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05/07/2019 06:49PM |
While no single Portage stands out, our Baker Lake trip is memorable in that that was the first trip we did where we let Aurora loose to go it on her own. I believe this photo was along the Burnt - Kelly portage.
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05/07/2019 07:26PM |
Two years ago, we did the chain of portages from Cherokee, through Town, to Brule. Short, hilly, super rocky, and brutal.
But the most memorable portages (in a bad way) that I've been on are all in Algonquin. We did a 2-miler, followed by a 1.5-miler in 85 degree heat. Earlier that day, I had crested a hill into a puddle with a cow moose staring at me. First moose I ever saw and it was 30 feet away.
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05/07/2019 07:46PM |
The fact that we had a 5-6 mile hike to the car from the end of that portage back to the Ram lake entry didn't deter us - anything was better than retracing those portages back to the entry. So my buddy and I took that long walk/jog back.
Since then i have taken the Morgan Lake trail at least a dozen times, a great entry to that area. it's a long one but not that difficult for the most part. Always loved what used to be a large open wetland area about 2/3 through the portage which looked like Moose paradise, and was always a good place to take a breather. There were several canoe rests along the way back then, we would usually use one or two of them. Last time i took it, many years ago, the canoe rests were gone and the wetland had dried up and begun to fill in. Still a nice trail and a good way to enter. Good memories.
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12/10/2016 01:40PM |
muddy water
Of course we've encountered several mud holes ...
Jitterbug Lake
Oyster river
.....and the Sea Gull ~ Paulson trail was just a great overall experience.
But, the portage I'll never forget was the Sea Gull ~ Alpine trail when a buddy & I came face to face (within 10 yards) with a bull moose. It was late September just after the Cavity Lake fire, so there was literally no where to run, nowhere to hide!
What things have made certain portages memorable for you?
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12/10/2016 02:49PM |
The other portage that sticks in my memory – for its beauty – is the trail around the falls at the north end of Lunch Lake in Woodland Caribou. We got there on the morning of the first day that we had good weather. The falls were gorgeous, and the woods surrounding the trail were a fresh, deep green.
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12/10/2016 09:37PM |
The Curtain Falls portage has memories. The one I wish I could forget is the dunking I got trying to approach it from Iron.
Bottle Portage and the mud...
Hyster to Oyster when it first got flooded.
That long one out of Rose.
Cross Bay to Rib meeting twins87 and her family.
The different times over the "goat" portage going towards Fourtown.
Woodland Caribou... The big portage out of "Salamander" in 2012 when it was blown down pretty badly. And then 2015 with magicpaddler with all the blueberries and the campsite on the end. And seeing a nice bill moose in the morning.
The other Woodland Caribou is going into "Splitrock" lake from the south. There was a Spot even my dog Bernie got fooled and we had to backtrack a little. The fun part was seeing the dog figure it out.
Going north out of Mexican Hat through the slop. And the infamous Knox portage with a big section of deep mud.
Man, I could go on and on... Like I already did.
Frost River out of Pencil Lake. Again watching Bernice making a correct turn at a T and then getting to the end to extremely low water.
I think of the portage from canoe lake to Pine by Johnson Falls... One book had that rated the worst in the bwca way back in the day. Stairway portage with the falls and remembering the old stairs years ago. It had railings even. But it was slicker than snot in wet weather... OK I'll stop...
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12/11/2016 07:36AM |
Everyone else had to carry the gear.
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12/11/2016 12:14PM |
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12/11/2016 02:13PM |
These guys were plotting to kill me I think, and even my dog Ruby was in on it.
Found out later our portage was a winter trail.
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12/11/2016 03:06PM |
quote TuscaroraBorealis: "
....but, the portage I'll never forget was the Sea Gull ~ Alpine trail when a buddy & I came face to face (within 10 yards) with a bull moose. It was late September just after the Cavity Lake fire, so there was literally no where to run, nowhere to hide!
What things have made certain portages memorable for you?"
Reminds me of the time on the Rog to Seagull portage and my buddies jumped a big bull that came barreling at me and turned away at the last minute while I tried to hide behind a skinny tree.
Then there was another trip, same area; the Tern to Jasper portage. The September Gunflint tornado in the '80's or early '90's. We hid under a canoe listening to the roar and crashing of trees.
