What was the toughest portage you have ever taken in the BWCA (so we can all relate). Might be due to length, blowdowns, age or physical condition, rocks and boulders, mud, dams, elevation changes, weather or mental state.

Mine was Little Trout to Misquah Lake, over the Misquah Hills. Probably 35 years ago , very rocky, blowdowns and the path was barely discernible. About 250 rods which is a long portage and huge elevation changes, a real ball buster. We met some rangers on Misquah who asked us with some surprise if we really took that portage - said it was one of the 2-3 toughest in the BWCA.

We eventually got to Vista for a great basecamp trip but absolutely refused to go back that way. Spent the next couple days trying to figure out any other way out, including the So Brule River which was impassable, and ultimately took the Morgan Lake portage and had 2 of us walking/jogging 7 miles back to the truck.

We were in our early to mid twenties, prime physical condition and experienced trippers. Somehow today I think it couldn't have been that bad but at the same time, i remember sitting in camp on vista saying "No way am I going back over that portage"

Angleworm to Trease

the 600 rod portage from big rice lake to hook. did this in the 70's so the memory has faded. 600 rods is a long portage as it is, but when we did this bad boy loggers had been working in the area. portions of the portage were obliterated. we'd have to drop our gear and hunt around for signs of the trail, mostly old blazes on jack pine. i did this portage several years ago and it was much better than i remembered, just very long.

The 140 rod out of Cherokee into Sitka lake was my toughest. It was on a solo and I had to triple portage that one. Memorable!

quote dicecupmaker: "The 140 rod out of Cherokee into Sitka lake was my toughest. It was on a solo and I had to triple portage that one. Memorable!"

You beat me to this one dicecupmaker. This was my toughest portage. It passes over the Laurentian divide, sometimes climbing up at a 45deg angle over huge boulders. Not fun.

lindylair-a buddy and I did that portage a few years ago and it is a beast! definitely one of the tougher portages I've traversed.

Forgetting exactly where it was, but ours was when we mistakenly followed a wrong marking on a map and went down an old portage that hadn't been cleared of downfall for years. Sort of thought it should have been easier but the person leading was a very good map reader. Probably took an hour beat the crap out of us from lifting canoes over and under down trees. Should have been an easy 15 minute stroll. Oops.

I hit my toughest portage when I did a solo of the Lady Chain/Louse River loop out of Sawbill. The Zenith to Lujenida 480-rod is UP HILL BOTH DIRECTIONS. Now that may sound strange, but it crosses the "great continental divide known as the Laurentian" so each end starts out with an uphill section. I was on it during a wet mucky period which helps seal that in my memory.

Goat

quote tg: "lindylair-a buddy and I did that portage a few years ago and it is a beast! definitely one of the tougher portages I've traversed."

Heard rumors about this portage-tough.

Probably the Muskeg-Kiskadinna portage ("the Wall") plus the awkward little ones before and after.

I might have to add the northern portage from East Bearskin to Alder ...

quote Savage Voyageur: "

quote dicecupmaker: "The 140 rod out of Cherokee into Sitka lake was my toughest. It was on a solo and I had to triple portage that one. Memorable!"

You beat me to this one dicecupmaker. This was my toughest portage. It passes over the Laurentian divide, sometimes climbing up at a 45deg angle over huge boulders. Not fun. "

same here

Big Moose to Cummings.
Longest - yes; toughest - no; most memorable 2 miles portage in the park - most definitelly YES!

North Kawishiwi to Greenstone - heart attack hill.

quote schweady: "Angleworm to Trease
"

+1

The last one.

Ding on the Sitka/Cherokee portage. It was my FIRST TRIP to boundary waters and I was clueless.

I got as far as Cherokee Lake, stayed and turned around to do it again after a few days rest.

I suppose it kicked me twice, three, four times.......

I portaged the canoe without a yoke. What? yes. Didn't know I needed one at that time so my neck was cranked against the bottom of canoe.
I almost broke my neck when the canoe slammed back after going over one of those boulders.

still kicking me.... I'd forgotten my leech bucket on other side of Sitka so I pleaded with a group with a canoe on lake to go back and retrieve. I exchanged the favor by lugging two of their packs across portage.

Needless to say, I have become wiser over the years with that first trip lesson. But that welcome to the BWCA I'll never forget.

The Meadows Portages on the way to Agnes. Bang, bang, bang...three in a row....damn near killed me. It was my first trip in the Q....

these arent really tough more long and up hill. seagull to jap or clearwater to gogebic.

Lindsay to Cache 2&1/2 miles. Took me and 1 &1/2 hours to get my first carry across and get back to camp. The next morning after a wind storm it took over 6 hours to get across with my other load.

I've crossed a pile of tough portages but none of them stand out as the toughest, not even the Lujenida-Zenith which I've crossed about 15 times. I think it all comes down to knowing how much you can carry and getting your gear situated comfortably, especially on a longer portage. The rest is all attitude.

I'll go with old_salt and say the last one.

