I can't remember if I ever put these up on the board. This is the portage from the lake to the south of Knox into that large, island-studded gem, Knox Lake. As an intro, when this trail gets muddy, it dissolves into a muddy, boggy mush that makes passage nearly impossible. It required dragging your loaded canoe by the painter line through the bog, lugging it over the few corduroy logs that remain intact on islands of solid ground and precariously hopping from trail side-to-side leaps to cross when carrying your packs.

Thankfully, only the first 30 to 40 rods of this trail look like this. The rest is a nice trail that climbs gently through stands of white birch to a short rocky ridge and descends gradually on a smooth path to a lower, spongy path before entering a stand of tall pine at the lake's edge.

My first time over I struggled over this in 3 hours. The second time I made it in an hour and a half with a better system of organization. I believe this portage is about a mile and three-quarters but I could be wrong. Feels longer at times.

The pictures tell the story:

Sounds like a portage that while you are doing it you wonder why the hell you are doong this canoe trip and calling it fun, and after the trip it is the first excited story you tell, and what makes it so fun.

I remember that port from a couple of years ago. On our particular trip (coming down from Olive through Linge) the Knox portage was actually far from the worst (Young to Knox with all the blow down was the toughest bit of river I think I've ever done - constantly in and out of the boat, every hundred yards or so, loading, unloading and reloading.) But then with Knox, I think we got lucky because I had intel from Martin who had given me coordinates for a slightly different route through from Knox south, which kept us out of the worst of bog. Mind you we were also travelling in late August so things were a bit drier. I remember thinking that things would have been pure hell coming through in May or June.

quote KerryG: "I remember that port from a couple of years ago. On our particular trip (coming down from Olive through Linge) the Knox portage was actually far from the worst (Young to Knox with all the blow down was the toughest bit of river I think I've ever done - constantly in and out of the boat, every hundred yards or so, loading, unloading and reloading.) But then with Knox, I think we got lucky because I had intel from Martin who had given me coordinates for a slightly different route through from Knox south, which kept us out of the worst of bog. Mind you we were also travelling in late August so things were a bit drier. I remember thinking that things would have been pure hell coming through in May or June."

I traveled last July through this area. We had just had rain the day before and the mud was thigh-deep for perhaps 3 to 5m then a small island then perhaps another 5 to 8m. Conversely, a couple of folks that I was trying to catch up with had a bit less trouble when they passed through a couple of days earlier. They still dropped their packs into their canoes and dragged them through this exhausting part. I would love to know where else to enter to miss this first 3rd of the portage :).

Maybe Martin will chime in on this since I was using his way points. But about two thirds of the way along the portage heading south out of Knox his route diverges and moves around much of the bog rather than going through it. I don't know the extent to which his route has been kept up but he had been through there that season or the previous one and gave me his coordinates and saved me a lot of grief.

I had scouted out a fix to the wet section of the Knox portage a few years ago. Coming from the north the park crews had already started a fix that headed south out to the main lake instead of east to a creek. They hit a wet spot and abandonded the effort which left a dead-end spur. I found that by crossing 30 meters of wet I had solid ground the rest of the way. Because of the small wet spot going to get worse with use the park wanted a better fix. I had searched that area and was satisfied the 30 meters was the only option and could be taken care of with corduroy.

If you are heading north to Knox you will see some big boulders west of the creek entrance. My proposed fix started there and crossed the swampy spot at the narrowest possibility. Beware any flagging as the park crew wandered along and hung tape before giving up on a dry crossing. That is why the park has rules againest any of us hanging flagging. To the left of the big rocks there is an area that would make a great campsite in an Aspen grove.

On the bright side, the park did follow my suggestions and cut the new Lund portage with an enormous amount of effort. Then they rerouted the next portage in from Lund which only left the Knox quagmire to be taken care of.

quote Marten: "I had scouted out a fix to the wet section of the Knox portage a few years ago. Coming from the north the park crews had already started a fix that headed south out to the main lake instead of east to a creek. They hit a wet spot and abandonded the effort which left a dead-end spur. I found that by crossing 30 meters of wet I had solid ground the rest of the way. Because of the small wet spot going to get worse with use the park wanted a better fix. I had searched that area and was satisfied the 30 meters was the only option and could be taken care of with corduroy.


