I would like to talk a little strategy of hiking the Border Route Trail. This Strategy is assuming that I am being dropped off and picked up at each respective end.
First of all, you are going to need a Border Route Guidebook. The Guidebook has a little fluff in it, but overall it’s a good guidebook with good maps. I still use the McKenzie Maps, too, because they cover a wider area.
Also, there is no Cell Phone Coverage in the Boundary Waters. I carry a Spot Messenger in case I get into trouble. Hungry Jack Outfitters off the Gunflint Trail rent the Spot Messenger. Other Outfitters may have added it to their rentals recently. If so, please let me know
I would start at the Western end at the Gunflint Trail. Assuming I'm arriving in the evening, I would stay overnight at the Gunflint Lodge. They have basic bunkhouses that they rent for about $20 a night. This strategy could also work if you're arriving fairly early in a morning.
In the morning, I would go down to the Lodge and eat breakfast, right when they open at 7 am. Then I would have it arranged so that I could be dropped off at the Border Route Trailhead, which is also the Magnetic Rock Trail. A worker from the Gunflint Outfitters (Outfitting arm of Gunflint Lodge) will drop me off. Tip well.
Then I would hike the Magnetic Rock Trail and the South Rim Trail (aka High Cliffs) which are both part of the Border Route. I would end up at South Loon Lake Road (mile 11) where I would either Road Walk back to the Gunflint Lodge, or go to Heston's and call to get a ride back. I would eat supper and stay overnight at the Gunflint Lodge. All and all, this would be an 11 mile slack packing day, (assuming you're getting a ride) with excellent opportunities to take photos at the scenic locations of Mag Rock and the Gunflint Cliffs. It would be a good day to get warmed up to hiking.
Some things to watch out for on the first day of hiking. When you get out to Magnetic Rock, the Border Route Trail turns to the right, just before Magnetic Rock. Sometimes this is confusing because there are so many little trails going around Magnetic Rock. The other confusing spot is over by the South Rim (aka High Cliffs) Trail where you could accidentally take the MidCliffs Trail instead.
Heston's is a good place to stay too. Nimblewill Nomad, Mother Goose and Lost & Found all stayed there. But they don't have a restaurant, so Mother Goose was shuttled down to the Gunflint Lodge in the morning for breakfast. Plus, Heston’s is very friendly to the Border Route Trail Association, allowing the BRTA to use Heston’s as a base of operations for several trail clearing trips a year.
In the morning I would eat breakfast at 7 am when it opens, then have it arranged for someone to take me to the South Loon Road trail crossing where I finished the day before. Tip well
This is where the backpacking starts for real. In 3.5 miles there is Bridal Falls. But before that the trail goes over to Loon Lake then goes on a fire ravaged ridge with great views of Gunflint Lake. Bridal Falls is a spectacular chute of water that cascades down from Crab Lake to the Gunflint Lake. Evidently, there is a side trail at Bridal Falls that takes you down to the bottom of the falls where there is a big drop. But I missed the side trail. After Bridal Falls, the BRT is less defined because it is less traveled by dayhikers. Plus it goes into the designated wilderness area, where trail markings are not allowed
Keep hiking and eventually you’ll make it to Topper Lake. When you first reach the lake, take a left on the portage trail to South Lake. Walk the Portage Trail and you will come to a nice view of South Lake and North Lake beyond. Go back to the BRT and you’ll find the Topper Lake Campsite (Mile 18.25). The Campsite slopes down to the Lake, but there are a couple flat spots to pitch tents.
After Topper Lake, the next three Campsites you come to, you have to take side trails off the Border Route Trail to get to the Campsites. Those Campsites are at Sock Lake, South Lake and Partridge Lake. Those side trails may not be as cleared and well defined as the BRT. Maybe the South Lake side trail would be a little better because it’s part of the South Lake Trail that goes down to the Gunflint Trail. Matt Davis of the NCT gives the South Lake Campsite a thumbs up. I have not visited any of those 3 campsites. And the other thing about those campsites, you’ll be going downhill to get to the campsites, which means you’ll be going back up the hill in the morning. One thing you need to be aware of is that after the Partridge Lake Campsite (Mile 23), there isn’t another campsite until Rose Lake (mile 27.50). I really wouldn’t push it to get to Rose Lake, because there is plenty of cool stuff along the trail during that stretch, and you might want to take your time. First you will get to the spectacular Rose Cliffs, then eventually you will get to more overlooks of Rose Lake, then Stairway Falls and Portage. All of that stuff is worth taking some time to enjoy. After Stairway Falls there is another really good overlook as you climb up a bluff. The climb has a couple steeper climbs but they are spread out so it’s not so bad. You will also be encountering the “notch log” along the way. A log that was too big for the trail crew to cut, so they just cut a notch in it so you can walk through.
