Isle Royale Forums

Putting together the itinerary for a 2022 hike, taking the ferry from GP to Windigo, hiking to RH and taking the ferry back from RH. My group would be flying in from Denver presumably to Duluth. How do folks get from Duluth to GP without renting a car and letting it sit for a week??

When we fly in from Texas, we rent a car and let it sit for a week.

a theoretical possibility, one I haven't field-tested: before Covid, the casino rain a shuttle between Grand Portage and Thunder Bay (Ontario), which has an airport. You'd still need to figure out how to get from the casino to the dock. Also passports would add 113 gms to your base weights.

Yeah, this is a tough one. If you can choose to fly in to Hancock (CMX) instead and take the Ranger III to Rock Harbor, then that would help. You'd only need to get a taxi/Uber about 15 minutes to Houghton/Hancock, and then walk or get another taxi to the seaplane dock. Much more doable than Duluth to GP.

Though obviously an additional expense, the rental car sitting at the Grand Portage is also a nice place to store whatever clothes, etc that you'd rather not take out to the island. In a normal year, you can get a mid-size rental car in Duluth for $260 a week.

A shuttle for the Superior hiking trail along the north shore may be an option. I'm not sure if they run all the way to Grand Portage.
https://superiorhiking.org/shuttles/

Other advantages to renting a car in Duluth and driving to Grand Portage:

1. You can easily buy fuel, lighters and any last minute food items in Duluth.
2. You can stop off at leisure at sites along the way (Split Rock Lighthouse, Gooseberry Falls).
3. You can poke around Grand Marais and get a decent meal.
4. There are simple, clean mom & pop motels between Grand Marais and Grand Portage that cost about 2/3 of staying at the Grand Portage Casino (or other spots in Grand Marais). We like the Outpost Motel (about 10 miles north of Grand Marais) for the trip up, and Nelson's in Grand Marais on our return (great place to grab a shower before heading back into town for supper).

Thanks for all the thoughtful responses. The last minute supply option is something I didn't consider. Methinks we will opt for the rental car.