Windigo to Huginnin Cove

31 July 2024

Today started bright and early with a 6am wake up call- my boat starts loading at 0645, but it’s only a 10 minute drive down the road. Good morning from Grand Portage Marina:

The harbor is under construction, so parking was just on a dirt/gravel pad, but the dock itself is useable. This is my boat, the Voyageur II:

She is 65′ long and holds up to 46 passengers, though I don’t think we were that full today- maybe 2.5-3 dozen people? Bags were loaded first; Mate Bob hauled everyone’s backpack up and stowed them under a tarp for the trip:

Then, promptly at 0715, roll call started and we were boarded by group.

In no time at all, we were leaving the mainland behind:

Lake Superior was surprisingly calm (so much so that Captain Ben commented on how strange the conditions today were), which was great for traveling across, but not so great for sight-seeing:

Somewhere beyond this fog lies Windigo:

Then suddenly, about 2 hours after we left, the fog lifted and we had arrived!

Everyone has to listen to a ranger briefing before checking in and getting permits:

Unfortunately, there were several large groups on my boat and I managed to end up at the back of the line.  Lame.  I was finally able to hit the trail right around 10 am:

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So, quick geography lesson- this is Isle Royale:

(click to embiggen)

My plan is to start here in Windigo and over the next week or so make my way to the Rock Harbor end. The island is about 45 miles long but with a loop at the beginning and a loop at the end, I think I’ll end up hiking a little over 60 miles!

I’ve never really done a backpacking trip like this before- sure, I’ve camped and done some overnighters, but nothing like this where I’ve got to carry all my food and water and gear… basically everything I’ll need to survive for the next week.

Today’s plan is to hike out to Huginnin Cove, which (since I’m taking the East loop) is a little over 5 miles:

Last views of the shore before heading inland:

Theoretically, there’s potable water in Windigo, but I couldn’t find it and didn’t want to waste time, so I stopped at Washington Creek campground and filled my bottles there.

First wildlife- a little garter snake!

Much of the first part of the trail looked a lot like this:

Or this:

Bridge over a river (one of the few plank walkways with rails!):

The first of many thimbleberries!!!

They have a creamy, almost custardy texture, and are tart with a sweet aftertaste. So tasty!!! I’m pretty sure I ate my body weight in berries today!

Dragonfly:

Trail cam?

I spotted several of these along the path. My guess is that they’re using them to track moose movements, but whoever checks the card is in for a surprise because I waved or danced for every cam I saw 🙂

Onward!

Trail junctions here are very well marked and so the paths, even the more overgrown ones, are easy enough to follow.

Old ruins:

I SAW A MOOSE!!!

He was maybe 50ft off the trail.

I looked and him, and he looked and me…

then he went back to eating and eventually wandered off.  So cool!!!!!  This was one of 3 things I’m hoping to see on this trip (wolves and Northern lights are the other 2).

Back to views of Lake Superior:

This coastline is so beautiful!

Huginnin Cove is just around that bend!

I thought for sure I could just duck around this tree…

HA!  I never did repack my bag, so all my food (most of the weight) is on the outside of my pack and it swung me around and dumped me into the mud:

Ugh, I’m fine- it was only like a foot off the ground and the mud was soft, none of my electronics got wet, none of my gear was damaged (and my trekking pole landed safely back onto the plank path).  Glad I’m staying near a lake tonight so I can do some laundry!

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Welcome to Huginnin Cove:

I was hoping for site 1 or 2, which are right off the cove and offer great views of the sunset, but both were taken (one by a group that had passed me earlier in the day- part of me will always wonder if I had gotten my permit right away if I would have gotten to camp before them, but I guess I’ll never know); 3 was also occupied.  Of the remaining sites, 4 was up in the woods and while it was nicely shaded, I had my heart set on being right on the shore, so 5 it is!

Not the best site- lots of downed trees and unevenness- but it’s got my views!

Plus, if you climb down this embankment:

It’s got a private cove!!!

Perfect for stripping down and washing mud out of clothes!

It also came with this little “chair”:

Which was a great place to sit and eat lunch:

I’m still trying to figure out what to do with my downtime at camp, so after a short nap, I walked along the shore of the main cove:

and searched for pretty rocks:

Then came back to camp and did some crossword puzzles and read on my phone for a bit.  When I couldn’t wait any longer, I cooked up some dinner:

Heard, then spotted a small raft of otters swimming through:

Not the greatest of pictures as the sun was setting, but they were cute and squeaky!

Goodnight, Huginning Cove:

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One of my luxury items (beside my camera) was a small UV light so I could go hunting for Yooperlites!  I wasn’t super successful:

The two smaller guys in the middle/right with orange glowing spots are Yooperlites, that little guy on the top middle glowed all orange, and a couple glowed purple (not sure why).

But I did learn that algae also glows under UV light, so that was fun:

I didn’t sleep well this first night- partly because it stayed in the mid-60s and I was too warm, but also because I kept getting up to see if the Northern lights were out.  According to my app, there was a chance to see them tonight, but even after shooting several long exposures, I was unsuccessful.  Still, there’s so little light pollution here- the sky was full of stars!