This thread makes me feel like a rookie again. There are only a couple of these Ive even heard of.

The only one Ive done that I consider tough is Ensign to Vera or Vera to Knife - I dont remember which, we did them back to back. I just remember going up, up, up then going down the waterfall/creek and having the canoe bang the rocks behind me.

Cache to Zephira, never been , but going in July. It will be a mile of mental and physical abuse, and one hell of a good time!!!!

quote WindChill: "This thread makes me feel like a rookie again. There are only a couple of these Ive even heard of.


The only one Ive done that I consider tough is Ensign to Vera or Vera to Knife - I dont remember which, we did them back to back. I just remember going up, up, up then going down the waterfall/creek and having the canoe bang the rocks behind me.


"

Ensign to vera is kinda tough. For me I am jot sure, haven't done too many, but I was ready for angleworm to be over with this last Friday coming out. The last ten minutes just kept having me saying in my head "the parking lot has to be close"

Haven't had anything that was super challenging physically, just mentally I would say.

quote outdooraddict: "....but I was ready for angleworm to be over with this last Friday coming out. The last ten minutes just kept having me saying in my head "the parking lot has to be close""

outdooraddict -
Do you happen to paddle with another soloist with a blue kayak?

quote head2north: "

quote outdooraddict: "....but I was ready for angleworm to be over with this last Friday coming out. The last ten minutes just kept having me saying in my head "the parking lot has to be close""

outdooraddict -
Do you happen to paddle with another soloist with a blue kayak?"

Sure do, where did you see us?

quote WindChill: "This thread makes me feel like a rookie again. There are only a couple of these Ive even heard of.


The only one Ive done that I consider tough is Ensign to Vera or Vera to Knife - I dont remember which, we did them back to back. I just remember going up, up, up then going down the waterfall/creek and having the canoe bang the rocks behind me.


"

I did both of those last year. Twice. We took a day trip to Knife from Ensign. At least we weren't carrying a ton of gear. They were very tough portages in my book. Rocky and steep. Not the longest, but not short either. But the worst I've ever done was the goat path coming out of Fourtown into Mudro. That portage is a b!+€#!!

Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups.

quote outdooraddict: "

quote head2north: "

quote outdooraddict: "....but I was ready for angleworm to be over with this last Friday coming out. The last ten minutes just kept having me saying in my head "the parking lot has to be close""

outdooraddict -
Do you happen to paddle with another soloist with a blue kayak?"

Sure do, where did you see us? "

I was on Gull Lake on the 15th as you paddled to campsite. The fellow in the blue kayak was some 15 minutes behind you still at Home/Gull portage (organizing). I thought to myself, Angleworm portage is hard enough in a canoe, this kayaker was crazy.

Side subject, how was fishing for your trip?

quote head2north: "

quote outdooraddict: "

quote head2north: "

quote outdooraddict: "....but I was ready for angleworm to be over with this last Friday coming out. The last ten minutes just kept having me saying in my head "the parking lot has to be close""

outdooraddict -
Do you happen to paddle with another soloist with a blue kayak?"

Sure do, where did you see us? "

I was on Gull Lake on the 15th as you paddled to campsite. The fellow in the blue kayak was some 15 minutes behind you still at Home/Gull portage (organizing). I thought to myself, Angleworm portage is hard enough in a canoe, this kayaker was crazy.


Side subject, how was fishing for your trip?"

It was pretty decent, we caught some pike, smallmouth and walleye while we were on Gull. Lol, he is a bit crazy. There was actually a third member to our group who was an hour and a half behind after realizing (as we got our boats packed for angleworm) that he forgot his life jacket in the pickup.

The yum yum was pretty memorable.

Tough call,

Have to look at the circumstances:


My first trip 2003 143r: Vera into Ensign. That was with Aluminum Canoes, 4 Man Tent in my pack, big bulky sleeping bag attached to the outside, Coleman propane lantern danging from a rope from another pack, and god knows what other heavy equipment we had. Probably wouldn't be so tough today.

2013 Entry at LIS 300r: Took the unmarked portage from Slim to Fat. All lightweight gear, Kevlar canoes. Wasn't the roughest as far as terrain, however was a mental challenge looking for signs of the old portage(chain saw cuts etc, had to backtrack)wears on you a bit.

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

I'm 5'2". Steep rocky portages suck. I bang the canoe on the rocks and inclines much more than my taller counterparts.

quote Goldenbadger: "

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

I'm 5'2". Steep rocky portages suck. I bang the canoe on the rocks and inclines much more than my taller counterparts. "

You'll want to do the Muskeg-Kiskadinna "wall" portage with a very tall companion ;).

Bad water in a rain storm was pretty tough. The first 1/8th of a mile was like wading a fast current River. Fell and busted a new Sandborn paddle. Good thing I had the paddle. I'm pretty sure it would of been a broken arm instead.

