Quetico Provincial Park is a 1,180,000 acre wilderness park in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, known for its excellent canoeing, rugged beauty, towering rock cliffs, majestic waterfalls, virgin pine and spruce forests, picturesque rivers and lakes. A world famous destination for backcountry canoeing, the park includes over 2000 unofficial, unimproved wilderness campsites spread throughout more than 2,000 lakes. Quetico adjoins the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of the Superior National Forest in Minnesota.
I was joined on this canoe adventure with my brother Tim Pelton and his son-in-law Eric Nordland. We are an experienced team with a couple of other Canadien wilderness canoe trips under our belts together, the 2014 Brightsand River trip and the 2018 trip to the Wabakimi. Tim has boundless energy and Eric is a fine athlete, competitive long distance bicyclist and cross country skier. I needed their strength and endurance to tackle a 42 mile trip with over 7 miles of portages through this rugged, rocky, beautiful place.
We choose to start our trip on the Western edge of Quetico at the Beaverhouse Lake access point and paddle generally East to take advantage of the prevailing Westerly winds and end at the Nym Lake Access Point. This idea didn’t turn out so well, we paddled into an East wind nearly the entire trip!
Tim bought me a Spot Gen 4 Satellite GPS Messenger for my birthday. It is a simple device to use to let our wives know where we are. Below is the route we followed and the check-in locations.
Saturday, August 24, 2024
Dropped off the truck with the tandem and solo canoe at Emily and Eric’s house in Roseville MN before Tim’s wife Cindy took Linda and I downtown to watch the Twins beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-0.
Sunday, August 25, 2024
Cindy took Tim and I to Eric’s house. Finished packing.
Drove to International Falls. Enjoyed a nice dinner at Sammy’s Pizza. Crossed the border into Canada into Fort Frances, Ontario without incident. Followed Hwy 11 for 85 miles past Atikokan for another 19 miles until we arrived at Camp Quetico on Eva Lake. The owner, Barry met us and guided us to our cabin. Had a full dinner of roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy and even a piece of homemade berry pie at the lodge before enjoying our last cold beers (Staghorn Octoberfest) on the deck overlooking Eva Lake. Tim made friends with some of the wildlife before Eric chased him off with a broom.
Monday, August 26, 2024
Woke up to shower before breakfast at the lodge at 7:00. The shuttle met us at the cabin at 7:45 to load our canoes and gear. While driving through some light rain, our shuttle driver DJ dropped off two other guys before he took us down a 22km road to the Beaverhouse Landing.
Eric grabbed the 18.6′ tandem canoe and we tackled the first portage 310 meters/62 rods from parking lot to Beaverhouse Lake. It is a well-used trail. We were fortunate to be able to use the high water landing, the low water landing is another 100 meters further.
We did not get too far before we pulled over to adjust the backs to be more balanced in the tandem canoe. A park ranger pulled up in his canoe and asked to see our permit. Fortunately, I had it in my shirt pocket and the permit was easy to access. It was a calm, overcast and warm day. Tim and I in the tandem and Eric in the solo. A beautiful and tranquil way to start our adventure.
We paddled South on Beaverhouse Lake towards the Quetico River before the fun really started. In the words of my favorite author, Sigurd Olson, “As long as there are young men with the light of adventure in their eyes and a touch of wildness in their souls, rapids will be run.” While I am no longer a young man, the light of adventure called us.
Eric tried to paddle against the current up a small swift but got hung up in the shallow water. He stepped out of the canoe to avoid swamping the canoe in the current.
Tim and I tried to follow Eric, we had the correct line and had a good head of steam going, but got too close to Eric and we tipped over in the rapids. I made it to shore while Tim rode down the river with the canoe before coming aground on a sand bar. I was able to snap this picture.
Eric collected the loose floating water bottles. The only thing we lost was my fold up table. Everything else was tied down in the canoes. Nobody was hurt and the cool water on a hot day felt great. Since he was already wet, Tim decided to pull the tandem up the rapids, while Eric and I walked carefully along the rocky shoreline to portage the rest of the gear.
