Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Quetico Forum :: Kahsh portages - least worst option
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HighnDry |
The portage out of McNiece isn't bad. If I recall when I did it, the portage starts on a solid granite take-out and hikes you into a lot of tall Norway pines up over a hill. You'll drop down through the forest to a small, boggy area that may or may not have some blowdowns (these may have been cleared since I was last through there). You'll eventually gently climb a ledge of granite which flattens out and then dives back into the woods while descending to a slope of granite for the put-in. That last section is maybe 10 to 20rods? It's do-able if you had to go that way. I haven't done the Yum Yum portage and I have no plans to do so :) |
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OldGreyGoose |
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GraniteCliffs |
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OldGreyGoose |
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Banksiana |
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campnfish |
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campnfish |
I felt the McNeice rock was much easier to get up and down, I believe more growth covered it and was not as high, but we only came down it, i set the canoe down and lowered it down the rock. |
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campnfish |
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campnfish |
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Gaidin53 |
Blue is 3* Yellow is 1*2* avoid campsites Island Campsite I stayed in on the North end was really nice. You can tell by our tracks. Had a tree cracked off and hung up in another tree though that is going to fall on one of the nicest fire pit cooking areas I’ve seen. Ryan |
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HBB |
campnfish: "Heading in Friday AM, getting a tow to PP, planning yum yum, looks like rain if we can't make it in a day. Hopefully it's somewhat dry getting there. How long of a day is it from PP double portaging?" Where are you planning to camp (& fish :)? I am headed up to that area entering Saturday and can try to generally avoid if I am know where you plan to camp. |
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campnfish |
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HBB |
campnfish: "I don't have a first day stop in mind, gonna see how it goes, may stop on yum yum Friday night, but will be gone by time you get into that area. Hopefully the weather holds for you, we will be in a 3 man souris river and a 2 man souris. Have a great trip maybe we see you guys." Thanks. 2 of us in a MN2. Lots of "chances" of rain...we will see how it turns out. |
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marsonite |
Banksiana: "Thought I should add that though the bog at the Side Lake entry to Kahshahpiwi can be difficult and mucky that beaver pond with the tremendous cliffs that run all the way to the lake is one of the most spectacular parts of the park- simply beautiful." I agree. I think that is one of the most scenic areas in the whole Quetico-Superior. |
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AdamXChicago |
Also, any Kahsh fishing hotspots would be appreciated. Email me directly if you don’t want those secrets out ;-) AdamX |
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cburton103 |
GraniteCliffs: "What a view from the Grand Hotel on Kash as we call it. Nondescript from the water but great from the top of the campsite." I've seen pictures of that campsite, but I can't quite make out which one it is on the map. I'd love to stay there on my next trip through Kahsh - would you mind sharing which campsite it is? |
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Gaidin53 |
Unnamed lake to Grey Lake people have issues with. People basically take the wrong fork and portage back into Unnamed again and then have to portage it twice. You have to cross the swamp section across. Do your research on this and be prepared. We ended up doing the S chain and then crossing over to Trant lake and then into Kahsahpiwi in the North. Those were some tough portages as well but at least we knew they had been maintained! I just fished some from our campsite that night so no fishing tips available from me. Ryan |
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Banksiana |
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Banksiana |
Photo is from beaver pond in happy times (2015). One thing to consider in route planning is that the portages between North Bay and Side Lake were generally clearer and easier to travel than the portages between North Bay and McNeice (especially the stretch after Shade) I traveled from North Bay to Kashsahpiwi via McNeice last week and finished out of Sarah via Side. The portages from Side out were the clearest of my trip. |
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campnfish |
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Gaidin53 |
We had one tricky portage that wasn’t where it was marked on our maps, map chip, or other overlays. West Lake to the Unnamed lake North of it going towards Shade lake. It was obviously the portage once we found it but it was not even close to where marked on the map. I’ll include some photos. The blue line is our track from that day. Ryan |
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TomT |
campnfish: "Any concern with the creek between North Bay and South Lake being too low to paddle? I’ve had to get out and walk with the canoe before. It’s a hard firm bottom so shouldn’t be an issue. |
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campnfish |
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GraniteCliffs |
