pepper spray for??? I dont remember seeing it at the store.

nice trip report! Good luck on the JMT!!

map and compas... know how to use them. GPS is a nice luxury but is not necessary anywhere.

It's not that short of mileage but the Feldtmann loop is a nice 3-4 day, or the Hugginin loop will keep you busy for a day or two the west side is a bit more effort, but it does have less miles.

I agree most campgrounds should have at least one site that will work for you. Last year a buddy of mine brought his. We had not problem finding spots at island mine, siskiwit, feldtmann, or hugginin. Dont know about the rest, but it was fairly easy to find spots. Enjoy your trip!

Both I dehydrate at 165... I use canned chicken and ground very lean beef, venison, or bison. It takes about 5 hours, and I use the freezer method to check it (put it in a ziplock and put it in the freezer for 15-30 minutes if the bag has condensation on the inside it isnt done yet). I also rinse ...

netting.... but really Deet keeps them from landing but dosent keep them away. Nothing beats a good headnet when the swarm is really bad.

Permethren is great! Haven't had a problem with them since I started treating my hiking clothing. I imagine if you were bushwacking you might want to treat your pack too.

The Bison are in an enclosure with elk in the middle of the park. I doubt they will let them roam free in the area (they make them money now $5 scenic drive).

I am in Southern Iowa, Bloomfield area. Haven't done much on the Mississippi we have done quite a bit at the state park lakes, Rathburn ...

Just got back from this paddle trip. It was a great time with lots of sun/ warm water. We ended up parking the car at the visitor's center (6 mile hike on day one to get back to the boats and 2 mile hike on the last day to pick up the car) which worked great! We stopped mid trip at a marina for ...

Water temperature is rearely above 40... you will want some form of protection. I would also want the people in my group to be practiced in deep water reentry. The water is cold, you dont want to be in it for long regardless of what you are wearing.

nice report!

I hope to be able to paddle there some day, I am working on justifying the gear necessary. Just built a sea kayak, but haven't been able to convince the wife that I need a dry suit . Happy paddling!

Love this... and would love to explore/ redescover this trail and the history. It would also be cool if part of it opened back up, that would make going to Malone not just an out and back!

dito on the sale rack... on another note, a 30ish bag is too cold for IR? I bring my 45 and am warm some nights. Different definitions of cold I guess. Happy shopping!

From grand portage you could always go out on one boat and come back on another to help with the schedule.

I haven't experienced the RH side, but the Feldtmann loop is great! Don't forget your fishing pole Feldtmann lake has some great pike fishing from shore.