Isle Royale Forums

bergman wrote:jrwiesz-
turns out I was confused.
You probably missed my edit in the post above. Hopefully you were flossing...

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lol.. According to my dentist, I need to floss better!
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From where we are located in SW Michigan, it will only be an additional 2 hours to drive to MN for the ferry. My "motion-sick" boy will have just completed his drivers training and will need 50 hours of driving time. For both reasons, it makes sense for us to go this route. Plus, we will be "traversing" the island - and not backtracking.

So, given our 9 days from Grand Portage - to the day we return to GP, please comment on our itinerary. I am strongly considering taking the ferry from GP to RX Harbor at the beginning and hiking Westbound. Please, chime in! Would our itinerary be better WB or EB?

This is SO much more complicated than the A.T.!!! On the A.T., we always hike NB - and there are no options... This June, we will be hiking another 110 miles in Virginia (VI will take us forever!).

Thanks!

My personal opinion on the East-West versus West-East (especially on a first trip to the island) is... East to West
For the following reasons:
- The first day is a long boat ride, but the exceitement gets you through this day and you get some idea of the island as you ride along in the boat. You will be seeing the route you are going to be walking. You get a perspective. Whereas, taking that ride back, you see the route you hiked, but the excitement level is not as high and you are thinking about showers, food cooked by others and not out of a bag, carpet on bare feet, etc.
- Leaving from Rock Harbor, you are in a crowded (for the island) area and everyday you walk you get farther and farther away from civilization while, at the same time, get into the everyday cycle of the simple things day to day. Whereas, going the other way, you start off not seeing many people and not hearing boat noises and the bustle of Rock Harbor and move into it as YOU get more into the "Circle".
- The campgrounds also are more rustic and private as you go east to west

I've done both ways and those are the major reasons for going east to west.

Just my opinion.

I think MikeT has it right for the E-W trek.

Another consideration I would take, is if your son, doesn't have a favorable crossing from GP to Windigo, and the forecast for the north shore trip looks bad, get off there. Have an itinerary prepared for that scenario.

On the other hand, if the trip is uneventful, on the initial crossing, do the north shore boat ride to RH.

Staying in RH the first day isn't terrible, either. You can stretch your legs on the Stoll trail, or go to Suzys' cave and back, after getting settled in at RH.

Options!

I like Ingo's idea of taking the SeaHunter leaving the island. You get an extra hour in the park. Commit to taking the north shore on day 1; have your son take some dramamine and be sure he eats an early and/or light breakfast before sailing from Grand Portage. I thought the SeaHunter sailed from a different dock than the V2 in grand portage, but maybe i'm thinking of when the Hunter's predeccesor, the Wenonah, had to go out of a different dock due to low water levels. And maybe that's why the Hunter is now in use instead.

July and August (especially july 10- aug 20 or so) are relatively quiet waters on Superior. But it's good to have the dramamine just in case. And i think you have to take it an hour or so in advance to be effective (u cant take it last minute or prn).

When u return on the Hunter, any camper fuel will be stored in a milk crate above deck, not in your backpacks. Just be sure to remember to grab your fuel bottle/canisters when u arrive back on the mainland.

bergman wrote:I like Ingo's idea of taking the SeaHunter leaving the island. You get an extra hour in the park. Commit to taking the north shore on day 1; have your son take some dramamine and be sure he eats an early and/or light breakfast before sailing from Grand Portage. I thought the SeaHunter sailed from a different dock than the V2 in grand portage, but maybe i'm thinking of when the Hunter's predeccesor, the Wenonah, had to go out of a different dock due to low water levels. And maybe that's why the Hunter is now in use instead.

July and August (especially july 10- aug 20 or so) are relatively quiet waters on Superior. But it's good to have the dramamine just in case. And i think you have to take it an hour or so in advance to be effective (u cant take it last minute or prn).

When u return on the Hunter, any camper fuel will be stored in a milk crate above deck, not in your backpacks. Just be sure to remember to grab your fuel bottle/canisters when u arrive back on the mainland.

I would DEFINITELY take the Dramamine at least an hour before departing if you want it to be effective. I do remember seeing the Sea Hunter at the dock where we left on the Voyageur II (we came to IR that way last September), so my guess is they leave from the same place.

Cheers,

ETB

A 1 inch piece of peeled raw ginger eaten 15 minutes before departure is probably the most effective way to prevent seasickness.

drobarge wrote:A 1 inch piece of peeled raw ginger eaten 15 minutes before departure is probably the most effective way to prevent seasickness.

That's what Gilligan was trying to tell the Skipper, but the Professor figured it would be difficult to measure, given the clear potential for a placebo effect.

bergman wrote:

drobarge wrote:A 1 inch piece of peeled raw ginger eaten 15 minutes before departure is probably the most effective way to prevent seasickness.

That's what Gilligan was trying to tell the Skipper, but the Professor figured it would be difficult to measure, given the clear potential for a placebo effect.

What is wrong with a placebo effect? With something like seasickness so what if it gives a placebo effect.

bergman wrote:

drobarge wrote:A 1 inch piece of peeled raw ginger eaten 15 minutes before departure is probably the most effective way to prevent seasickness.

That's what Gilligan was trying to tell the Skipper, but the Professor figured it would be difficult to measure, given the clear potential for a placebo effect.

Clinical studies have shown ginger to have anti-nausea and vomiting benefits beyond placebo for motion sickness, morning sickness, chemotherapy, and more. It's generally not found to be better than anti-nausea meds, but there's no question there is some positive effect. As with all meds (natural or manufactured), effectiveness varies by person.

I didnt mean to imply that a placebo effect is a bad thing. Somebody's not old enough to have grown up watching "Gilligan's Island", which ran 4 seasons (1964-1967). Gilligan's Isle. Isle Royale. Tough crowd, I guess. Good thing I dont do comedy for a living.

bergman wrote:I didnt mean to imply that a placebo effect is a bad thing. Somebody's not old enough to have grown up watching "Gilligan's Island", which ran 4 seasons (1964-1967). Gilligan's Isle. Isle Royale. Tough crowd, I guess. Good thing I dont do comedy for a living.

Hey Bergman,

Given my screen name, it is apparent that I watched plenty of TV in that era. I thought your comment was funny. A variation on the eternal question we all had growing up. Ginger, or MaryAnn.....

Cheers,

ETB

Been working too hard (ah yes, in the pharma business). Completely missed the the Ginger reference, maybe because as young boy I had a crush on Mary Ann .

And now that we've completely hi-jacked this thread... apologies to Shelb. For some non-rational reasons I can't figure out, I'd go East to West too. Haven't done either myself, it just feels right even though most of my trips have ended at R.H.

Doh! I'm an idiot. How did I miss that?