The Boundary Waters Canoe Area – BWCA located within the Superior National Forest in Northern Minnesota provides a truly unique vast wilderness adventure experience. It’s huge expanse of lakes intertwined with random portages expedites an amazing opportunity like no other for a wilderness adventure! Follow along on our BWCA – Wilderness Adventure SAWBILL to MAKWA. Part one of this series told the story of exploring from Sawbill Lake to Lake Polly (passing rapidly through Phoebe Lake.) This post will continue the tale of the trip from Polly through Malberg Lake and exploring the Kawishiwi River Loop and a day trip to MAKWA LAKE’S famous jumping rock!
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“In every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.”
“And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”
—John Muir
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) located within the Superior National Forest in Northern Minnesota offers adventure, wilderness, canoeing, portaging and camping opportunities. These wilderness adventures should NOT be entered into lightly. Careful planning alongside skilled guidance for a wilderness adventure from others of experience or a professional outfitter’s preparation and route plan are essential to a successful outcome. Even the most skilled, prepared, experienced travelers can experience peril!
Our family has been traveling within the BWCA for 20+ years on many a wilderness adventure. This hiking (portaging) trip into the wilderness involves navigation of a series of lakes. We fish to eat, and move camp as we go. My first trip was the first summer after I married my husband in 1997. His family had already learned the “smart way” to experience this rugged wilderness through other’s expertise as well as through trial and error.
Each year a new way to be smarter or wiser evolves in the group of no more than 9 people and 4 canoes (permit restrictions). From lighter more efficient packed gear, to tastier and easier food ideas, each year we discover new ways of improving the ease of the trips. Greater enjoyment is found through ease of packing when portaging a lighter, smarter pack!
If one has never ventured into the BWCA on a circuit of wilderness over the course of several days, you just really have no idea what you are in for…
Well, one must consider the perils of nature first and foremost. Horrific, terrifying storms have been known to blow into the BWCA from out of nowhere and blow massive trees over on campers. Wind storms have been known to take canoes right up off land and hurl them into the lake stranding campers. Lightning strikes have sparked forest fires that have burned thousands of acres and trapped people in the wilderness. Bear, moose, wolves, snakes, beaver, otter, chipmunks, and other wild animals are present and must be respected with proper care of your provisions.
Awareness of your surroundings and ALWAYS tying off your canoe when on shore are essential behaviors. So many things can go wrong when you are 3 days away from your vehicle that is parked 2 hours away from civilization and no cell signal! One miss-step can alter the entire “planned trip” if leaving to seek medical attention is required.
The BWCA can be a dangerous place for BOTH those that are unfamiliar with it AND for those that are experienced. Proper respect for the WILDERNESS is necessary at all times. A leave no trace mentality must be observed.
WHOLE TRIP VIDEO WORTH A WATCH! AMAZING FISHING, SCENERY & PEOPLE!!
On this trip my oldest son Jacob was determined to capture a time elapse of a beautiful sunrise or a sunset. The challenges of battery power limited his efforts on this wilderness adventure. He really wanted to capture a storm rolling in and the rain that would follow. Believe it or not, we did not experience rain on this trip or a storm overhead. Below is his six second video that took many hours to film with time elapse. He enjoyed the challenge of a capturing this footage on our last morning on Lake Phoebe.
LAKE POLLY to MAKWA LAKE (8.6 miles, 6.8 miles canoeing, 1.7 miles portaging = TOTAL TRAVEL TIME 5:09 if single portaging and paddling 3 mph)
MAP OF DAY 3-5 TRAVELS
Today the camp decision was to head out of LAKE POLLY at daybreak, after a quick oatmeal breakfast, moving towards MALBERG LAKE through Koma Lake then a right hand turn down the LONG MALBERG CHANNEL to the portage 48 rods into Kawishiwi Lake (excellent fishing here). Note the map above for the circled campsite as our target. We moved steadily and safely through a series of lakes portaging and canoeing through the wilderness determined to take advantage of the cooler morning air and calm waters. We targeted this campsite as a base camp for the next few days due to its central location. In 2013 (pictured below), my oldest son caught the biggest PIKE of his life right in front of this campsite and since then this location has intrigued us to fish here.
