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Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Group Forum: Wabakimi :: Enter at Heathcote?
 
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jcavenagh
06/14/2016 12:25PM
  
So I am sitting at my desk perusing Google maps and I notice that it looks like one could drive past the old airstrip and then about 7.5 miles to the small lake just east of Wellington Lake and just southwest of Heathcote and paddle in from there. It appears that you can paddle about 2 miles across that lake and there is about 2 miles of stream and then you are in Heathcote.

Has anyone here done this?
 
karola
06/21/2016 07:40AM
  
I'll be exploring Wab in 2 years. WCPP will be next spring since the fire shut down my entry point last month. Have fun on your adventures!
 
jcavenagh
06/21/2016 04:08PM
  
quote goatroti: "With 4 million acres in the Wabakimi area and almost 3000 miles of canoe routes, Heathcote becomes just one of many options. So are the standard Flindt River/Allanwater loops. Just one of many choices. "
yeah, I hear what you are saying.
I went in at Little Caribou in 2011 and rented a boat and took VIARail out. A bit spendy, but it introduced me to the park.
Now I am thinking about easier entries with a lower cost.
As a US citizen I feel it is easier to paddle within the park. I don't want to accidentally trespass on some private land if I use a Crown Land permit.
And I am looking for ways to get as close as possible in my car and then paddle into the park itself.
The drive in options at places like Smye and Brightsand make it easier and a bit less costly for me to visit Wab.

 
goatroti
06/21/2016 05:02PM
  
I understand re: the costs. It's almost too much just to pay to get there. However, the chances of camping on someone's property are slim to almost none. There is just so much unoccupied crown land up there you could paddle for weeks and not run into anyone else. If I had my way I could do the west side crown land for years and still not see the same place twice. And, as i've pointed out to jdrocks years ago, crown land and the park look exactly the same no matter where you are.
 
jcavenagh
06/21/2016 05:59PM
  
Yup. ALMOST too much, but worth it.
I don't go out to movies or concerts or plays.
I never go to casinos.
I rarely go to a bar for drinks.
I almost never go to pro sports events.
So paddling is where I spend my "play" money.


The reason I even looked at Wabakimi was because I wanted a paddling experience more similar to the one we had in BW back in the 70's. Back then we could paddle from Fall Lake up through Basswood and see maybe two or three other canoe parties in a week.


Last year I paddled from Smye in only as far as Flindt Lake and saw one other canoe party and one float plane landing. I got sick and came out early.


With the WabProj maps I can drive up to the west side and paddle as far as my time will allow. I doubt I'll see more than 2 other canoe parties in 7 days, if any at all.
 
goatroti
06/21/2016 11:39AM
  
With 4 million acres in the Wabakimi area and almost 3000 miles of canoe routes, Heathcote becomes just one of many options. So are the standard Flindt River/Allanwater loops. Just one of many choices.
 
ZaraSp00k
06/21/2016 11:21AM
  
I've thought about that entry too and wonder why people here don't seem to use it.
 
jcavenagh
09/09/2022 03:07PM
  
OK - Confirmed by wyopaddler:
Put in is at 50.183098, -90.504306
You drive past the airstrip and go east to the second bridge.
I used google maps and measured 10.85 miles from 599(Salt Domes) to the put in.

"Vista Lake/Rusty Myers Road near Savant Lake. The parking area is located at the second bridge past the airfield.There is an easy portage on the west side of the river around a swift from the road to the put in (about 200m) . The Flindt River between the put in and Flindt Landing has 2 swifts and a log pullover that need to be navigated (lining/wading). The narrow portion of the river in that section is very interesting. We saw a moose, a pair of swans, and the usual duckie birds.
If you choose to fly in or out with Rusty Myers they will shuttle your car. "

 
jcavenagh
06/20/2016 06:25PM
  
Sometimes I forget how few people visit this forum....and that reflects how few people actually visit Wab.