Then the Stairway Portage. Those vistas, the waterfalls. And the time I did it 3 times uphill. I carried my buddies 18' Grumman after carrying our canoe first. The bargain was for a free Uff-dah-Zuhh at Sven-n-Ole's and all the beer I could drink and old Bill was true to his word.
The first trip and the first time I took Monument Portage from Swamp to Ottertrack. Although we'd already been travelling the border, the big Washington monument-like marker delineating the border just made it seem wild and exotic for my first trip.
Another of my favorites from that trip was the portage from, I believe, Eddy to knife? The huge, old cedars and the falls.
Clearwater to West Pike. It had been several years that I'd been too sick to paddle the BWCAW and after 5 years away I was back. And it was my only trip with a dear friend whom passed away a year or so later.
The time my wife stepped into the muskeg on Lizz after I had warned her about where it was. I gave her crap about being a better listener, and then proceeded to do the same on the second trip over (LOL)!
So many portages the smell of balsam and pine with my little white throat sparrows cheering me along. Heheheheh, I guess portages really aren't so bad if I have so many fond memories of them, huh?
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12/11/2016 04:46PM |
Heheheheh, I guess portages really aren't so bad if I have so many fond memories of them, huh? "
Yup! That was kind of the idea behind this thread.
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12/11/2016 01:57PM |
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12/11/2016 03:33PM |
quote ozarkpaddler: "So many portages the smell of balsam and pine with my little white throat sparrows cheering me along. Heheheheh, I guess portages really aren't so bad if I have so many fond memories of them, huh?"
Yep, thanks Terry... Now even if I have to wear my neck brace I'll be portaging in 5 months. Now which one should I go relive!
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12/11/2016 10:53PM |
Monument Portage:
Alpine to Jasper (Before the fire) Another old favorite:
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12/11/2016 10:00PM |
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12/12/2016 12:04PM |
quote flopnfolds: "The Thomas to Alice Lake portage, probably in the late 1990's before they made a boardwalk. I don't recall if it was high water that year, but the trail was completely underwater, and where the portage was, somebody had laid down logs to walk on which made the portage even more difficult as we were walking through knee to waist deep water, trying to balance on these round logs under the water that we couldn't see.
I went back there a few yerars ago for the first time, and was amazed at the difference. "
Good example of a nice portage. Fun to relive some of these through other people's eyes. I remember this one being one of those with somewhat decent landings and kind of a little more remote feel. I like that narrow strip going down to Alice and the campsite on that strip looked to me like a nice one or two small tent site with the secluded feel to it. Going out into Thomas if I recall it was a little protected from a West wind and a great place to launch.
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12/12/2016 12:07PM |
Ashigan to Gibson-- We were going to Gibson to check out the falls and do some fishing. I was following my buddy, who had the canoe with fishing rods tucked in them, while I carried a pack, paddles and other loose stuff. I remember seeing the tree branches moving thinking it odd that the breeze could move them through the thick under-growth. What I did not see was the fishing line from my reel that had snagged a branch and was being unwound with each step my friend made on the portage. THAT is what was moving the branches. Did not discover this until we reached Gibson
Trease to Angleworm--probably my toughest ever.
Burntside to Cummings--was guiding a youth group and this mile-long portage was the first ever that any of them had done. They really did well and I was particularly impressed by this 15 year-old girl who weighed maybe 100 pounds and performed like a real trooper. No hesitation and no complaints. She just shouldered a big pack and went to work!
Good to Indiana--again guiding a youth group but this bunch was not very competent and we were moving quite slow. This was several portages in for them and they still did not "get" it. We were so disorganized that between rounding up kids and gear and motivating people to actually carry something, I made multiple trips across the portage and we probably spent close to two hours on this 100-rod path.
Hanson to Knife--perhaps the most scenic portage I can remember. Between the lush green foliage and the charming water cascades, you feel like you are in some kind of enchanted forest.
Muskeg Creek to Muskeg Lake-- The portage itself was quite short and not so bad but it had a very difficult landing with water not deep enough to float the canoe over some stinky, thigh-deep muck. We had to get everything to more solid ground by balancing on a few protruding rocks and picking our way along them while holding the gear in our hands above water. By doing this I was really worried that I would either slip and do a particularly unpleasant face plant or that my back would give out and I'd then be screwed for the rest of the trip. I did slip once and sink a foot in up past my knee but otherwise it went OK.
