interesting! *Given that the surge in anecdata about campground crowding seems like it came after COVID, I'm surprised that the big attendance uptick was actually the 2016 NPS centennial. Of course, that's consistent with backcountry camper numbers soaring after COVID. *are most of the winter number...

What a great report on what sounds like a very satisfying trip! (I don't suppose you have a report archived of your 1972 trip?) But was there no celebratory cigar at the close of your epic Day 6??

backwoods doc wrote: ↑Thu Sep 15, 2022 7:01 am

torpified wrote: ↑Wed Sep 14, 2022 7:18 pm I think it's about 8 miles out and back to the overlook)

3.6 miles, round trip, to the Grace Creek overlook: https://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/ ... e_2015.pdf

that makes the double even more plausible!

+2 for the Huginnin loop! Especially if the services at Windigo are offline, I'd camp there too. It's a very cool spot! If you do decide to camp there, and want to stretch your legs on Day 1, consider taking the Feldtmann Lake trail to the Grace Creek overlook, before doubling back to Windigo and ca...

Wow! Did you catch a glimpse??

great trip, and report, and pictures! I love how wily the first moose sighted looks. I think she's pretty sure you can't see her.

It sounds like the island was hopping---but did you have Huginnin Cove to yourself? And are you at liberty to share the backwoods bourbon cocktail recipe??

hypothesis: the trail camera was monitoring wildlife, and you were following a game trail! That---done to leaving a beribboned route to follow a better-worn path---is exactly how I wound up in a swamp on my way to the Greenstone from Chippewa Harbor a few years ago. Looking forward to your TR!

You were a fantastic reporter to cast in the eyewitness role! And in a weird way it's encouraging that experience gained through various recent travails -- dock repair, last year's fire, Covid -- helped with weathering this one.

Wow! If you're willing to extend this to a Part II---what was it like in RH while the fire got sorted out? (The tea leaves we could read from here left a lot of questions open!)

can't speak for others, but for me it's out of the gate, and doesn't seem to vary much as function of how much walking I do. Even more surprising, if you know me, is that I'm not interested in drinking (adult beverages --- I'm OK with water, tang, and so on, and in fact get a lot of my calories that...

just striking a note of solidarity: I am not gifted at Eating While Backpacking either. In fact, I'm epicly bad at it, especially if altitude is involved. So IR isn't the worst case, but it's bad. Over time, I've identified a few things I reliably can get down---principally, ramen, fritos, and shotb...

I carry an Inreach (mini), but I haven't tried to using it for navigation. I suspect that there are at most shortlived and local differences between where the 80s maps think the Minong is and where the Minong is---so I don't think you'd be misled for long. And it could be that the InReach maps depic...

your culinary exploits astonish me! It's all I can do to boil water for via and ramen. Do you test these systems at home first, or do you improvise them in the field??

That looks doable! Although it doesn't leave you much slack in case of lousy weather or other unwelcome inefficiencies. By Day 2, you'll have a good sense of how much ground you enjoy covering in a day, and you can revise the itinerary on the fly--for instance, leaving the spur to Chippewa for anoth...

I'm sorry about the blackflies (https://www.nfb.ca/film/blackfly/), and looking forward to the details!