Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: Trip with the Most Options
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salukiguy |
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treehorn |
You've got Ensign, then Knife and all the border lakes and smaller lakes to the south of Knife as options. Or, you've got an interior path towards Ima/Thomas/Fraser, etc. |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
treehorn: "Snowbank comes to mind for me. Been looking at that one. Never entered through there, but there's a ton of options. |
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Hammertime |
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A1t2o |
With this in mind Sawbill doesn't seem that great because once you pick a route, you are pretty much locked in unless you backtrack. I'd recommend looking for either a basecamp type trip where you can day trip in multiple directions, or find little loops that you can do that start a day in or so. Insula seems like a good choice here or Malberg. Poplar seems like another good choice because you can just wander around Horseshoe, Gaskin, Winchell, Henson and so on. Just find an area where multiple lakes are interconnected and you aren't locked into a route from day one. That will give you the most options because then you can choose a different option at pretty much any point of the trip. Then if your brain is telling you that you need to plan, you just plan a few branching routes that you can pick during the trip. |
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Wallyhunter7 |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
boonie: "A lot could come down to the maximum distance you'd want to travel. Are you limited to a loop or is a point-to-point in play? I have no maximum or minimum distance per day. |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
papalambeau: " The three that came to mind with a lot of options: Snowbank, Sawbill and Kawishiwi. Multiple options from each." Having entered (and loved) Sqwbill and Kawishiwi numerous times each, I’m leaning toward Snowbank for some new territory to explore. Never been to Knife, Thomas, Fraser, Numbered, or Alice area. This would put all of those on the table. And I absolutely love the Boulder-Adams-Beaver area so if I did want to retrace a precious trips steps and strokes, this would be a good option. I also like that right out of the gate on Snowbank, there are multiple options. |
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scottiebaldwin |
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billconner |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
What I'd like to do is go in, have no specific plan, but a lot of options, and just sort of play it by ear. Go as far as I want each day. Adjust as I feel like it. So which EPs would be ideal for this sort of trip. Something like Isabella Lake certainly wouldn't fit the bill. Thoughts? |
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cyclones30 |
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papalambeau |
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Speckled |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
straighthairedcurly: "I like the Brant, Missing Link, or Cross Bay Lake EPs for this type of experience. Otherwise Sawbill. Depending on what size lakes or portages you are willing to do, I have also found the area between Seagull/Sag and Moose Lake (and south) have lots of variety in where you can wander...following the border or dropping down south. Doing the Bower Trout to Ram loop in late July with some buddies. |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
Michwall2: "One of the cardinal safety tenets of wilderness travel is that you leave at least a rough outline of your route and the date to expect your return with someone back home. Thanks for putting this out there. I would have communication with my family to notify them of adjusting locations and whereabouts. |
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JayMc |
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boonie |
You could do a lot out of Round Lake (Brant, Missing Link) or Cross Bay. |
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Michwall2 |
Think about the conversation your loved one might have to have with SAR: Where did they enter? Snowbank. How long are they overdue? Unknown What was their route? Unknown Did they plan to go east or west? Unknown. Even if you were to narrow it down a bit by saying generally east or generally west, that leaves a huge amount of territory to check. Your goal of having the widest possible set of options for travel also means that SAR also becomes exponentially more complicated. Even your short "thinking out loud" session about visiting Knife, Alice, Frazier, Boulder/Adams involves a huge number of possible campsites/portages to check. E.g. Are you going to go all the way to Ogish and down through Gabi, Little Sag, Makwa and back through Vee/Fee to Boulder. Or just to Kek and then down to Thomas, Frazier, Alice? Or maybe from Frazier you will go back east to Sagus and Cap to Boulder/Adams and then south to Fishdance and to Alice on the Kawishiwi River? Etc. While I understand the want to have some more flexibility than the ultra-planned trips of your past, maybe there can be something in between? One or two possible routes? With an extension/day-trip? If time allows? Hope you have a great trip. |
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boonie |
CoffeeInTheWoods: "boonie: "A lot could come down to the maximum distance you'd want to travel. Are you limited to a loop or is a point-to-point in play? I was thinking more in terms of 100-mile loops . . . ? |
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straighthairedcurly |
A solo loop I did once involved Bower Trout to Ram (loop because it is an easy walk on the road from one parking lot to the other). This loop had a number of options to stretch out or shorten the size. |
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ducks |
I really like this area solo because of the small lakes. On an early May solo before fishing opener in this area I saw moose and wolves |
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bobbernumber3 |
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CoffeeInTheWoods |
bobbernumber3: "The thread title strikes me as odd. Your options on any trip are limited only by your imagination. There are endless options." Yeah. I didn't put a ton of thought into the title and I agree that most EPs give you plenty of options. Some, however, don't. If you go in at Isabella, you either go west or east. If you go in at Parent, you go to Parent. If you go in at LIS South or Slim Lake, options are somewhat limited. And a lot depends on how long a trip I have. If i only had 3-4 days, options would be much more limited than having a week or two (or more ... someday). |