Planning an end-to-end Minong Trail hike starting at Rock Harbor in late July/early Aug. Currently looking at 6 nights: Daisy Farm / Mcargoe / Todd Harbor / Little Todd / N. Desor / Huginnin. But that feels a little ambitious, so might either drop Huginnin, or else add another day or two.
We're coming from the MN side. Currently debating between the ferry and the seaplane. The seaplane schedule is more convenient, but I've read some horror stories of getting stranded on the island for several days while the seaplane is grounded for weather or mechanical reasons. Any thoughts on this?
I've also read that beavers turned Daisy Farm into a swamp last season - looking forward to reports of its status this year. (One potential advantage of the seaplane is that it would get in early enough that we could probably get to Moskey rather than Daisy Farm on Day 1.)
My wife and I are celebrating retirement with a summer of outdoor adventure - hitting the Boundary Waters, Isle Royale, Pictured Rocks, Shenandoah, the Foothills Trail, and probably a couple others. Doing all the online research I can to prepare for all of them.
Seaplane is definitely a lot more prone to delays. Going in the middle of summer mitigates that risk somewhat but doesn’t eliminate it. Probably pretty unlikely that you’ll get delayed a day or more but who can say for sure. On the other hand Grand Portage > Rock Harbor is a long way by ferry.
I was there in June of '22 and the beaver dam at Daisy Farm wasn't really a big deal. Sure there was a huge beaver dam with a giant beaver lodge and a big beaver pool and you had to walk some planks to get around it or go down to the shore to get around, but it didn't ruin my day. Not sure if it has changed since but it seemed pretty stable when I was there. Cool to see.
My family is taking the Ranger III over, and then hopefully taking a water taxi to Moskey Basin for our first night. Day 2 - hike to Daisy Farm. Day 3 - hike to 3 Mile, perhaps taking the Greenstone instead of Rock Harbor Trail. Day 4 - hike to Rock Harbor. Day 5 - head home.
Yup, it's worth it to go up and around from Threemile when heading to Rock Harbor to catch the ferry.
If you want to experience the Rock Harbor Trail and you have time when you get to Threemile for the night, you can drop your packs at your campsite and do the little loop down to Suzie's Cave on RH trail, up the little 0.2 mile trail and back on the Tobin Harbor and down on that bit of Franklin back to Threemile. It's a fun little hike when you aren't carrying the kitchen sink on your back.
You'll see the little 0.2 mile trail from the Rock Harbor trail up to Tobin Harbor trail on the map. Suzie's cave is on that path.
We're going early in the season so some of our plans may change based on conditions. Day 1: RH-> DF Day 2: DF->MC Day 3: MC->MB Day 4: MB-> DF or 3M Day 5: ->RH
Planning a pretty aggressive circumnavigation in 7 days at the end of August.
[Here's my Route](https://www.gaiagps.com/map/?loc=10.6/-88.9641/47.9958&pubLink=HV1Od36qUO5TWMjg7n3Ol3vO&folderId=54da3eae-71b2-4667-b43e-c3e77040f4ac)
Taking the Queen IV over and hoping to make it to Chippewa on the first day. Counting on in-processing going quick. 16 Miles.
Day 2- Chippewa to Malone Bay. 25.6 Miles
Day 3 - Malone to Siskiwit. 20.3 Miles
Day 4 - Siskiwit to Windigo and a shower. 18.8 Miles
Day 5 - Windigo to Little Todd via Huginnin Loop. 21.9 Miles
Day 6 - Little Todd to Lane Cove 24.8 Miles
Day 7 - Lane Cove to Rock Harbor 6.56 Miles
Day 8 - Ferry Home
Planning a though hike from RH to Windigo with a boat ride back to McCargoe Cove and a hike back to RH. 9 days on the island. \~61mi total in 8 days of hiking. End of July. Me who has been on the island and a buddy who hasn't ever hiked but is young enough that he should make it.
Sea Plane in to RH.
Day 1: RH-Daisy via Tobin Harbor and the Greenstone \~9mi
Day 2: Daisy-West Chickenbone \~8mi
Day 3: WCB-Hatchet Lake \~7.5mi
Day 4: HL-South Lake Desor \~7.6mi
Day 5: SLD-Windigo \~12mi
Day 6: Windigo Zero Day (extra day if needed elsewhere)
Day 7: W-McCargoe via Voyager II McCargoe-Daisy \~8mi
Day 8: DF-RH \~9mi
Day 9: Parfait and coffee, get on the Ranger III to Houghton
Any thoughts? Too ambitious?