Kiskadinna to Omega--What stands out on this one for me is how badly, and how unexpectedly it really kicked my butt. It does have a little up and down but is not really that long at all (less than 40 rods). I really didn't think it would be much of a challenge especially after we had just successfully tackled "The Wall" between Muskeg and Kiskadinna. Maybe that's why this little portage seemed so tough: I had spent all of my energy on the previously completed portage and was now out of gas.
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05/08/2019 06:56PM |
flopnfolds: "The Thomas to Alice Lake portage, probably in the late 1990's before they made a boardwalk. I don't recall if it was high water that year, but the trail was completely underwater, and where the portage was, somebody had laid down logs to walk on which made the portage even more difficult as we were walking through knee to waist deep water, trying to balance on these round logs under the water that we couldn't see.
I went back there a few years ago for the first time, and was amazed at the difference. "
Yes!
This is the nastiest portage trail I have ever been on.
We did it back in the late 80's.
By the time we were there it had already rained for 5-6 days.
No boardwalk but there was a terrible section of corduroy which was partially submerged in mud or water, wet from rain and slicker than snot. We were convinced that by trying to walk on the logs we were headed for an injury so we opted to walk beside it in the mud. Sunk in to our knees in some areas.
I'm thankful I haven't had too many like this in my experiences.
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03/15/2022 03:22PM |
Vee to Fee - The 80-rod portage from Vee to Fee is noteworthy. Our McKenzie maps showed the portage following the south edge of a pond between the lakes, however, several rods into the portage it literally ended in a bog full of dead trees. After scratching our heads a bit, Tom headed off to the left on the north side of the bog on what could have been a trail but seemed to disappear the farther he went. I convinced him that we should just put the canoe in and paddle the bog, weaving through the trees which ended up being a surreal experience. At the end it still wasn’t obvious where the trail was—we looked along the south edge but never found it as there seemed to be a rock wall all along that south side. Tom got out and found a potential trail that led to the north, meeting an obvious path, so we took that. It was rather narrow and sloped down toward the bog such that after a couple of strides my right foot slid down the slope, and I basically sat down with the canoe on top of me and couldn’t get up! Tom rescued me, and we ultimately made it to the landing at Fee Lake.
Fente to Afton - The 10-rod portage to Afton is the hardest 10 rods I have ever tread, going 5 rods nearly straight up and 5 rods nearly straight down, with trees or boulders as obstacles preventing you from turning the canoe in order to see where you next step will be. It was more like rock climbing than portaging, probably ascending 40 feet before dropping as far on the other side.
There were more, but I've rambled long enough.
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05/08/2019 08:20AM |
the portage from Canoe to Pine was the worst, my lower back was messed up it was a bear I think it's listed at 459 rods very steep, at the black flies were at full strength.
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05/08/2019 08:42AM |
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05/08/2019 08:58AM |
The other would be Brant to Gotter. It was swampy, muddy, leeches galore. But the most notable part of it was the family we passed going the other direction, speaking what sounded like an eastern european language. They had rolling coolers, a car battery, big red gas cans, and kept screaming at each other the whole way.
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05/08/2019 09:39AM |
Portage from Poplar to Skipper....first off, it was maybe the toughest portage I've done, mainly due to the conditions of the trail that day. Lots of trees down over the mile long path that were difficult to navigate, and lots of big ol mud holes. But the even more memorable part was the moose we were greeted by as soon as we emerged to Skipper. Just standing there looking at us.
Lastly, we were on a day trip from Grace to Phoebe, possibly up to Knight and Hazel. on the Phoebe River there are a few little portages...we were 2-man carrying the boat along them. On one of them we stopped and looked at this cool spot of rapids on the river and thought...is it going to get any better than this on Phoebe or Knight or Hazel? It was just a cool, almost magical, spot where we pulled out our chairs and put them in the middle of the river and just spent a couple hours re-creating a beer commercial (without the beer).
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03/12/2022 05:13PM |
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03/15/2022 11:59AM |
gravelroad: "How is it possible that I'm the first one to point out this?
In Praise of the Portage "
Nicely written--thanks for the link!