The toughest portage for me was the Tuscarora portage, in the late 70s when all of our gear was cotton or heavy or in some other way ridiculous. I was about 12, and had on canvas tennis shoes, and had my school back pack with at least 40 pounds of stuff crammed in and tied on to it. I can't even imagine how my dad felt with the 80+ pound cedar strip canoe and a probably 80 pound pack.

quote boonie: "Probably the Muskeg-Kiskadinna portage ("the Wall") plus the awkward little ones before and after. "

First one that came to my mind. Some of the others mentioned I can relate. I can think of several others that posted a challenge, but the wall has kicked my butt more than once. Then I don't think you have time to recover and the next one west isn't long, but it sort of rekicks your butt. :)

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

"Underwhelmed"...I agree as I have portaged many of the "worst/toughest" and found them to be pretty much a constant degree of difficulty. Long to longish, lots of ups and downs, rocky/boulders, wet or running water, muck, board walks, downed trees. Hmmm, that was just my last solo trip. Toughest? As portages are such a component of the adventure, I wouldn't consider toughness a deterrent to my adventuring. That said, I have experienced many loaded treks through the woods when I was happy to see the lake at the other side.

quote MacCamper: "

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

"Underwhelmed"...I agree as I have portaged many of the "worst/toughest" and found them to be pretty much a constant degree of difficulty. Long to longish, lots of ups and downs, rocky/boulders, wet or running water, muck, board walks, downed trees. Hmmm, that was just my last solo trip. Toughest? As portages are such a component of the adventure, I wouldn't consider toughness a deterrent to my adventuring. That said, I have experienced many loaded treks through the woods when I was happy to see the lake at the other side. "

timing is everything too. end of a long day, pack still full of food...an average portage can seem terrible.

quote boonie: "Probably the Muskeg-Kiskadinna portage ("the Wall") plus the awkward little ones before and after. "

this one is bad. I was doing a solo. I think I cried.

Canoe to Pine is tough.

quote Frenchy19: "Canoe to Pine is tough."

+1

The other tough portage I've taken was Zenith to Lujenida.

Argo to Crooked after a storm in April. Took close to two and a half hours.

Pine River to Granite 2x
1st time was right after the blow down. There were so many trees down that we finally quit trying carry the canoes and set them on the trees and drug them by a rope over the tops of the branches.
2nd time tore a calf muscle and could barely walk.
The Knife, Vera, Ensign and the Birch to Ensign were the toughest I've done so far without extenuating circumstances.

I think that Jan is correct that timing is a big part of it. I also think sometimes it is your state of mind, or what particular thing bothers you most. For me, it is balancing on one round log, especially if slippery. Or even, sometimes, two of them if they are small. Can't do it. With a heavy pack on my back--just can't do it. It's a mental thing.

As far as Kiskadinna-Muskeg, we did that portage on our 22-day trip in 1992 and I am surprised, now when I hear others speak of it, that I don't remember it at all. It was on day 3 of our trip, and I was carrying the food pack on one of my carries, so I know I was heavily loaded. In looking at my journal, we stayed overnight on Kiskadinna on the night of Day 2, and had thunderstorms in the night, so everything was wet and muddy. The only mention I make of the portage to Muskeg in my journal is that it was "long, hard and arduous", and that Spartan1 "helped in the middle with my second carry until I got my wind back". He was, of course, portaging a Grumman canoe, and a heavy pack himself. Those were the days! :-) From there we went on to Long Island and finally camped on Gordon for a layover day in the rain.

When I think of toughest portage, I think of three. All of them will make you smile if you have done them, because none of you will agree with me. (And that's OK. It's all in the perception, and the timing, right?)

1. Height of Land. I have always called this "Depth of Mud." That isn't because of the portage itself but because of the conditions on the day that we encountered it, and the experience I had burying my leg beyond the knee in deep mud and being stuck until my husband could rescue me (I didn't want to lose my boot, for one thing). I think the biggest problem with it was the name--I had envisioned "Height of Land" as being something very different, and to be slogging through that stuff was just unreal! And they were my NEW boots!

2. The portages from the Cross River on the way to Ham Lake. These are actually quite easy for someone with long legs and good knees. For an old lady with arthritic knees and short legs they are a nightmare. The Forest Service has made great stair-steps to climb, but they are stair-steps for giants! And because they are there, there is almost no way to go up or down the hill without using them. In my younger days it would have been a piece of cake. In 2010 it just about did me in--again at the beginning of a trip with a heavy food pack.

3. Horsetail Rapids at Saganaga Falls. I loved the Granite River trip and handled all of the portages well for the most part. This one made me sit down and refuse to do the second carry. Walking on the one little log along the side of the rushing water--just did me in! I know most people think this short portage is easy. Not for me! Like I said, it's all in the perception.

My portaging days are over. When you look back on them, many times it isn't the longest ones that you remember as the toughest. You have to have been there. :-)

Timing may have a lot to do with the choice, but the series between Brule and Town Lake, sometimes called "the mechanics" (Cam, Gasket,and Vesper) are my picks.

