Father and Son trip advice

[TheBrownLeader]

I have good wilderness canoe/kayaking experience. I am looking to do a relatively easy inland lake trip with my 10 year old son, with fishing as the focus. I have never visited Isle Royale, but it looks special. Any idea how I might structure a trip like this, and where we might go?

Thanks in advance.

TBL

[Ingo]

The obvious trip is "across the island" from McCargoe Cove to Chippewa Harbor (or Malone Bay). Great campgrounds and fishing all along the way, so it's hard to go wrong. There's a few variations depending on where you come from, time, and budget.

The Voyageur II out of Grand Portage can drop you off and McCargoe and pick you up at Chippewa or Malone. That's the obvious choice for me. But if you come from Michigan you could use the water taxi to drop you off and pick you up at various places, but I'd still recommend the same general trip--just more $$$. Let us know how long you're thinking, what boat you plan to take, and we can be more specific.

Here's pics and log from a McCargoe to Chippewa trip: http://moskeybasin.com/Isle_Royale/IR_Pics_2002.html
And info on the water taxi: http://rockharborlodge.com/water-taxi

[TheBrownLeader]

Thanks Ingo.

We plan to take a 2 man canoe, not sure what type yet. Going to rent it and probably come in from Michigan and embark from Rock Harbor. Can we get dropped of in Mcargoe Bay and then picked up at the same spot? I am thinking a night or 2 on Mcargoe Bay, and a night or two on Chickenbone and then back to Rock Harbor. I want to keep his first trip very simple leaving plenty of time to explore and fish.

[Ingo]

Coming into Rock Harbor you pretty much have to take the water taxi to get inland without significant paddling/portaging. It's on demand, so you have can have them drop you off/pick you up whereever and whenever you want. You do need to make reservations in advance. Of course it is somewhat weather dependent, but pretty much everything is there.

The McCargoe/Chickenbone idea is great. You can hike a couple miles up to the mine (complete with a mine shaft) to explore and paddle out to Birch Island (supposed to be good pike fishing in Brady Cove behind it). The other choice would be to do something similar at Chippewa Harbor and Lake Whittlesey. There's an old cabin and the shore of Lake Superior to explore. Whittlesey campground will be quieter than Chickenbone since it's not on a trail--you may have it to yourself, where Chickenbone will always have someone else. And if you're up to a little more, you can do one more portage to Wood Lake. It's a toss up to me, but I'd give the edge to Chippewa/Whittlesey, even though that portage is a little rougher (rocks/roots). Can't go wrong either way, though.

I don't usually recommend renting canoes at Rock Harbor, because they're heavier aluminum and don't have good yokes and pads for portaging. But since you're talking about just an in and out, that would probably be OK for you. Coming from MI, the closest outfitter I've found with good tripping canoes is Sylvania Outfitters in Watersmeet, MI.

[TheBrownLeader]

Thank You Ingo! That gets me a good starting plan. One more question, are the shelters the only places to camp? I have found a resource that shows shelters, but is there one available that shows all possible campsites?

TBL

[Ingo]

Any campground on Lake Superior with a dock has shelters. And there are tents sites at all campgrounds (shelters or not). The park's annual "newspaper" has a list with all the relevant info: http://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/u ... e_2012.pdf. The online park map also shows the campgrounds, but not all the info: http://www.nps.gov/common/commonspot/cu ... e%20Royale. If you don't have the Trails Illustrated map yet, I would get that too--it's the standard. Happy planning .

[Midwest Ed]

Any of the suggested itineraries sound good. Another possibility that would have no portages (or extra cost) would be to simply stay in Rock Harbor. This includes all the harbor waters from Rock Harbor all the way down, 11 miles southwest to Moskey Basin.

Moskey Basin is a great campground. There are campgrounds at Daisy Farm and Three Mile on the mainland and two on islands (Caribou Island and Tookers Island). For further exploration there is Rasberry Island, Edisen Fishery with its demonstrations and walk to Rock Harbor Lighthouse and evening nature presentations at Daisy Farm. From Moskey Basin you could hike into Lake Ritchie for the day. And from Daisy Farm or Three Mile you can take day hikes up to the Greenstone Ridge to enjoy its scenic beauty.

If you really want to get a portage under your belt there is a very short one (300 yards) into Todd Harbor which offers its own campground. Unless the wind in blowing just so, the waters in Rock Harbor are fairly well protected with only a couple of short spots that could be rougher if the wind is from the south (not so likely).

Additionally, this trip is more compatible with a heavier park concessions canoe.

[Midwest Ed]

Coming from MI, the closest outfitter I've found with good tripping canoes is Sylvania Outfitters in Watersmeet, MI.

I have never used their services but Keweenaw Adventure Company in Copper Harbor now rents Canoes. Convenient if you are taking the IR Queen. I see they offer guided Kayak trips to the Island.

http://www.keweenawadventure.com/canoe_rentals.htm

[Ingo]

$55/day, for what appears to be a plastic canoe? Egad! But it is certainly more convenient. Does anyone know if they let them go out to the island? (some don't)

[Midwest Ed]

$55/day, for what appears to be a plastic canoe? Egad! But it is certainly more convenient. Does anyone know if they let them go out to the island? (some don't)

I looked again and their kayak page list reduced multi-day rates down as low as half the single day rate when renting for 2 weeks. Those rates included "spray skirt, life vest(PFD), wet suit, bilge pump, paddle float, a whistle and at least 2 drybags per person." I would think canoe deals would be similar. I've never rented a canoe or kayak from anyone so I'm not vouching for them. I did talk to them last summer about renting some bikes and they seemed pretty cool. They are right next to the Queen dock so, yea it would be really convenient.