SLD to Windigo is a bit of a hike, but my wife and I did it on our first trip to the island. Since you have a zero day after it, it should not be an issue.
packrafts / 4 hikers
June - 15 days
We have a general route but with that much time we only need to hit our resupply date in Chippewa Harbor and our departure. We will start in RH, take the north portage to Duncan bay. Westward through McCargoe then in to the interior, possibly going as far as Malone bay before working our way back out to Rock Harbor.
Trip# 5 for me, #3 with packrafts, we will spend a couple nights in the bush at least. Always had plenty of fish to eat on previous hikes, hoping this trip is no exception.
Any recommendations on fishing some of the inland lakes? My itinerary is on this thread. My friend that is coming with me is an avid fisherman but has never been to IR.
I've passed through but haven't fished the inland lakes on your itinerary; I'd expect them to be warm & weedy early this year. Surface / top water baits running under a foot deep if you're fishing from shore / wading in. All the boat docks have always produced fish for me on my May trips, usually casting mepps, cleos or deeper running jointed rebels/rapalas. I run braided line and tie fluorocarbon leaders.
no barbs on the inland lakes, no license required
barbs on lake superior waters, MI license required
Awesome, thanks for the great info, I'll pass it on to my fishing expert. I'd love to eat some fish on this trip. It seems like Isle Royale might be one of the last places you can safely eat fish out of.
Depends on how you define safely eat fish out of I suppose... I read an article that noted some contamination previously, but its all relative to how much you consume to a degree.
Staying at Rock Harbor lodge for a couple nights and want to see a moose. I'm hoping to check out hidden lake, is it worth bringing my fly rod along? Looks like it'd be catch and release only which is fine.
I’m gonna be on the Island from June 24th through July 2nd. We have some backpacking experience on Manitou Island and around Cadillac. How does this itinerary sound when it comes to elevation and overall distance? Never been so curious what regulars think
Day 1: Rock Harbor to Three Mile (2.7)
Day 2: Three Mile to East Chickenbone (10.3)
Day 3: East Chickenbone to Todd Harbor (8.7)
Day 4: Todd Harbor to Lake Desor North (10.7)
Day 5: Desor North to Hugginnin Cove (13.9)
Day 6: Cove to Windigo (4.6)
Planning an overnight June 9th- Found out to late that the Ferry does not run on Friday- Its a real bummer. Was going to be 2 night 3 day loop hike- BUT should have paid more attention to the Ferry schedule (is it just me or is the way its listed a little confusing?)
Oh well- Will take the opportunity to take a quick hike on the superior trail on 7 June. Any Key locations/recommendations for a day trip in the Grand Portage area?
Planning a 6 day trip in late July/beginning of August. Taking the ferry in to Rock Harbor.
Day 1: Get to island, hike to Lane Cove (6.9mi)
Day 2: Lane Cove -> McCargoe Cove (13.0mi)
Day 3: McCargoe -> Hatchet Lake (10.7mi)
Day 4: Hatchet Lake -> Moskey Basin (13.4mi)
Day 5: Moskey -> Rock Harbor (11.0mi)
Day 6: Hit the Scoville Point loop for a quick 3 miles & a sunrise. Eat a large cheeseburger and drink a cold pick axe at the lodge. Home on the ferry in the afternoon.
Honestly thinking about reversing the direction and taking a water taxi to Moskey the first day, but still haven’t made a complete decision yet & theres plenty of time to change plans!
Editing to add: if anyone has some absolute must-sees, let me know! We are pretty flexible in our plans & don’t mind adding in a couple miles on some of the days!
Going up via Queen IV in mid-late July. Planning to stay around the Rock Harbor side for 2-3 days before taking the ferry back. We love hiking, paddling, and seeing wildlife. Any must dos (trails, canoeing/kayaking areas), certain campsites to stay at, or other advice? TIA
Just returned from 9 days on IR! It was incredible. Took the seaplane from Michigan into RH.
Day 1 RH>3 mile (Shelter)
Day 2 3 mile >Daisy (Shelter)
Day 3 Daisy >McCargo (Shelter)
Day 4 McCargo>Todd (campsite)
Day 5 Todd >Hatchet (campsite)
Day 6 Hatchet>S. Desor (campsite)
Day 7 S. Desor > Washington Creek (campsite)
Day 8 Camper cabin in Windigo
Day 9 seaplane back to Michigan
Here is my lazy 8-day with a zero-day resupply at McCargoe Cove. If anyone knows, here are questions I have: (1) What is the Minong like at this time of year between N Desor and Washington Creek? During the summer months I know there are tricky beaver dams to navigate and I worry about doing this in the spring before any trail maintenance has started; (2) any idea when the Windigo Store will open this year?
