BWCA Canoe Routes Sugeestions

Here are a few canoe route ideas that we recommend you consider for taking a great canoe trip. You'll see references to "hiding" and avoiding crowds and other people because I tend to be anti-social when I canoe. My main reason for going into the woods is to be with my small group and avoid the rest of people out there. I'm polite to passersby, but for the most part, would rather not have to talk to them or at least limit my contact with them. I think I developed this trait while guiding fishing trips for over 20 years. If some bozo figures out that you are a guide (or sees you catching anything), before you know it he's paddling over to chit-chat or worse yet, he paddles over and drops his anchor 5 feet from your canoe and ends up casting his slip bobber into my canoe. Legally, there's absolutely nothing one can do in this situation, so the best thing I've found that I can do is to avoid them. Don't be seen, keep your conversations low in volume, don't scream your bloody head off when you catch a 5 lb. walleye, and don't wave your landing net around - might as well put up a flag. Also, keep your stringer low. How do you think guides find new spots to fish? This same advice applies to seeing wildlife.

One more thing - for those of you who love social interaction while in the woods, please do the rest of us a favor and check in to the Grand Ely Lodge. They have a pool, lots of rustic-looking log work plus a bar and a restaurant. Heck it's almost like the Boundary Waters and a maid helps you break camp each morning plus you don't need to portage a canoe. You can get blitzed out of your mind, try to pick up chicks, talk about fishing, and make up enthralling bear stories. It's wilderness nirvana! The rest of us will outside hiding behind some island living in a tent and catching 4 lb. smallies while watching the moose swim by...

Trip Length	Entry	Apex	Exit	Level	Pace	Scenery	Avoid Dates	Suggestions & Features	Problems	Solutions
5 days	Lake One (30)	Thomas Lake	Moose or Snowbank	Moderate	Moderate 6 to 8 miles per day on average	Beautiful	Last week of July -first two weeks of August	You can get off the beaten path along the way if you are willing to take a few portages and avoid darn near everybody at certain times.	Portages into Lake Two and Insula can jam up with idiots laying their gear and canoes across the portages while they stop to have a sandwich or shoot the bull. Remember, they think they're in God's country and really don't care about the rest of us.	Travel early. The inconsiderate usually finally get going at around 10AM and there are tons of them out there. If you hit the portages at 8AM, you can avoid them and get to the nicest campsites ahead. You can sleep in at any Holiday Inn. Why waste the day and scenery laying in your tent?
3-4 days	Lake One (30)	Lake Three	Lake One	Easy	Moderate	Beautiful	Short trip doesn't matter	Set up base camp in southern region of Lake Three - take very little gear on moderate day trips into various regions of that area. Few people off the main route to Insula.	Might see lots of canoes going by in the distance depending on the month.	Avoid campsites in high-traffic areas like the first site on your left past the Japanese islands in the narrows going from lake Two to Three. Also, camp on Lake Three for your last nite as well. Lake One and Two sites jam up with people in busy times. Only two short portages and 1.5 hours of travel back to Lake One landing
5 days	Lake One (30)	Lake Insula	Lake One	Moderate	Faster 8-12 miles per day	Beautiful	First week in August	Base camp on Insula - good fishing, lots of areas to fish and hide. Get to Insula in one day, set up base camp.	Can have a fair amount of traffic on Insula portage and more obvious routes thru lake. Some really windy spots.	Stay off main obvious routes. Take day trips to Hope Lake and Alice Lake for walleyes. Camp on western shores so you can get out on water if prevailing winds pick up.
3 days	Wood Lake (26)	Good Lake or Indiana Lake	Wood Lake or Moose Lake	Moderate	6-8 miles per day	Pretty	First week in August	Camp on Wood one night, Good or Indiana second night if making loop	Longer portages initially with less available campsites.	Travel earlier in the day. This is not a long trip but gives you a good feel for Boundary Waters.
7 days	Moose lake (25)	Kekakabic Lake	Snowbank or Lake One	Moderately difficult	6-8 miles per day	Awesome	Last week in July - First week in August	Travel along Canadian border on this route. You'll be portaging in Canada on occasion - big clear waters - cliffs - different route options. Good fishing.	You can get pinned down by waves in rough water.	Watch the weather. Play by ear. Be paddling a Souris River Canoe. You may need to sit on shore and wait it out.
3 days	N. Kaswishiwi (29) Ojibway access	Bald Eagle area	Ojibway landing	Tough portage from Triangle to N. Kawishiwi	6-8 miles per day	Beautiful	First week in August	Paddle down Kawishiwi river (slow/no moving) to Bald Eagle region. Make a loop thru Clear Lake to the north.	Rapids can eat your canoe. You'll also see more people as you approach on Bald Eagle/Gabbro lake area.	Don't be an idiot. Stay our of ALL rapids. That's what portages and superlight Souris River Canoes are for. Shooting rapids is incredibly dumb when there's a portage.
3-7 days	Moose (29)	Basswood along eastern edge of US Point peninsula	Moose	Easy	6-8 miles per day	Awesome	Last week in July, first week in August	Go from Moose to Wind with 2 moderate portages and head straight north to set up base camp in same day. Good Fishing, no portages after that.	Very big, potentitally rough water when the wind blows. You'll be passing thru motorized section and camping in a large non-motorized area overlookng the Canadian border and Quetico Park.	Paddle a good kevlar canoe (Souris River Quetico 17) and watch the weather. Camp on western shores. Don't worry about the motorized area. You'll see one or two going by in the distance. Not even remotely close to Lake Minnetonka and its 10,000 yahoos on boats, jetskis, sailboats, dingies, etc.