macvet,
Sorry so long to reply - much work at home keeps me off the net even tho I subscribe to the e-mail service from the board.

We went west into McEwen Lake. What a beauty!! More later.

We start early from the outfitter - we require that we be first at the ranger station if at all possible. So, after the tow to Hook Isalnd and about 1/2 - 1 hour (depends on wind in Saganaga and Cache Bay), we usually hit the top of Silver Falls portage at around 10:30 or so. Also depends on how "chatty" Janice is that morning, and whether she wants to share the zuchinni bread we used to take for her birthday (in July).

We travel rather heavy, so we usually take an hour or more to cross Silver Falls. The paddle to the Boundary Point portage takes about an hour, then about 45 minutes to cross. Clearly, we're not in a hurry. We camped in the NW arm of Saganagons at about 3:30 or so because we wanted to fish the islands and reefs. Hey, we're on vacation, and making miles isn't important to us.

It's only about 1/2 hour (as I remember) to the top of the first falls - portage left. The landing is a bit tricky, no more than 2 boats at a time when we were there. Depending on water levels, there are at least 2 maybe 3 portage options. None are exceptionally long or difficult, but if there's enough water, you can put in at the bottom of the falls and paddle rather than pack.

The next portage is about 15-20 minutes away, then a short portage left. Maybe 1/2 hour to the next, portage right across a massive granite slab. 30 minutes to the top of falls 4 - this is where we went west into McEwen.

McEwen is beautiful. It's a trout lake by reputation. We're not laker fisherman, but we caught one anyway (That's how Troutman got his name). Bass was better than decent - fish the rubble, shelves and drop-offs with plastics and clothespin spinnerbaits. Caught some "monster" northerns (spinnerbaits) - average about 10, biggest about 16 pounds. Walleye wasn't impressive, but they're there.

Came back out to the campsite at the right (west?) of the 3rd falls. Fished the falls and weedy bay in front of the campsite - stayed another day for the evening walleye at the outlet of the falls.

2 days to come out completed a 10 day trip. Camped in Saganagons - fishing wasn't great that year, but the berries were special, and we have a fondness for the campsite we used.

I can't say that any of the falls portages we crossed are killers. The landings are a bit of a pain, and they're narrow except for the granite slab, but I don't hink any are longer than 20 rods. The three we crossed were minor to nothing compared to Silver Falls (5 trips across Silver Falls were enough for us, my partners say - I'm working on that, Walley).

We travel heavy and aren't in a hurry anyhoo. Wind on Cache Bay and Saganaga is always an issue. I suspect that wind on Kawnipi may be the same, but I've not yet made it there (someday, I swear).

I've been in Bichu - dropped a rod in the lake and caught 2 walleye and a northern trying to retrieve the rod with a rattle trap (Yes, I got it back). It's not an impressive looking lake, but I was pleasantly surprised by the fishing. The falls of the Bichu outlet into Rat Bay were worth some fishing time b4 the fire. The next year it was worthless in that area.

Anything else you need, drop a post.

Posted by Skip Guyer on February 15, 2001 at 20:02