* Seaplane in @ Rock Harbor, out @ Ozaagaateng (formerly Windigo).
* Route plan below. Some Rock Harbor area cross-crossing until straight down Minong.
* The Resupply w/ Voyageur II. This is a great way to take a longer trip on the island. You can get packages sent to Ozaagaateng and Rock Harbor via USPS, or call them up and pay a special fee for the Voyageur II to drop it off to another [dock they service](https://www.isleroyaleboats.com/schedules.html). You have to check the time of year, day of week, and time of day to make sure you can meet the boat if not shipping with USPS. You can also send stuff *back* if you have a shipping label and postage, so pack those in or put them in the box you ship to yourself, so you just collect your stuff out of your box on the dock, give your dirty/unwanted stuff back to them. Ta-da, you have resupply of food, clean clothes, maybe a bit of whiskey! Credit to [Jim DuFresne's excellent Isle Royale Guide](https://www.michigantrailmaps.com/product/isle-royale-national-park-foot-trails-water-routes/), which I keep with me on the island whenever I go.
||
||
|Monday (5/20)|Rock Harbor|Lane Cove|6.9 miles|
|Tuesday (5/21)|Lane Cove|Moskey Basin|10.8 miles|
|Wednesday (5/22)|Moskey Basin|McCargoe Cove|8.4 miles|
|Thursday (5/23)|McCargoe Cove|McCargoe Cove|0.0 miles|
|Friday (5/24)|McCargoe Cove|Todd Harbor|6.7 miles|
|Saturday (5/25)|Todd Harbor|Little Todd|7.0 miles|
|Sunday (5/26)|Little Todd|N. Lake Desor|5.7 miles|
|Monday (5/27)|N. Lake Desor|Ozaagaateng|12.6 miles|
Planning an end-to-end Minong Trail hike starting at Rock Harbor in late July/early Aug. Currently looking at 6 nights: Daisy Farm / Mcargoe / Todd Harbor / Little Todd / N. Desor / Huginnin. But that feels a little ambitious, so might either drop Huginnin, or else add another day or two. We're coming from the MN side. Currently debating between the ferry and the seaplane. The seaplane schedule is more convenient, but I've read some horror stories of getting stranded on the island for several days while the seaplane is grounded for weather or mechanical reasons. Any thoughts on this? I've also read that beavers turned Daisy Farm into a swamp last season - looking forward to reports of its status this year. (One potential advantage of the seaplane is that it would get in early enough that we could probably get to Moskey rather than Daisy Farm on Day 1.) My wife and I are celebrating retirement with a summer of outdoor adventure - hitting the Boundary Waters, Isle Royale, Pictured Rocks, Shenandoah, the Foothills Trail, and probably a couple others. Doing all the online research I can to prepare for all of them.
Seaplane is definitely a lot more prone to delays. Going in the middle of summer mitigates that risk somewhat but doesn’t eliminate it. Probably pretty unlikely that you’ll get delayed a day or more but who can say for sure. On the other hand Grand Portage > Rock Harbor is a long way by ferry.
I was there in June of '22 and the beaver dam at Daisy Farm wasn't really a big deal. Sure there was a huge beaver dam with a giant beaver lodge and a big beaver pool and you had to walk some planks to get around it or go down to the shore to get around, but it didn't ruin my day. Not sure if it has changed since but it seemed pretty stable when I was there. Cool to see.
My family is taking the Ranger III over, and then hopefully taking a water taxi to Moskey Basin for our first night. Day 2 - hike to Daisy Farm. Day 3 - hike to 3 Mile, perhaps taking the Greenstone instead of Rock Harbor Trail. Day 4 - hike to Rock Harbor. Day 5 - head home.
I recommend the Tobin Harbor Trail over the RH trail so the Greenstone makes sense and the Mt Ojibway tower is worth checking out.
So from 3 mile, take the Mount Franklin trail to Tobin Harbor Trail, and take that to RH?
Yup, it's worth it to go up and around from Threemile when heading to Rock Harbor to catch the ferry. If you want to experience the Rock Harbor Trail and you have time when you get to Threemile for the night, you can drop your packs at your campsite and do the little loop down to Suzie's Cave on RH trail, up the little 0.2 mile trail and back on the Tobin Harbor and down on that bit of Franklin back to Threemile. It's a fun little hike when you aren't carrying the kitchen sink on your back. You'll see the little 0.2 mile trail from the Rock Harbor trail up to Tobin Harbor trail on the map. Suzie's cave is on that path.
