Another thread was talking up a certain portage so I was wondering, what is your favorite portage?
Mine is the Elm portage on the LIS. Its scenic, fairly short and it reminds me of being a kid and taking trips with my dad. What about you?

Pics encouraged:)

Brule Lake landing.
Actually, I think my fav is the one between Vern and Juno. Blueberries everywhere and a great view from the top of it.

My favorite one is the one that's done. All about the paddling; no portages would be great.

That is the one from Alton to Sawbill. It is an old small gauge railroad bed. Flat as a board and short. I'm not much for the beauty of the portage, just glad it is done. I love to hike in the woods just not while I'm loaded down.

I like 'em all!

Elm portage

100 rodder into Fourtown

Height of land portage





Alpine ~ Jasper portage

Jitterbug end of portage from Ahsub

Mora ~ Lil' Sag





Kingfisher end of portage from Ogish

Missing Link end of portage to Tuscarora

East Bearskin ~ Moon








Oyster river end of portage to Oyster lake

Overlook of Gabimichigami on portage from Peter

Sioux falls portage










Snake river

South ~ Rat lake portage

Stairway portage










Tarry end of portage from Crooked

Kek ponds

Chaser ~ Dent









Duck ~ Zenith

Mesaba ~ Hug

Mug lake end of portage from Wine





Monument portage

Cherry ~ Lunar

Hanson ~ South Arm









Eddy ~ South Arm

Lake of the Clouds ~ Rivalry

Gotter end of portage from Brandt





Big Moose ~ Cummings

Crooked end of portage from Gillis

Big Moose end of portage from Duck







Horseshoe ~ Gaskin

Gaskin end of portage to Winchell

Brule ~ Vernon







More portages

The 48 rod from East Bearskin to Alder was enjoyable. Very wide and flat with a great canopy of trees.

Have-a-Smoke Portage in Quetico. I turned 18 there many years ago, and love the diversity of life there.

The portage from Mora to Little Sag comes to mind.

oh, there are many! so i'll pick on from each side.
Eastern side would be the Tusc portage from Tuscarora to Missing Link (rather go up the hill carrying the weight).
Western side is the Vera to Ensign portage. don't have much experience on the western side.
Quetico has too many to choose just one, but i did enjoy the Darky to Argo portage.

The portage along the Nina Moose River by the water slide. Especially in June when the wild roses are out.

The middle portage between Fourtown and Boot was very scenic in late Sept.

Beautiful selection of pics, Tusca B.
Old Gent, I agree with you about the Nina Moose "slide" portage.
Another was the Kiskadinna to Davis portage before the '99 blowdown.
And really, any portage with a stream and rapids or waterfall to watch and listen to,

I like the Vern-Juno for the reasons stated above.

Last portage from Grace to Phoebe, little waterfall to run your head under.

Misqua-Little Trout. A little of everything.

Mora to Little Sag, cant go wrong with that beaut. 4town to Boot is a breeze as far as effort. Bayley Bay to Burke is very nice,, especially the other way hitting the sand when the wind is behaving itself. But my favorite is the last one on the first day in of a basecamp trip!!!

The Hanson to South Arm portage definitely has some nice surprises. I think it's the one I hated the least :)

Gordon into Unload (Frost), Mora to Lil Sag, Davis to Kisk is an adventure, Heritage (creek) to East Loon Bay....ends at a beautiful sand beach where you drop your gear and swim.

The portage between Sunday Bay (Crooked) and the SW arm of Argo...felt like going back in time to the Jurassic era....

Thanks TB for the great picture tour of the portages. I really appreciated the views. Nicely done!!!

I do like the portage out of Perent Lake to the Perent River. As was stated earlier the sound of the rapids next to the trail adds to the ambiance.

Stuart Lake to Dahlgren River.





A close second is the portage around Basswood Falls.

I really like Adams to Beaver.

quote arctic: "Have-a-Smoke Portage in Quetico. I turned 18 there many years ago, and love the diversity of life there."

This is one of my favorites also, luved that one. The one from Argo to Sunday Bay is also a great one. Alton to Sawbill is great also, gotta luv being able to see the end from the beginning.

Least favorite is probably Wind Bay to Wind Lake.

I only have like 12 to choose from, but I'm gonna go with one of TB's, S Knife-Hanson.

quote HowardSprague: "I really like Adams to Beaver."

Dang! i forgot about that one..very nice portage!

TB-Excellent montage! It must have taken you about the same amount of time to post that response as it does me to get across the portage from Pine to Canoe, and that one is a buggar (and one of my favorites)!

Just to be different, the portage from Hustler to Oyster. The large white pines and amazing fall color had me sold.

i have some unfavorite portages. because i am often solo paddling a wood/canvas canoe, the landings are a critical factor in my judgment of a portages difficulties. the portage itself may be a piece of cake but the landing may be so difficult as to make the overall portage experience many times worse than you would expect. the BWCA is loaded with portages with killer landings, i was going to point out a few but realized it was futile. i have always thought that any person who felt comfortable paddling and portaging, and portaging again and again, in the BWCA is ready to canoe anywhere.

my favorite portage has to be the voyageur route around curtain falls (minnesota side). it is long perhaps, maybe it should be longer. another favorite is the portage from beatrap lake to the beartrap river. this is in a PMA, but it is fairly straightforward. this area gives you the feel of real wilderness, and it is definitely worth the effort.

beartrap river, oct 2010




right beyond this idyllic scene is a very steep drop to the landing, goat country.

quote SpiritsofAdventure: "Just to be different, the portage from Hustler to Oyster. The large white pines and amazing fall color had me sold.





