Isle Royale National Park has a little something for everyone. You can canoe or kayak through its islands and inlets. You can backpack across its ridges, through meadows, along the coast, and camp in secluded, beautiful back-country sites. You can sleep in the shelters at Washington Creek and day hike trails in the area. You can see moose, wolves (if you’re lucky), foxes, snow-shoe hare, birds of prey, and more. In the fall, you can see the northern lights. In August, you can feast on berries. We had an amazing time in the park and can’t wait to get back to explore more. See pictures from our trip on our Flickr page.
Some of our favorite memories from our journey are of people we’ve met along the way. It turns out ferry rides are a great way to get to know other folks. You’re stuck, basically, for two, three, sometimes for more hours with a group of people, and if you’re lucky, they’re a fun bunch. We had good luck on our Dry Tortugas ferry with the Taylor family. This time, we met Juliet Patterson and Anthony and Patricia Lenzo. The Lenzos were hilarious; we hope that Tony has since recovered from eating a non-edible blueberry look-alike. Unfortunately, they were only on the island for a couple of hours, so we didn’t have enough time to bother them for an interview. But we did snap this photo.
Anthony and Patricia Lenzo on the way to Isle Royale National Park
Since Juliet was backpacking for a few days, we felt okay about pestering her with a few questions before she headed out on her nine mile hike. Juliet is a seasoned hiker, an award-winning poet, and we discovered, a darn good card player. Take a listen to her thoughts on Isle Royale.
View of Beaver Island from the Windigo harbor dock
After spending three days in Isle Royale, it’s clear why this park is the least visited but has the most return visitors. Getting to Isle Royale can be a bit of a logistical challenge (as we note in our earlier post), but once you’re here…wow. It’s simply gorgeous. And clearly loved and well cared for by the park rangers who live there.
When we stepped off the ferry we were treated to an orientation from a ranger who gave a great introduction to the park and reminded us to leave no trace during our visit. She told us that although we were unlikely to see any wolves on our visit (the park is home to three wolf packs), we would probably see moose and foxes. Foxes, she cautioned, have been known to walk into a campsite, curl up, and go to sleep. Or sit next to you for a spell while you’re eating, hoping for a nibble of something. She reminded us that it’s not good for foxes or for people when wild animals become habituated to humans, and hard as it may be, we should shoo the fox on its way. Okay, I thought, but maybe after taking a few photos for the blog…!
After our orientation, we checked out the Windigo Visitor Center to register our back-country route with the rangers and read up on the many shipwrecks in the area. We had passed by some remnants of the SS America on our boat trip to Windigo. The visitor center had some interesting information on the ill-fated ship.
Sunset at Huginnin Cove
We then headed off for Huginnin Cove, about a 5-mile trek from the visitor center. The trail was gorgeous…birch trees with peeling and curled paper-y bark and an abundance of raspberries and thimbleberries. When we got to the cove, there were six sites to choose from, all placed at a respectable distance from one another. We chose campsite #1, which was one of our favorite sites of our entire trip. We had our own patch of beach, enough trees to protect us from sun and wind, and a large flat surface to pitch the tent and cook. Twas perfect.
Next day we were treated to hours and hours of rain, which allowed us to indulge in the kind of morning we’d dreamed about from the beginning of the trip. We stayed inside and listened to the rain bouncing off the tent walls, just lounging and playing cards. We stepped outside during one break in the weather to make popcorn and came across one of our neighbors. A snow-shoe hare hopped right up to our “kitchen” and tried to steal some of our kernels, but we dutifully shoo-ed it away.
Cooking dinner at Washington Creek shelter
We then took a leisurely hike back to Windigo, stopping often to eat wild blueberries and take pictures. That night we camped in one of the shelters at Washington Creek. Ben made a tofu dinner that was so deliciously fragrant it drew one of the foxes to our camp. But once it caught sight of the fake meat, it trotted off, even before we had a chance to grab our cameras or say “shoo!”
Blueberry pickin' on the Minong Ridge Trail
Our final day on Isle Royale, we took a day hike up the Minong Ridge Trail, which crosses the length of the island, to try to catch a view of the lake from up high. But just as we reached the summit, clouds rolled in and fogged over the scene. Still, we enjoyed the hike and would love to come back to the park and walk the entire trail, from Windigo to Rock Harbor.
Those clouds were a signal that the weather was changing, and when we got back to the harbor we found out that a big storm was rolling in. Campers who were booked to leave by ferry the following day were ending their trip early because the Wenonah wouldn’t make the crossing during the bad weather. Apparently the waves on Lake Superior can get just as ugly as those on the open ocean.
Cloudy day but still gorgeous!
On our journey back to Grand Portage, which was on relatively calm water, many passengers got sick. Luckily we weathered the water just fine. Perhaps it was the rollicking card game we had going. Thanks for playing with us, Juliet!