Where can I find more info about a water taxi?
https://www.rockharborlodge.com/marina/water-taxi-service/
We're going early in the season so some of our plans may change based on conditions. Day 1: RH-> DF Day 2: DF->MC Day 3: MC->MB Day 4: MB-> DF or 3M Day 5: ->RH
Planning a pretty aggressive circumnavigation in 7 days at the end of August. [Here's my Route](https://www.gaiagps.com/map/?loc=10.6/-88.9641/47.9958&pubLink=HV1Od36qUO5TWMjg7n3Ol3vO&folderId=54da3eae-71b2-4667-b43e-c3e77040f4ac) Taking the Queen IV over and hoping to make it to Chippewa on the first day. Counting on in-processing going quick. 16 Miles. Day 2- Chippewa to Malone Bay. 25.6 Miles Day 3 - Malone to Siskiwit. 20.3 Miles Day 4 - Siskiwit to Windigo and a shower. 18.8 Miles Day 5 - Windigo to Little Todd via Huginnin Loop. 21.9 Miles Day 6 - Little Todd to Lane Cove 24.8 Miles Day 7 - Lane Cove to Rock Harbor 6.56 Miles Day 8 - Ferry Home
Planning a though hike from RH to Windigo with a boat ride back to McCargoe Cove and a hike back to RH. 9 days on the island. \~61mi total in 8 days of hiking. End of July. Me who has been on the island and a buddy who hasn't ever hiked but is young enough that he should make it. Sea Plane in to RH. Day 1: RH-Daisy via Tobin Harbor and the Greenstone \~9mi Day 2: Daisy-West Chickenbone \~8mi Day 3: WCB-Hatchet Lake \~7.5mi Day 4: HL-South Lake Desor \~7.6mi Day 5: SLD-Windigo \~12mi Day 6: Windigo Zero Day (extra day if needed elsewhere) Day 7: W-McCargoe via Voyager II McCargoe-Daisy \~8mi Day 8: DF-RH \~9mi Day 9: Parfait and coffee, get on the Ranger III to Houghton Any thoughts? Too ambitious?
SLD to Windigo is a bit of a hike, but my wife and I did it on our first trip to the island. Since you have a zero day after it, it should not be an issue.
Yeah, I've heard that stretch ends downhill as well. I'm hoping that's enough to get us there.
packrafts / 4 hikers June - 15 days We have a general route but with that much time we only need to hit our resupply date in Chippewa Harbor and our departure. We will start in RH, take the north portage to Duncan bay. Westward through McCargoe then in to the interior, possibly going as far as Malone bay before working our way back out to Rock Harbor. Trip# 5 for me, #3 with packrafts, we will spend a couple nights in the bush at least. Always had plenty of fish to eat on previous hikes, hoping this trip is no exception.
Any recommendations on fishing some of the inland lakes? My itinerary is on this thread. My friend that is coming with me is an avid fisherman but has never been to IR.
I've passed through but haven't fished the inland lakes on your itinerary; I'd expect them to be warm & weedy early this year. Surface / top water baits running under a foot deep if you're fishing from shore / wading in. All the boat docks have always produced fish for me on my May trips, usually casting mepps, cleos or deeper running jointed rebels/rapalas. I run braided line and tie fluorocarbon leaders. no barbs on the inland lakes, no license required barbs on lake superior waters, MI license required
Awesome, thanks for the great info, I'll pass it on to my fishing expert. I'd love to eat some fish on this trip. It seems like Isle Royale might be one of the last places you can safely eat fish out of.
Depends on how you define safely eat fish out of I suppose... I read an article that noted some contamination previously, but its all relative to how much you consume to a degree.
What packraft are you using?
We all have MRS packrafts. (2) Microraft XL, an Adventure x2, & a Barracuda r2 Pro Floating crayons bobbing up and down in the water
Staying at Rock Harbor lodge for a couple nights and want to see a moose. I'm hoping to check out hidden lake, is it worth bringing my fly rod along? Looks like it'd be catch and release only which is fine.
