Quetico Portage 5672 (Kahshahpiwi)

The south end of this portage is in tough shape. Years ago there (my first use was 1982) was a huge beaver dam at the south end that you could pull over and then paddle the pond to the start of the portage at the NW corner. Then the beavers left, and the dam fell (2011 /-?), leaving a long slog across a swampy bog. Then a new and very long portage was created that went around the outside of the pond to the east that eventually joins the old portage trail, adding a lot of distance. Now in May 2024 the beavers are back, sort of. The dam is high enough to hold some water--but not enough to allow you to paddle to the start of the original portage. The problem is the water puts the new long portage about knee deep underwater. While this was May, from the looks of the new dam it did not look like the water level would drop during the dry season. With that said, once you get to the hard dry ground, I would say it is a moderately difficult portage.