TZ
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12/12/2016 08:52AM |
I went back there a few years ago for the first time, and was amazed at the difference.
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12/12/2016 11:41AM |
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05/08/2019 11:42AM |
The Long Portage between Rose and Rove...easy portage just long...lunch and snack breaks along the way.
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03/12/2022 05:32PM |
Remembered with a frown: Quetico's Trousers to Cache.
TZ
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03/13/2022 06:40AM |
The first portage I ever did.... Also known as Denny's revenge.
It was real tough. Mud holes, roots, tight turns, tough climb coming out of Fall Lake.
It no longer exists.
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03/12/2022 09:42AM |
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05/09/2019 12:20AM |
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05/09/2019 12:27AM |
We were doing a honeymoon trip from Fall Lake to Mudro and were carrying a ridiculous amount of gear in a 75 lb Alumacraft. The mile portage at upper Basswood nearly killed me. My pack that I carried with canoe weighed about 70lb and the other pack about 80 (obviously double portaging ) but that still was not a problem.
The problem was the portage pads were homemade by the outfitter and made of thin, soft foam on hard, sharp-edged plywood and it was just like carrying with no foam at all. The pain was ridiculous! Been cutting weight and using quality pads ever since.
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03/11/2022 05:58PM |
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03/11/2022 07:42PM |
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03/12/2022 08:04AM |
My first real travel trip and the trip which really "set the hook" for me forever loving this place was a big quetico loop with my friend, his brothers, and dad. So many portages on that trip are burned into my memory. I remember the huge trees from the big red pines along silver falls, the giant white pine near munro, or the biggest white pine I have ever seen along dead mans portage. I remember the incredible challenge of the munro to mack portage with steep hills and deep muskeg; it was the first portage I ever remember being "the mean one." The portage from Bitchu to Ross from the creek was one where we bypassed the original portage landing and took the wide creek instead. By the time we hit the log jam, we had passed the secondary landing also. We fanned out into the woods in every direction in search of the thing before we bushwhack carried the gear to the next lake. I still have scars from that bushwhack. Of course, after the first trip across, we found the alternate portage and had an easier time helping others.
Misquah to Little Trout will always be in my mind. I took that portage with a guiding buddy on a day after 7" of new snowfall. I have never fallen that many times: 14 falls to the ground on one portage. One of those, I hyperextended a knee which didn't hurt for the rest of the trip but gave me issues for months afterwards. I still feel that one.
Daniels to Rove is one of my all-time favorites. I first took it as a kid and that's the portage where I was just enamored with the big trees. I couldn't stop asking questions because everything was just so big to me. My dad also saw a wolf on that portage and we found lady slippers near the end. It was all so special.
Cleaarwater to Rove remains the toughest I think. It's not truly a portage anymore, but the BRT still runs there and I had a group of high school boys who needed some "wilderness humility." I remember laughing half way up like "wow, should we really be trying this?" It ended up being super cool, though we followed it up with the long portage a short while later and ended with a nice campsite on Rose and a big thunderstorm.
The entire stretch of portages from Hanson to Cherry to Ottertrack via Gijikiki has so many memories because every group I bring there has some sort of monumental obstacle. All those portages are brutal. The first time I was set to visit, we ran into a guy on the monument portage who exclaimed "you're going to bring an alumacraft to Gijikiki?" I was a little indignant because I was in fact paddling a Grumman (haha) but his comment broke my group's courage who vetoed me. We paddled around instead. The second time, I was guiding a group who proved very capable day one paddling from Moose Landing past Thunder Point in a strong headwind. Day two, they had voted to take the challenging route, so I brought them to this chain. The mountain portage to Gijikiki really drove that point home. The portage into Rivalry is the one I'll remember. I was double packing pretty heavy to help out the group at this point. I had a canoe and a huge equipment pack. I reached the end and stepped just a little too far and went straight to chest deep in muskeg. My group was well behind me, so it was up to me to figure out extracting myself from the pit. After some good work, I found my way out. We continued on and, as a reward for all their hard work, we found both Cherry campsites full (of course) and stayed on the awful one on Topaz. A group of boyscouts, also without a campsite, bushcamped on the point directly across from us. We had a major storm roll in that night too. The next year, I visited the area with a friend from the outfitter. On the Hanson to Cherry portage, I hit a tree with the bow of the alumicraft I was carrying. I apparantly hit it hard enough that it unseated from my shoulders and dropped the full weight of the alumicraft on my head. Ouch! Rang my bell pretty well. The next trip to this chain was the following spring. One group member was new and the portages nearly broke her. We camped on Gijikiki.
