| NATIONAL PARKS QUICKLINKS |
Also on Backpacker.com
Backpacker Magazine – August 2009
Where Solitude Rules - Wilderness Hideaways
Lose yourself in a private paradise the crowds have overlooked.
-
Tags:
- California |
- Colorado |
- Minnesota |
- Maine |
- British Columbia |
Guide's Secret The Whites
"Mt. Adams is way less crowded than Mt. Washington," says Jim Shimberg, of Rhino Guides. "King Ravine on Adams is as wild as Tuckerman, but nobody's ever there." Hike 5.5 miles from the Appalachia trailhead. fs.fed.us/r9/white
SOLITUDE RULES
Find more crowd-free hikes.
Sespe Wilderness, California | Cutler Coast, Maine | Nootka Trail, British Columbia | Gore Range, Colorado | Border Route Trail, Minnesota
Border Route Trail, Minnesota
Beach the canoe on this remote trek through the wildlife-rich Boundary Waters.
The trick to finding solitude in Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness? Hike where others paddle. More than 225 miles of trails crisscross this preserve, including nearly two-thirds of the 65-mile Border Route Trail, which hugs ridgelines and cliffs with views across the forest and lakes. Thick emerald moss seems to carpet every surface, and blowdowns create challenging barriers that increase the deep-wilderness feel (and further reduce crowds). Most nights you'll camp by a lake, where sunrise often glows like fire through the morning mists, and spotting moose, otter, or mink is a given.
At night, listen to water lapping the rocky beaches, timber wolves howling, loons crying, and wind sighing through tall pines. The western half of the Border Route roughly parallels the Gunflint Trail roadway, with the central wilderness entry point (No. 82, near Clearwater Lake), offering weekend loops via the Daniels Lake, Caribou Lake, and South Lake Trails. For maximum solitude, follow the eastern half of the Border Route 36 miles past Gogedic, Pine, and Pike Lakes and along the Pigeon River.
Days 5-7
Map The Border Route Trail: A Trail Guide and Map ($19, borderroutetrail.org)
Permits Entry permits required for BWCAW ($16 per person, $12 to reserve; recreation.gov)
Info fs.fed.us/r9/forests/superior/bwcaw
Subscribe to Backpacker magazine
Sign up for our free weekly e-newsletter
Reader Rating:
-
My Profile
Join Now
Most recent threads
Gear
Newbie thinking about getting into backpacking!
Posted On: May 23, 2013
Submitted By: 92hatchattack
Submitted By: 92hatchattack
Editors' Choice 2013
412 trail-tested products
Boost Your Apps
Add powerful tools and exclusive maps to your BACKPACKER apps through our partnership with Trimble Outdoors.
Carry the Best Maps
With BACKPACKER PRO Maps, get life-list destinations and local trips on adventure-ready waterproof myTopo paper.
FREE Rocky Mountain Trip Planner
Sign up for a free Rocky Mountain National Park trip planning kit from our sister site MyRockyMountainPark.com.
Get 2 FREE Trial Issues and 3 FREE GIFTS
Survival Skills 101 • Eat BetterThe Best Trails in America
YES! Please send me my FREE trial issues of Backpacker
and my 3 FREE downloadable booklets.
Free trial offer valid for US subscribers only.
Canadian subscriptions |
International subscriptions
and my 3 FREE downloadable booklets.
READERS COMMENTS
Not convinced the writer has done the Sespe trip described. The upper Alder Creek route is ridiculously overgrown and has effectively been abandoned by the Forest Service since the Day Fire (2006). Mutau to the Sespe via Johnston Ridge is fine, best in autumn, but not Alder.
We attempted this trail last weekend and just about had to get air-lifted out. The trail from little Mutau to McDonald Cabin and on past Alder Creek, is basically non-existent. Even if you find it for a little while, it is obliterated and lost quickly. I do not recommend trying this. The trail from Mutau to Johnston ridge is better maintained, although strenuous going up. No water past the hot sespe creek. Fill a few liters before you leave the Sespe and avoid hiking in the summer months. Maybe an out and back trip from Mutau on Johnston ridge would be a safer choice.
How much of the Sespe Wilderness hike is in the recent past burn area? Was up in the Mutau Flat area recently and lots of burn. ????
I have hiked the Cutler trails in Maine for years..in all seasons! They are spectacular...woods and ocean...a great combination!
We did the hike around Easter 2008 down the creek from Piedra Blanca and camped at Oak Flat. The trail crosses the river several times. The water is chilly and at that time of year but didn't go above mid-thigh on an adult. If there is a good side to the wildfires, it has to be that you can see the wildflowers better. They recovered quickly.
If you want solitude on backpacks, go high and off trail. For 10 such great Colorado backpacks, go to this web site: http://www.backpackingofftrail.com/
The trail to the Sespe Hot Springs, and certainly the hot springs themselves, are not the place I'd go if seeking solitude. These are well-known hot springs.
Also, the locale suffered from wildfires a couple of years ago; recovery is far from complete. I advise you to check with the local ranger station to determine the current condition of the flora recovery.
Finally, the Ventura, CA County backcountry can get mighty hot in the summer. Visit the Sespe hot springs in the cooler months.
Solitude yes, but hiking the Border Route Trail is certainly not for the novice backpacker. The scenery is fantastic but the trail conditions inside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are very rough. Blowdowns are plentiful, the trail tread is obscure in places hit by wildfires, and heavy brush is abundant.
I strongly recommend you not do this hike in the summer months. We did the hike a few years back and I suffered from heat stroke due to the extreme 100+ temps.
I just did this hike last month and only saw 2 other people on the trail. Had a great time and the scenery was awesome!
ADD A COMMENT