Quetico Portage 5255 (Baird to Keats)

I'll post a picture with the start and end points marked on GPS. Wasn't the easiest entrance to find but having the GPS mark will help. We had heard this was a tougher muddier portage. We didn't really think it was all that bad or significantly worse than some gnarly portages we'd already done in Quetico this summer. The island campsite on Baird Lake definitely made doing this one the next day worth it.

This is a difficult portage but not one that I would avoid as Baird and Keats are both terrific lakes and it is a big short cut that gives you two great loop options. It is very hilly and the Baird side can be very wet at the start. i have used it on two different trips. If you are in that area of the park then you are tough enough to tackle this carry but it will be memorable.

One of the most difficult portages I have ever done. From Keats expect a gruelling climb to start the portage. If you do not fall to your death on the initial climb, the portage levels out and is fairly managable. The descent to Baird is pretty steep as well. I will avoid this portage like the plague.

We just explored this portage without packs and a canoe. This is the steepest portage I have ever seen. On the Keats end, it was like climbing a mountain. The trail just kept going up, and up, and up. It leveled off up top, but it was steep again at the Baird end - this time a slick granite face that was difficult to negotiate even without packs and a canoe. It was muddy at the Baird end. This is not a portage I would want to do.