Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Listening Point - General Discussion :: Cost of trip when all is said and done
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BonzSF |
PaddleBoi: " I'm working on it. Everyone I run into from the PMA trails to the Ely sidewalks are super friendly. Even people here who are from MN are friendly. Including the guy that I bought my "project" canoe from. I look forward to many more visits. And it goes without saying that the people on this forum are awesome. I feel I already have many virtual MN friends. |
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YetiJedi |
preacherdave: "Coming from central Illinois: if I come with one other I have about $400. Includes first night in bunkhouse, tow, gas up and back, pulling over in a rest stop on the way home for a nap, food up back and in the woods, all permits. Clever approach! Very entrepreneurial and a great way to finance more trips! |
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plander |
Per person or whole group? Does the cost of the various elements of the trip influence what you decide to do (tow vs no-tow, BWCA vs Q, night before accommodations, etc)? |
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Argo |
Per person If driving and nine nights in the park: $300 - gas $65 - motel Atilokan $150 - park fee $75 - shuttle (prefer different entry and exit points) $65 - return motel Sault St. Marie $200 - food and alcohol $855 - total $Cdn $640 - $US If flying: Remove gas and hotel in Sault $450 - flight $225 - car rental $225 - canoe rental Total - $1,390Cdn or $1,040US A bargain by any measure! |
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Traveler |
Cheaper by far than a week on a cruise, any vacation that involves hotels and restaurants, or a ticket to one of today's football games!! |
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jwartman59 |
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Dreamer |
When I come up with the guys, we stay at a bunkhouse before and after the trip, we rent canoes, so the cost of the trip goes up significantly. 350 to 400 per person. |
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NEIowapaddler |
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Tomcat |
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MikeinMpls |
Mike |
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merlyn |
Realistically, about $350.00 which includes bunk house and simple meals (burger and a beer). I will pack a travel lunch this year as fast food is neither fast nor cheap and paying for heart burn is kinda silly. |
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gsfisher13 |
Gas there and back $100ish Food there and back and packed in, $150ish Permit $16 Bunkhouse stay night before and night after $50 Minnesota Fishing license $51 (i always get the annual in case multiple trips are made, 7 day is $43) Replacement for lures lost post trip ($50ish) Does the cost of the various elements of the trip influence what you decide to do (tow vs no-tow, BWCA vs Q, night before accommodations, etc)? No, i do whatever makes sense. I've used a tow a couple years where the cost of the tow greatly reduced the risk/time involved). Cost for this trip is minimal compared to "family vacations", so another $50-$100 meh, no big deal. Fairly cheap vacation for a week! |
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PaddleBoi |
Permit 16 Canoe average of 45/2= 23 per night Tip outfitter 10 Gas from twin cities 25 The biggest variable is the night before /day after in town…. |
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Kermit |
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Jackfish |
Gas: $300 Food: $200 (for in the park) Food along the way: $250 (Breakfast, Dinner on trip up. Dinner on way home) Q Camping fees: $400 (four guys, five nights) Motel in Atkokan (two rooms - $125 each): $250 Total: $1,400. Divided by four = $350 per person. Obviously, there are incidentals that each person buys on their own. If we bring more people, the total increases, but the cost per person remains roughly the same. Pretty dirt cheap if you ask me. |
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PaddleBoi |
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PaddleBoi |
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okinaw55 |
Gas $150? Permit $38 Food - I dehydrate most of my stuff from leftovers so hard to quantify. Total has to be under $400 although I've never really cared enough to budget it out. |
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Kendis |
38 permit 55 private room at outfitter lodge/bunkhouse night before entry 225 transportation by outfitter to entry point (this year is a long drive to EP14) 25 transportation by outfitter from exit point 750 mileage (1150 miles roundtrip @ $0.655 IRS mileage rate) 200 hotel in Duluth on exit day 100 food during driving 100 food for trip ??? probably some things I'm forgetting We own our equipment so no rentals. Call it $1600 total. $800 per person for myself and my wife. We are cost conscious, but this is our "big trip" of the year so we are happy and willing to spend more money to have a more enjoyable trip. |
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Sparkeh |
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naturboy12 |
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bottomtothetap |
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bottomtothetap |
bottomtothetap: "Depending on how "luxurious" we want to get (paddling vs. a tow, driving to entry vs. a shuttle, simple bunkhouse night before entry vs. nicer hotel, etc.) we plan on about $300-$400/person" ...and we drive from Central MN. |
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fadersup |