These are not long portages (46, 67, and 104 respectively) but they are little used and come with lots of rocks and hill climbs. If you aren't navigating a field of small ankle-breaking rocks, you're leaping from boulder to boulder--or if there is a break in the rocks, you're crawling under or through downed trees. And you cross the divide which is always my favorite part of any trip.

It was our first trip and we were poorly packed and over-packed when we encountered these. We looked like a Conestoga headed west with all our worldly belongings. We had launched from Homer Lake in the early afternoon thinking we would camp on Brule around 5 that night. Fighting wind and thunderstorms all afternoon and triple portaging, we finally reached Brule at about 9 pm. The last light was fading and we found no open campsites, but a couple of folks occupying campsites offered great sympathy. I was reminded of the time when I was attacked by a skunk as a child and my older brother's only assistance was to tell me to get downwind. After paddling around the lake by moonlight for maybe four hours looking for a campsite or a portage or a miracle, we hit a rock pretty hard and decided to find some place to get off the water until light.

We spent the remainder of the night perched on a rock off an island in Brule before we took off at dawn and hauled our circus through these three portages. It was an usually and unbearably hot, humid day which made the up and down climbs through boulder fields even more memorable.

We've done a lot of tough portages since then, including several mentioned in this thread, but none have seemed as bad as these. We almost repeated the route through "the mechanics" last year to test our memory of these portages, but decided to take the Cherokee-Sitka portage back to Brule instead. We were tired and it seemed the lesser challenge.

At 5'3", the Ham-Cross Bay portage with a heavy pack was a real challenge for me, too.

Spartan 2, I'm another one who did not particularly care for the Horsetail Rapids portage on the Granite River. We ended up walking the canoes through the water for part of it over VERY slippery rocks--not really a place to portage on land for much of it. Took a lot of caution to successfully negotiate this little span.

Last year we did the "Wall" between Muskeg and Kiskadinna with aluminum canoes (in spite some extra weight, my Alumacraft QT-17CL is still my favorite tripping canoe). We were kind of psyching ourselves out about this portage before taking it. But then, with the right attitude and method, we met the challenge just fine. I agree with those citing the portages before and after the Muskeg/Kiskadinna portage as troublesome. The Kiskadinna/Omega portage "re-kicked" my butt a bit too and while it is not any kind of a significant distance, I found the portages and yucky little creek between Long Island and Muskeg to be rather tedious and down right annoying.

Have to agree with earlier comments about timing and mental state, and weather. The two toughest portages for me were on solo trips.

First was the Delahey Death March in 90 degree temp, hazy sun, no wind and humid. 6 hours later, I paddle into Conmee and then to Suzanette--felt absolutely horrible till the next afternoon.

Second was the Yum Yum portage in a steady rain. Slipped and slid all over, missed a turn and into a dead end, backed up, bushwhacked up a small hill, tumbled down a steep trail, and finally put in on Kahshahpiwi...a new experience in pain and frustration...

But good memories nonetheless...

quote bottomtothetap: "Spartan 2, I'm another one who did not particularly care for the Horsetail Rapids portage on the Granite River. We ended up walking the canoes through the water for part of it over VERY slippery rocks--not really a place to portage on land for much of it. Took a lot of caution to successfully negotiate this little span.


Last year we did the "Wall" between Muskeg and Kiskadinna with aluminum canoes (in spite some extra weight, my Alumacraft QT-17CL is still my favorite tripping canoe). We were kind of psyching ourselves out about this portage before taking it. But then, with the right attitude and method, we met the challenge just fine. I agree with those citing the portages before and after the Muskeg/Kiskadinna portage as troublesome. The Kiskadinna/Omega portage "re-kicked" my butt a bit too and while it is not any kind of a significant distance, I found the portages and yucky little creek between Long Island and Muskeg to be rather tedious and down right annoying."

Someday I am going to find the time to scan the photos and write up the report from our 1992 22-day trip. I guess I had a very positive attitude along about that time. :-) I stopped on Omega-Kiskadinna and got out my little disposable panoramic camera to take a photo of the portage trail in the sunshine (probably on the trip back with no pack), and when I described the portages from Kiskadinna to Long Island the next day (after the night of thunderstorms) I called one "muddy" and one "rocky" and said they were both "short" That was it for the descriptions. As far as Muskeg-Kiskadinna, all I wrote was "185 rods, hard and arduous." Since you can tell from my posts on this board, I am NOT a person of few words, it does surprise me that I didn't consider these portages worthy of more comment.

But this was our "trip of a lifetime". We were psyched. At this point, we thought nothing could stop us. Later on, we had some challenges that did give us pause, and we changed our route, and changed our attitude a bit, but it still remains, to this day, our best trip and most memorable.

quote Spartan2: "

quote bottomtothetap: "Spartan 2, I'm another one who did not particularly care for the Horsetail Rapids portage on the Granite River. We ended up walking the canoes through the water for part of it over VERY slippery rocks--not really a place to portage on land for much of it. Took a lot of caution to successfully negotiate this little span.