If you are heading north to Knox you will see some big boulders east of the creek entrance. My proposed fix started there and crossed the swampy spot at the narrowest possibility. Beware any flagging as the park crew wandered along and hung tape before giving up on a dry crossing. That is why the park has rules againest any of us hanging flagging. To the left of the big rocks there is an area that would make a great campsite in an Aspen grove.


On the bright side, the park did follow my suggestions and cut the new Lund portage with an enormous amount of effort. Then they rerouted the next portage in from Lund which only left the Knox quagmire to be taken care of."

That's about where I would think that an alternative route would have to be situated. Do you mean to the "west" of the creek entrance instead of "east"?

Thanks for catching that. West of where the creek leaves the lake is what I meant to write. I have edited the post to correct the mistake.

I went through last summer mid-August on the 3rd day of a 30 day trip so I had a full food load and was triple portaging. Probably better than wetter times of the year but still lots of thigh deep muck. First load across wasn't exactly fun but kind of an entertaining novelty. The novelty wore off on the second load but still a minimum of cursing. The third load (canoe) was quite trying and not enjoyable at all. Took me 3 hours to get everything across.

Thankfully, like others have mentioned, it's only the first 1/4 or so (heading north) that's a mess. The rest is a very pleasant trail and it felt great to take a swim in Knox lake on a warm afternoon to clean off the grime after the final carry.

One of the worst parts of the muck was all the sticks and logs thrown in haphazardly to act as corduroy. They're buried in the mud in any which direction and you don't know they're there until you step on them. But since you can't see them maybe only half you foot catches it and suddenly slips off. Or you're walking along the invisible balance beam when it suddenly disappears with the next step. Too many sticks/logs thrown down parallel rather than transverse. I think I would have preferred the thigh deep mud to some of those traps.

I remember seeing a spur trail veering off and flagged with tape. Must have been one of the exploratory routes abandoned by the park crew that Marten mentioned.

Not the end of the world and I certainly wouldn't let it keep me from paddling that route. Think of it as a badge of honor.

Alan

We can be thankfull for the work the park put into the first two long portages after Lund Lake. About six years ago you would have done 1400 meters of muck coming through those. I felt sorry for all the youth groups mucking through with royalex canoes and heavily packed on the first few days of a Bloodvein adventure. In fact I was taking some friends out to their vehicle at the Lund entrance and watched one such group slogging through. I had another week so I spent two days hiking to find the fixes for those three portages. As soon as Asst. Sup. Claire got my GPS tracks and suggestions she got the process started. The first portage required a new location. 1100 meters of trail had to be cut through the timber. It took days of cutting and when Harlan at Red Lake Outfitters found out he packed some steaks and went up to help throw wood after Claire and her helper had cut it with chainsaws.

On the second portage the original route over high ground only needed to be reopened and that was done when time allowed.

That is good work Marten and many thanks to the Claire and her crew for getting those first 2 revamped after your survey. They both tend to ride a ridge of granite from one lake to another which is preferable to a bog slog. I can't imagine what is was like before!

That was fun... One time I wasn't sure I was coming out. You just haven't lived until you've done that one. Bring gloves for the pulling with a rope part.

I think its interesting to see the development of the park these past several years. The marketing of the area has picked up also. I would guess more paddlers will be visiting each year as time goes on. And the portages and campsites will become more "permanently" established.

Is there a similar degree of work/marketing being done west of the border? I haven't seen much about that.

The problem with Atikaki in Manitoba is the limited access. Bluewater Avaiation in Bissett can drop you at numerous places otherwise canoeing in from Wallace Lake near Bissett is the next option if you are not paddling across WCPP on the Bloodvein or Gammon Rivers.