TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

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Dot Bear
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TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

Post by Dot Bear »

First off, I’d like to thank the many fantastic contributors to this forum for sharing so much valuable insight; I learned a lot that ultimately made our trip more enjoyable. 8)

There were three of us on this trip: Me, Hags, and the C-man. We’re high school friends now in our mid-40’s, all of us relatively physically fit, yet none of us has a ton of backpacking experience.


Day 1: Windigo to S. Lake Desor
Boarded the Voyageur II in a light rain, which continued throughout the calm cruise to Windigo. Ranger talk on the dock, secured a permit, and changed into hiking clothes beneath the overhang of a claimed but unoccupied shelter. (All shelters were claimed and campsites looked mostly full.) Drizzled on and off the entire way to S. Lake Desor, but it was unseasonably warm, so I just hiked without my rain gear on, figuring if I was going to get soaked, I’d rather have it be pure Isle Royale rain than my own sweat. Moose sign everywhere, but no moose. Lots of downed trees across the trail, which the ranger had warned us about; apparently trail crews are behind schedule this year.

Got to Desor and thankfully the rain stopped as we grabbed a campsite, allowing for dry tent set-up. We set up a 9x9 tarp and soon, strangely enough, the sun came out full blast and it had to be close to 80 degrees, so we set up a long clothesline and relaxed in our camp chairs and devoured dehydrated dinners. All of our packs were 35-40 lbs, so it felt great to put on cushy camp shoes and sit still for a few hours. I’m pretty sure all the individual campsites ended up being taken, so we had neighbors on both sides and the occasional exchange of hellos to passersby.

Steep trail down to shore from our campsite, Desor was flat and serene. I saw two different fish jump, and one of them had to be at least a pound, I’d guess, so not sure I believe the claim that there are no fish in that lake. Hardly any mosquitoes to speak of, but there were a few gnats that liked to invade any of the various orifices found on the human head. Slightly annoying, but not terrible.

Got in tent for the night, only to discover it was still so warm out I couldn’t even use my 20 degree quilt as a blanket, but at some point during the night it did at last get cold enough for me to drape it over me. The last thing I heard before going to sleep were two large, shockingly loud birds having a discussion, one of which landed right next to my tent. It kept up its calls for a bit and then let out a single, somehow even louder, squawk/honk/buzz noise that made me jump. I never saw the bird, but my guess would be some type of woodpecker?


Day 2: S. Lake Desor to W. Chickenbone
It rained during the night, but again we had the good fortune of it stopping when it was time to break down camp in the morning. We hit the trail early, knowing this was to be our longest hike of the trip. About a mile into it, we all stopped in our tracks as a single wolf howled from somewhere south of the Greenstone. We just stood in silence as it kept at it for a minute or two. Magical.

Again, lots of downed trees to go over, under, and around. Despite the persistent drizzle, the trail wasn’t too muddy. The fog and mist denied us any views from the ridgetops, but it also kept us cool as we made it to the Hatchet Lake intersection for a lunch break. We played leapfrog along the way with a few other groups, but mostly we had the trail to ourselves. Moose poop, tracks, and scrapes everywhere, along with the occasional loud cracks coming from moose moving somewhere in the brush, but no official sightings. We did talk throughout most of the hike, so I guess it’s not too surprising they were moving off as we approached.

Given how full S. Desor was, we were worried WCB would be full, but were pleasantly surprised to find we were the only ones there, giving us pick of campsites. Rain continuing as usual, we set the tarp up and waited for a break to set up our tents. It then started to pour heavily for the first time; we all agreed the tarp was the most valuable piece of gear.

Rain finally stopped, put tents up, and were then entertained by a friendly beaver chomping on sticks just offshore from our site. Songbirds provided the soundtrack as we boiled our dinner water on a twig stove, while a big rabbit, clearly unafraid of humans, spent time hanging around the site, likely waiting for a handout. No dice, Bugs Bunny, we aren’t giving you anything.


Day 3: W. Chickenbone to Threemile
Rained again during the night, and again got lucky with a morning dry period to break down camp. The ranger had told us the trail was washed out between WCB and ECB, and that we would be getting wet no matter what in trying cross it. We looked at our map and decided to do the whole loop around Chickenbone to avoid the prospect of hiking for a mile, finding the water chest deep, and turning around anyway. It only added about two miles to the day, so north we went.

Aaaaaaand of course not long into the walk towards McCargoe, the last section of a boardwalk was washed out, and the water looked 3-4 feet deep. Fortunately someone from the park had used plastic tape to mark out a side trail that went along the top of the beaver dam. Kind of scary walking across it, not knowing if it would support our weight, or if a territorial beaver would show up. But while the feet did get wet, we made it across without incident.

At last we saw our first moose. We came around a corner and there was a bull snacking away on the submerged vegetation in a beaver pond, right next to the boardwalk across it. Hags fumbled around in the C-man’s pack for a camera, but the moose had no interest in posing and soon walked off up into the thick forest. Still abuzz over our sighting, we came across another animal on the trail: a sandhill crane, which took one look at us and knew we were trouble, so it flapped away and let out its awkward squawk.

The on and off rain finally stopped and the sun came out as we continued along the ridge, at last letting us take in some views of Lake Superior. We climbed as high as we could on the Mt. Ojibway fire tower, and I could see why this spot was so highly recommended. Mount Franklin also provided fantastic vistas, but we were really starting to focus on finding a shelter. After the near-capacity crowds at Windigo and S. Desor, Hags and the C-man were pessimistic we’d get one, but I kept the faith.