Last year we did the "Wall" between Muskeg and Kiskadinna with aluminum canoes (in spite some extra weight, my Alumacraft QT-17CL is still my favorite tripping canoe). We were kind of psyching ourselves out about this portage before taking it. But then, with the right attitude and method, we met the challenge just fine. I agree with those citing the portages before and after the Muskeg/Kiskadinna portage as troublesome. The Kiskadinna/Omega portage "re-kicked" my butt a bit too and while it is not any kind of a significant distance, I found the portages and yucky little creek between Long Island and Muskeg to be rather tedious and down right annoying."

Someday I am going to find the time to scan the photos and write up the report from our 1992 22-day trip. I guess I had a very positive attitude along about that time. :-) I stopped on Omega-Kiskadinna and got out my little disposable panoramic camera to take a photo of the portage trail in the sunshine (probably on the trip back with no pack), and when I described the portages from Kiskadinna to Long Island the next day (after the night of thunderstorms) I called one "muddy" and one "rocky" and said they were both "short" That was it for the descriptions. As far as Muskeg-Kiskadinna, all I wrote was "185 rods, hard and arduous." Since you can tell from my posts on this board, I am NOT a person of few words, it does surprise me that I didn't consider these portages worthy of more comment.


But this was our "trip of a lifetime". We were psyched. At this point, we thought nothing could stop us. Later on, we had some challenges that did give us pause, and we changed our route, and changed our attitude a bit, but it still remains, to this day, our best trip and most memorable. "

Yeah, that route/trip will be a memorable one for me as well: One night we were camped on Omega and took a side trip to Winchell. As we enjoyed a pleasant evening paddle on Winchell back to Omega my bow-paddler 17 year-old turns back to me and says, " Ya know, Dad, you planned a pretty good trip!" makes it ALL worthwhile, right there! :)

quote boonie: "

quote Goldenbadger: "

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

I'm 5'2". Steep rocky portages suck. I bang the canoe on the rocks and inclines much more than my taller counterparts. "

You'll want to do the Muskeg-Kiskadinna "wall" portage with a very tall companion ;)."

lol. Maybe I'll just avoid that one. :)

Not in BWCA, but a way to get there. In 1967 after the closing of Camp Easton, 6 of the counselors went on a 6 day canoe trip and we did the Dawson portage, from Sand Point lake to Lac La Croix. We single portaged and it is over 3 miles long. We were beat at the end.

Spartan1

"


lol. Maybe I'll just avoid that one. :)
"

Yeah, I know what you are talking about - I'm only 4 inches taller . . .and shrinking with age :).

Angleworm to Trease will always give me many fond?? memories, but the worst was two years ago when we hit a wall of wind on Cross Bay Lake and couldn't make it to Long Island. Changed our plan and let the wind push us back to the creek to Snipe Lake. We made it over the beaver dam and to the portage, but when my son yelled down from the top of it that I might have some difficulty, he was right. Short, but seemed to be a straight up wall of rocks. I was 3 months out from a severe pneumonia and realized after the portage that the doctor was right and it would take 6 months to regain my strength. However, it was one of the best trips ever; great weather, nice camp, beautiful lake with no other campers and a very relaxing base camp trip.

So physical condition also plays a big part. Would probably scamper right up it now.

quote Spartan2: "I think that Jan is correct that timing is a big part of it. I also think sometimes it is your state of mind, or what particular thing bothers you most. For me, it is balancing on one round log, especially if slippery. Or even, sometimes, two of them if they are small. Can't do it. With a heavy pack on my back--just can't do it. It's a mental thing.
As far as Kiskadinna-Muskeg, we did that portage on our 22-day trip in 1992 and I am surprised, now when I hear others speak of it, that I don't remember it at all. It was on day 3 of our trip, and I was carrying the food pack on one of my carries, so I know I was heavily loaded. In looking at my journal, we stayed overnight on Kiskadinna on the night of Day 2, and had thunderstorms in the night, so everything was wet and muddy. The only mention I make of the portage to Muskeg in my journal is that it was "long, hard and arduous", and that Spartan1 "helped in the middle with my second carry until I got my wind back". He was, of course, portaging a Grumman canoe, and a heavy pack himself. Those were the days! :-) From there we went on to Long Island and finally camped on Gordon for a layover day in the rain.
When I think of toughest portage, I think of three. All of them will make you smile if you have done them, because none of you will agree with me. (And that's OK. It's all in the perception, and the timing, right?)
1. Height of Land. I have always called this "Depth of Mud." That isn't because of the portage itself but because of the conditions on the day that we encountered it, and the experience I had burying my leg beyond the knee in deep mud and being stuck until my husband could rescue me (I didn't want to lose my boot, for one thing). I think the biggest problem with it was the name--I had envisioned "Height of Land" as being something very different, and to be slogging through that stuff was just unreal! And they were my NEW boots!
2. The portages from the Cross River on the way to Ham Lake. These are actually quite easy for someone with long legs and good knees. For an old lady with arthritic knees and short legs they are a nightmare. The Forest Service has made great stair-steps to climb, but they are stair-steps for giants! And because they are there, there is almost no way to go up or down the hill without using them. In my younger days it would have been a piece of cake. In 2010 it just about did me in--again at the beginning of a trip with a heavy food pack.
3. Horsetail Rapids at Saganaga Falls. I loved the Granite River trip and handled all of the portages well for the most part. This one made me sit down and refuse to do the second carry. Walking on the one little log along the side of the rushing water--just did me in! I know most people think this short portage is easy. Not for me! Like I said, it's all in the perception.
My portaging days are over. When you look back on them, many times it isn't the longest ones that you remember as the toughest. You have to have been there. :-)

