next early august, i'm bringing my 5 yr old son and my 50's age dad with me to the northwoods. although i've been many times, it will be their first trip. the little man is comfortable in a canoe, has been overnight camping several times, and loves to go what he call "huntin" through the woods. the big guy is an avid flyfisherman who can sleep in his waders if necessary (literally) and is really excited about a 3 generation guys trip.

picking a "short" route is more tough than i thought since my usuall 4 man crew usually cruises past the entry point lakes to get into the interior of quetico. i know we won't cover much distance and we'll be around more people than on my other trips. thats no biggie. i'd like to spend a couple nights at one spot but still travel at least one day to another campspot. we'll be self-outfitted,b ut may rent another boat if my brother and another come along.

here are a few routes i'm thinking about. i'd like to do something off the gunflint trail so we can have the nice drive up 61 by the lake. i'd welcome any comments or suggestions.

1) seagull, alpine, red rock lack, red rock bay, saganaga lake (or reverse) - pros- few portages, big lake scenery, red rock lake may be somewhat less visited, lots of shorline to fish; cons - big lake wind, busy entry points, motors on seagull and sag

2) homer, vern, brule - pros - probably little used, a short route; cons - small lakes, wind damaged area, fewer options for fishing

3) poplar, lizz lake, caribou, horshoe, gaskin, allen, horshoe, caribou, lizz, poplar - pros - smaller lakes, varied scenery and route; cons - more portages, bigger loop, on main through way out of poplar entry point.

4) ham, cross bay, rib, long island - pros - same as 3; cons - not a loop, pretty much a base camp on long island trip.

Posted by stevedug on January 08, 2001 at 12:25