Patience. Flexibility. Good communications skills. Sense of humor. No, this isn’t a personals ad; these are the characteristics you’ll need when planning your trip to Isle Royale National Park. It’s not because the park isn’t well laid out or maintained, it’s simply because trying to figure out the ferry schedule is like trying to solve a Rubik’s cube…in the dark…with your hands tied behind your back.
The trusty Wenonah
We found three companies that run a ferry to Isle Royale National Park across Lake Superior. Some are based in Michigan. One runs out of Minnesota (that’s the one we took). Some boats only go to Windigo (the west side of the park), some only go to Rock Harbor (the east side), some go to both. Some leave on Mondays and Wednesdays but only return on Saturdays. Others leave every day. All of them get booked up quickly, especially in August, the park’s busiest season. Also note that the last ferry to the park leaves in September.
We tried many permutations of travel…take one boat out and a different one from a different part of the island back. We’d heard that the west side of the park was quieter with lots of birch trees and ferns. The east side had more people, boats, and amenities; hardwood forests and more islands to explore. We would have had a hard time deciding which area to explore, but for the fact that the only seats available to us in the time frame we needed were on the boat that only services the west side of the park. Decision made!
As we mentioned in a previous post, we had a hard time time finding a canoe rental in towns near Voyageurs National Park, and had to head west to Ely, MN — the gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area — to secure our canoe. We rented from Voyageur North Outfitters and had a great experience with them. When we returned the canoe, they offered us a cold beverage on the house!
We wish that we had more time to explore Ely, a small town where it seems every car has a canoe strapped to its roof. We do have two recommendations for you, though.
1. Dine at the Oriental Orchid, a Vietnamese and Chinese food restaurant that mostly caters to the take-out crowd but has a few tables for diners. Try the mock duck curry tofu with vegetables — it knocked our socks off!
2. Visit the Dorothy Molter Museum. We unfortunately got there after it closed, but still enjoyed wandering through the grounds, which beautifully reconstruct Dorothy’s home (her cabin was dismantled and taken by sled dogs across the lakes to Ely, where it was re-assembled on the museum grounds) and garden. Some called her the “Root Beer Lady” because she brewed 10 to 12,000 bottles of homemade root beer every year from her home in the Boundary Waters. Others called her “The Florence Nightingale of the Wilderness” because she was a trained nurse and administered first aid to many travelers in the Boundary Waters, as well as to injured wildlife. Read more about her here.
One final word on Ely…it has been named by Budget Travel as “the Coolest Small Town in America”, in part because the first birth of a black bear cub in the wild was recorded by webcam by researchers at the North American Bear Center. You can learn more about bears, schedule a visit to the center, and see a video of the birth of Lily by mother bear Hope on this site.
We loved being on the water in Voyageurs National Park and had a great time exploring the area. Take a look at our highlight video for some ideas of what to do in the park.
We put in our canoe on Kabetogama Lake from Ash River around 5pm, not an ideal time to begin a back-country journey, but the sun doesn’t set in northern Minnesota in early August until around 9pm, so we still had about four hours of daylight…enough to find a campsite.
Ben's handiwork -- delicioso!
We followed the bouys along the main channel to Namakan Lake and relished that our late start allowed us to catch the beginning of a beautiful sunset. Of the few designated campsites we came across, all were either occupied by motorboats or closed due to nesting of eagles. In Voyageurs, you’re allowed to camp outside of established campsites, and after another half hour of paddling, we found a nice spot situated on Kubel Island. It was clear that others had camped in the area before, as someone had set up a makeshift fire ring. We got to work immediately on pitching the tent and getting dinner ready before the sun set entirely. By this time, we had settled nicely into a camp routine. Usually I would set up the tent while Ben would fire up the stove and begin cooking. I’d join him just in time to do a little chopping, but my main duty was to compliment him on his fine culinary skills as I shoveled food into my mouth. After dinner we would heat up water for tea and dishwashing, and I’d tackle the pots and plates while Ben kept got ready for bed, or cracked jokes to keep me company, or on this night, he set up the tripod to take pictures of the Milky Way, which was shining brighter than we’d seen it on the entire trip.
Milky Way over Voyageurs National Park
Kettle Falls Hotel
Next morning, we awoke to a headwind, which meant a slow-going paddle to our day-trip destination: the historic Kettle Falls Hotel. We’d heard from Jerry at The Fisherman, that the hotel bar floor had warped so drastically over time that it seemed like you’d had one-too-many even before you had a chance to place your order with the bartender. Plus, it’s on the National Register of Historic Places for its contribution to regional history, so we had to check it out.
By the time we arrived, we had worked up a healthy thirst and appetite. The bar was just as described, charmingly off kilter, but we opted to take our drinks out on the porch, where we treated ourselves to fried cheese curds and cauliflower and a bowl of the creamy wild rice soup, all of which we highly recommend.