I do think those boulders Banks referenced are wonderful. Except once after the portage was flooded we had to portage over them. Not fun. The last time we went that way. I also have a good memory of the Yum Yum. I was with the young guys I worked with 10-15 years ago. We paddled from PP to Rose Island on day one. Then toward Chatterton before we turned around and went to Sark. Headed down Kash on day three and did some fishing. Decided we were too tired to go much further and looked for a site on Kash. The Grand Hotel as we refer to it half way down was taken as were the two sites on the island. We went to the very bottom of Kash and nothing was open or desirable. In the last bay before Yum Yum we stumbled across a dusty, low, flea bitten site. Two of the guys were absolutely done it by this time. However, two of us were not happy with the site. We decided to "explore" while they napped. We grabbed a Duluth Pack and paddled to the portage. I knew the campsite on Yum Yum was far superior to where we had stopped. Across we went carrying the canoe and pack. I showed the guy I was with the campsite and he was quickly convinced. We left the pack at the campsite and headed back to Kash. On our return we found our two mates still snoozing. Imagine how happy they were when we said the other site was better. Then we told them we left a pack there.... They agreed to go and off we went again, wanting to beat the sunset but wanting to eat and swim also. Long story short they liked the site, were glad we moved and have camped there several times since. Sometimes you just need to work hard to get your reward. |
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HighnDry |
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Banksiana |
I found the growth hiding the trail on the McNeice portage made footing difficult and slow for much of the route- the relatively clear trail of the YumYum more than made up for the slight increase in elevation change. |
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Gaidin53 |
Ryan |
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cburton103 |
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Banksiana |
campnfish: "Can you hang a hammock on this site?" Lots of spots for hanging. Campsite is well used and fairly obvious from the lake. Some good tent pads as well. Main downside of site is that it abuts a steep very high rock slope- to get appropriate distance from the clear waters of Kahshahpiwi for pooping requires some effort and rock scrambling; unfortunately an effort that some are unwilling to make. Evidence of this laziness can sully one's time at this site. On the other hand you can scramble all the way to the top of this slope to a fine dome of rock offering tremendous views of Kahshahpiwi and some of the small rocky lakes nearby. |
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campnfish |
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billconner |
I rather like the Trant Lake route and in it's more northern access to Agnes. I would like to do it again, and camp between Kahsh and Agnes. Yum Yum portage has a great rest or lunch spot midway, with a great overlook. Well worth it IMHO. But early in the day. (A lot of downfall when I did it, and learned the canoes could surf across downed pine trees while I scrambled underneath.) McNiece was touted as having some great old growth pines. I never saw them. One nearly vertical piece of portage. They all have attributes worth experiencing. Any portage at 9:00 am is easy or not bad. Any portage at 5:00 pm is very hard. |
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OldGreyGoose |
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Gaidin53 |
The two portages with a load the canoe and paddle in the middle from Trant to Kahsahpiwi was challenging. More just due to being confusing about where to go and what you were supposed to do. Luckily I had read some things prior and remembered them. Ryan |
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OldGreyGoose |
--Goose |
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Banksiana |
OldGreyGoose: "Don't know if it matters to you but the Kash-McNiece portage area burned (again) in 2021. Not true. The shading on the map you posted is from the 2006 and 2011 fires. |
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cowdoc |
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Springer2 |
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campnfish |
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AdamXChicago |
Springer2: " Here are a few shots of the Side>No Name>Kahsh portage and Kashahpiwi Lake itself from a few years ago. As others have mentioned, that portage, flooded or not, is one of the most beautiful in the park. Thanks everyone (awesome photos Springer2). Looks like we’ll be taking Yum Yum in and Side out. Really appreciate all the feedback. What a great forum! AdamX |
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AdamXChicago |
campnfish: "Adam, when you putting in?" Going in on the 13th; exiting on the 21st. |
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campnfish |
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AdamXChicago |
campnfish: "Any concern with the creek between North Bay and South Lake being too low to paddle? No, but it was chock full of Lilly pads making the paddle through a bit of a slog. However, we went through there before the recent rains, so levels might be up enough to improve conditions. |
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AdamXChicago |
campnfish: "Heading in Friday AM, getting a tow to PP, planning yum yum, looks like rain if we can't make it in a day. Hopefully it's somewhat dry getting there. How long of a day is it from PP double portaging?" We took two days to get from PP to Piwi. Took us about 11 hours, including lunch breaks, without pushing real hard. Now that’s for two guys in their 60s. YMMV ;-) |
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AdamXChicago |
Took the swamp exit to Side lake on the way out. As some mentioned, it actually was gorgeous! Kind of reminded me of Germany’s Black Forest. However, we did get stuck in knee-high muck a few times. Since it rained quite a bit while we were on Piwi, the swamp became more of a pond so we were able to paddle a good portion of it. Happy to provide any additional insight. AdamX |
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HBB |
campnfish: "I think we may try one of the island campsites to the north of kahs, all new area to me so things may change." OK, thanks! We will probably be around Yum Yum or Grey on Saturday night. |