Rock Harbor to Windigo on foot
Moderator: MikeT
Rock Harbor to Windigo on foot
Hi! I'm new to this forum and I have a few questions. Has anyone hiked from Rock Harbor to Windigo? I have never been to IR and I'm trying to set up my itinerary. I'm looking at taking the Queen into Rock Harbor on Tuesday and trekking to Windigo, where I will catch the Voyageur back to Rock Harbor the following Monday. The trek is close to 50 miles, right? So, that will give me 5 full days and 2 partial days to make it there. Is this doable?
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Bill Spears
- NewbieCake
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 1:25 pm
- Isle Royale Visits: 1
- Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Re: Rock Harbor to Windigo on foot
Hello G.L.75 and welcome to the forums. Took my first visit this past August, and read up a ton on these boards. I have to say, it wasn't as good as folks around here make it sound. IT WAS BETTER. I'd wager dollars to doughnuts that you'll find I.R. to be full of awesome, too.
I walked the route from Rock Harbor to Windigo, as you've mentioned. It is indeed ~45-50 miles. I'm looking at my journal here, and it says we covered the following ground on this time table, to give you an idea of the scale of the walk.
Day 1: Rock Harbor to Daisy Farm, 7.9 miles. Landed on I.R. around 14:30 on the Ranger III, made camp at 18:15.
Day 2: Daisy Farm to McCargoe Cove, 8.1 miles. Up at 07:00, on trail by 07:30 after breakfast and breaking camp, made great time, got into camp by 14:00, had plenty of time to nap, swim, eat, read, play cards, relax.
Day 3: McCargoe Cove to Hatchet Lake, 10.5 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail at 08:00, made camp by 15:00.
Day 4: Hatchet Lake to Lake Desor South, 8.1 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail at 08:30, lunch at Ishpeming point at 11:15, made camp by 13:00. Plenty of tiem to swim and relax.
Day 5: Lake Desor South to Windigo, 11.3 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail by 08:20, Lunch near Island Mine trail fork at 11:10, finished the final 6.5 miles by 14:30.
Day 6: Bummed around Washington creek campground and socialized with day hikers from the MN at Windigo, chatted with rangers, showered etc. Had originally planned to do the whole hike in 6 days, with the sixth as a kind of flexible day. Made it in 5, but didn't really have the drive to do the Huginnin Cove loop.
So, the short answer to your question is, yes, your plan is very doable. We allowed for 6 days on the trail, and easily made it in 5.
The longer answer is, it might depend a little bit on your level of hiking fitness, and level of backpacking expertise. We also deviated a bit from the Greenstone trail; if you remained only on the Greenstone the entire spine for the island, you might shave a couple miles off, if it is a concern at all. I should say I was 28 years old during this trip, and in moderate-to-good hiking shape. My pack weighed 40 lbs on day 1, my 24-year old brother's weighed 35 lbs to start. Your mileage may vary, of course.
We could have even more time on the trail, as there was no rush to make miles by any means, but I suppose we were nervous about being caught on the trail after sunset. We needn't have worried; as it was, we took plenty of 5-10 minute breathers, breaks, and leisurely lunches, and really still had plenty of time to enjoy just being on the island.
Hope that gives you a sense of the hike, and here's to a brilliant trip!
Cheers,
B.S.
I walked the route from Rock Harbor to Windigo, as you've mentioned. It is indeed ~45-50 miles. I'm looking at my journal here, and it says we covered the following ground on this time table, to give you an idea of the scale of the walk.
Day 1: Rock Harbor to Daisy Farm, 7.9 miles. Landed on I.R. around 14:30 on the Ranger III, made camp at 18:15.
Day 2: Daisy Farm to McCargoe Cove, 8.1 miles. Up at 07:00, on trail by 07:30 after breakfast and breaking camp, made great time, got into camp by 14:00, had plenty of time to nap, swim, eat, read, play cards, relax.
Day 3: McCargoe Cove to Hatchet Lake, 10.5 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail at 08:00, made camp by 15:00.
Day 4: Hatchet Lake to Lake Desor South, 8.1 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail at 08:30, lunch at Ishpeming point at 11:15, made camp by 13:00. Plenty of tiem to swim and relax.
Day 5: Lake Desor South to Windigo, 11.3 miles. Up at sunrise, on trail by 08:20, Lunch near Island Mine trail fork at 11:10, finished the final 6.5 miles by 14:30.
Day 6: Bummed around Washington creek campground and socialized with day hikers from the MN at Windigo, chatted with rangers, showered etc. Had originally planned to do the whole hike in 6 days, with the sixth as a kind of flexible day. Made it in 5, but didn't really have the drive to do the Huginnin Cove loop.
So, the short answer to your question is, yes, your plan is very doable. We allowed for 6 days on the trail, and easily made it in 5.
The longer answer is, it might depend a little bit on your level of hiking fitness, and level of backpacking expertise. We also deviated a bit from the Greenstone trail; if you remained only on the Greenstone the entire spine for the island, you might shave a couple miles off, if it is a concern at all. I should say I was 28 years old during this trip, and in moderate-to-good hiking shape. My pack weighed 40 lbs on day 1, my 24-year old brother's weighed 35 lbs to start. Your mileage may vary, of course.
We could have even more time on the trail, as there was no rush to make miles by any means, but I suppose we were nervous about being caught on the trail after sunset. We needn't have worried; as it was, we took plenty of 5-10 minute breathers, breaks, and leisurely lunches, and really still had plenty of time to enjoy just being on the island.
Hope that gives you a sense of the hike, and here's to a brilliant trip!
Cheers,
B.S.
Re: Rock Harbor to Windigo on foot
Bill, thanks for the great information. Looks like you did all my planning for me, 
I had only heard about IR about a week ago and having been trying to plan my trip every since. It sounds great! I'm trying to do as much research as possible, as fast as possible because I want to book my boat reservations.
I'm 33 and in fairly good physical condition, but my hiking legs have been in hibernation because of winter. However, I do plan to do some extended weekend trips this spring to be sure I'm ready to go for this hike come June. This will be my longest backpacking trip, and it is a bit ambitious. My biggest fear is that I will not make it time to catch my boat, but your itinerary looks pretty reasonable, so I think I will be ok. The only downside for me is that I will be going alone, so there's no chance of reducing my pack weight had a gone with a friend. Luckily most of my gear is pretty light.
I know I'm still in the early planning stages, and even if I don't decide to hike from RH to W, I still know when I want to go, so I'm going to get that boat booked right away. Hopefully, in the next week or so I will have my research and planning done. June won't come soon enough!! Thanks again for the information.
Eric (getlost75, aka G.L.75)
I had only heard about IR about a week ago and having been trying to plan my trip every since. It sounds great! I'm trying to do as much research as possible, as fast as possible because I want to book my boat reservations. I'm 33 and in fairly good physical condition, but my hiking legs have been in hibernation because of winter. However, I do plan to do some extended weekend trips this spring to be sure I'm ready to go for this hike come June. This will be my longest backpacking trip, and it is a bit ambitious. My biggest fear is that I will not make it time to catch my boat, but your itinerary looks pretty reasonable, so I think I will be ok. The only downside for me is that I will be going alone, so there's no chance of reducing my pack weight had a gone with a friend. Luckily most of my gear is pretty light.
I know I'm still in the early planning stages, and even if I don't decide to hike from RH to W, I still know when I want to go, so I'm going to get that boat booked right away. Hopefully, in the next week or so I will have my research and planning done. June won't come soon enough!! Thanks again for the information.
Eric (getlost75, aka G.L.75)