 1983

Route to Niswi:
USFS PORTAGE FROM NEEWIN LAKE (1 MILE) AND NEESH LAKE (1/8 MILE). PORTAGE FROM NEESH NOT MAINTAINED

Niswi

Thanks for the link Pinetree. I've looked at that link and rook.org for some information (as well as digging deep into google searches for the lake names in that area), but can't find anything more recent than Y2K on the neewin portage.

I did especially like Rook.org's comment regarding bushwhacking to Bezhik Lake: "Requires a high level of commitment, probably coupled with a low level of common sense." I'd like to think that our group fits the bill perfectly.

I found this link on the Quiet J website a while ago when researching this area:

http://www.quietjourney.com/forum/messages2/2109.html

Provides some info on fishing and what can be found out there, but nothing about the bushwhack from Neewin to Niswi. Author of this link came in from the north when there were still some old logging roads that could be followed.

Thanks Dan! I'd read that post during my research and it sounded like an amazing experience, plus the idea of fishing in a few lakes with no fishing pressure is tantalizing. It would have made sense back when the author of that post went to travel by car from the Echo Trail (if you were on the north side of the lake) rather than taking LIS or portaging from Big Moose to Cummings to Neewin to Niswi.

The real lack of internet based information on these lakes is both concerning and exciting. It may be that the only real information on the area is locked within the minds of kind gentleman relaxing in a rocking chair on some quiet Minnesota porch.

Satellite maps of the area show there are some strips of exposed rock along the old portage route that could help with wayfinding while on the ground and give a clear vantage for a GPS read. The terrain in the area seems to be perfect for orienteering from the ground. The old portage route seems to run along the military crest to the north side of a ridge connecting Niswi to Neewin. There may also be a relatively clear route a kilometer or so to the north of the old portage, basically hopping from one exposed rock surface to the next for about a kilometer, before an unpleasant looking bushwhack of about the same distance through some new growth deciduous forest that has sprouted up since the blowdown.

My only real concern about the old portage (other than finding it) is how bad the blowdown in that area will be. The only thing worse than bushwhacking through a few kilometers of blowdown is bushwhacking through thick laurel hell (memories from the Clifty Wilderness, or really anywhere, in the Red River Gorge).

For what it's worth, I just tried a short bushwhack trip out to Solitude Lake from Ima Lake and that is a blow down area. There are big trees laying in the water all along the north shore of Ima and the whole forest crown still looks ragged. It is only about 700 feet on a map, but I gave up after less than 150 feet. I wasn't super determined, but I can tell you the going is rough and it is really easy to get turned around with all the little trees growing and stretching for the light.

Bare rocky areas could also be steep, cliff areas or high rock plateaus which may not be passable. They might just be bare because the trees were more exposed and the windstorm blew the trees down and they tumbled down the rock faces. Could be messy.


P.S. and a bit off topic about Solitude Lake bushwhacking around blow down:
There is an obvious canoe landing on Ima Lake where Solitude comes nearest to it in case anyone else wants to try. Have also tried to reach Solitude from Three Eagle and gave up, but think that way is much preferable now as it goes through a kind of boggy area with now blow down. Will try that again in future.

Thanks for the input Dan! I hadn't really thought about the impassability of those rock faces in light of the terrain I saw the last time I was in the BWCA, but those are all reasonable explanations. The contour lines don't look too ragged at 20ft intervals, but I've been stopped before (in the red river gorge, where the terrain change from ridge to hollow is about 400ft) by a 10ft high rock wall. It looked like the perfect way to gain the ridge when I was looking at a map with 20ft contour lines, but 10ft straight up and down might as well be 200ft when I'm not willing to risk injury bouldering up it.

