I see in the  Rendezvous in the Boundary Waters and Quetico section, discussion on the next Stumpy Jamboree location.

I gather from past events and posts about them, not everyone was able to make it in to the location, and not everyone "bushwhacked" the same way.

So is there any one method that's considered "kosher", or is it what ever gets you there and back?

I read about people carrying all their gear/canoes and just crashing ahead until they get thru, have to retrace/choose a new route, or get exhausted and decide they've had enough.

Do dedicated solo paddlers do it differently than tandem/group paddlers do?

I've bushwhacked in to a few places, but only on day trips. Being a solo guy, I still didn't just hoist the canoe and crash my way thru.

With gear, it's 2 x thru for me on a marked portage trail, maybe more if I was busting trail in thick brush.

Even on my day trip bushwhacks, I walked ahead with just day pack/water and marked a trail with orange "squirrel" tape and then retrieved my canoe.
I would do the same with full gear but maybe do a little rough trail clearing with saw/axe as well.
Seems to me at least while alone that it beats just bulling your way thru.

If you have a "crew" and enough bodies/trips, you end up making a "trail" of sort, so is it "wrong" to substitute some saw/axe work for a real life crew?

What say the QJ bushwhackers or wannabe's?

I can't really speak to proper etiquette or technique, but a basic leapfrog system seems to work for me going solo. It's just a series of small bites.

I usually double portage with a main pack and small daypack in addition to the canoe. On regular routes/portages, I take the canoe and daypack first, then return for the main pack (I tend to travel a bit heavy since I often bring extra photo gear).

When bushwhacking I reverse the order and take a pack first so I can scout out a path. If the going gets extra tough, I'll just take the daypack. In any case, I just go far enough to keep my bearings before returning for the canoe and the rest of the gear. I can usually leapfrog segments in two trips, but some of the thicker stuff requires three (like when crawling over nets of deadfall).

I personally don't leave markings, but then again I don't usually go too far between 'leapfrogs'. I do bring a GPS to record a track, and occasionally I will use it to keep my bearings. Generally speaking, though, the more difficult part for me seems to be about finding a way through some spots and less about knowing where I am. The GPS is a crutch that I try not to rely on, but I know it helps - probably more than I care to admit. I'd like to wean myself of it as I gain more bushwhacking experience.

To a limited extent I can see using an axe or saw to help get through some tough spots, and there's not much damage a solo bushwhacker can really do anyway that won't soon disappear, unless they're spending all their time hacking away at it. But to me, bushwhacking seems more efficient when you just squeeze yourself through and push on. I think of it more as a oneway trip - the quickest/most effortless way you get through to the next step the better. I'm not thinking about making a trail to return on. I imaging one could waste a lot of time and energy unnecessarily trailblazing.

For those traveling in groups, I imaging that it would be of great benefit to be able to crash through in a single trip. This obviously puts a heavy burden on the 'trailblazer' in front. I recall this is what Hexnymph's group does. I don't remember if they give the lead lighter gear to carry, but I think I recall them saying they at least rotate out the lead on a regular basis.

I'm far from an expert on the subject. Just my current thoughts from limited experience.

Thinking back, whenever I have bushwacked I walk at least half the route first to scout it out.  Then I know in advance if the route is do-able and where to navigate around the difficult spots. 
On Stumpy's 2010 challenge I was able to visit the area early in the spring when I could see through the forest easily, pick out a smooth route and become familiar with the terrain.  That was a fairly long portage which ended at the first of three lakes in a chain.  Between the small lakes was, in the nature of things, a string of fairly easy large animal trails that tended to follow the flat center of the draw, along an ancient drainage route between the lakes.

I really love to bushwhack into a series of lakes that have seen little use in decades. My favorite haunt is Woodland Caribou PP and there tends to me little understory brush in most areas so it is much more easier to do. Over the winter months I am studying Google and Bing satellite images of my intended route. My goal is to find the best and driest route through the area so I use  GPS coordinates to keep track of what looks to be the best terrain to check out once I get to the area. Satellite images are also printed so I can adjust if I run into problems. Having the printed images allows me to learn what some of the color shades mean. I usually work out the complete portage before taking any of my gear across. Even after doing this I will use the return to do further scouting. I set the GPS to record a track as I scout across to the next lake. Problems or prime segments are marked as a waypoint and named appropriately. When I have found a good landing spot on each end I connect them using all the information I have recorded. I seldom have to clear a trail to do this. To mark the path I want to use I pluck small pieces of Spahgnum Moss and use them as trail tape. They can be seen for a few years.  I just walk around any obstacles in the way. I do the extra footwork so that I can make out a report on what I found and turn it into the park staff. Over the years I have seen a few of these routes cleared by park staff and opened to the public. I detest bog walking portages and have been able to present the park with numerous reroutes. The next time the portage crew goes through they will evaluate and most times cut the new portage.

I find the satellite images more useful than topo maps. I study the topo maps too but many times there will be excellent terrain for a portage that a topo map can't show me. Unfortunately nature has a way of changing the landscape. In Woodland Caribou the "Snowdown" of 2012 dropped a lot of tree tops to the forest floor. This will severely hamper bushwhacking efforts for the next few years.