Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Trip Reports :: Trip Report - Sawbill + Louse Loop SOLO / female paddler
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ozarkpaddler |
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TuscaroraBorealis |
I too appreciated the tips section. Sounds like you had scenery & solitude with enough challenges to make it an incredibly rewarding adventure. I've always liked that area around Wine Lake. Thanks for taking the time to share your report & photos. |
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paddlinjoe |
Your trip report was a joy to read, in particular I enjoy when people reflect on items that did/didn't work for them at the end of a trip. I am curious what tips you found helpful in aclimating your dog to the canoe? We don't currenly have a dog, but we do have a couple of kids, maybe there are some transferable tricks. :-) |
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paddlefamily |
quote muddyfeet: "Congrats on a successful first solo- Great way to challenge yourself indeed! That sounds like a route to add 'to the list'! I didn't have any problems re-entering the prism from the water. I assume you're referring to when I dumped? Thankfully, it wasn't very dramatic. When I dumped, I was in chest deep water (I'm 5'6"). I drug the canoe about 20' to the edge of the pond. It wasn't much of an edge due to the flooding and I couldn't get onto land because of the flooding and all the brush, but the water there was only about 1-2' deep. Everything floated (which wasn't much - the pack and the dog mat) as I keep everything packed or clipped to the pack or canoe thwarts. I pulled all my stuff out of the canoe and dumped the mostly full canoe out of all the water. Choppy water would be a different story. Depending on temps, how close I am to land, among other things, would determine how I self-rescue (hence the reason I always wear a pdf and zip my ditch kit inside of it). Because this route didn't have large lakes or deep bays, I was able to almost always paddle 30' or less along the shore, mainly because I can enjoy the details of the flora/fauna better, and it provides a margin of safety. I use a good ol' map and compass for navigation. I carry a smaller map and compass in my ditch kit. I have a solar charger (Goal Zero) but rarely bring it because I have decent camera batteries (including extra). On a separate note, I thru-hiked the BRT in the spring and while I navigated with map and compass, I had Gaia GPS app on my phone for backup. I never needed it, but it was nice to know it was available. It doesn't require cell service. I did look at it once just for fun on the trail just to see it working. Hope you get to explore this area sometime - I'd go back again, especially to explore more of the Louse River system. |
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paddlefamily |
quote 1bogfrog: "Thanks for a good trip report with some very useful tips. It is fun to see other women out soloing, and you covered some of my favorite areas! I haven't yet gotten brave enough to take one of my dogs with me. Given their general naughtiness, I think I'd consider them more of a detriment than anything. I glad you had such a wonderful trip and thank you for sharing!" Yeah, I'd always hoped I could take her and I'm glad she did well. She and I hike and trail run together, so I didn't have concerns about how she'd behave on portages. Then, I spent some time with her during the summer getting her used to the canoe on land and in water. She still wasn't 100% into it until a couple of days into the trip, but she stayed still, which was what I cared about most. :) |
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muddyfeet |
Tell us about re-entering the prism from the water- How did you do it? Do you think it would be possible on choppy open water? Do you use your iPhone for maps/navigation? What app? Do you bring an solar charger or extra battery? I've also had the experience that many "5 star rated" campsites are not actually as great as they once might have been for the heavy use reasons you stated. |
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1bogfrog |
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hooky |
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paddlefamily |
quote Mocha: "the Louse river is one of the prettiest areas of the BWCA, giving the feeling of really being off the beaten path. lovely photos. Yes, it's a gorgeous area and I'd love to do a Sawbill - Louse - Polly - Lady Chain Lakes loop someday. Thought about doing that this time, but doing a first solo with the dog was enough variety this time. |
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Mocha |
quote paddlefamily: "quote Mocha: "the Louse river is one of the prettiest areas of the BWCA, giving the feeling of really being off the beaten path. lovely photos. our party of 2 did the frost river (starting at Ham lake), louse river, kawishiwi river (to fishdance) then turned around and headed north to Boulder then east to little sag out out to round. some of the "most bestest" (that is correct and means "way more"!) bwca we've ever traveled. |
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paddlefamily |
ooh. that sounds like a great route. we've done hame lake down to long island, but i've been itching to cover the frost loop as well. did you go in the spring? |
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Mocha |
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jaek5199 |
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paddlefamily |
Trip Name: SAWBILL + LOUSE LOOP SOLO / FEMALE PADDLER Entry Point: 38 Click Here to View Trip Report |
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missmolly |
Nice report. I liked the tips at the end. |
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boonie |
It sounds like yours went fairly smoothly for a first one, but that's probably due to all your other experience. That sounds like a pretty nice route for your first solo - a little more remote than many would choose - but not a bad thing in my mind. It sounds like you were well-prepared for it and enjoyed. I've been down through the part from Mesaba (came down from the north) and enjoyed it. You're the only other person I know who eats ProBars! I like to keep the whole meal thing simple on my solos. Who do you get your other meals from? Thanks for the report. |
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Mocha |
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paddlefamily |
quote boonie: "I enjoyed your report very much. I solo a lot and always like to hear about others' solo trips, especially first solos. It seems a lot more people (including women) are giving it a try. Thanks Boonie. Ha, I like the ProBars because of the high fat/high calories. Plus they're lightweight for the calorie count. I use them on my long distance hikes as well. My breakfast and lunches are simple, high calorie/fat foods: Justin's Nut Butters, jerkey, cheese, homemade trail mixes, salmon/tuna foil pack, ProBars, Bhurja Mix (found at Target), toasted coconut chips to name a few. I also like the high calorie protein powder drinks from Packit Gourmet and Vega Protein for a quick on the go breakfast. Dehydrated dinners come from Outdoor Herbivore, Packit Gourmet or Camp Chow. What do you use? Yes, choosing a remote trip was intentional. I've been dreaming of an out of the way trip and felt very comfortable with it. |
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boonie |
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Eric7753 |
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TomT |
My feeling on bringing a dog (I've done it solo twice) is that it's a solo physically but not mentally. There's a difference being "with" a dog and going by yourself. I enjoy it so much more when I'm with my dog. It's something to occupy your thoughts and even talk to. I found myself saying to Luna on a difficult portage "This really sucks eh?" But she loves portaging so much that she didn't agree with me. :) |