Tuesday and Wednesday, September 8 and 9, 2026: Back in drive mode, Ely MN to Pisgah Forest, NC. Trip review, gear review, food comments, etc.

We started Tuesday with coffee and cold pizza, then cranked up the Forester and headed south. The 1250+ mile drive was again split into two days' travel, during which we critiqued the trip, gear, food, etc.

Both Quetico and BWCAW provide the “unplugged” experience that allows us to forget about the daily grind and simply focus on our paddling trip. No politics, no news, no electronics—just live in the moment. While Quetico may have fewer people, once we got a couple portages away from main BWCAW lakes we saw only a few people each day. We've collected lots of maps, pictograph info, route ideas, etc, for Quetico, and we need to put similar energy into BWCAW tripping.

After each trip we review each gear item to see how it might be improved or if it needs to be replaced. No major ideas this year, except we keep reading about lightweight 4” thick insulated pads. We have nice 3” pads, but a couple campsites this year had bumps we could feel in some side-sleeping positions. Canoe, cooking gear, packs, almost everything has been updated through the years so we're pretty well self-outfitted.

We need to start collecting BWCAW maps and route ideas, perhaps play with other entry options and consider 'blended' trips where part of our travel is in BWCAW and part is in Quetico.