We made the 120 meter/24 rod portage along the rushing Quetico River to Quetico Lake.
We paddled East and found a beautiful campsite with a pretty rock outcropping facing west (the Fisher Maps shows commonly used campsites).
We setup camp and found that my “waterproof bag” had a rip in it and everything inside was soaked. We hung up our wet gear and put our wet boots out to dry in the sun.
With the loss of our table, I improvised organizing the kitchen with a handy rock.
I made pizza for dinner with freeze dried ice cream sandwiches for dessert. Tim and Eric handled the dishwashing duties.
After drying out and having a good meal, we could appreciate this beautiful campsite. A large colorful mushroom and the setting sun.
Tim collected and cut up firewood and Eric made a nice fire in this amazing stone firepit. Very few bugs. Loons calling across the lake. A perfect night!
The wind kicked up out of the East and the temperatures dropped significantly overnight.
Day 1 paddling distance: 6.5miles. Portaging distance: 1.6mi (182 rods X 3 trips).
Tuesday, August 27, 2024
We woke to a beautiful clear morning – this was our view from the tent. Spectacular!
I made biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Most of our gear was dry, so we packed up and hit the water. Our canoes were much better balanced. Tim took the solo while Eric and I took the tandem. No portages today, just a long day of paddling into the East wind along the Southernmost arm of Quetico Lake.
Eric and I paddled into a protected bay out of the wind and met a black lab who was loudly protecting his campsite. We passed a big wide canoe with two adults and two kids paddling on each side. We stopped to stretch our legs and have a snack on a pretty point that didn’t seem to bother the duck.
We found bones nearby. Deer? Human sacrifice? Who knows?
We found a very nice campsite at the East end of Quetico Lake, near the portage to Orienna Lake. We setup camp, Tim & I found a nice flat spot near the firepit, while Eric setup his tent in the “suburbs”.
Eric went for a swim after a log day of paddling. I made Lasagna for dinner with a strawberry granola dessert. Tim cut up firewood and Eric made a great campfire.
Light rain chased us into the tents before 9:00. Paddled 10.5 miles, no portage. Slept well.
Wednesday, August 28, 2024
Beautiful still crisp morning with mist forming over the lake.
I made egg, cheese and Candian Bacon on English Muffins for breakfast. Packed up the wet gear from the rain overnight. I took the solo canoe, while Tim and Eric took the tandem.
Paddled a short distance East to first portage into Orienna Lake 45 rods/226 meters.
We were the only people with a backpack for lawn chairs.
We made the short paddle through a shallow weedy area to second portage 65 rods/327 meters. With the rocky trail on the edge of the rushing river, Eric called it the Indiana Jones Portage.
I had a tough time keeping up with Tim and Eric as we paddled East (into the wind again) across the Southern portion of Orienna Lake.
The river became shallow with lily pads – pretty flowers
With the low water, it was difficult to find the portage. Eric investigated the opening in the swamp, but it was too shallow and too muddy.
We found a portage trail on the left side.
We followed the portage trail along the side of the swamp and found the normal, high water portage. A family had dropped off their two canoes, blocking our path. Eric and Tim were able to dance around their canoes to continue across the portage, but I was not. I shuttled all of our gear to the high water portage. It is called the Cedar Portage. We figured out that the named portages are the nastiest! This long (124 rods/624 meters), rocky, muddy uphill portage kicked my butt! I made one trip with a heavy pack. Eric came back for the solo canoe.
We made it to a swampy area and tried a couple different routes through the weeds. Eric pushed the solo through the small beaver dam. I got out to push Tim and the tandem canoe through, but sank up to my waist in mud.
The couple following us with the black lab appreciated that we showed them the best way. We found the next portage on the right side of the swamp, I stopped to dump the water out of my boots. The portage to Jesse Lake is 38 rods/191 meters.
Paddled east toward Maria Lake, I got crossed up around the islands, but we compared notes to find a beautiful campsite. We setup the tents in two nice areas.
Tim cut up and split some firewood. Eric made a nice fire.
