Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: Tow up Moose Lake and then west or east?
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cyclones30 |
For me, flip a coin |
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agromero |
About 12 years ago I took the Moose Lake tow to Birch Lake and then paddled east to the Knife Lake region. The next year I took the tow up Moose to Back Bay and then proceeded down the Basswood River to the eastern end of Crooked Lake. It has been a long time. Can folks recommend one over the other? If I go west, I assume that the long Horse portage will help thin the crowds and put me on Wed bay the first night, and then set me up for a base camp in lower Crooked Lake, maybe around Friday or Saturday Bay. If I go east, there are a lot of options. It is just my brother and I and we plan to fish more than explore, at least after setting up the first base camp. Thanks! |
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Wables |
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ericinely |
I agree with the others who have responded, If you are going to Crooked, a permit through Mudro would have been much easier and saved you the expense of the tow. Crooked is dynamite for walleye that time of year, especially Wednesday Bay, so I would never discourage anyone from going that route, but being able to target Lakers, too, would point me towards Basswood. Knife is great, but by that time Knife will be packed and you'll have to travel to get away from the crowds. |
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plander |
cyclones30: "You can't really go wrong with fishing knife or crooked. So...toss up there I guess. Yes you'll have a much longer portage if you head west. Most people headed that way start at Mudro and if they take the Horse river skip that long portage. So you taking it doesn't necessarily mean solitude once you're on the other side...you're a actually closer to EP22/23 I agree with this assessment. Mudro to Horse River to Lower Basswood Falls is a popular route for folks looking to get onto Crooked. You may want to look at the Mudro EP 22/23 permits on recreation.gov for the time you are looking to go (I believe 8 permits/day total) just to get a sense of the potential number of canoes/people you may encounter taking this route. Some won’t be heading this way but I’m guessing a good chunk will. |