"

Funny, I'm not short, but some of these are tough to me too as I get older. Those Cross River portages are tough for anyone our age or less than 6'6" (LOL)! Everytime I do the Granite, theys seem to get tougher too? One time at Horsetail I slipped and fell HARD on my head. I was "Fuzzy" for awhile, and a headache for days.

Probably not the most physically taxing but my most memorable was Mountain to Pemmican. I wanted to get my 3rd trout species of the trip so went up for the brookies. It was basically 90 rods up a mud slide with downed trees and branches reaching into the trail. I fell once and snapped a rod tip on one of the reaching braches, though it was secured well in the canoe.

quote lindylair: "Funny, we took that Mudro portage twice on a trip to the lakes north and west of fourtown a couple years ago. We had read what a difficult portage it was and were totally underwhelmed. Worst part is the landing on the north side, not really a good spot to take out or put in. But the portage itself did not seem that bad. Nice views of the river below from the highest spots. Goes to show that different challenges are handled differently by different groups. "

To your point, I had trouble with this one. First time I set a canoe down mid portage. A multitude of things went wrong for me that day. My wife and I had a child 2 months earlier so I was over tired. I'd been having some back pain which may have been from crouching over the kid. The weather was complete crap, pouring rain and wind. The temps were in the 50's. In fact when we got to Fourtown were spent most of our time battling to not get thrown on the rocks while we hugged the shore. I was overloaded with pack and canoe and canoe gear, I kept slipping on everything and finally decided enough was enough. 2/3 of the way I set the boat down and finished the portage with my pack only then back for the canoe.
It's not the longest nor geographically challenging portage I've tacked by far but for whatever reason it had it in for me that day.....I had no problems with it on the way out.

I'm another that thought Sitka to Cherokee was a bit of a booger. Made worse for me, headed north, by spotting the water (Spud, I believe) as you start headed downhill about 2/3 of the way across. Sweet...we're there...NOT!

quote Banksiana: "Argo to Crooked after a storm in April. Took close to two and a half hours. "

I like this picture! Everything is tougher in the snow.

quote Spartan2: "As far as Muskeg-Kiskadinna, all I wrote was "185 rods, hard and arduous."

I just looked at my 2007 journal and saw that I wrote the Muskeg-Kiskadinna was 'wet, muddy, and with a killer hill to climb.'

I just did a terrible 5-rod from Morgan into Carl Lake. It's really more like 15-20 rods and it goes straight through wetlands. Each of us fell hip deep into swampy muck at various points while carrying gear. There is no good landing on the east end of Carl. Then again, water levels were high this past weekend. In general it's probably not a tough portage but it vaulted up into my top 3 based on the conditions.

quote dicecupmaker: "The 140 rod out of Cherokee into Sitka lake was my toughest. It was on a solo and I had to triple portage that one. Memorable!"

Just did that this weekend on a trip with three newbies. I felt kind of bad but thankfully the weather was nice. I would not want to do that in the rain!

Cherokee/Sitka:
Have never done that one, but our daughter and her husband did it on his one-and-only trip. They thought it was awful! From their tales, it was very muddy, too! I have often wondered if that was why they never took another canoe trip. ;-)

quote Savage Voyageur: "

quote dicecupmaker: "The 140 rod out of Cherokee into Sitka lake was my toughest. It was on a solo and I had to triple portage that one. Memorable!"

You beat me to this one dicecupmaker. This was my toughest portage. It passes over the Laurentian divide, sometimes climbing up at a 45deg angle over huge boulders. Not fun. "

Doing this portage with an 80lb fiberglass canoe was by far my toughest also. After hoping from boulder to boulder on this one my knees hurt for over 4 months.
...I have a lighter canoe now!

Mine isn’t one but a collection of eight that I did one day last year on my solo. I had to get back home for my daughters white coat ceremony for med school and I guess that I had been taking it a little too easy. I had talked to a ranger the day before and he had told me that there had not been any crews through the area yet after the previous weeks blow down and most of their crews still working to the west. I started out on the water at 7 am from Little Sag and of course I did not see another soul until I hit Zenith and the campsite was taken so I had to do the big one as well, took a couple pics of the plane wreckage and off I went. 1144 rods that day x 3 for double portage = 3432 rods. I went through, over, under, and crawling at times. Found a campsite at 7:15 that night. I used 4X's the amount of water that I usually drink that day.