The last stretch from Mt. Franklin to Threemile took seemingly forever, despite being almost all downhill, but we celebrated when we saw the first chocolate brown shelter tucked in the trees. The first few were taken, and I began to think my friends were right and we’d be setting up tents soon, but a woman coming down the trail told us the one next to hers was open. We hurried ahead and claimed the shelter, narrowingly beating another group coming from the opposite direction. Felt a little bad at having destroyed their shelter dreams, but we did later learn they found their own.

We set up fifty feet of clothesline, had it sagging at full capacity in minutes, then took a swim best measured in milliseconds in the cryogenic waters of Lake Superior. That night, at last I was happy my quilt was rated to 20 degrees, as not only did I need to use it, I needed to go full burrito to keep out the chill.


Day 4: Threemile to Rock Harbor
Again my friends were pessimisitic about getting a shelter at Rock Harbor, and again they were wrong. Couldn’t be more wrong, as it turns out. Only two of the shelters were taken, and we took our time selecting our favorite, discussing the pros and cons of each option.

Everything at RH was closed, with the exception of the information office, which had limited hours. So we walked all over RH, noting which cabin or lodge room we’d request at future visits. Other than that, we reveled in not having to hike with 40 lbs on our backs, sitting around and chatting with fellow humans.

But we were really just waiting for 3:00, because that’s when the package from heaven would arrive. For a measly $20, the Voyaguer II transported a cardboard treasure chest filled with Pringles, peanut M & M’s, crackers, two blocks of cheese, and vodka and bloody mary mix, complete with garlic-stuffed olives. I had even included a mesh bag to submerge the cocktail ingredients in the lake until chilled.

Ten thousand empty calories and three bloated stomachs later, we settled in for our last night. Hags was snoring in minutes, but the C-man and I, both realizing we weren’t even tired yet, decided to walk around RH a little more. This turned out to be an excellent idea, as not only did it settle our stomachs, but a bull moose decided to browse on the brush near the docks, so we stood and watched until he’d had enough of our eavesdropping. Somehow, it was even colder that night.

Day 5: Rock Harbor to Grand Portage
Feeling that usual mix of disappointment and excitement to be heading home, we boarded the Voyageur for the six hours ride back to GP. The captain said it might get a bit sloppy out there, and gave some directions on what to do should your breakfast want to come up, but he didn’t mention that we were going to re-enact the climactic scene from The Perfect Storm.

I am a devoted landlubber, and the monster waves of angry Lake Superior terrified me for the next 4 hours. The scariest part was when the boat would go down into the trough between waves, all you could see in the windows was the sapphire blue of the passing wave. Hags asked the captain how big the waves were, and his answer of 3-6 feet seemed a vast underestimation. Although I kept waiting for a cry of “abandon ship!” to blare from the boat’s speakers, the captain and crew all seemed calm and relaxed, so I just kept my eyes on the island as we motored along, and thankfully seasickness never hit me. Perhaps, just perhaps, I was being a bit melodramatic. :D

We got to GP, all agreed the trip had been outstanding, then headed our separate ways. I was already planning my next ISRO trip as I drove home.

Things I learned:
• My next visit will be a paddling trip. The hiking was great, but the thought of even more solitude combined with fishing and a couple extra creature comforts sounds irresistible.
• Most valuable pieces of gear: tarp (Kelty Noah’s tarp 9x9), chair (Big Agnes Skyline UL), camp shoes (trail runners), and twig stove (Solo Titan). After long, wet days on the trail, the chance to sit and be dry with cushioned feet was priceless. Even in the endless rain we were able to find dry twigs, and having a quiet little fire without the need to carry fuel or endure the 747-takeoff decibel level of a gas stove was a big plus.
• Take a seaplane next time. 😊
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Re: TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

Post by torpified »

thanks for the wonderful report! Using the voyageur to send yourself a care package is a brilliant maneuver. I'm curious: with all the rain, was it difficult to collect readily combustible fuel for the twig stove?
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Re: TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

Post by Dot Bear »

Thanks! After 44 miles of rain, mud, and sore feet, the care package was worth its weight in gold. :D

As for the twig stove, I was concerned about the rain making fires difficult, but it ended up not being a problem. A couple things I learned:

-The base of large spruce trees were almost completely dry, even after long period of rain, so sticks from around there were dry, and also the dead lowest branches on the spruces burned great.

-Even if a stick was wet, you could split it to expose some of the dry inner wood. Birch bark also burned well even if a little wet.

-I used some strike-on-box firestarters that burned for 7 minutes, which never failed to get damp birch bark going eventually.

The Solo stove/pot was heavy and took up a decent amount of space in my pack, but it was fun to use and I'd take it again. 8)
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Re: TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

Post by IncaRoads »

Thanks for the great trip report, which included my favorite section, "Things I learned". Interesting to learn that there were near-capacity crowds at campsites so early in the season. The beaver are apparently making a mess of a lot of the low trail sections.

Do you use tarp poles when setting up the Kelty Noah’s tarp?
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Re: TR 5/19-5/23, 2021 [Hiking]: Windigo-S. Desor-W. Chickenbone-Threemile-Rock Harbor

Post by Dot Bear »

We didn't use tarp poles, just tied two corners high and two corners low on four trees. Worked fine, but for the short period it did pour hard, we had some pooling that required periodic draining. Maybe someday I'll learn how to properly set up a tarp. :oops:

Plus, if I had suggested adding any more weight to our packs, my friends may very well have beaten me with said tarp poles and left me for the wolves. :D
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