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Hey new to the forum - have been to the BWCA several times and cannot ever seem to get enough. (guess I'm hooked) Looking at planning a trip with my wife and another couple or two. Any recommendations as far as more scenic lakes for a couple of days, the trip is planned for mid-late August. Was thinking of one of the sites around Devils Cascade or ??? Our wives have never done the trip or anything like this so trying not to go too far in or too tough of portages. Thanks in advance !!!
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For ease of portaging, I took my wife on her first trip this past summer, Poplar to Horseshoe off the Gunflint Trail. It is a very easy first trip and Horseshoe was an interesting lake to explore (though it lacks that single scenic item like a waterfall). The bonus? We spent a night at Clearwater Lodge's bunkhouse before going in, so she was able to enjoy the historic lodge, have a hot breakfast, etc. Another possibility if you are open to one up-and-over portage would be to enter at Clearwater and head to Caribou. Clearwater has beautiful pallisades, and from Caribou you are in easy striking distance of Johnson Falls. I just stayed on Caribou in September and really enjoyed it. Haven't got my pictures up yet though. I'll try to do that soon. This route would be slightly harder since the portages out of Clearwater Lake all are slightly long, rocky, hilly, etc. However, the scenery is sure to impress. And again, you can enjoy Clearwater Lodge! I can't speak highly enough about how the lodge set the right tone for my wife at the beginning. Oh, and they have brownies and other fresh-baked goods when you are done - another huge win if your wife is like mine! :) My other trips have all been through the Sawbill Trail area, which I love, but thought would be a little more aggressive for my wife's first trip. Lastly, great call on going with another couple. We went with my wife's best friend from childhood and her husband. As much as (I think) my wife loves me, tripping with her best friend virtually guaranteed she would have positive memories of her first trip.
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In 15 years of one or two trips a year I haven't found not-scenic areas. Even a day travelling through the Pagami Creek burn reveals some austere and amazing sights.
You're entering in a semi-popular time, so close in areas will be more crowded than either outside of July and August or areas requiring a couple of tough portages. You have good east side suggestions above. I like the Ely side, and in at EP 14 to Snow Bay, and decide then if you want to loop through some of the other lakes. I've become fond of routes starting on Moose, EP 25, and up along the border to Knife and environs. If solitude is a higher priority, can't beat heading into Question. About a tenth or less of the people. Louisa Falls, all around North Bay, the Man Chain, or two one-easy-portage destinations - base on Burke or better Carp.
But I'm really of the opinion you can't go wrong. Pay a lot of attention to your companions having an enjoyable experience. I think flexibility in planning and routes is key to that, allowing to just stay some place or travel further than you planned. It's leusure activity and it's adventure - good to be prepared for both but neither should be too rigidly planned.
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Thanks Guys - these are awesome suggestions guy !!! A couple of portages wont be bad at all, even though a couple we may have to triple portage (guessing the 3rd one will be for the wine for the girls) but it will be worth it. I've done some longer trips into Beartrack/Thunder and Lynx/Oyster with larger groups early in the season without too much human traffic. We typically leave for a week the weekend after Memorial Day for our guys week. My wife is kind've a waterfall buff and loves to fish so I'm trying to incorperate everything all togather if at all possible. Thanks again, glad I stumbled upon this site !!!
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Since your wife likes waterfalls, then my second suggestion including a daytrip to Johnson Falls would be the better of my suggestions. These aren't my photos, but they influenced my decision to go there in September - just scroll down to his photos labeled Johnson Falls. http://www.paddleplanner.com/photos/albumphotos.aspx?album=136 The falls themselves are a short (5 minute?) hike inland from the landing on Pine Lake, but they are fairly popular so the trail was very obvious.
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Thanks - looked at the location and looks nice, falls are really beautiful. Is there a lot of people traffic through that area ?
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I can't speak directly to your time of year, since I was there in mid-September and I haven't been in on the Ely side yet to compare the crowds. However, there seem to be less total permits per day at the entry points in the area (3 at Clearwater, 4 at East Bearskin, 1 at Pine, 1 at John, 1 at Daniels). So that should help spread people out a little bit. I think when you trip in August, you just have to be prepared for the likelihood of running into people, especially near entry points. As for campsite availability, enter mid-week if possible and have a plan B or C. There are 6 sites on Caribou (mine was the most eastern site and it was really nice, I just have to take the time to load the pictures from that trip!), 1 on a Little Caribou (that is highly chased after), and a bunch on Pine as a backup. I didn't have any trouble reserving a bunkhouse at Clearwater Lodge mid-week in August. I reserved it in the spring. To be sure, just reserve it as soon as you have your permit, then you know you are set. If for some reason they didn't have room, you can always camp at the nearby Flour Lake Campground the night before.
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I agree that Clearwater is a great place to start a trip. There are some great scenic overlook off the border trail that you can take. I took a rookie group in July of 2015 and we could not find an open campsite on Caribou. We did find one on Little Caribou and from there made a visit to Johnson Falls. Be sure to go past the first water fall to see the second. One disappointment with Clearwater is that it is a motor route. We had a number of tow boats go past our camp the night we camped on Clearwater. A tow may be an option for youand your group.. Check my photos of this trip in my photo albums. Little Indian Sioux is another great option. Devils Cascade is pretty amazing when the water is high. Loon Lake also is motor route. One place I also like to take rookies to is Mudro Lake. This one should be a 4-5 day trip. What is nice is you see a good variety of stuff. You can paddle through small lakes to Horse Lake and then experience a small river that lead to a larger one. (Horse & Basswood) You get to see Lower Basswood Fall and the Crooked Lake Pictographs. Only problem is you repeat your journey on the way back. Overall any place you enter the BWCA is a great place to be.
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