Isle Royale Forums

Working out an 8-day itinerary to cross the island from Windigo to Rock Harbor. Would like to try to leave ourselves a 1-day cushion in there in case of weather (hate to miss our flight home!). Any expert opinions out there?
Thanks!

The first choice is Minong vs Greenstone. If it's your first trip to the Island or if you are not up to the rigors of the Minong I would suggest the Greenstone.

Day 1 - off the boat and hike to Desor South. It's a relatively long hike, but an easy one.
Day 2 - to Hatchet Lake
Day 3 - to West Chickenbone

Now you're over halfway there and you have a lot of other options:

Day 4 - to Moskey Basin
Day 5 - to Daisy Farm
Day 6 - to Rock Harbor

This still leaves you a couple of extra days. You could put Lane Cove or McCargoe Cove in the loop or spend an extra day at Lake Desor or Moskey Basin.

Thanks for the input! We'll probably add a side trip, like you suggested, and this fits pretty well with what we were looking at already. This is our first trip to the area, and we don't want to make it TOO rigorous, so this sounds like a good plan! Thanks again!

My suggestion for 8 days would be:

Night 1 - Lake Desor South
Night 2 - Hatchet Lake (If you arrive early and have the energy continue to Todd Harbor)
Night 3 - Todd Harbor (A wonderful view of Lake Superior)
I’ve always liked the north shore and prefer camping on the Big Lake.
Night 4 - McCargoe Cove (A beautiful campsite)
Night 5 - Moskey Basin (Another beautiful campsite)
Night 6 - Daisy Farm
Night 7 - Lane Cove
Night 8 - Rock Harbor

Due to weather or energy levels or whatever, 1 or 2 stops could be easily bypassed, especially the Lane Cove if you are running behind. Instead, take the long way from Daisy Farm to Rock Harbor via the Greenstone Ridge. It's longer but not as rocky.