Once you get on top of the bluff east of Stairway Falls, then it’s easy walking for the next four to five miles. You’ll be taking a gentle sweeping switchback down to Rose Lake, then walking along Rose Lake to Long Portage. Long Portage (mile 28.5) is an old railroad bed that you walk on for over a mile, then take a left on the Daniels to Rove Lake Portage. That portage has a few little ups and downs on it. Then you hike next to Rove Lake.
But back at Rose Lake you’ll be hitting two campsites that are right on the trail. Both are nice campsites but the first one is back in the woods away from the Lake. Then along the Long Portage you’ll be hiking next to the Arrow River. On the other side of the River is Canada.
Another Reminder: once you get to the junction of Long Portage and the Rove Lake to Daniels Lake Portage (mile 30), that’s your last chance to get off the trail for 22 miles. And once you get over to the next road, the Arrowhead Trail, there’s basically nothing there except a Forest Service Campground. That campground may not even be occupied by anyone, depending upon what time of year it is. I was feeling a little gimpy after I had done the Kekekabic Trail and the Border Route Trail to this point, so I got off the trail. The Daniels Lake Access Trail is three miles long and goes on an old railroad bed out to Clearwater Lodge. I continued my Border Route Hike the next year
Back on the BRT, after the Long Portage, you hike around a big marsh over to Rove Lake, then you hike along Rove Lake for about a mile. This is where the easy hiking ends. This is where you’ll have to pick up water, too, unless you’re planning to go to the campsite on Clearwater Lake, on the other side of the hill. At any rate, at Rove Lake you climb up a big hill (mile 31.50). I did this late in the day when I was already tired. I was pushing it to get to the Clearwater Lake Campsite. Don’t do that. Just a reminder, the rules state that you can camp anywhere along the trail that’s 150 feet away from the trail, lake, creek or river. But you can only have a campfire at a designated campsite.
I suggested to the Border Route Trail Association that they build a campsite on Rove Lake, before you have to go up the big hill. But it’s hard to build anything in the designated wilderness nowadays.
Once you get up to the top of the big bluff between Rove Lake and Clearwater Lake, you’ll find the side trail going down to the Clearwater Lake Campsite. If you are going to be camping at the Clearwater Lake Campsite, you might want to string up your bear bag at the top of the hill, then you won’t have to be carrying it up the hill in the morning. Just take whatever food you need to make it through the night, and head down the hill. It’s at least a quarter mile downhill to get to the campsite. Some people call this the "Two Mile" Campsite, because it is two miles from the west end of the lake.
But if you’re not camping at that campsite, continue east on the big bluff. It’s fairly easy hiking. Eventually you will get to the spectacular Watap Cliffs (mile 32.3). After Watap, I did find a little creek on top of the bluff that I filled up with water, but I wouldn’t count on that. It’s fairly easy hiking on that bluff as the trail curves around to overlooks of Clearwater Lake and Mountain Lake before you head down to the portage (mile 36) between the two lakes. You may need to head down the portage to get some water.
After the portage, the BRT goes up for the next half mile or so to an Overlook of Mountain Lake. The ascent isn’t all that bad. The overlook is spectacular as you are standing on a big cliff. Then after the overlook the trail goes downhill in a gentle pattern to a spot that I call the False Alarm Spot. This is where the trail goes near Clearwater Lake then veers away from it. You walk another 1/4 mile further and you reach a cairn marking the trail to a campsite on the east end of Clearwater Lake. It’s a big campsite.