There's a good chance that we'll get to the old portage trail area, walk in a few hundred feet, and just decide we'd rather go fishing instead of spending 3-4 hours on a mile bushwhack. But still, shoot for the stars and be satisfied with the moon!

the 1999 blowdown was not significant in this area. looking at the aerial photos i see little evidence of straight line wind damage, i used aerial photos when i was a land surveyor, i could say i was a professional at reading these maps. as stated earlier the rocky ridges may be open but this area is much more rugged than you may assume, carrying a canoe in these conditions is rugged. the biggest obstacle to bushwacking is wet areas, that doesn't look like an issue here.

these lakes are obscure due to the fact that they don't have the game fish that most minnesotans are looking for. lakes with out walleyes, trout or smallmouth bass aren't worth most peoples time. catching northerns is fine if nothing else is biting but for most of us they are not worthy of this type of effort.

i used to go into these lakes in the winter. it's a very scenic area with old growth forest, you can get around much easier in the backcountry when there is a couple of feet of snow on the ground.

i would assume that this portage was never heavily used. traces of the trail may remain. there's only one way to find out. wear good boots.

quote jwartman59: "the 1999 blowdown was not significant in this area. looking at the aerial photos i see little evidence of straight line wind damage, i used aerial photos when i was a land surveyor, i could say i was a professional at reading these maps. as stated earlier the rocky ridges may be open but this area is much more rugged than you may assume, carrying a canoe in these conditions is rugged. the biggest obstacle to bushwacking is wet areas, that doesn't look like an issue here.


these lakes are obscure due to the fact that they don't have the game fish that most minnesotans are looking for. lakes with out walleyes, trout or smallmouth bass aren't worth most peoples time. catching northerns is fine if nothing else is biting but for most of us they are not worthy of this type of effort.

i used to go into these lakes in the winter. it's a very scenic area with old growth forest, you can get around much easier in the backcountry when there is a couple of feet of snow on the ground.

i would assume that this portage was never heavily used. traces of the trail may remain. there's only one way to find out. wear good boots.
"

jwartman, thanks for providing that insight. Not even John at VNO had been to this area, so you're the only person who has been there that I have found (or found me, rather)! A big thanks for your insight on the aerial photos and shared expertise from your time as a surveryor!

I do tend to dismiss the terrain in the BWCA, to my detriment, when it comes to planning. I think the only reasonable way that we'll be able to approach this is to take daypacks in on the first attempt and try and find the old portage or other usable route to Niswi. If we make it and think we can portage it, we'll come back the next day and try to bring our gear in. I may bring trail flags, but I'm always afraid that I won't find one and would hate to leave it in a pristine area like this.

We'll be in Cummings for a week so we can spend a few days trying to get in there and see what we can do. We're not big fisherman so a bushwhack seems like a good use of our time (if you read my introduction post, you'll know that I managed to catch a whopping 0 fish in 7 days last year, which I've been told may be more difficult than a grand slam).

Boots, check!

moose river south used to be an entry point into the bwca. i don't believe it is any more. you could always get a permit for this entry. i had only skied into the lakes you mention, we did canoe trip over to big moose lake, a portage fest.

Moose River South (EP 8) is still an active entry point with a quota of one permit per day. Its not a bad entry for solitude but it has limited access to much and some long portages to get places. I've taken it in spring before the ice is off the lakes when the rivers are open but the lakes are still covered.

quote jwartman59: "moose river south used to be an entry point into the bwca. i don't believe it is any more. you could always get a permit for this entry. i had only skied into the lakes you mention, we did canoe trip over to big moose lake, a portage fest. "

Oooh, old maps!!! I am a sucker for old maps. We're committed to EP4 this time around, but I'll keep Moose River South in mind for the future.

On looking at that map a little more, and the map found here the portage from Neewin to Niswi looks like it starts from north of the peninsula/outcropping where the campsite is.

Other sources I've seen (including the google maps KMZ file from this website) show the portage starting on the south side of the peninsula/outcropping and heading to a point slightly south of where the other maps show.

I know that the older maps tend not to be as clear about portage/trail locations, but is it possible that there have been two different portages over the years or is it more likely that there is only one? If the latter, what do you recall of where it is located relative to the peninsula on Neewin?

Thanks again gentlemen!

there are never two portages. those old fisher maps aren't very accurate. we used them for years though. with experience you can pretty much tell where the portages will be just by observing the landscape.

quote jwartman59: "there is never two portages. those old fisher maps aren't very accurate. we used them for years though. with experience you can pretty much tell where the portages will be just by observing the landscape."

Thanks jwartman for clearing that up. I can tell what path I would take given the terrain, but I definitely don't have the experience to know if it is the "right" path that an experienced canoer would choose (and thus become a portage). There will definitely be a lot of learning on this trip, as always.

here's some info but not a lot

canthook