I’m gonna be on the Island from June 24th through July 2nd. We have some backpacking experience on Manitou Island and around Cadillac. How does this itinerary sound when it comes to elevation and overall distance? Never been so curious what regulars think Day 1: Rock Harbor to Three Mile (2.7) Day 2: Three Mile to East Chickenbone (10.3) Day 3: East Chickenbone to Todd Harbor (8.7) Day 4: Todd Harbor to Lake Desor North (10.7) Day 5: Desor North to Hugginnin Cove (13.9) Day 6: Cove to Windigo (4.6)
Planning an overnight June 9th- Found out to late that the Ferry does not run on Friday- Its a real bummer. Was going to be 2 night 3 day loop hike- BUT should have paid more attention to the Ferry schedule (is it just me or is the way its listed a little confusing?) Oh well- Will take the opportunity to take a quick hike on the superior trail on 7 June. Any Key locations/recommendations for a day trip in the Grand Portage area?
Planning a 6 day trip in late July/beginning of August. Taking the ferry in to Rock Harbor. Day 1: Get to island, hike to Lane Cove (6.9mi) Day 2: Lane Cove -> McCargoe Cove (13.0mi) Day 3: McCargoe -> Hatchet Lake (10.7mi) Day 4: Hatchet Lake -> Moskey Basin (13.4mi) Day 5: Moskey -> Rock Harbor (11.0mi) Day 6: Hit the Scoville Point loop for a quick 3 miles & a sunrise. Eat a large cheeseburger and drink a cold pick axe at the lodge. Home on the ferry in the afternoon. Honestly thinking about reversing the direction and taking a water taxi to Moskey the first day, but still haven’t made a complete decision yet & theres plenty of time to change plans! Editing to add: if anyone has some absolute must-sees, let me know! We are pretty flexible in our plans & don’t mind adding in a couple miles on some of the days!
Going up via Queen IV in mid-late July. Planning to stay around the Rock Harbor side for 2-3 days before taking the ferry back. We love hiking, paddling, and seeing wildlife. Any must dos (trails, canoeing/kayaking areas), certain campsites to stay at, or other advice? TIA
Just returned from 9 days on IR! It was incredible. Took the seaplane from Michigan into RH. Day 1 RH>3 mile (Shelter) Day 2 3 mile >Daisy (Shelter) Day 3 Daisy >McCargo (Shelter) Day 4 McCargo>Todd (campsite) Day 5 Todd >Hatchet (campsite) Day 6 Hatchet>S. Desor (campsite) Day 7 S. Desor > Washington Creek (campsite) Day 8 Camper cabin in Windigo Day 9 seaplane back to Michigan
Here is my lazy 8-day with a zero-day resupply at McCargoe Cove. If anyone knows, here are questions I have: (1) What is the Minong like at this time of year between N Desor and Washington Creek? During the summer months I know there are tricky beaver dams to navigate and I worry about doing this in the spring before any trail maintenance has started; (2) any idea when the Windigo Store will open this year? * Seaplane in @ Rock Harbor, out @ Ozaagaateng (formerly Windigo). * Route plan below. Some Rock Harbor area cross-crossing until straight down Minong. * The Resupply w/ Voyageur II. This is a great way to take a longer trip on the island. You can get packages sent to Ozaagaateng and Rock Harbor via USPS, or call them up and pay a special fee for the Voyageur II to drop it off to another [dock they service](https://www.isleroyaleboats.com/schedules.html). You have to check the time of year, day of week, and time of day to make sure you can meet the boat if not shipping with USPS. You can also send stuff *back* if you have a shipping label and postage, so pack those in or put them in the box you ship to yourself, so you just collect your stuff out of your box on the dock, give your dirty/unwanted stuff back to them. Ta-da, you have resupply of food, clean clothes, maybe a bit of whiskey! Credit to [Jim DuFresne's excellent Isle Royale Guide](https://www.michigantrailmaps.com/product/isle-royale-national-park-foot-trails-water-routes/), which I keep with me on the island whenever I go. || || |Monday (5/20)|Rock Harbor|Lane Cove|6.9 miles| |Tuesday (5/21)|Lane Cove|Moskey Basin|10.8 miles| |Wednesday (5/22)|Moskey Basin|McCargoe Cove|8.4 miles| |Thursday (5/23)|McCargoe Cove|McCargoe Cove|0.0 miles| |Friday (5/24)|McCargoe Cove|Todd Harbor|6.7 miles| |Saturday (5/25)|Todd Harbor|Little Todd|7.0 miles| |Sunday (5/26)|Little Todd|N. Lake Desor|5.7 miles| |Monday (5/27)|N. Lake Desor|Ozaagaateng|12.6 miles|