"

Yeah, that's a nice one.

I have a few. I forget if it's Jasper to Kingfisher or Kingfisher to Ogish? The stream whispering to you as you go. Just always seemed attractive. Never could warm up to Alpine to Jasper with that rocky landing on Alpine and the rocky trail. I do love the waterfall, though. Then there's Hanson to Knife and all those big Cedars. And I like all the portages between Gunflint and Rose, Height of Land, Rat, et al. Heck, even the Stairway Portage isn't that bad. You have the views and the water. Then there were some nice, pleasant "Walk in the pines" portages over around the numbered lakes.

I also like the 140 rod portage from Fourtown to Mudro. I don't like the first short portage, even if you do take the easy way.

Finger Lake to Finger creek. Passes through a cedar grove and has rapids the whole way.

In Sept. of 2011 I put a video camera under my canoe and went from McNiece to Kahshahpiwi Lake in Quetico. It's fairly long so I cut out the middle section but it's a nice path and there's rock gardens, one very steep drop and a shear rock climb before taking a stroll through a mature forest down to the lake. Excuse my not politically correct naration. (Indians instead of "native americans")

McNiece to Kahsh Video

I haven't had many I didn't like for one reason or another, my BWCA favorite would have to be Beaver-Adams or one I can't recall without looking at a map along the Kawishiwi River North of Malberg.

Quetico portage is Yum-Yum, although long it has the best of everything!

Stairway Portage has to be my favorite. It can be a nice spot to take a break and do some hiking up the trail to the overlook. It is also a great spot to have lunch.

the first carry out of Agnes lake on the West side.after the hard and busy portages into Agnes and then a couple days of open water exploring the lake that short easy carry into a small lake and then beyond always feels like i'm really getting into the wilderness.

The first one. Always :)

A few more.....
The water slide on the Moose river.

Beartrack ~ Thumb

Oyster river end of portage to Agnes.

This is one place that western paddlers diverge from the North Woods paddlers. I only portage on rivers in emergencies and would much rather line a boat. I can't think of a portage I have liked except the ones where there is a creek between lakes that can be dragged.

In the spirit of the thread, the favorite portages were the one's that are hard to find. The ones that have been there a long time, but are now overgrown and not often used. The echoes of the Voyagers can still he heard. Like the one my friend was on in 1938 where he found a cache in an old cookie tin. Inside were some ammunition, pipe tobacco, trade beads, and fire making materials.

you made your point.

I like vera to ensign in the fall. It's steep and fairly long but really beautiful. Views

quote arctic: "Have-a-Smoke Portage in Quetico. I turned 18 there many years ago, and love the diversity of life there."

Was gonna say the same one. Did this on my first trip into BW/Q and really loved it

Beaver/Adams was my favorite, replaced by Vera/Ensign.

butthead

Ruby to Lynx. All the diversity of the BW on this trail. And the sandy landing at Lynx is spectacular.

Too many great ones to choose from. They all lead to the next lake and more adventures and what will I see next.
But forced to choose one, I choose the Caribou to Horseshoe portage, because Horseshoe is a longtime favorite place. I saw it first covered in snow, and have seen it every month of year. I once lived close enough to day ski through it, or without a shuttle canoe and portage to it.One summer afternoon We had a break under a tarp in the middle of a short lived thunderstorm. In 30 plus years it has not changed much. I hope to see it soon in its winter coating of snow.

I can tell you which one I didn't like, haha. Weird lake to South Temperance... that's a doozey, with an aluminum canoe anyway, HA!

Otherwise, I like the 70 rodders... just long enough to break a sweat :)

quote TomT: "In Sept. of 2011 I put a video camera under my canoe and went from McNiece to Kahshahpiwi Lake in Quetico. It's fairly long so I cut out the middle section but it's a nice path and there's rock gardens, one very steep drop and a shear rock climb before taking a stroll through a mature forest down to the lake. Excuse my not politically correct naration. (Indians instead of "native americans")

McNiece to Kahsh Video


"

TomT,

I liked your video! Very fun to watch. I think this portage burned out in 2011 if I recall.

Tom

The portage less traveled would be my favorite.
I don't think anyone listed this one. My favorite portage of this year would be the first portage on the LIS going north from the the LIS North EP, EP 14. No, I'm not talking about the one from the parking lot to the river. I liked this one as it was along the river, it went high, it went low. There were rapids and a small fall in the river. The lower part of the portage to the north end stands out as well. Kind of a magical, mystical place.

quote fitgers1: "The portage less traveled would be my favorite.
I don't think anyone listed this one. My favorite portage of this year would be the first portage on the LIS going north from the the LIS North EP, EP 14. No, I'm not talking about the one from the parking lot to the river. I liked this one as it was along the river, it went high, it went low. There were rapids and a small fall in the river. The lower part of the portage to the north end stands out as well. Kind of a magical, mystical place."