Back on the BRT, you reach the Clearwater Lake to West Pike Lake Portage (mile 38.25). Head down the portage for about a half mile, then about 75 yards before you reach West Pike Lake, the BRT goes to the right. Please be watching for it, because you can easily miss it looking at the lake instead. The Trail crosses over a bridge and starts going up to Lake Gogebic. Gobebic is an indian word meaning “place of high water,” and true to it’s name, you have to walk uphill to get to the lake. This is an unusual arrangement for sure. You will reach the West Pike Lake to Lake Gogebic portage then follow it up to Lake Gogebic. There’s supposed to be a campsite to the left of the portage, but I walked down that way and didn’t see it. But there’s a nice campsite on Lake Gogebic as you follow the BRT to the right. It’s about a half mile from the portage. Evidently, if you walk up the hill behind the campsite, there is a nice overlook. I didn’t know about it when I hiked it.
The Trail curves around Lake Gogebic, then goes up a big fricken hill. But before you go up the hill, there’s a spot where you can go out to the Lake to get water. You’ll be needing water because it could be a long ways to the next water spot.
Once you get on top of this bluff, the trail goes every which way on it’s route eastward. The Border Route Guidebook has several stars along the way marking overlooks. But I didn’t find what I would call a full blown overlook for a long ways. There were places where you could see glimpses of the lakes down below you, but I wouldn’t call it an overlook. Finally you do come out to a full blown overlook, and it is impressive. I call this the Hatchet Island Overlook, because you can see an island off to the left, and on the map it’s kind of shaped like a hatchet. This overlook has two waist high boulders right at the overlook. After that it’s pretty much all downhill to the West Pike Lake – Pine Lake portage (mile 45.35). There is one more pretty good overlook along the way.
When you get down to the Portage, you’ll probably be needing water, so head down the portage. If you are going to camp at the Pine Lake Campsite, then head down that way. If not, head down to West Pike Lake because it is less of a climb coming back to the BRT.
Once you’re back on the BRT heading east, it’s pretty much like hiking the other bluff before the portage. You’re just hiking around on top of this bluff, going every which way. Once in a while you get a glimpse of a lake down below you, but not very often. Eventually, you get to the Pine Ridge Campsite (mile 48.75). This is a campsite with no water, so be careful with your fire. The closest water is a East Pike Lake. You take the Border Route down to the East Pike Lake to Pine Lake Portage, then hike down to East Pike Lake. It’s more than 1/4 mile down to the water.
That’s also the way you’ll be going as you follow the Border Route Trail, except the BRT turns to the right about 50 yards before the Lake. You may still need to go down to the Lake to get water, because there isn’t any water for a long ways. You head along East Pike Lake for a while, but back in the woods away from it. Then the trail turns to the right and you head uphill to a ridge. You travel up on this ridge for a long ways, crossing a least one little stream, but again, I would be not counting on that stream in certain times of the year. You begin to see glimpses of John Lake down below you, then you come to a full blown overlook of John Lake (mile 51.8). It’s great.
From there it’s only about a mile all downhill out to the road. On the way down you’ll see a sign marking the border of the designated wilderness area. There is one little creek along the way, that looks like it might be running all year. But if you want to pass up the creek, you’ll soon be out to the road where there’s a lake.
Once you hit the Arrowhead Trail, take a left, then walk down the road for a 100 yards and you’ll come to an intersection. Take a left and cross the bridge that separates Little John Lake and McFarland Lake. You’ll see some vacation homes off to the right on McFarland Lake. Keep going and you’ll see a boat ramp, Trailhead for the Border Route Trail, a cleared out field they use as a firefighting heliport and then the McFarland Lake Forest Campground. At the Campground, they have a nice outhouse, so take advantage of it. The campsites have picnic tables, so it would be a change from camping in the wilderness with no facilities. This campground only has about 5 campsites, and is not staffed. You have to self register for a campsite. This campsite is mainly used by fishermen who are fishing in the nearby lakes.