We pushed through successfully and were able to secure the campsite of our choice on the KAWISHIWI RIVER portage just outside MALBERG LAKE. The portage mentioned above that leads to this campsite is one of the most quaint, beautiful portage waterfalls! This tranquil spot is a favorite! The waterfall is along the edge of the entire walk down to this point. This portage was no hardship…BEAUTIFUL to re-discover! PORTAGE VIDEO SHOWN AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS POST (scroll up).
Don’t overcomplicate things! This is all you need for tackle. I never changed my lure and used the same tackle (unchanged) during several trips (maybe a new white worm was necessary, but not the spinner!) As fast as I can cast…I’ve got one on! Easy-peasy! No tricks. The guys all change lures every five minutes…not me!
“Nature has been for me, for as long as I remember, a source of solace, inspiration, adventure, and delight; a home, a teacher, a companion.”
— Lorraine Anderson
BWCA – WILDERNESS ADVENTURE : (Part 2 of 3)
DAY 3 – MAKING CAMP ON KAWISHIWI RIVER
Our group landed here and began to make camp. Packs get unpacked. Hammocks go up. Water is collected to begin purification. Bear Ropes are installed to rig food up into the trees securely. Down or dead wood is collected for the fire grate. We all know our jobs and execute.
NOW, it’s time to fish for dinner! Camp Chef Joe had lots of fish to cook this evening! It’s blackening seasons for the fish tonight along with hash-browns! YUMMO! The fishermen had great success!
“There is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing.”
– Sir Ranulph Fiennes
The evening brought many new sounds along this river edge. Beaver slapped their tails throughout the night startling our rest intermittently. The bugs were not terrible (initially). It was a successful, blessed, productive day!
“Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better.”
Grey/Black – Watertight Backpack for Hiking and Light Water Activities Approx $50
BWCA – WILDERNESS ADVENTURE : (Part 2 of 3)
DAY 4 – KAWISHIWI RIVER LOOP
We set off from our camp site on DAY 4 to backtrack to MALBERG LAKE and fish that long channel that leads back through MALBERG and around to the KAWISHIWI RIVER from the other end of MALBERG LAKE. The fishing was plentiful and the adventure was full, complete with the loss of one fishing pole at the end of a portage (see map). Several attempts were made to retrieve the pole, but ultimately we accepted the loss of the equipment.
Watch the TRIP VIDEO at the beginning of this post around the 7:15 minute mark for the detailed video of the fishing pole debacle. 🙂
This vast wilderness is so awe inspiring! It just goes on-and-on as one explores! What a treasure to have a place like this to imagine what the early explorers and native Indian cultures must have thought, dealt with daily as their normal existence, and thrived as a people in this harsh relentless environment. It boggles the mind to consider!
It’s a fish fry tonight with hash-browns!
“And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”
– John Muir
Water purification is a daily event (several times per day) in the wilderness. Excellent equipment is a must!
Each canoe (two people) need to have their own lightweight day pack and hand water pumps (see above). When moving efficiently through the wilderness, keeping hydrated AND having emergency preparedness available to you in the form of a daypack filled with snacks, hand water pump, raingear, headlamps, binoculars, fire starter, etc. is essential. You never know when a storm may roll in, or for whatever reason you get stranded or injured.
Katadyn Hiker Pro Transparent Water Filter, Lightweight, Compact Design for Personal or Small Group Camping, Backpacking or Emergency Preparedness. Approx. $100
“Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.”
– Edward Abbey
BWCA – WILDERNESS ADVENTURE : (Part 2 of 3)
Day 5 DAY TRIP TO MAKWA LAKE
Each morning the early morning fishermen explored the surrounding lakes for fishing adventures with that “early morning” bite! The fog on the lake was quite usual. Once they returned and shared their early morning stories of fishing the plan for the day was hatched and executed. Breakfast is consumed and the adventure commences!
Today we are going to trek up to Makwa Lake to view the FAMOUS MAKWA LAKE JUMPING ROCK! It will be quite a hike, but well worth the effort to get there. After several lakes of paddling and portaging the land that connects these waters we made it here! We ate lunch on a beautiful sandy beach where we could wade in sand in the cool water. It was heavenly on the toes. It was hot this day and we are all sweaty!
