Hey Fellow Paddlers,
Many of us like to "get away" or "get isolated" when we take our trips into the BWCA or Quetico. Of course, certain times of the paddling season are better for this such as early or late in the season. There is probably no doubt that this area of the lower 48 is one of the best places to travel if you want to see how many days you can go without seeing anyone. Interesting concept anyway.
My trip with my uncle in 2009 was a perfect example of what I am trying to talk about. You can read about that trip if you go down to the April 22, 2010 blog date. That journey we went 6 1/2 days without seeing a single person. The trip we just took in late September also got us isolated. We didn't see another paddler for about 6 days as well. There was a little asterisk to this, however. When we took a short day trip from Takucmich to La Croix, we did see a motor boat at a distance. Does that count as seeing another person? Probably, but we thought it wasn't quite the same as seeing paddlers on your lake or at portages, etc.
So, with this topic of isolation, let us know how long you have gone without seeing someone. During the summer months, it might only be a 24 hour period. But, doesn't that feel really good to know there is a chance these days to actually get away from the crowds?
We hope you'll share some of your experiences. I've had some clients tell me with bright eyes "we didn't see anyone for two days"! So, I know it is an important thing to some of you.
Enjoy the quiet!
Drew
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5 comments:
My wife and I did a four day trip out of Lake One this Labor Day weekend. Not much hope for solitude, right?
We spent the first night on Lake Three, where we felt lucky to get a site and saw and heard several other parties. But, the next day we headed off the beaten path a bit and ended up camped the second night on a dead end lake at a campsite with plentiful firewood and not much sign that it had been used often this summer. We moved just one lake the next day, and didn't see a soul that entire day. All told, we went about 36 hours without seeing another person on that trip. It was just what I needed.
To be honest, I haven't been up there since the sixties, but that was a three week trip; five of us and a guide and we saw people only twice. Once was at that nice ladies outpost and another time we ran into a girls outing of our age group (one who I actually knew!). It was a wonderful trip and a beautiful area and I would recommend it to anyone!
I've done a few solo fall trips where I've gone 5+ days without seeing anyone. Seems the later in October, the less people I see. And tackling out-of-the-way lakes with long portages is the way to go.
Last year, we did an overnight in November and expected to be alone, but we ran into someone else. Who would have guessed? Here's the trip report: http://www.paddlinglight.com/articles/trip-reports/boundary-waters-route-the-hunt-for-the-viking-dolmen/
The portaging, or should I say "bushwhacking", was rough, but we didn't see anyone for four days in the Greers lakes area just north of the BWCA in Canada (Crownlands? Quetico?). When we finally did see one group of paddlers it turns out they were people who had been counselors more than 20 yrs earlier at the same camp, Menogyn, that were from. (They said they don't usually see anyone at all their entire trip on that route!)
I just ran into someone who did a mid-October solo trip in Quetico and saw nobody for NINE days. The later you go and the farther you go, the more chance you have of getting away from it all. Or maybe you are actually going to it all!! Drew (now Iceman on the blog)
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