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Well, we decided this evening that we will be putting in at EP 37 (Kawishiwi Lake) on June 7th and spend 7 days in the BWCA, exiting at Snowbank. Here's my plan for each day: Day 1 - Camp on Lake Polly, hopefully campsite #1078 Day 2 - Camp on River Lake, hopefully campsite #1037 Day 3 - Paddle down to Fishdance Lake to see the pictographs, and then paddle back and camp on Adams Lake, hopefully campsite #2015 Day 4 - Camp on Sagus Lake, hopefully campsite #1910 Day 5 - Camp on Hatchet Lake, hopefully campsite #1907 Day 6 - Camp on Disappointment Lake, hopefully campsite #1386 Day 7 - Paddle out to Snowbank Here's a link: http://www.paddleplanner.com/tools/route.aspx?routeid=5885 What do you think? Our preference would be to only travel around 4 hours a day, and we are not experienced canoeists. Do you think I'm being too aggressive? I'm thinking the fishing should be pretty good on this route and the crowds will hopefully thin out in the middle. Am I thinking correctly? Thanks for your help! Edited by user Saturday, January 14, 2017 7:19:42 PM(UTC)
| Reason: Trying to add a link to the route
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The plan looks pretty good. I think 4 hours a day is reasonable. There are two things, though, that I always like to plan in. I always like to plan at least one layover day for a few reasons. One, I have found that when you are paddling every day, a break in the middle of the week feels very welcome. Two, the weather doesn't always cooperate. If there is a really windy day, I will usually just stay put. Having a layover day planned somewhere gives me the flexibility to stay in camp when the weather is bad and not stress about being off schedule. Finally, while it is fun to travel and see as many places as possible, I also like to get to know an area. Having a layover day allows me to explore a lake, fish, or just relax. The second thing I like to plan is an "escape route." If I've found I bit off more than I can chew or the weather isn't cooperating, I like to have a shortcut. In your case, the shortcut could be going through Alice instead of the Adams/Boulder route. Just something to think about.
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It's a good route. How are you handling shuttle? I like to have my vehicle parked at my exit. That way I don't need to stress over meeting someone at a predetermined date or time. It gives you the option to leave early or late. Something to consider.
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Good route. We did a good portion of it year before last. Warning on your intended Disappointment site - heavily damaged by last year's wind storm. We looked last September and decided to move on. Maybe it's only "cleared" now, but thunderbox was in pretty clear sight of fire ring iirc. I like the one before it on your route.
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Thanks for the feedback, old salt & BillConner! I have an outfitter that has agreed to take us from Canadian Border Outfitters to EP37, and then CBO will pick us up on Snowbank when we are done. I will take a look at the other campsites on Disappointment.
Calm Waters...
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If you wanted to avoid the Snowbank exit shuttle, there is a portage route from Snowbank to Moose that's pretty easy. (Isn't CBO on Moose?) The portage from Disappointment to Snowbank is amazing in its clearing after storm - like walking between two very tall stacks of cordwood at spots.
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Or just park your vehicle at Snowbank. That way you don't have to meet anyone.
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Yes, that makes sense too. Just not under any trees if you fear a blow like last year's. Probably a good practice at all BWCA parking lots.
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Plan on leaving early on your trip across Snowbank before the wind picks up (if the wind is coming from the west or northwest). The journey across Snowbank can be intimidating in a canoe when you're looking at 3 foot rolling whitecaps coming at you. Edited by user Friday, January 20, 2017 11:13:56 AM(UTC)
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Lots of good suggestions here. I second the idea of going through Alice and then through either Insula or straight up to Thomas. My preference, though, after 15 trips, is to keep portages down to a reasonable number. With that in mind, you might consider, after your side trip to Fishdance, heading over to Insula. There are some really super sites on that lake, two of which I particularly like - the one on Williamson Island (not usually marked on maps) and the one directly to the north. Williamson Island is a small, almost round island in the NE part of Insula. It's a couple hundred yards SSE of the narrows leading to the Kiana portage. It's the one I stopped at on this map. http://codabone.net/cano...e-Snowbank_plan_1000.jpgI offer these suggestions in support of Ben's comment about layover days (post #2 above). Rest days are important at the beginning of trips, and more so if you haven't honed your paddling and portaging techniques. For a seven-day trip I'd plan on four paddling days, especially in view of the risk of Snowbank being a maelstrom. BillConner's idea of portaging west from Snowbank to Moose is great, but if it's windy you'll have double the problem than if you just go to the EP on Snowbank. An alternative for getting to Moose is to go from Ima up to Ensign, across to Moose, and then back down. The problem there is if you have a SW wind because Moose is a wind tunnel. My preference would be to take out at EP 27 on Snowbank. The islands offer a bit of shelter and it's only two miles from the Disappointment portage. If your last campsite is on Parent Lake, it's only a little over a mile. Best of luck! Please share your trip report. Dave
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Gavia has some great insights on the prevailing winds. Don't make it more work than it needs to be. Another good reason to end at Snowbank. Less work means more fishing/relaxing. You're on vacation.
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Since I enjoy trip planning, I thought I'd play around a bit with MapSource, Garmin's desktop program that works with its GPS software. Here's what I came up with:
Day 1 - Kawishiwi Lake to Polly, 6.4 mi. (4 portages)
Day 2 - Polly to River Lake, 8.1 mi. (5 portages) including a detour to Fishdance
Day 3 - River to Williamson Island (north Insula Lake), 7.5 mi. (4 portages)
Day 4 - Insula to Ima Lake, site 2 (the 2nd campsite north of the 50r portage from Hatchet Creek, a very nice site, 8.1 mi. The island in the south part of Ima Lake has two campsites. The southern one is sloped but the northern one is flat and quite roomy. (5-7 portages depending on how high Hatchet Creek is running). Note: the 176-rod portage from Insula to Kiana is long but very easy. Note also that the Ima end of the portage from Hatchet Creek consists of a timber across an 8-foot wide gap in the rock. If the wind is blowing from the west it's very dangerous so you'd be better off stopping on Hatchet Lake.
Day 5 - Ima to Parent Lake, 9 mi. (7 portages) Note: several years ago the portage landing at the north end of Disappointment had zero room for a boat. I suggest bringing packs across first, then the boat(s). This could easily be my plan if I were traveling solo, except I'd stop on Disappointment if I got tired of portaging. If you're going tandem these distances will be very easy and you'll have two layover days.
Edited by user Saturday, January 21, 2017 11:44:22 PM(UTC)
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Snowbank is not always rough.😄
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That's true. It's frozen now.
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Originally Posted by: BillConner  Snowbank is not always rough.😄 True story 
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