Three of our members are pre-season football players making wise decisions NOT TO RISK INJURY by jumping today! Mature decisions being made here! Four of our group are gainfully employed with commitments to their employers that necessitate restraint in this decision! THEY HAVE WORK ON MONDAY! 🙂
THAT leaves Katie who is an adventure thrill seeker and completely an unafraid ROCK STAR to attempt this jump (NOT TO MENTION THE BIT ABOUT SWIMMING IN THE DEEP MURKY THICK LILY PADS IN FRONT OF THE BEAVER DAMN LOOKING FOR THE LOST FISHING POLE YESTERDAY! – YOU REALLY SHOULD WATCH THE VIDEO FOOTAGE!)
Katie decided that she wanted to jump off the cliff into the water to cool down. She climbed the rock ledge from the adjacent campsite and plunged into the water after a thorough inspection of the underwater boulders and scoping out a safe place to attempt this feat. YOU MUST ALWAYS KNOW WHAT LIES BENEATH THE WATER HERE! ROCK LEDGES AND UNDERWATER BOULDERS ARE EVERYWHERE! PROCEED WITH CAUTION!
Well, WOW! IMPRESSIVE! Her big smile said it all!
We returned to camp around early dinner time to swim, cool off, put on fresh clothes and make dinner! It’s Chicken Fajitas tonight complete with peppers, onions, and flour tortillas! WOW! This dinner was a favorite!
Tomorrow we will move camp… It will be a another long haul back down to LAKE PHOEBE! It should take 6:38 minutes (if single portaging and paddling at 3mph), 13.3 total miles, 11.1 miles canoeing, 2.2 miles portaging.
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
READ ON TO PART #3 of this blog post to learn about the next section of our wilderness trip RETURNING from KIWISHIWI RIVER/MALBERG LAKE AREA through POLLY to PHOEBE LAKE!
God travels with each of us daily! He is listening. Start your day talking to Him. Share your burdens, ask for His guidance, plead with Him for wisdom. Put on your protective “armor” each day. Earthly distractions overwhelm. Let God’s grace be a comfort daily. Seek an inner-stillness quest! Enjoy His gifts even through His creation, like a patch of beautiful flowers!
Try to find beauty in ALL of His creation. Seek quiet for contemplation and introspection often. Others diminish us daily. Refill your cup with assurances of His promises. Don’t let others steal your joy! Don’t judge them. Love them right where they are at in their walk with HIM. Pray for them and forgive them even through their hurt of you. IT’S HARD!
Dig deep and try, even when you don’t want to…do it! It is God’s command that we Love our neighbors as we Love ourselves. Forgive them and move on. Their choice is to behave how they choose to behave. Your choice is behave how you are instructed to behave! Try to focus on this!
Take God along with you throughout each day, don’t shut Him out by not including Him in your life. LOOK for HIM in even small things, LISTEN for HIS wisdom through HEARING HIM talk to you, SEEK HIS guidance, comfort, and peace. HIS GRACE IS ENOUGH!
We were truly blessed to have this experience again this summer. What a great respite from everyday busy routines with a group of amazing people, we call FRIENDS!
DO you have a special remote, quiet place to LISTEN for God’s instruction for your life?? Where have you been? What have you done to provide a respite from the chaos of life for your family? How are you doing as a family overall? WHERE is your special place?
Leave me a reply below. I really would like to hear from you!
Inspirationally Yours,
Barbara
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A 1993 graduate of Michigan State University, Barbara earned a BS in Social Science Pre-Law. She is a Business Manager/HR Director. Her passion is travel, discovering new places, experiences, cuisine, cultures while enjoying temperate climates. Barbara is a newly transitioning empty-nester who became a travel blogger. She’s a great photographer, talented writer, and has a great family to highlight in her adventures!
TRAVEL BLOG🛩 * ADVENTURE🛶 * INSPIRATION🌞
Thanks for exploring our travel blog! We hope to assist you in your next adventure through learning from ours! We are transitioning empty-nesters perpetually seeking our next luxury snorkeling adventure! Daily God’s awe inspiring inspiration surrounds us with all of His natural beauty in every direction if we but slow down to observe. Take a moment each day to ENJOY!
4 Comments
Maryanne
Good to see everyone out and about. Lots of activities and some fish catching too. It’s great to spend some time out in nature. Thanks for sharing!
Barbara Robinson
Glad you enjoyed! It is such a wonderful experience surviving in the wilderness. It is a confidence.
Catherine
This looks like such a fun adventure! That fish is huge!!
Barbara Robinson
You should have heard him scream when it surfaced. No swimming after that!