The next day I heard some young lads talking about the 180 rods they had done the day before.

At least I made it to Des Moines in time.

Oh, Kevin. It hurt just to READ that!

KevinL - That is incredible! Don't know where to begin. Congrats on your daughter's achievements. That too is very special.

Tomster

Hopefully BeaV is off conquering some new territory and not paying attention to this post. If not I don't think many of us mere mortals have seen a portage like he did on his Alaska trip.

quote OldGoat: "I hit my toughest portage when I did a solo of the Lady Chain/Louse River loop out of Sawbill. The Zenith to Lujenida 480-rod is UP HILL BOTH DIRECTIONS. Now that may sound strange, but it crosses the "great continental divide known as the Laurentian" so each end starts out with an uphill section. I was on it during a wet mucky period which helps seal that in my memory.


Goat"

Same here! Another one I don't particularly like is the boulder field portage between Ella and Grace. I don't think a 1000 loads of gravel could help that poor excuse of a portage.

in quetico, Devine to Mack lake. much younger then.

Everyone has the portage that just kicks our butt everytime! For me; its the portage from Ottertrack into Ester. Not that long of a portage, but for some reason, I cannot get up that hill without having to take a break!

Everyone has the portage that just kicks our butt everytime! For me; its the portage from Ottertrack into Ester. Not that long of a portage, but for some reason, I cannot get up that hill without having to take a break!

Crystal to Spaulding to Bench Lake. It was years ago but canoes had to go up and over downed trees.

Up the Bottle river from Lac La Croix to Bottle lake. We knew there were no 'official portages' up there, but we figured the area would have enough use to have some 'user made portages' roughed in. It took hours of using both sides of the border, and lining the canoe past a few gentler rapids to reach Bottle lake. It was a beautiful area though and the entire route was lined with eagles patiently hunting for fish. I'm not sure that I would go there again, but I am glad to have done it.

I think the one that may have kicked my butt the most was Lunetta to Hassel,
(Not enough to kill my good mood though, as I was in the BW!)

quote user0317: "Up the Bottle river from Lac La Croix to Bottle lake. We knew there were no 'official portages' up there, but we figured the area would have enough use to have some 'user made portages' roughed in. It took hours of using both sides of the border, and lining the canoe past a few gentler rapids to reach Bottle lake. It was a beautiful area though and the entire route was lined with eagles patiently hunting for fish. I'm not sure that I would go there again, but I am glad to have done it."

That would make for a tough portage, most people use the 80rod Bottle Portage from Lac La Croix to Bottle lake. It is in a bay on the Canadian side up a ways from the bottle river, very wide and flat but usually Muddy! You can see it on this Voyageur Map

I don't think mine was technically a portage, but there's a trail marked on the map going north from a campsite on the North side of clearwater that leads up and over to Rove/Watap lakes intersecting the border route trail.

We decided last year to try to portage it in order to mark those lakes off on the map and shortcut to Mountain Lake. Boy was that a hairbrained idea.

It was June and everything was very very wet. The trail was long and steep on both sides. To add to that the trail (which wasn't much of a trail to begin with) became more or less a small creek as we neared Watap/Rove lake with plenty of muck holes and slipery rocks all over the place. At some places it was so steep and slick that there was no way for one person to carry the canoe so we had to stop and hand it up/down those spots. The skeeters were terrible and to top it off it began pouring rain on us about 5 minutes in. I also managed to snag my hand on a jagged rivet inside the canoe gunnel and got a nice gash that got blood all over everything.

I won't be forgetting that one anytime soon.

quote keth0601: "I don't think mine was technically a portage, but there's a trail marked on the map going north from a campsite on the North side of clearwater that leads up and over to Rove/Watap lakes intersecting the border route trail.


We decided last year to try to portage it in order to mark those lakes off on the map and shortcut to Mountain Lake. Boy was that a hairbrained idea.


It was June and everything was very very wet. The trail was long and steep on both sides. To add to that the trail (which wasn't much of a trail to begin with) became more or less a small creek as we neared Watap/Rove lake with plenty of muck holes and slipery rocks all over the place. At some places it was so steep and slick that there was no way for one person to carry the canoe so we had to stop and hand it up/down those spots. The skeeters were terrible and to top it off it began pouring rain on us about 5 minutes in. I also managed to snag my hand on a jagged rivet inside the canoe gunnel and got a nice gash that got blood all over everything.