RMinMN: "Compare the estimated cost of a week in the BW to the cost of 5 visits to a mental health professional." Boom! |
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chessie |
We live 120 miles from Ely, and already have equipment. Without factoring that in, it's permit cost, gas, and a camping fee the night prior. Maybe one meal out/back. Food costs are same or less than when at home. A big expense is house sitter as we have animals at home that need care in our absence. Once one has accumulated equipment to be self-sufficient, those costs boil down to either luxury ("wanting" something new vs needing), or repair (a ding in the canoe bottom). If we got to East side, our costs go up (time, gas, occasionally a shuttle to starting point). We do BW over Quetico because it's less expensive. |
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blackdawg9 |
$88 a day in permits and canoe rental per day. how many days? more people and you can cut some expences/ but your at 1k for 1 canoe for pretty easy. if you can get more people to split it, i can drop the cost quickly. but your at $ 500 per person for 2 . about $400 for 4 |
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PaddleBoi |
BonzSF: "Well reading the responses, I'm a little envious of you who live so close. Though not envious of the freezing temperatures, snow, bugs, humidity, ect. I'm know I'm just spoiled out here in Nor Cal. We just have to deal with the Shake n' Bake (earthquakes and fires). Make some MN friends! |
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canoemama3 |
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scat |
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mirth |
Slowly acquiring gear over the years has allowed me to whittle down the cost of trips. Canoe purchases will pay for themselves in rental fees saved after a few trips depending on the age and condition of the boat. |
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RMinMN |
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boonie |
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shock |
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scat |
Great topic btw. |
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OCDave |
Over the years, I have spent dearly for gear. I got older, weaker and maybe wiser so spent again for lighter more modern versions of the same gear. So, if I exclude those significant sunk costs of owned gear, a trip to the BWCA probably saves me a few hundred dollars per week long trip. |
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Deeznuts |
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Northwoodsman |
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HayRiverDrifter |
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bhouse46 |
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Hammertime |
You can do it super cheap, but we’re to the point where we splurge on anything and everything. Like others have said it’s still cheap compared to pretty much any other vacation. Probably around $500/guy. |
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BonzSF |
My costs are significantly more. $750 for airfare and car rental. Usually go with a full outfitting package for equipment and food. Though I have been collecting my own equipment that I am bringing more and more. Defiantly prefer a hammock sleep system. So that is about 1,200 for a 10 day trip, including the bunkhouse the day before and the day after, fishing licenses, and other expenses. That doesn't include the multitude of supplies and equipment that I pickup through the year used on this trip and other camping adventures. SO it's about 2,000 to 2,500 +/-. Keep in mind that the BWCA was a bucket list item that will never be crossed off. First it was getting there. Next was to do a PMA. This year is Quetico. Next year.... who knows, I'll think of something. Took me 60 years to get there but will be returning every year I can. |
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Bushman |
Fee Schedule Item QTY. Rate Description Per person Canoe rental 7 days $44/day per canoe $261.80 per canoe/$130.90 per person (includes 15% discount) $130.90 Lodging 2 nights $25.50/night Lodging in bunkhouse before and after trip $51.00 Tax 1 $68.15 Tax for all 6 people $11.36 Permit fees 1 $17 Permit fees per person $17.00 $210.26 Fishing License 1 1 Out of state licene for 7 days $43.00 Fuel 2 $139 Map quest fuel estimate $139x2 = $278 $46.00 Travel food 2 Food on the drive and in Ely. Depends on what you want to spend $150.00 Groceries TBD TBD Haven't shopped yet but usually around $60 each $60.00 $299.00 $509.26 |
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straighthairedcurly |
$38 for permit $20-25 for camping the night before (only about 1/2 our trips) $75-150 for restaurant meals on the way up and back. Love eating in small towns that need the business. The only time we rent gear is when we take a trip with 3 people, then we rent a 3-person canoe. It is more fun to all be together vs. bringing a tandem and a solo canoe. I don't really count the cost of trail meals because I build all my own meals and they don't cost any more than my normal meals at home. |
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wxce1260 |
I have all my own stuff , including canoes and stuff to share. I don't count food, cuz I have to eat anyway. I think once I got enough of my own stuff the $38 for the entry fee and a tank of gas is it.... unless I go to the Gunflint or Toft side, then it costs for a bunk night and a bite to eat in Two Harbors or GM. |
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Chilly |
I spend less money per day eating in the bwca as I either make the food myself or catch it. = saved money $ A 1 week round trip will be about 250 miles which divided by 7 is about 35 miles a day in the car. I do average about 35 miles a day on non work days. So free/no difference I already have all the gear, canoe and fishing licence etc = free The only expense would be the permit and if we took a route that had a tow. |