[bergman]

Dear TBL,
As your son is 10 you are limited to what u can do, and u want to ensure that his 1st experience to the park is a positive and pleasurable memory. There are no easy portages to any inland lake that i know of, with the exception of Siskiwit lake (malone bay outpost). The portage to chickenbone used to be 0.7mi, but was lengthened in 2011 to 1.2mi(presumably to lessen impact, as the old put-in was in a sensitive location near the stream exit).
The cost to boat taxi to mcCargo cove is prohibitive unless u have 4guys; likewise for malone bay on the south shore.

RENT the PARK canoe- grumman 15' or 17'. Choose 17' for best stability on Duncan Bay. The grumman is not that heavy, and more important is very stable and well-designed for IsleRoyale conditions. Park staff in charge of choosing/purchasing the rental canoes for isle royale knew what they were doing. Though keep in mind what Ingo said about the rental yoke/pads. For example, without a decent yoke, it would be a real bear (perhaps a 1/2 day affair) to traverse the greenstone ridge between duncan bay and tobin harbor. U might consider bringing your own yoke.

As your son is under 17, he can fish for all species in lake superior waters without a license. Your nonresident annual would be 28 bucks.

It may be advantageous to take the Queen, as u can get taxied back and leave on the queen the same day, or at least only be "stuck" ( not a bad thing) at rock harbor for 1 nite, if the boat taxi picks u up a day early.

One last thing, bring your own paddles. Not sure if they have a decent lightweight paddle for a young boy, but u know the difference a paddle can make on the trip. Of course, bring a rental paddle along anyway, as a spare! And once u are on quiet water somewhere and settled into camp, let your son sample what it's like to be in the back of the canoe. Have fun!

[bergman]

. Unless the wind in blowing just so, the waters in Rock Harbor are fairly well protected with only a couple of short spots that could be rougher if the wind is from the south (not so likely).
.

Rock Harbor can easily have whitecaps and be too rough to paddle for 2 decent adult paddlers, if there is a strong wind from the west or the northeast. And if it is early in the season, with colder water temps, conditions must be ideal to be out on any part of Superior. The roughest water is typically from Rock Harbor to Daisy Farm. With a 10 yr old paddling on Rock Harbor, u will be subject to lake conditions that will decide if u can move camp on any given day, or make it back to RH or Mott Island (Ranger III) to catch the ferry home. U cannot paddle on rock harbor w/ a young paddling partner until july( the water is just too cold); u could boat taxi down to daisy farm and go to moskey basin from there. Between Daisy and Moskey Basin outpost, u can stay to the north shore pretty much the entire way. Going west from Daisy Farm, as u pass the ranger cabin, it is quite shallow from there all the way until u enter the basin proper. If the wind is strong in your face, u can actually make better headway by "poling" with your paddle along the sand bottom. In "warm" water, u can even walk the canoe thru this area if faced by a tough wind. From moskey, paddle back to caribou island (warm water only); then boat taxi back to RH from caribou island to catch the Queen; or paddle to Mott Island to return "home" on the Ranger III. i would advise warmer water temp.

My 1st trip to the park in late august 2000. I met a young couple from Germany that planned to rent a canoe for 3 days (they did not have backpacks); when we got to RH they were quite disappointed to learn that they were not allowed to rent a canoe to go on rock harbor, as it was simply too rough. Their plans were thwarted, having no other way to carry their gear, and they were really bummed.

Paddling on the Great Lakes is so different from paddling on regular lakes in big waves. There are (often) unseen underwater currents that combine with the wave action and the wind to create a virtual washtub, or at least very unexpected conditions. Many times it seems like waves are coming from 2 different directions (because they are!). I have done umpteen paddling trips (mostly canoe) at isle royale, and outside of duncan bay ( at least on the E end of the park), i would say that your canoe partner should be at least 13 anywhere on lake superior waters.

Renting a 14" aluminum boat, along w/ a 6 or 9.9HP motor, to explore Rock Harbor with a young child, is a more sensible alternative, but will run you nearly $100/day. Canoe rental is $40/day, so a canoe combined with boat taxis each way is probably much more economical, depending on your length of stay.

Boat taxis are always subject to lake conditions; however, drop off and pickup inside the entire 10 mile length of rock harbor is almost NEVER delayed, which is a nice bonus to staying in Rock Harbor waters during your trip.

[jrwiesz]

Just a FYI,

I own a 17' Grumman, weight is 75 lbs.
One person carry possible, but not fun.
My choice is always portage with two person carry.
Price to transport the canoe, on the Queen III, out of Copper Harbor, in 2005 was, half of the full passenger price round trip.

Double kayak may be a good option.

Guide book by Jim DuFresne, "Isle Royale National Park, Foot trails and Water routes" never a bad reference source, along with the previously mentioned Trails Illustrated map.

Enjoy the planning.

[bergman]

I suppose there are different weighted 17' Grumman canoes, depending on the year and the gauge thickness of the metal. I don't remember ever trying to pick up the 17' Grumman rental at the park. Yea, that could be a beast to portage back from Duncan Bay. You could call Forever Resorts, and Kim Alexander may have a pretty good idea.

My 1974 17' Grumman with 7 lateral floor braces weighs 60 lbs on the nose, and it's not missing any metal; it's certainly lighter gauge than the park rental. I have a 1993 17' Alumacraft (low-cut sides; not suitable for the big lake certainly; maybe a short distance on Rock Harbor) - 55 lbs. Also a 17' aluminum Michicraft with built in sponsons - 77 lbs.

Of course, the quality of the yoke makes all the difference.