Boundary Waters, Trip Reports, BWCA, Stories

The Big Insula Pike Trip - Oct 2007
by PaddleAway

Trip Type: Paddling Canoe
Entry Date: 09/28/2007
Entry & Exit Point: Lake One (EP 30)
Number of Days: 6
Group Size: 2
Trip Introduction:
After our great May 2007 trip, we talked about doing a late-season trip - neither of us had paddled the BWCA in October. We figured we could see a busy entry point that we'd never touch in mid-summer. Lake One it was!
Day 1 of 6
Friday, September 28, 2007

Once the thought of a late-season BWCA trip announced itself, we had trouble dismissing it. Within the span of a couple of weeks this trip came together.

We’d heard the horror stories of the aluminum highway flowing through Lake One, & the stories of the excellent fishing on Lake Insula. Always ones to seek out smaller lakes, less popular entry points, & low-density populations, the thought of a late season trip to this popular entry point appealed to us.

We pulled up to the entry point on a beautiful fall afternoon, putting the canoe in the water around 3PM. Our target was Lake Three, camp 1493, highly recommended by kremer08.

But first we had to dodge traffic on Lake One – holy aluminum canoes, batman! We counted nineteen canoes on Lake One. Nineteen. It was September 28th, right? We feared for the quiet of our planned trip.

Not to worry. Lake Two held only one canoe, glimpsed from afar, & we saw only one more on Lake Three. Clearly the 70 rods worth of portages between One & Two were enough to discourage the masses. It was a quiet, easy paddle & we set up camp on the beautiful, if worn, site recommended by kremer08 (thanks!).