Kettle Falls dam
On our short walk to the Kettle Falls dam, we came across a hotel employee who asked us if we remembered the old Hamm’s beer commercials. Sure, we said (“…from the land of sky blue waters…”), but why? He wouldn’t tell us exactly, but cryptically said that when we got to the dam, we’d recognize something from the commercial. Maybe it was the killer mosquitoes that had just hatched, or the fact that we had a long paddle ahead and were ready to get back on the water, but neither of us knew what the heck we were supposed to see, and after a few pictures, we left. So, if you know something about the Hamm’s commercial and can clue us in, please leave a comment!
That night we camped in an unofficial spot on Strawberry Island. The mosquitoes were so thick that we donned long sleeves, pants, and headnets for protection. It was the first time on the trip that Ben admitted the mosquitoes were particularly annoying (his tolerance was much higher than mine), and we hid out in the tent to eat dinner.
On our paddle back to Ash River the next morning, we saw two river otters playing in the lake and saw a handful of bald eagles, one of which carried a fish in its talons.
We enjoyed our time in Voyageurs and would like to come back when the weather is a little cooler (fewer mosquitoes) — maybe in September, when we hear the northern lights are more frequently seen. Also, we’d start our days a little earlier so that we could grab the campsites we want. What takes us four hours to paddle is only a 20-minute ride by motorboat, so those campsites get snatched up super fast. We heard from a park service employee that Voyageurs is working on designating certain campsites as open for canoes only. We think that’s a great idea, and could spur an increase in canoeists on the lakes. Here’s a little taste of what it’s like to be a human-powered boat in Voyageurs…
We lucked out when we stopped for gas at The Fisherman. What could have been a brief visit inside the store to pay the bill and use the restroom turned into one of our favorite moments of our trip to Voyageurs National Park.
Jerry and his wife have owned The Fisherman, a fishing outfitter, for a good number of years and are avid canoeists, skiers, and foodies. They are also funny, kind, and generous with their favorite recipes! We nearly bought them out of their uncultured wild rice stock, and picked up lots of other goodies, like maple pecan pancake mix and nine-grain cereal (delicious!). We pumped Jerry for information about Voyageurs and the surrounding area, and he had great tips to share. Take a listen.
Another treat for you is Jerry’s wife’s incredible recipe for wild rice. We made it the next night for dinner — stuffed it in red peppers and cooked it in the dutch oven. Outrageously good!
Prepare rice as package directs. Add soy sauce, whipping cream, celery, and onions. That’s it. And it’s divine!
Jerry also gave us a little lesson on how he used to harvest wild rice as a kid. He said that the best wild rice is uncultured and long grained. Listen in…
There are many ways to explore Voyageurs National Park, but all of them require getting out and enjoying the more than 30 lakes that make up the park landscape. First thing to decide is what kind of boat you’re going to use. We love canoeing, so for us it was an easy choice. Plus the park is named after the French-Canadian canoemen of the 18th and 19th centuries, who moved fur and other goods between Canada and what is now the United States via the very lakes inside the park.
As it turns out, the majority of visitors opt for motorized boats, and you can rent houseboats, pontoons, and fishing boats from outfitters and resorts at each of the park’s gateway communities. Renting a canoe was another matter altogether. We made a dozen calls to outfitters in International Falls and Kabetogama, two towns near the park, and nobody rented canoes. We ultimately had to drive 55 miles to Ely, Minnesota to find a canoe outfitter. Ely is the gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, and is a fun destination in its own right. We’ll tell you more about Ely in another post.
Once you’ve figured out your boat situation, you need to know where to put in. Voyageurs has three visitor centers and four entry points that are a good distance from one another, so it pays to do some homework on where exactly you’d like to visit before you arrive.
We spoke to a ranger on the phone, checked in with friends, and got some advice from fellow travelers along the way. Ultimately, we decided to put in at the Ash River Visitor Center and explore Namaken Lake.
Before you can get on the water, you’ve got to check in with a ranger at a visitor center for a backcountry permit. This is also a great time to get a navigational map of the area. The standard issue park map is great for getting the lay of the land, but you’ll need a more detailed map with accurate
distances. You can buy them at visitor centers or outfitters.
Watch the voyageurs video at the Ash River Visitor Center!
Just as we’ve mentioned in the past, we recommend checking out the park video at the ranger station, only this time, we think you should watch the 19- minute video on the voyageurs rather than the standard park intro video. It was produced by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation in (what seems to be) the 1970s, but is FANTASTIC! The re-enactment of the life of a voyageur was incredibly interesting and gave us an appreciation for how hard these colorful men worked. Voyageurs would typically paddle 16 hours and endure backbreaking portages and flesh-eating mosquitoes. They smoked and drank like the devil but sang like angels. Definitely make time for this movie!
Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a great resource for those who live in the Akron and Cleveland metropolitan areas but is also a find for anyone who enjoys historic towns, beautiful waterfalls, unique sandstone ledges, and great hiking and biking. Take a look at some of our favorite things to do in the park.
See more pictures of Cuyahoga Valley National Park on our Flickr page.