Lots of other portages which come to mind for me. Paulsen didn't feel bad to me at the end of a long guide season, and it's so scenic, but I was well aware of how many "teeth" that portage can have. Pine to Long/Stump was a brute especially solo with a miserably heavy old town solo boat with a grumman yoke esentially clamped onto the gunnels. The portage into Gogebic has terrible landings and a pinch point mid portage that a canoe can't fit through without turning sideways. The Beaver to Adams portage remains my favorite in all of the BW; it's just so pretty from beginning to end. I have a residual disdain for the Battle to Hassel portage which I took on my very first solo trip. That whole route beat me up a lot. In mid summer, that portage had chest deep ferns where I couldn't even see my feet a lot of the time. When I could, I kept finding fresh moose scat, so I was ever on alert for that. Then the Hassel end has that little cliff to throw the canoe off of but not enough water to float one. It was a lot of learning through suffering those few days.
But, like many of you, there are so many portages which stick with me: the mechanic chain, muskeg to kiskadinna, the monument portage, stairway, the stairway off of Gotter, the beach portage on Long Island, Hanson to S Knife with the cedars, the Peter to Virgin portage before the last brush cut, Kek to Strup always gives a good challenge, Knife to Vera at 8:00 pm with a group who was skunked out of sites on knife, the "march" to Azion, Upper Basswood Falls portage and its lovely campsites, Crab to Burntside where my buddy and I switched off in the dark with a canoe with a snapped yoke (broke mid portage), the deep mud of the Bottle portage, and countless others. There are also a fair number of bushwhacks that I guess count as portages. I treasure a lot of those!
Wow, now I really miss canoe season again; I thought it was at least "controlled."
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03/12/2022 10:23AM |
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03/12/2022 11:37AM |
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03/12/2022 12:46PM |
my favorite in the whole BW is the 5 rod into toe lake from the SAK ;)
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03/13/2022 01:37PM |
Poohbah lake (1970 or so) in the Quetico.
Entering from the south from Conmee lake
a set of 3 portages each about one mile. The portage
started out rocky then turned to muskeg (deep).
The portage was broken up by two duck ponds.
We started the portage first thing in the AM, did not
get into Poohbah until after dark (July trip).
In the morning we attempted to take the northern
portage into Sturgeon lake. That one was even worse,
we turned around and spent a second night in Poohbah.
The next day we exited from the west via Poohbah creek
into the Maligne river.
Many years later while talking with a Canadian ranger I
brought up the portage, whose response was "you did that
portage "? From the sound of her voice I think she thought
I was crazy (LOL).
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03/13/2022 03:45PM |
Sturgeon Narrows to Antoine almost did my wife in. She got stuck in a boggy area halfway across. Maybe it was just the year, but it seemed like the toughest portage we had ever taken.
The short portage from I think Keats into McDougal has the steepest beginning I’ve seen. Literally straight up a cliff to start.
As several people have mentioned, Boulder to Adams is beautiful. It’s a great area anyway, so worth going there.
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03/13/2022 05:58PM |
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03/13/2022 08:48PM |
beanpole: "YES!!! Our first year there, portaging from Meeds Lake to the little creek that will take us over to Caribou Lake. We were leaving after 3 miserable, wet, cold days and one beautiful amazing incredible day spent on an island in Meeds Lake. It was our first trip so we were woefully unprepared. We had taken a 90 lb aluminum canoe and a 95 lb plastic tank of a canoe. 4 of us - two male/female couples. The males would take the canoes one at a time during the portage and the females would take the packs - 1 pack at a time. My friend and I had completed the portage and were waiting with the packs. We heard laughter for about 5 minutes before we could see the 2 men with the canoe. And it took another few minutes to get the story out. Apparently, as the canoe was lifted, the shorter of the two had all the dirty, muddy foot water poured down his arm, into his face and mouth. The portage began with him telling my boyfriend "Don't talk to me for the rest of this portage." We utilize that phrase a LOT even when we are not on the water. I am SO glad I had the GoPro running (clamped to the canoe) so I could hear the commentary first hand."
