TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

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eme
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TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by eme »

First trip to the island for me, and longest solo backpacking trip I’ve taken. I regularly read and relied on this incredibly helpful forum before I left, so I am posting this hoping to pay-it-forward to someone else in the future. Note that I carried all my food from the start and therefore was carrying a much larger and heavier pack than I have ever carried before, which made for a unique itinerary on the front half of my trip.

9/6: Took the Voyageur from Grand Portage to Rock Harbor
The lake was relatively calm and the trip along the north side of the island was gorgeous, although long. Coming around the north end of the island, we could see whisps of smoke from the Horne fire. I tend to get sea sick, had taken Dramamine, and decided to stay in Rock Harbor when I arrived instead of hiking on to 3 mile as I originally planned. I was permitted quickly and found a shelter in Rock Harbor. I did have a mouse in my shelter (I think #7) this night. I heard it come in after dark, caught it in my headlamp climbing on my pack. I stripped all my food and smellables out of my pack and put them on the opposite side of the shelter from me and my gear and went back to sleep. I had packed all my food in lightweight, off-brand Tupperware for 11 days. [Thanks to the folks on this forum who recommended that a few years ago!] In the morning, the mouse hadn’t managed to get into anything.

9/7: RH to 3 Mile
Took the Tobin Harbor trail to the Mount Franklin trail with my pack in the morning. Set up in a shelter on the south end of 3 Mile that had a gorgeous lake view and water access. In the afternoon, I day hiked up the Mount Franklin trail to Mount Franklin. Going northwest on the Mount Franklin Trail immediately north of the intersection with the Tobin Harbor trail, I got lost on a side trail. The Mount Franklin trail traverses up and over a rock outcropping; there’s a confusing side trail that cuts across this outcropping near the bottom. I realized I must be off-trail when the side trail kept heading up Tobin Harbor, backtracked, and got back on the Mount Franklin trail after watching for the cairns. When I reached Mount Franklin, I could see a storm rolling in from the north and booked it back down to 3 Mile.

9/8: 3 Mile to Daisy Farm
As I was packing up, a man had hiked up early from Daisy Farm to request specifically the shelter I was in. I was happy to give it to him because hiking in the dark must have been an interesting adventure. Took the Rock Harbor Trail to Daisy Farm in the morning and set up in a shelter at Daisy Farm. I enjoyed the views of the Rock Harbor Lighthouse from the Rock Harbor Trail. A couple headed out of Daisy Farm gave me a heads up about the apple tree, and I shook off a few apples to eat with lunch. In the afternoon, I day hiked up the Mount Ojibway Trail and back. I saw 2 moose, a female and bull, on the trail shortly outside of Daisy Farm. I really enjoyed this trail and the views from Mount Ojibway, and I’m very glad I did not attempt it with my heavy pack.

9/9: Daisy Farm to McCargoe Cove
Took the Daisy Farm Trail to the Greenstone and then down the East Chickenbone Lake Trail. This is when I understood what folks meant by the Greenstone being cruisy. Once on the ridge, the trail was easy. I saw a large female moose north of Chickenbone Lake standing in the water eating vegetation growing out of a beaver dam. All the shelters were taken except one by the toilet, so I decided to stay in the individual tent sites. The hill from the water to the individual tent sites is large. I ran into three women I met on the Voyageur, and we stayed up and watched the stars from the dock that night.

9/10: Zero at McCargoe Cove
I slept in and then went down to the dock to make breakfast. A hiker had a marine radio, and I learned the long day I was planning to do from S Desor to Windigo was forecasted to be all rain. I decided to alter my itinerary and skip camping at Hatchet Lake to get to Windigo early. I packed up in the tent sites and moved into shelter 7. Shelter 7 has a log near the door, which was very fun to read. Shout-out to my fellow female solo hikers who wrote in the log! Swam, hung out on the dock reading, chatting with fellow hikers, dried out my gear since it rained overnight, and relaxed.

9/11: McCargoe Cove to Todd Harbor
Thunderstorms rolled in early in the morning but wrapped up by around 9:30. I waited them out in the shelter and then headed on to Todd Harbor. This was another one of my favorite sections of trail. The views were gorgeous on the Minong. The rocks were wet and slippery, and my pack was still relatively heavy, so I had to pay special attention to my footing climbing onto and off the rock outcroppings. Todd Harbor was my favorite campground. The winds were strong from the north, and the waves were high. I decided to swim after checking the beach for rips—this was the most fun I’ve had swimming in Superior in years. Thanks to those that noted Todd Harbor #1 Group site. #1 group site was empty so I explored there, and the views are amazing!

9/12: Todd Harbor to S Desor
I found this day to be long. I enjoyed some of the views on the Greenstone just west of the junction with the Hatchet Lake Trail and around Lake Desor. The Greenstone was cruisy and easy. I was concerned S Desor would be full, but there were only 3 individual sites occupied and 1 group site this night. I took site 1 because it had a beautiful water access, but it was a long walk to the nice swimming beach by group site 1. The water in S Desor did taste the worst of any I had on this trip, but if you’ve backpacked elsewhere, you’ve probably tasted much worse in other inland lakes.

9/13: S Desor to Washington Creek
This was another long day without much views. The Greenstone runs through beautiful woods with glimpses of Superior sprinkled in off to the north. I got the last available shelter in Washington Creek and settled in for the rain that was forecasted that night and into the next day. The store was closed, so I scrambled down the creek bank to rinse my clothes in the creek. As I was doing so, I realized there was a moose eating in the creek just upstream. That moose hung out in the creek for around 4-5 hours. That night, we could hear the female moose in the rut around the campground. Note, I later realized there was a nice rocky beach access to Lake Superior just up the Feldtmann Lake trail out of Windigo that would have served me better for rinsing up.

