Isle Royale Forums

Ok so I have a random question for anyone out there who thinks crazy thoughts like me...

Has anyone ever tried to make the trip out to the Rock of Ages lighthouse in a kayak? I would assume you would want a fairly nice weather day. It looks like about 20 miles round trip from Windigo so it would be a haul unless you camped at Grace island.

I know I am crazy... but I can't be the only one!

Anything is possible with the right boat, weather window, skill and conditioning. Sure I've looked at it and thought it would be cool, but if you're on a time budget, there is a whole day out of your schedule. If you had unlimited time, it would be neat to mark it off the life list.

We circumnavigated IR last year starting and ending from Rock Harbor, caught a few good weather and wind windows and had enough time to paddle out to Passage Island on the eastern end. It added an extra 10-11 ish miles since we circumnavigated Passage Isle on our way back to Merritt Lane. We also cut across Sisquit Bay and thought that next time we'd swing further south and follow the island chain by the Isle Royale Lighthouse.

Mike T. was thinking about doing it. Not sure if he ever made it there or not. There is a thread at the top of the next page discussing it.

http://isleroyaleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1952

I have seen photos from other paddlers that have made the trip. Unless you are really into open sea kayaking I think nice weather would be a must.

Thanks!

I did a search and didnt find any references other than on the boat... not sure how I missed that one.

I wonder if Mike ever made it, I didn't see it in the latest update in his book. Maybe he just didn't want to encourage crazies like me

Could be a nice adventure, we shall see how it works out.

I thought about it and calculated the route and miles. It is a lot of open water and I decided we would only do it if the forecast and conditions were absolutely perfect which they were not. I'm guessing great conditions for canoeing there only happen a few times a year and a early start would be critical. A sea kayak would certainly have more windows for the trip. That same trip, we were paddling from Grace Harbor around towards Cumberland Point on our way to Rainbow Point, and the lake was perfectly flat and the lighthouse looked so close. We discussed it and decided not to based on the Marine Forecast we had heard that morning. As it turned out, the wind shifted and, by the time we got around Cumberland, we had 3' seas and ended up pulling in for a couple hours before continuing on. It would have been a big mistake, but it was very tempting.

thanks for the info Mike!

It probably wont work out for us on this trip either but it looked like an intresting adventure... maybe we will get perfect conditions, and/ or plan to wait for them in a future trip.