Voyageurs
NATIONAL PARK
By DIENEKE
Any time there is a possibility of road tripping…grad school? moving? conference? wedding?, we check out the route and see if it’s possible to “swing by” a national park. Our good friends were getting married in Minnesota and provided just such an opportunity to drive though Michigan’s upper peninsula, past Superior National Forest and Boundary Waters Canoe Area to Voyageurs National Park! Packing was quite diverse with canoeing gear, camping gear and wedding gear, but it made for great stories at the Rehearsal Dinner and Reception.
This one was a bit of a stretch for us as we’d never camped via canoe so we brushed off the rusty Old Towne and did some “training” around our house before feeling confident in taking on a multi-day paddling adventure. This was a bit intimidating to plan, so we decided to pitch a base camp (on our own private island!) and paddle around from there. This turned out being a wise decision as Day 2 was dangerously windy so we didn’t get on the water until 4pm!
We spent (4) days and (3) nights in the park:
- Day 1: Paddle to Round Bear and make camp
- Day 2: Paddle around Lost Bay (8 mi)
- Day 3: Paddle down Ash River to Sullivan Bay; across Lake Kabetogama to Lost Lake (11 mi)
- Day 4: Break camp and paddle back to the launch
You can see from the red box above that we only experienced a fraction of the 218,000 acres encompassed by Voyageurs. This is a place between land and water, southern boreal and northern hardwood forests and is full of exposed rock ridges, cliffs, wetlands, forests, streams and lakes. When we return next time, we’ll consider renting a motorized vehicle (houseboats are very popular) to explore even more!
DAY ONE
I typically have good luck relying on the NPS map and newsletter plus a guidebook, but with so many streams, inlets and islands, the National Geographic map was a must (and waterproof to boot!). We picked this up at the Visitor Center, along with some recommendations from the park ranger.
After packing the canoe with our gear for 3 nights, we only had a 1 mile paddle to our campsite/personal island of Round Bear but it was no walk in the park (pun intended). The headwind was brutal, the boat was rocking hard and we were taking on water as the bow crashed into the waves. Luckily, Brandon remained calm and I masked my screams of fear into “this is one hellofa ride!”. The experience turned out to be a blessing as the following days caused us to respect the water and venture out only when it was safe. While we’re comfortable pushing ourselves on land, the water brings an element outside our control that demands careful considerations.
All 270+ campsites in Voyageurs are accessibly only by watercraft (only adding to the adventure) and boast awesome amenities: tent pad(s), bear-proof food locker, metal picnic table, fire ring & vaulted toilet. A note on the latter: the description of the facility for Round Bear was “privy”. This is an unsheltered vault toilet a short jaunt from the tent pad. First word to the wise: bring toilet paper!
After our harrowing trek across the lake, we discover we are famished and decide to pitch the tent and start cooking. We digest our meal while we wait for the infamous night sky to appear. Stargazing is very popular in Voyageurs, especially in the summer months when the Northern hemisphere is tilted toward the center of the Milky Way. While we brought our binoculars (especially useful during the day to spot birds), we only needed our eyeballs to enjoy the sky illuminated with the bright stars of our galaxy. Second word to the wise: bring bug spray, permethrin treated clothing, head nets or all of the above!
DAY TWO
We slowly console ourselves that will will not be pushing off this morning. We estimated two foot swales and watched powerboats careen across the choppy water. Instead, we added guy lines to the tent and secured anything sailable. We read, ate ,napped, bird watched and boat watched. At 4pm it was finally our time.
We headed west to Lost Bay, which took a full hour…this place is HUGE! We paddled through reeds and grasses and past rocky cliffs and tiny islands. One rock was covered with seagulls and another with humans picking blueberries. The slow motion of our vessel gave us time to listen to the susurrus (word of the trip) of the wind through the trees and spy turtles sunbathing on logs. As we headed headed back to camp, we chased a storm that brought clouds that made for a dramatic sunset of pinks and purples that tinted the water the same colors of the sky.
Our late dinner of veggies, pasta, pesto and cheese was cut short as a massacre of mosquitos descend upon us and we rushed into the tent, falling asleep to the buzz of the swarm.
DAY THREE
We awoke to a completely different park with water as still and clear as glass. We decide to see as much as possible, first heading to Sullivan Bay. The narrow passage was dramatic with high hills and rocks. This bay was also much different than yesterday: taller with trees layered one above another. We paddled on to Ash River through thick weeds and grass and discovered ourselves outside the park boundary (found it)! Headed back to the Bay and had lunch on an overgrown outcropping, later realizing it was previously a lunch spot for a bear who enjoyed a seafood buffet judging by the trampled grass, scat and crawdad skeletons.
We crossed Lake Kabetogama and explored the miniature Lost Lake. These small spaces were perfect to avoid motorboats and catch glimpses of wildlife. After a full day of paddling, we were ready for a nap and dinner. We relaxed on our perch and packed up in plenty of time for our mosquito friends to swarm while we were safely enclosed in the tent.
DAY FOUR
We took a leisurely morning breaking camp and slowly paddled back to the visitor center. We left no trace on the island but the island left a big impact on us.
A couple days later, we traded lifejackets and sunhats for ties and mascara and were drinking, eating and dancing at our friends’ wedding. We couldn’t have made any more of this adventure into the North Woods!
