Just like last July, I was able to get in a BWCA trip with my daughter. I'm lucky that my 17 year old doesn't mind hanging out with her old man! This year we did the Granite River route: Magnetic, Gunflint, Clove (side trip to camp on Larch), Gneiss, Devils Elbow, Maraboef, and Saganaga Lakes all connected by rapids and falls of the Granite River. It was a route used by the Native Americans and fur traders and straddles the MN/Ontario border. Beautiful route, with a little bit of everything. Another plus, we had the wild blueberries timed perfectly. Once you taste those, you will want to slap your grocer for stocking those tasteless giant purple things they pass off as blueberries.

Heading out from Magnetic Lake - we had awesome weather like this the whole trip!



Careful map reading required to avoid going over the falls.



No wall required with the Canadian border, just some silver stakes all along the route!



Yummy! Mmmm mmmm good!



Awesome weather for swimming! We had a campsite on Gneiss Lake with a great cliff for jumping!



Also awesome weather for fishing! The dusk popper bite for smallmouth was great, some really big fish were caught. Are there better bass pack rods than the FF806-4 and FF856-5?!?!?!

Fish on!



Another!



One of my daughter's fish!



Some relaxin' around camp!





My daughter portaging our new used ride! I sold our fiberglass Mohawk Blazer (75 lbs) and upgraded to a Kevlar Wenonah Spirit II (42 lbs). We were practically skipping down the portage trails! My old spine was happy as can be!



Sorry I went nuts on the photos. Hope I didn't crash any computers. Just one more - never got tired of the sunrises and sunsets up there!



Thanks for looking!

That looks like a great trip all around.

What an incredible trip...made special by your daughter going with you. Having raised two daughters, I understand how important those opportunities are.

Man what a terrific trip and so special with your daughter. And she carried the canoe on the Portage trail, that's icing on the cake. Memories for sure. Thanks for posting.

Thanks for sharing that great trip.

She is portaging that canoe solo with sandals on her feet. Thanks for making me feel old! Great trip and report, best post of the year.

Such a great trip. Never to many photos!

That's awesome on every level.

Very nice post and photos. Thanks for sharing. It's great seeing some kids still like being outside. I'm heading up there middle of next month, so your report has contributed to my excitement.

Thanks for the kind works everyone! I am very lucky to be close enough (4-5 hr drive) to get a couple of BWCA trips in a year. As soon as one is done, I'm thinking about/planning the next one.

I grew up doing at least one BWCA trip a year and am glad I can give my kids the opportunity too.

Dan, September is a awesome time to be up there - I hope you share some photos - have fun!

Thanks for sharing the trip with us, glad to see that you had a great experience with your daughter, it just doesn't get much better than that!

...but they're still just as tough. Great photo, you were having a good time paddling with your family.

Doug, I know Old Town made a Penobscot in 15, 16, and 17', but I didn't know they went bigger. I still have a 17'4" Old Town Discovery that goes 90#. I can't believe I used to portage that in the BWCA. I still have "The Beast." I got it used over 20 years ago and it won't die. Last year paddling down the Brule in NW WI, something I have done countless times before, somehow (ok, it was bad steering on my part) my wife and I "tacoed" on a midstream boulder. I didn't think I would be able to get it off or that it would be canoeable. Luckily I was wrong on both accounts. I stomped out the big dent and we finished. When we got back to the cabin, I set it out in the hot sun and you would never know the incident happened.

Obviously, you will not find me doing a slalom race on the Arkansas..... good for you!