I had never been to this part of the Bdub until 2 years ago. Trout Lake permit was all that remained for a quick weekend getaway and it worked out perfectly for us. The motorboat traffic crossing Vermillion was annoying, but the paddle itself wasn't bad at all. The portage into Trout is easy. Then we simply ducked into Pine Lake and had a lovely, barely used campsite for 2 nights. We took a day trip to Pine Creek and had a lovely lunch on an overlook near the start of the portage to Chad Lake.
Basecamping w/ a broken ankle