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Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Planning Forum :: EP 64 - East Bearskin to Alder, Canoe, and Crystal
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| Frenchy19 |
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| MikeinMpls |
Frenchy19: "Like others have said, I do not thin k you will have to worry about sites in the middle of May. I do think you should tackle the Canoe/Pine portage for the simple reason of being able to say you did it; it is quite the trek! Also, you can get to Caribou that way, and the fishing there is excellent if you plan on that. There are also a number of excellent sites on Caribou, and if the one site on Little Caribou is open, it is a nice one-have also had very good fishing there. Fishing on Canoe can be good for smallies, but that is about it." Campsite ratings indicate that this site has an inordinate amount of snakes. Do you or anyone else know about this, or could confirm it? Mike |
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| Frenchy19 |
MikeinMpls: "Frenchy19: "Like others have said, I do not thin k you will have to worry about sites in the middle of May. I do think you should tackle the Canoe/Pine portage for the simple reason of being able to say you did it; it is quite the trek! Also, you can get to Caribou that way, and the fishing there is excellent if you plan on that. There are also a number of excellent sites on Caribou, and if the one site on Little Caribou is open, it is a nice one-have also had very good fishing there. Fishing on Canoe can be good for smallies, but that is about it." Mike, I have stayed on that site 3 times over the years, although the last time was a looooong time ago! Never had issues with snakes. Only snake I have seen in that area was at a site on Caribou, and that was also a loooong time ago. Bigger issue is the site is almost always full, but mid-May may not be an issue. |
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| Z4K |
DMan5501: "Yes the Canoe campsite to the west is awesome and the best one on the lake IMHO.." I enjoyed the middle site very much both times that I stayed there. I passed on the west site each time, maybe it deserves another look. Be sure to take the portage to Alder from the south arm of E Bearskin, the portage from the north arm is apparently abandoned. Don't forget to stop at Croc Falls, near campsite 697 on the south side of E Bearskin. It should be worth seeing in May. OP did not mention how you are sleeping, neither site on Crystal is optimal for more than 1 tent but plenty of room for hammocks. If Canoe and Alder are full I would look to Pierz. Fishing in Canoe has always been trash for me. I hear Paddle is better. This is a great area to try for a trout slam with Brookies in Bench, Lakers in Alder & Crystal, and Splake in Pierz. Walleyes are also in Alder and Crystal but I've never been able to pull one out of Crystal. You can find the remnants of a silver mine at the east end of Spaulding. Look for the old cabin on the north side of the drainage a little ways off the lake. Johnson Falls is a series of waterfalls. Keep going upstream until you find the picturesque pond above the uppermost falls. I wouldn't stress campsite availability any more than I normally would with a 1pm entry, I'm sure you'll find something south of Pine. Have a great trip! |
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| RetiredDave |
As others have mentioned, the western site on Canoe (700) is special. So is 706 on Alder. There were bear issues in the area two years ago, and 706 is kind off off the beaten path, maybe not on a bear highway? Across the way to the west, 705 experienced quite a blowdown a few years ago. Lots of firewood there, but I wouldn't recommend it for a basecamp. Hard to find a place to set up a tarp unless you go back in the woods. Nobody was on Alder at all when I was there. Good luck, I'm sure you will find a great place to set up camp! Dave |
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| tarheel21 |
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| Laketrout70 |
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| bottomtothetap |
Laketrout70: " We have camped all over this area of the Bwca. Snakes have never been an issue at all. We have spotted a garter snake occasionally which makes us happy! No problem,enjoy! Marc" I stayed once at the Little Caribou site and it is excellent, though there were several garter snakes hanging out there as well. They don't bother us at all and they are quite shy, though on one occasion we startled each other when I stepped on one and it bit my boot. Good thing I had packed spare undies on that trip!! |
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| bottomtothetap |
Laketrout70: " We have camped all over this area of the Bwca. Snakes have never been an issue at all. We have spotted a garter snake occasionally which makes us happy! No problem,enjoy! Marc" I stayed once at the Little Caribou site and it is excellent, though there wer several garter snakes hanging out there as well. They don't bother us at all and they are quite shy, though on one occasion we startled each other when I stepped on one and it bit my boot. Good thing I had packed spare undies on that trip!! |
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| OgimaaBines |
bottomtothetap: "We also found Pierz Lake to be a good back-up. Easy, short portage to get to. In my opionion the furthest west campsite is the best on Pierz." Ditto. I love Pierz! Caught my first splake there and the west site is a good one. Sloping rocks and slippery when wet but better than the east site by a mile. |
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| Speckled |
Alder and Canoe do get a fair amount of traffic from people day tripping to Johnson Falls. I would consider Pierz, the time of year you're going should be really good for splake and all three sites are pretty nice in my opinion. |
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| ajbuboltz |
Our group of 3-4 guys is planning our second annual trip to the BWCA on 5/16. Last year we made the journey from EP 37 to Malberg Lake. I was lucky to grab one of the 3 daily passes on the date our group wanted for entry at EP 64. Seemed like less than 5 minutes after the passes opened, this EP was almost booked for the season (but that is a topic for a different thread...) I have been on Deer and Moon in the past via Clearwater and did not have issues with campsite availability and had great fishing in the area. However, with there being 3 passes available per day through 64, and every day booked before us, I am worried about campsite availability on Alder, Canoe, Pierz, and Crystal. Our group is driving up early from Mankato area and will not be launching until around 1PM on 5/16. We estimate that there could be up to 12-15 groups already in the area (overestimate). I assume that groups from Monday may be leaving before we enter but want to plan for the worst-case scenario. My ask is if anyone can share any experiences in this area or a similar area that sees a similar situation. The hope would be to head south to Alder instead of north to Moon due to quantities of campsites. The hope would be to not have to make the long, windy portage from Canoe to Pine, especially since we may run out of time to find a spot by dark. If anyone can share previous experiences or advice that would be great. Thanks! |
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| ajbuboltz |
The hope would be to snag one on Alder as a basecamp. However, I have heard that at least two of the campsites on Canoe are highly regarded. |
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| DMan5501 |
ajbuboltz: "Thanks BigTim, Yes the Canoe campsite to the west is awesome and the best one on the lake IMHO.. RW |
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| BigTim |
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| bottomtothetap |
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| Laketrout70 |
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