I think that is also the portage mentioned in the original post? And, the first picture on my original post to this thread. But, yeah, I agree it's a very nice one.

quote Arceneaux: "I'll throw in another vote for the Misquah to Little Trout portage - long and tough, but it's got a little of everything.
Misquah side
First sight of Little Trout, and the incredible feeling of relief that comes with it... "

Definitely an "O! The joy!" moment. :)

Yellow Brick Road in Quetico.

quote TuscaroraBorealis: "

quote fitgers1: "The portage less traveled would be my favorite.
I don't think anyone listed this one. My favorite portage of this year would be the first portage on the LIS going north from the the LIS North EP, EP 14. No, I'm not talking about the one from the parking lot to the river. I liked this one as it was along the river, it went high, it went low. There were rapids and a small fall in the river. The lower part of the portage to the north end stands out as well. Kind of a magical, mystical place."

I think that is also the portage mentioned in the original post? And, the first picture on my original post to this thread. But, yeah, I agree it's a very nice one."

Oops, You are correct. There were so many posts after the OP I must have forgot it was up there! Didn't realize it was called Elm portage.

The "Enchanted Portage" Woodland Caribou Provincial Park
Picture of Molly Resting at the End of the Portage!

SunCatcher

Beaty Portage and Four Mile Portage are my two favorites.

there are so many ....but the one that is most memorable to me is the portage from Stuart to Fox lake....memorable (definitely not favorite)..if that was the only portage i did would probably be favorite as it goes through some cool areas/swamps and a neat forest ...but when you are going to Iron in 1 day that portage is a bruiser (and is even longer than the maps says)!

Shepo to Sagus

SAK to toe lake 5rods LOL. jasper falls portage and eddy falls protage.

quote HowardSprague: "I really like Adams to Beaver."

Very nice, indeed !

I prefer Beaver to Adams.

I may be strange but my adage has always been, "the longer and harder the better!". That was I put most about 95% of the tourists behind me!

I like the variety of them. Sometimes you get interesting views on hilly portages in recently burned country... (Pietro area; north of Little Sag; etc.) Virgin to Little Sag

My favorite portage is always the same one every year, the very first one of the trip. It doesn't matter if it's 20 rods or 420 rods. The first one immediately puts me into relaxation and wilderness mode and leaving busy suburb life behind.

I like this one the most. It starts the trip.

I like the short ones, cause I'm not there to hike around with a canoe over my head. However, the real short ones are also a pain because it takes more work to load/unload than it does to do the actual walk. Something in the 20-40 rod range is about right.

I like Sawbill to Alton. A bit of a walk in the park, so to speak. Though the launch on the Alton side can be a bit testy if there's any wind on Alton.

There are many areas either within, throughout, or at one of the ends of portages that deserve noteworthy recognition; the least of which is to say that it is primarily dependent upon/within the eye of the beholder. For me, there are multitudes of reasons that make an area special; from magnificent trees, powerful waterfalls, towering cliffs, and so much more. I am usually inspired by the scenery. Then there’s my wife… she’s an Artist by profession, while what’s special to me resonates with her too; there’s so much more that catches her eye. For her there are so many variables that can enhance or detract from what is basic to me. Then, I have a lifelong friend who frequents the Boundary Waters with me and my wife. For him, the Minnesota DNR Fisheries Lake Survey Reports dictates how he’ll view a particular portage, lake, or scenery… it’s all about the fishing for him.


Before the 1999 July 4th Blowdown... in all of my Boundary Water travels the Lily Lake to Mulligan Lake (off of Brule Lake) was the prettiest awe inspiring portage I've ever had the pleasure to be on. The Blowdown just devastated the 300-400 year old cedars that blanketed the area.


Since the Blowdown… well, I’m hard pressed to pick a favorite. Stairway portage, East Bearskin Lake to Moon Lake, Brule Lake to Vernon, and so many more are very nice, but I guess I’d have to go with the route heading east out of Malberg Lake to Frond Lake (and beyond) is pretty incredible to me.


The Boundary Waters and the Portages within are forever changing; so to then might be the answers to this post; it could be one of those timeless and enduring ones.

I remember a day trip from Brule Lake back around to Home Lake a couple of years of so after the South Temperance Lake fire (aprox. 4450 acres burnt), and the portages through this area were open but somewhat eerie.

Overall it was very memorable because it was so different.

I’m planning on hitting the Pagami Creek fire area this year.

My daughter and her husband went through last year and she had a similar experience to mine.

Memorable has a place alongside the favorites!

I also like the short portages… either after a long portage or tough canoeing on the water!

A tough uphill portage to a favorite trout lake!

quote Beemer01: "Yellow Brick Road in Quetico.
"

Me, too. If I'm on this portage it means I am either really starting a trip or have just had several wonderful days of paddling!