hi all

i was on baptism lake this weekend. i had found a web site showing 4 camp sites. i only found one. this got me thinking....

1
which resources to you all use to locate camp sites when planning over night stays ? (web sites, outfitters, maps etc)

2
does anyone know how the park manages the number of permits issued to a certain destination when they know there are limited camp sites avail?

3
what do you do if you reach your intended destination and cannot find a camp site?

paddle planner showed me 4 camp sites on their map. one certainly looked like it used to be one but is well grown over and had no way to land a canoe. two other spots showed no signs of having anything there.

i have gotten advise in the past about where to stay from the dawson trail staff, but after returning this trip i was told they have no maps of any spots in the park and trippers "need to find their own".

this got me thinking about what would have happened had i arrived at baptism and found the only spot occupied. hmmmm

it also got me thinking about how the park issues permits if they know a certain lake will be "full". for example.....i believe they can issue 2 permits per day for the baptism entry point. "IF" those two permit holders indicated to staff they will be staying on baptism lake for 2 nights for example, what does the staff do when another tripper shows up the next day wanting a permit to stay on baptism lake for a night or two? if the staff know there is only one or two spots avail, and the day before they sent in two groups that would be using those spots, then how could they knowingly issue a permit to someone when they know there will be no where for them to stay?

has anyone ever experienced having to turn back or change their route due to not being able to find a spot to stay? is this not a safety concern? it sure makes it tough to find someone in an emergency if they stray from their intended route.

i know quetico is unlike some others provincial parks in that it does not mark any of the portages or camp sites (i have heard why they don't do this but it honestly seems a bit silly to me) but i am sure i was also told we are officially only supposed to have fires for example at sites that have a park designated fire ring. so if they know which sites have these rings they obviously know where they are all located right? so why would the staff not want to share that info? seems odd

thought??

There simply are no official or park recognized campsites in Quetico backcountry. They just been developed over time. Always best to use established sites for LNT principles.