Great story! :)
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03/14/2022 03:23PM |
In Praise of the Portage
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03/15/2022 09:42AM |
gravelroad: "How is it possible that I'm the first one to point out this?
In Praise of the Portage
"
I mean, it's fairly new. I laughed so hard when I saw that come in the mailbox.
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04/28/2022 11:47PM |
Also on that portage I remember seeing a very distinct, fresh and HUGE moose footprint.
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04/29/2022 09:48AM |
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05/08/2019 01:58AM |
Mountain to Moose or Moose to North Fowl (somewhere in there) has a portage that is not that not difficult- just very slippery after a rain with large saucer like rocks.
South Fowl to Pigeon River is very fowl. Especially right at the end.
Stuart to Fox- trying to get to Iron in one day- this portage really messes with you mind.
Some of the portages in the Granite River going from SAG to Magnetic in the Fall with low water have some of the worst landings possible.
Grand Portage and the slippery planks that go on for literally miles....
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05/08/2019 07:10AM |
My dad, my uncle and me (a mere stripling at the time), on a Memorial Day weekend trip for lakers.
Uncle’s 13’ aluminum boat. No, not canoe, boat.
A set of oars ... just in case the 5.5 hp motor failed.
Did I mention the external fuel tank and the fuel?
None of the participants ever expressed any interest in repeating the experience.
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05/08/2019 07:24AM |
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05/08/2019 11:51AM |
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05/08/2019 01:58PM |
Memorable exhausting: Muskeg/Kisdadinna followed by Kiskadinna/Omega.
Memorable difficult: Horsetail Rapids/Sag Falls. Not long, just awkward. Hated it the most of any.
Memorable triumphant: Sawbill to Alton in 2009, the first portage after Spartan1's kidney transplant!
Memorable as final: Brule to Vernon to see the falls. I realized I didn't have the mobility to make it anymore. :-(
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05/08/2019 02:22PM |
walllee: "Badwater portage in a rainstorm.... enough said about that one. "
Or in any weather. I'll never forget the time we did the portage and had to walk through the two swamps (that were normally mostly dry) while balancing on submerged logs and lining our canoes. A mile of pure enjoyment. LOL
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05/08/2019 02:44PM |
At the Fourtown "goat trail", I was pondering how to land my solo on the near vertical rock when two guys came up behind me. Not only did they steady my boat while I stood up to step out, they carried my pack across. Musta been worried about the old guy making it. At that same landing (different trip), a guy tried to launch, but his canoe was hung up on a rock, he got back out and pushed with his foot, but it was still stuck; he pushed some more; still stuck. One more push and the boat floated free, but by then he was doing a major split, one foot on the bobbing canoe and one foot on land. He did about 10 seconds of arm flailing and hip rotations, but to no avail; in he went with a big splash. We stifled our guffaws until we got down the trail. Memories.
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05/08/2019 03:35PM |
bottomtothetap: "Burntside to Cummings--was guiding a youth group and this mile-long portage was the first ever that any of them had done. They really did well and I was particularly impressed by this 15 year-old girl who weighed maybe 100 pounds and performed like a real trooper. No hesitation and no complaints. She just shouldered a big pack and went to work!"
I'd swear that one is uphill both ways. Of course it was complicated by the fact that we stupidly gave in to rookie planners in the scout troop who insisted that big blue bins they used car camping would work just fine instead of packs. They also gave us enough food to stay for two weeks. Never again would I let inexperienced people plan so they felt "included". Very poor judgment on our part.
Spartan2: "Memorable triumphant: Sawbill to Alton in 2009, the first portage after Spartan1's kidney transplant!"
Love that one. It's like a walk in a park. Of course the launch on the Alton side can be an issue on a windy day.
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05/08/2019 09:26PM |
nctry: "And the infamous Knox portage with a big section of deep mud.
Man, I could go on and on... Like I already did. "
Knox portage....ugh! Did that one twice right after you guys...one I'll never forget :)...and the portage crew guys who I passed on the way out who figure that it just wasn't fixable!!
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03/12/2022 08:46PM |
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03/11/2022 04:05PM |
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03/11/2022 12:02PM |
Conquering a dried up Horse River a couple of summers ago still brings up a 'ton' of memories. :)