We had planned to hit the road early and drive up to the entry point the day of our permit. While we don’t live in the arrowhead, I do feel fortunate to be close enough to take extended weekend trips to the Boundary Waters. I am always amazed to hear the locations of other visitors from the discussion forums and how far they travel to visit northern Minnesota.

With the truck packed the night before, we loaded the kids (now 11 and 13) and the pup up around 4:30 and headed for the north shore. Along the way we stopped at Sawtooth Outfitter to grab our permit. The boys were thankfully engaged by the forest service videos as they were quizzed by the outfitter before we could attain our permit. Permit in hand we continued on our way towards Grand Marais.

As we passed through town, we decided it was plenty early enough in the morning to make a coffee stop and take in the harbor view. While in town I ran into Adam, co-host of the Boundary Waters Tumblehome podcast, and spent a few minutes chatting about trips past and present before continuing on our way. I appreciated that he took the time to chat with a stranger/listener that recognized him from the show.

Not far north of Grand Marais, we turned onto the Arrowhead Trail in Hovland and made our way up the dirt road to the put in. Surprisingly, there was more going on at the entry point than I would have expected. The bridge and dock on Little John Lake are both being replaced. After exchanging a few friendly words with the crew cutting the existing dock out, we assured each other there was plenty of room and loaded up the canoes around them as to not impede their work.

The canoes were loaded and off we went paddling towards John Lake. It didn’t take long before we passed the first groups making their way out. They provided precisely the information I was most curious about. They let us know the camp sites on East Pike were full outside of the site they had vacated and John Lake was empty. Admittedly, wilderness travel with the wife and the kids always gives me a touch more anxiety when it comes to campsite availability and how many more miles we may potentially have to travel, which was only heightened by the recent closures.

With those concerns quelled, we made the mile paddle to John Lake where we were able to walk the canoes through the light rapids and begin searching for a camp site. A glance at the first site we passed told us the steep landing was less than ideal and on we went towards site 748 on a rocky point where the Royal River flows out of John Lake. Following a quick walk around camp, the boys decided this was the spot. A brief downpour kept us under the large white pines offering cover and camp was made.

We felt very fortunate the fire ban was lifted just before leaving for this trip. While I would never cancel a trip due to a fire ban as I have experienced it numerous other occasions, I would miss the evening ambiance it provides being able to cook over the fire. The boys were also eager to collect wood and try their hand at fire starting. That evening we made brats and mac n cheese over the fire and headed to bed early as the day had started early.

~Little John Lake, John Lake