September 1996

September 1996

An old college roommate often regaled me with his backcountry experience in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, and Quetico, its Canadian neighbor. He said you could travel hundreds of miles in the wilderness simply by canoeing and portaging from one lake to the next. Another old roommate and I, along with two others set out to explore this region. It is September and we are hoping Minnesota's state bird, the mosquito, has disappeared.

In Ely, MN an outfitter provided us canoes, and a boat ferry to the far end of Moose Lake. There on the international border, we carried our canoes and camping supplies over to Basswood Lake in the Quetico. We spent the day paddling and portaging north until we reached Cigar Island in the middle of North Bay. From this campground we spent the long weekend exploring this watery world and fishing for our next meal. We had no problem catching many Small Mouth Bass and Northern Pike. While difficult to clean, the Pike was excellent tasting.