I made Chili Mac for dinner and had brownies with raspberries for dessert. Eric took the solo out to get fresh water. The lake was like glass!
We enjoyed a spectacular sunset and after it got dark, we stood on the rock point and stared into the sky to enjoy a brilliant display of stars and the milky way.
Paddled 7.3 miles, 4 portages 2.4 miles.
Thursday, August 29, 2024
Overcast morning. Still with mist rolling across the lake. Enjoyed eggs and ham breakfast burritos. Broke camp. Short paddle Northeast to first portage to Maria Lake 140 rods/708 meters. Long, but not too difficult.
We made the short paddle Northeast across Maria Lake to the portage into Batchewaung Bay just 60 rods/302 meters, but very rocky.
Paddled first to the Northeast, before entering a narrows with a rock cliff with iron ore deposits.
We continued paddling North, into the wind as thunder rumbled in the distance. We stopped for a snack when we saw lightning with a light rain. We were still smiling!
We had learned that the narrow channel on the west side of Batchewaung Lake was open, so we avoided a portage with a long paddle in a protected area. We had identified a few potential campsites near the portage to Nym Lake in the big open water of Batchewaung Lake. We had decided that we would look at the campsite on the west side first. We were met with a very strong wind out of the Northeast, which made for a difficult paddle. With waves crashing over the side of the canoe, I pointed our tandem canoe straight into the NE wind, while Eric continued on to the West campsite. Tim tried to yell out to Eric, but he could not hear him in the strong wind. Tim and I paddled hard to make it to the first island campsite, it was open and sheltered from the wind. Eric found that the west campsite was available but paddled over to join us.
The craggy island campsite had a rugged beauty. We were able to setup our tents and the rain fly as the dark clouds moved our way across the lake. What is missing from this picture?
A gust of wind started to roll our tent over. I was able to catch it, but the force broke the ridge pole on the tent. I have been carrying around a tent repair kit since I bought the tent in 2013. It had an aluminum tube that we could use, along with some duct tape, to fix the tent pole. We were able to stake it down again and put rocks on top of the tent stakes.
Made Mac & Cheese (surprised to find vegetables inside!) with berry granola for dinner. The rain came in sheets which made the rain fly less than fully useful, but we were still smiling in the sideways rain!
No campfire. Went to bed early. Tim and I discussed how grateful we are to be able to continue to have these wilderness experiences together. Paddled 8.3 miles, 2 portages 1.9 miles.
Friday, August 30, 2024
We woke up early to a clear blue sky and a lovely sunrise.
The wind had changed, now blowing out of the South.
We skipped breakfast. With our last dry clothes, we were making a fashion statement.
We broke camp and packed up all our wet clothes and gear. With the strong wind finally at our back, we made the short paddle Northeast to the last portage out of Quetico Park and into Nym Lake. It is a long 159 rods/800 meters portage that was mostly uphill.
Tim carried the tandem canoe across the longest portage of the trip.
Paddle Northeast across Nym Lake to the public landing. We met the same two guys that took the shuttle out on Monday. They called the outfitter to get the shuttle to pick us all up early. Like many trips, the last day was beautiful!
The shuttle arrived and we loaded our gear in the van and the driver strapped down our canoes to the trailer.
Paddled 2.1 miles, 1 portage 1.5 miles.
Took the shuttle back to Camp Quetico, the driver surprised us by having cold Coors Light beer for us in the van. We were also thrilled to find that the resort has two showers dedicated for canoeists. Felt great to shower after a week in the wilderness. After settling up with Barry, we packed the truck, loaded the canoes and headed out. No problems at the border from Fort Francis to International Falls. Lunch at Sammy’s Pizza again. Tim drove to Eric’s house in Roseville. We said our goodbyes after another fun adventure!
Summary
Quetico has a rugged beauty and with fewer people, it has a slightly different feel than the Boundary Waters.
My artificial hip and knee held up pretty well – nice to live in an era of replacement parts for old joints!
Feeling very fortunate to be able to make another wilderness adventure. I could not have made it without the help of two fabulous canoe partners, Tim and Eric. A wonderful trip!
Steve Pelton 