9/14: Washington Creek
I slept in and read while it rained in the morning. When the weather started clearing up, I decided to pack my lunch up and head to the Grace Creek overlook on the Feldtmann Lake trail. I stopped in the visitor center to check out the Fresnel lens from Rock of Ages lighthouse. The Grace Creek overlook was beautiful, and I enjoyed sitting there for quite a while. I headed back to the shelter for an early night. I saw a female moose with a calf near the outlet of Washington Creek into Lake Superior as I was headed to Washington Creek campground from Windigo.

9/15: Washington Creek
I got up and decided to hike to the Minong “overlook” marked on the NPS’s day use maps and the Huginnin Cove loop. The overlook was nice, but honestly, I thought the views along the Minong from McCargoe Cove to Todd Harbor were much better as well as along East Huginnin Cove Trail. The East Huginnin Cove Trail along Lake Superior was a favorite in the park. The views of Canada, the shoreline, and the woods are just gorgeous. There’s a lot of moss and greenery; it almost reminded me of the Pacific Northwest. My last mile on the West Huginnin Cove trail I was dragging and looking forward to giving my body a rest.

9/16: Windigo to Grand Portage
The Voyageur was on time, although the trip across the lake was rough. I had taken my Dramamine and still felt pretty nauseous. I was astutely focusing on the horizon (i.e., the Canadian shoreline) for the 2-hour trip. After arriving in Grand Portage, I hopped in my car and went to Grand Marais to get some fish and chips and ice cream.

Overall trip thoughts:
One thing that surprised me throughout my trip was just how friendly other hikers were on the island. I really enjoyed getting to know other hikers and hearing about their trips, observations, experiences, etc. The unique hiker-culture on the island really enhanced my trip!!

This is the first long backpacking trip that I upgraded from a bandana as a pee rag to a Kula cloth. Ladies, I highly, highly recommend a Kula cloth, especially if the NPS isn't stocking tp in the toilets. The Kula dried quickly, was super sanitary, easy to keep clean due to the design, and all around was a joy to use. In other words, a VAST improvement in backcountry women's hygiene over a bandana or the drip dry. I didn’t need to wash my Kula out until I reached Washington Creek when it finally started smelling a bit off on day 8. Since Washington Creek has potable water, I just filled a nalgene up, walked a good distance (300+ feet) from any water sources, and rinsed it out. I wish I had upgraded sooner, and I am SO glad that I did for this trip.
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Re: TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by torpified »

We've had a bonanza of debut posts in the form of trip reports! Thanks for this one. I admire your good sense in concocting such an excellent itinerary for your first trip. Have you developed a scheme for your next one? And are you allowed to say more about how to find the apples at Daisy Farm?
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Re: TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by IncaRoads »

Welcome to the Isle Royale Forums. I'm glad you found this forum useful for your trip planning. Your hike sounds wonderful. I like the blend of hiking with a pack and day hiking without it.
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Re: TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by eme »

The apple tree at Daisy Farm is right along the Rock Harbor trail, east of the dock, in front of one of the shelters (I think it's #11). When I was on the beach area standing looking back towards the campground, it was obvious it was an apple tree because you could see all the apples in the high branches. Another hiker had lashed together two birch sticks with a hook and left it near the tree to use to shake down apples. It was a really nice treat to have fresh fruit during the trip.

I'm not sure about my next trip, but as soon as I left the island, I started thinking about heading back! I understand why it's the most revisited park now. The shelter situation is really nice for long trips; the island is a backpacking dream. I'd like to explore some of the campsites on the southern shore of the island that I missed, like Moskey (which I heard great things about), Chippewa Harbor (also heard great things), Malone Bay, Siskiwit Bay, and Feldtmann Lake, and my mind immediately started mulling a trip plan connecting these up in the future. We'll see how my vacation days shake out next year. Two weeks was a great amount of time to enjoy the island and disconnect.

I like to explore a place when I backpack, as opposed to continuously moving on with more miles, and I really appreciated how interconnected the trails were on the island so I could easily build an itinerary where I backpacked some but also had plenty of opportunity to hike many trails and see the area. It also gives my body a break from carrying all my gear, so I can see more and go for longer. I carried a Gregory Deva backpack, which has a light, small, removable daypack built into it, which worked very well to carry the basics of map, water, food, rain gear, med kit, etc., for a day hike. If anyone happens to have this type of pack, it took me a while to realize that the bottom straps of the larger backpack are easily detachable and can be reattached as a basic hipbelt to the daypack so it doesn't shift as much when you're hiking.
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Re: TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by TopCarrot »

eme wrote: Tue Sep 21, 2021 7:10 pm
Overall trip thoughts:
One thing that surprised me throughout my trip was just how friendly other hikers were on the island. I really enjoyed getting to know other hikers and hearing about their trips, observations, experiences, etc. The unique hiker-culture on the island really enhanced my trip!!
Hey Hey. Look who it is. Great report
22 CH-ML-ML-LRC-DF-CA-RH
21 3M-MB-McC-TH-ND-WC
21 LC-DF-McC-CH-MB-RH
20 HC-FL-SB-SD-MB-MB-RH
19 TH-ND-WC-SD-ML Via Voyager McC
18 DF-CH-DF
18 LC-DF-LR-RH
17 CW-SD-WC greenstone in 50hrs
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Re: TR: 9/6-9/16, 2021 [Rock to Windigo via a mix of trails]

Post by thesneakymonkey »

kula cloths are the best. Loving mine as well. Definitely worked great on the island now that TP wasnt stocked
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