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Speckled |
I leave from our cabin/summer home, which is an hour outside of Ely. So all in I'm likely less than $100. |
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preacherdave |
Last couple of years I've tried something new. I have searched and found a reasonably priced canoe to buy, used it for the week and then sold it. Last year I was alble to buy a Nova Craft for $1000 and sell it afterwards for $1500. Also done the same with a Mad River and a Wenonah Champlain. Just got to keep your eyes open |
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520eek |
I have also managed to get up there and back for about $600 a person for a 7 day trip on the waters. This included air fare - but had just about everything else was provided for me by the friendly people of Minnesota whom I have come to know by the way of this website! |
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lindylair |
We usually go up a day early and camp somewhere close to the EP. In May we are going in LIS 14 and are spending the night before at Lake Jeanette campground. Usually camp a night on the way out too. So that adds 30-40 bucks to the trip. $20 for bait, $38 for permit, $100-$120(split in half) for gas these days, $10 for food on the way up and maybe $10 on the way back. So we are at around $178 for the trip not counting food. Probably add $ 60 per person for a mix of freeze dried meals and a fresh dinner and breakfast the first day and we are at a grand total of around $240.00 per person. Some people exclude the food cost because you would have to eat at home anyways. If we do that we are at around $180.00, ridiculously cheap for one of the best vacation experiences you can have. Honestly, if I go for a week at a northern state park at $25 a night, tend to bring more elaborate menu and beverages it could easily cost us an extra hundred or more. But we do that and enjoy that as well. I admire the commitment of many of you who travel much further with significant inconveniences and much more cost to do the BWCA each year. Speaks to the amazing experience and your love of the Northwoods and canoe camping. It's a good thing. |
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Chicagored |
Kendis: "Chicagored: " No. I keep my boats up in wisconsin these days, and rarely bring them back down to illinois. mitch |
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Kendis |
Chicagored: " Sorry to hijack this thread, but Chicagored I'm also from the Chicago area. Are you a member of Prairie State Canoeists? |
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DougD |
Worth every cent. |
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Chicagored |
Gas: 1200 miles round trip from Chicago to Ely or 700 miles round trip from my house near Antigo Wi. Either boats on the roof or towing my small trailer, I get about 24-5 mpg. Gear: I have my own for up to 6 people. Not including whatever I spend for my annual gift to myself at Canoecopia each year. Fishing: Sometimes I buy live bait and sometimes I don't. I bring my own stuff otherwise. I buy an annual out of state license because I usually also spend a few weeks at Fall Lake in a camper with the wife and then down to Grand Marias for the music festival in September. And some years I do a spur of the moment solo. Food: I dehydrate my own food and I usually bring venison steaks for the first night. I always estimate $10/pp/day for food. Also, I've found some good stuff at Aldi. Love their shelf stable tortillini for example. If I've had a bad year, that means buying ribeyes for the first night but that doesn't happen often. There is also the traditional burger at the boathouse the night before and the steak house the night coming out, but we don't always stay in Ely the last night. I usually just eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the ride up. On the ride home there is a traditional stop at a subway somewhere. But, depending on timing, I have a softspot for Grandma's in Virginia (the better one IMHO) or Duluth. Or burgers at the Anchor Bar in Superior. Hotel: If there are more than two, we usually stay at voyageur north the night before and sometimes the night after. It usually is, I think, about $35/pp/night. If I'm going in at 14 or 16, or if there are 2 or less people going I will look for a forest service campsite. If a solo, I'll just sleep in the car at the entry point. Tow service: If I'm doing a lazy fishing trip, I will get a tow service up Moose to Ensign. |
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ubbenholdthekraut |
The total cost for last years Iron Lake adventure was $5,578. 8 People. 5 days. THe biggest expense were the tow's from Crane Lake to Bottle Portage. That plus canoes, some misc. small rentals, etc, from the outfitter were $3,742. If your trip doesn't require a tow, you can cut that number in half or more. Dinner at the lodge for 8- $256 Breakfast next morning- $161 Permits: $110 Groceries: $310 Lodging on night #1 At Voyagaire $596 TIP $400 All in $5578- which didn't include a bunch of fishing gear (lures, bait) $697 per man. I'd would say we went pretty big and didn't take any shortcuts with the budget. |
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TreeBear |
For a one or two night solo trip: Permit for Solo Trip: $22 or so Food: $30 Gas: $15 So I guess that means $65 a solo trip plus whatever increment of past gear expenses are spread out. |
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4keys |
Of course, it really doesn’t matter how much it costs. Any trip to the BW is priceless ! |