I won't be forgetting that one anytime soon."

i'm certain that this would be the worst portage in the bwca. i've camped at that site and wondered if anyone would be crazy enough to carry a canoe over it. way to go.

quote CrookedPaddler1: "Everyone has the portage that just kicks our butt everytime! For me; its the portage from Ottertrack into Ester. Not that long of a portage, but for some reason, I cannot get up that hill without having to take a break! "

Yup, that too is a tough one. But Canoe to Pine is my all time least favorite. I've done longer, I've done steeper, but the combo of the two on this one....

back in the 90's by JAP lake the rain had washed out the portage and we had to lower our canoe with ropes down a steep cliff. It was nuts

I have found that the toughest portages are the ones where I have the most gear early in a trip, or the ones late in the day when I'm out of gas. Some of them have only been 80 rods but felt like they just went on forever.

quote Canoearoo: "back in the 90's by JAP lake the rain had washed out the portage and we had to lower our canoe with ropes down a steep cliff. It was nuts"

going to seagull or south ? sounds like a big mud slide.

In Quetico there are two hilly portages around Side Lake on the way to Sarah. With very heavy packs on a solo I literally thought I was having a heart attack at the top of the hill. It was warm, humid and buggy and I took my pack off and laid down. My heart was racing and being alone I thought that was it for me. This was in 2001 so I don't remember the details of how I managed to finish.

The scariest one was Agnes to Louisa in the rain. Extremely steep and without roots to pull yourself up over the sheer rock face this wouldn't be possible. I remember the helpless look on my dog's face as she was stuck and I dragged her up by her front legs.

Going back down, luckily I had no gear. Very slick and scary in the rain and I don't recommend it. This is a picture at the top of the portage (Louisa Lake landing) as we wait out the rain. She was not too thrilled. Basically it's rock climbing and when wet it wouldn't be hard to get seriously hurt here.

Tom T. LOL the pup looks pissed off. Our Golden Retriever that died used to have that same look at times.

Hmmmm a few of these portages that have been listed multiple times are on the routes that are at the top of my list for my next solo. Is that because it can offer more solitude? I want the challenge of saying I did one of the more difficult portages? maybe just coincidence? or maybe just because my trip will be planned only 3 weeks in advance and I need an EP that will be available on late notice.

I've really enjoyed peoples stories about these portages.

quote ducks: "Tom T. LOL the pup looks pissed off. Our Golden Retriever that died used to have that same look at times."

She's a real good sport but yeah, I think she was just wanting it to stop raining. A dog cannot fake their emotions and you can tell everthing by the body language.

quote shock: "

quote Canoearoo: "back in the 90's by JAP lake the rain had washed out the portage and we had to lower our canoe with ropes down a steep cliff. It was nuts"

going to seagull or south ? sounds like a big mud slide. "

It was going South. The one going north was hard as well but we didn't need ropes for it. That area is all different now I'm told due to fire. No more old growth and I'm sure the portage was repaired not long after.

Last portage on Horse River going north east to basswood river in low water. The 76 rod portage turns into a 300 rod undeveloped trail through 3 foot high weeds.

quote Longpaddler: "The Meadows Portages on the way to Agnes. Bang, bang, bang...three in a row....damn near killed me. It was my first trip in the Q...."

Those got me...twice.
In 2008 I blew a meniscus in my left knee.
In 2010 I blew a meniscus in my right knee.
Needed surgery both times.

Misquah to Little Trout here too! That is a beauty. I actually went back and did it twice on a day trip from Ram to Little Trout on a solo trip just to do it again, and fish Little Trout Lake. Much easier to do with a knowledge of what lies ahead. It is a mental thing. I remember three hills, every step a challenge on slippery rough terrain. Definitely top on my list. Beats driving in traffic anyday....

My toughest portage ever had more to do with conditions than the topography. Louse Lake to Bug Lake, July 2013. Beavers had obliterated the portage. Their dams flooded the path, it was too mucky to wade and the side slopes were too steep to climb out or safely carry our gear. We would unload the canoe to drag it over a dam or other obstruction and pull it with lining ropes while lugging our packs through the brush, often balanced precariously on the dam or a steep slippery slope. We would load the canoe anytime the water was deep enough to float and "navigable". Sometimes that meant ducking under trees and turning 180 degrees, backing up, nudging left or right in order to get another 30 feet ahead. We had to do this no less than 5 times. In addition is was 95 degrees and humid, we wore pants and long sleeves with mosquito nets over our heads. Finally the "end" of the portage was one more dam flooding the path and draining into a boggy, marshy swamp surrounding the stream. We actually had to load the canoe here, balanced on hummocks of grass. If you slipped off you sank to your thigh in muck. We got into the canoe and scooted forward bit by bit until we made it into the main channel. We had planned to make it to Trail Lake that day. Weary with heat exhaustion and not knowing the condition of the Louse River portages, we detoured up into Dent for a layover to rest and recover.

Stuart River in 2013--the opening portage kicked our butts good. We had old, aluminum canoes, a Coleman suitcase stove, a huge four man tent, way too much food...480 rods. I always say, portages like that are an abstraction until you are actually walking them with gear and a canoe!

That lake is worth the trip for the fishing and solitude, but we won't every go back with all that heavy gear!