Back at the Border Route Trailhead (mile 53.80), the trail starts up again. But first you need to load up on water, because it will be a ways before you hit water again. You’ll be going in an upward pattern for the next mile or so. It’s a gradual ascent, not too bad. Then you will be getting to a series of overlooks. The first will be of the Royal River. Then you will be seeing North Fowl Lake and South Fowl Lake. Then you will head downhill to a jeep trail (mile 56.2) and start heading up again. There are two more nice overlooks before you get to the Pigeon River. Now you will be following the Pigeon River for the next mile or so. The Border Route Trail Association is set to build some new campsites along this stretch of trail. Across the Pigeon River is Canada.
After the trail departs the Pigeon River, you come up to the Stump River Bridge (mile 58.80). It’s a larger bridge made out of metal poles with a wooden deck. After the bridge, you’re hiking in the scrubby low lands for about a mile over to the Portage Brook Bridge. It’s a grassy, sunny area that ticks love, so be wary of that. It also can be confusing because there are other animal paths crossing the trail, so keep watching for the blue trail markings. When you get to the Portage Brook Bridge (mile 60.30), it’s almost the same type of bridge as the Stump River Bridge, with metal poles and wooden decking.
You cross the bridge and the BRT takes a right and goes along the river. It’s called Portage Brook, but it’s actually bigger than a brook along this stretch. Then you come to the Portage Brook Campsite, which is in the sunny, scubby woods. It looks like there would not be much shade here in the heat of the summer.
Continuing along the BRT, you soon will reach the intersection with the Otter Lake Cutoff (mile 60.80). There is a creek right at that intersection, and that your last chance to get water for the rest of the Border Route Trail. The Otter Lake Cutoff goes up a hill then out to Otter Lake Road. Sometimes people use it a loop for the east end of the BRT. On the BRT after the Cutoff, you head uphill to a nice overlook with a little lake down from the overlook. After that you will be hitting a series of overlooks over the next mile then head down to a 2010 clear-cut area. After that you head up again for the last two overlooks. The last overlook is a spectacular 270 degree overlook which you can see for miles in every direction except west. You have to take a little spur trail to get to this overlook. Back on the BRT, it’s all downhill out to the end of the trail at Otter Lake Road (mile 65). Once you get out to the trailhead, there is an outhouse across the road in the woods. You can just barely see it from the road. Also across the road there is a driveway leading to the Swamp River Campsite and Boat Launch. The outhouse is located so it’s not that far of a walk from the Campsite.
Now that you’re at the Otter Lake Road, there’s really nothing there except for the trailhead, boat launch and campsite. There are no resorts, etc. You could basically wait for your ride to come pick you up here, or have your car already dropped off here. The Superior Shuttle and Harriet Quarles Transportation does shuttle people to this location. Or rather, they shuttle people to the SHT trailhead which is just down the road from the BRT Trailhead. You hike east from the BRT Trailhead across the Swamp River Bridge, and go around a curve to find the SHT Trailhead. Also, Heston's over near the Gunflint Trail where you started, can shuttle your vehicle while you're hiking. Call ahead for all the shuttlers to make an appointment.
There are advantages of Starting Here at the East End of the Border Route and hiking west. The number one advantage is that once you get over to the west end, there are some resorts, etc where you can stay while you’re waiting for your ride to pick you up. Plus, most of those resorts will take you down to Grand Marais for a fee.
But you do have some other options if you are hiking from the West End to the East End. When you get to Otter Lake Road, you can start hiking down the Superior Hiking Trail. It’s a 30 mile hike down to Judge Magney State Park on Hwy 61. Naniboujou Lodge is right across the Hwy from the State Park. Or you can Hike east from the Otter Lake Road Trailhead, using forest and reservation roads and arrive in Grand Portage after 15 miles. Grand Portage has a casino, hotel, campground and the Grand Portage National Monument historic sites. There's also a ferry that goes to Isle Royale from Grand Portage.
If you are headed down the Superior Hiking Trail, please buy a SHT Guidebook. It’s the best item to have for hiking that trail. If you are hiking into Grand Portage, I can email you instructions on how to do so.
Regards from me, Todd McMahon
isawtman@gmail.com
If you have any question about this, please email me, and I will answer the questions to the best of my abilities. I will also add the question to the bottom of this article so other people with the same question can read them
Also, you may want to read my class handout for "Backpacking through the Boundary Waters" which has a list of shuttles, resorts and other helpful information. The handout is located on this website on the main page under Canoecopia