Isle Royale Forums

Gimp wrote: ... Frankly, I see the boaters as a fall back communications / evacuation resource should I have a medical emergency when I'm out by myself...

Absolutely, and not necessarily just by yourself. Last summer boaters contacted the rangers for us in a medical emergency.

McCargoe Cove was one of the more unpleasant nights as I recall. It had nothing to do with boaters. Just folks hanging around the fire pit until about 2:00 AM talking trash. For some reason some people think a camp fire gives them a special license.

I think the acoustics at McCargoe rival a Greek amphitheater. Even normal conversations at the dock and fire pit area seem to carry up to the shelters. You can hear backpackers at the campsite sign discussing what shelter they should try for, and door slams there always make me jump. The open side of some of the best sited shelters (best view) and exposed underside of the floors just captures those sound waves. On my first visit to McCargoe many years ago I was awoken through the night by a horrible groaning sound that came and went. I could only think that a moose was about to die outside of my shelter. In the morning I discovered that it was the anchor rope of a watercraft that was rubbing. Down by the water you could barely hear it. The last time I was at McCargoe I was alone in a shelter well up on the hillside when I heard splashing in the water. It turned out to be a moose just stepping in with its front feet for a drink - on the other side of the harbor. It's hard to pass on a prime site shelter, but sometimes I find that a tent is more peaceful.

I ran into some boaters at Todd Harbor last Saturday, August 17th. We had a long discussion about the differences and similarities between boaters and backpackers. Basically, it boiled down to this -- we both pay good money to enjoy the island and both face challenges along the way, although our challenges are quite different. Everyone has a right to enjoy the island, as long as there is a mutual respect between the two. Like I've read, there are bad apples in each category and unfortunately for boaters, it seems like the NPS is coming down on them a bit harsher. The 4 fisherman I met shared their fresh caught salmon/lake trout cooked in an unbelievably delicious chowder...so I may have been a little more lenient with their loud music and "partying". Either way, in my opinion, there are going to be less and less boaters as the years roll along because of the few that don't/refuse to understand and respect the rules and regulations set in place to preserve the peace and quiet that so many are expecting when visiting IRNP.

I've been aprehensive when I meet boaters while I'm backpacking because the gestalt is so different. It's a bit like backpacking into a state park filled with RVs & car campers. Their expectations and gear are quite different from mine.

That said, I had good experiences last fall at Chippewa Harbor. The teenagres on one boat waited until dark to move up to the last available shelter (waiting until the last minute in case hikers came in). The parents slept on the boat. I said hi in the morning (they moved out at dawn) and they said they hoped they hadn't bothered me with noise overnight. Not a peep - only knew they had spent the night when I saw them in their sleeping bags in the morning.

Another group were mostly quiet though they stayed up late with propane lanterns and a large fire in the grill. I was in the other group of two shelters, don't know what it would have been like to be next to them.

Im Just askin, do boaters have to register with the park service at all while they visit the park?

zims wrote:Im Just askin, do boaters have to register with the park service at all while they visit the park?

Yes they do. Here is the info:
http://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/b ... equest.htm

Don't forget, boaters sometimes get pretty tired of obnoxious backpackers who hang out on the dock all day. docks are for boats. Imagine if a group of boaters hung out at your shelter picnic table all afternoon.

zims wrote:Im Just askin, do boaters have to register with the park service at all while they visit the park?

Yes, we have to file itineraries and pay the same fees that you do. Every time I've been to the island, I've been checked at least once, so someone might just show up, but they'll likely be caught if they don't follow the rules.

I never saw the ranger - I must have been out for a day hike - but one did come through Chippewa Harbor at least once while I was there last fall. I know because there were check marks on my itinerary changes and my permit was turned upside down in the plastic bag that comes with it.

A corollary to zims' question: Do hikers have to post their permits on their tents or campsites?

I have the same question as jimh. When I was on the island May 27-June 1st. I had my permit in my backpack, but never posted it on a shelter or had anyone check it either.

Taking the ranger, I never got the true LNT talk everyone talks about. Ranger Paul spoke to us on the ranger about it, but then we were set free begin our trip.

Hikers are supposed to display their permit at their site. Usually done on the door handle of the shelter or on a tree branch close to the post marking the site number at tent sites.

Ranger Paul does the LNT talk on the ride over, so you don't get it on the island. Everyone else gets it on the island.

I've been apprehensive when I meet boaters while I'm backpacking because the gestalt is so different. It's a bit like backpacking into a state park filled with RVs & car campers. Their expectations and gear are quite different from mine.

It DOES feel like meeting aliens when you run into boaters for the first time at ISRO.

Boaters do seem to keep to themselves -- even when that means taking over the dock and a large portion of CH as well. However, the boaters that I ran into this past summer seemed nice enough. One of the nice things about boats is that they have power, which means cold beer if the folks are nice enough to share (which the folks I ran into on CI were nice enough to do).

Boaters pay a lot of money for fuel to get to ISRO and they pay a lot for a season pass ($150 as opposed to $50 for backpackers). According to the folks that I ran into, many of the boating visitors to ISRO with boats home ported in Lake Superior make more than one trip to ISRO per summer. It appears that there is a club - like nature (sort of like Airstream camper folks) to the boaters, and that most of the boaters really do respect the park, quiet time, and LNT. On the other hand, it also was evident that not many of the boaters that I talked to had much experience with the interior of ISRO further out than the campground that they were staying at.