Category:Border Route

From BWCAWiki

For the hiking trail of the same name, see Border Route Trail.

The Border Route is a canoe route following a natural chain of lakes and rivers along the northern boundary of the BWCAW, shared by the U.S.-Canada border. This route was used extensively by the French Canadian Voyageurs during the fur trade, providing access between Lake Superior in the east and the northwestern interior including Rainy Lake, Lake of the Woods, Lake Winnipeg, and Lake Athabasca.

The Border Route remains a popular route for recreational canoeists due to the high quality of its lakes and the relative ease of travel along it. Quetico Provincial Park is easily accessible from a number of points along the Border Route.

Contents 1 Description 1.1 Eastern 1.2 Central 1.3 Western 2 History 3 References

Description

The Border Route in the BWCAW can be divided into several sections:

Eastern

The Border Route begins in the BWCAW on North Fowl Lake after having carried the Grand Portage and ascended the Pigeon River. From North Fowl, the route heads west through Mountain Lake, Rose Lake, and South Lake to Height of Land portage, which separates the Lake Superior and Hudson Bay watersheds. It continues west across North Lake, Gunflint Lake, turning north into Magnetic Lake, the Pine River, the Granite River and into Saganaga Lake at Saganaga Falls.

Central

Crossing Saganaga Lake to the west, the Border Route enters Swamp Lake, crosses Monument Portage, and then follows Ottertrack Lake, Little Knife Lake, and Knife Lake southwest into Carp Lake and Birch Lake to Prairie Portage and Basswood Lake.

Western

The route traverses Basswood Lake, descends west down the Basswood River, past Basswood Falls, into Crooked Lake, Iron Lake, Lac La Croix, and then descends the Loon River to Little Vermilion Lake at the western edge of the BWCAW. The Border Route continues through Voyageurs National Park, the Rainy River, and Lake of the Woods before turning north into Canada.

History

Native Americans likely used the Border Route as a transportation corridor for as long as they had been building boats: hundreds, if not thousands, of years before contact with Europeans.

The Voyageurs made use of the Border Route in the 1700's and early 1800's as their primary travel route. Prior to 1803, the route left Lake Superior at Grand Portage and traveled overland nine miles to Ft. Charlotte, bypassing falls and rapids on the lower Pigeon River. The upper Pigeon River was ascended to South Fowl Lake, North Fowl, and on along the present-day international boundary.

In 1803 the eastern end of the route changed, due to the United States laying claim to the Grand Portage territory. The British Voyageur companies moved their Lake Superior operations north to Ft. William, the present-day site of Thunder Bay, Ontario. They then ascended the Dog River, a tributary of the Kaministiquia River, crossed Pickerel Lake in what is now the Quetico, and descended the Maligne River, rejoining the former route at Lac La Croix. This Kaministiquia-Maligne route was 230 miles from Superior to Lac La Croix, compared to only 150 miles by way of Grand Portage. [1]

The U.S.-Canada border, set by the International Boundary Commission, is defined between Lake Superior and Lake of the Woods as following the natural navigable waterway through the region. Thus, the historical use by Native Americans and Voyageurs led to the definition of the border along the route.

References

• Brehaut, Harry Baker. The Red River Cart and Trails: The Fur Trade, MHS (Minnesota Historical Society) Transactions Series 3, Number 28, 1971-72 season.

Articles in category "Border Route"

There are 29 articles in this category.

B Basswood Falls Basswood Lake Basswood River Birch Lake C Carp Lake Crooked Lake (near Iron) G Grand Portage Granite River Gunflint Lake

H Height of Land I Iron Lake K Knife Lake L Lac La Croix Little Knife Lake Little Vermilion Lake Loon River M Magnetic Lake Monument Portage Mountain Lake

N North Fowl Lake North Lake O Ottertrack Lake P Pigeon River Pine River Prairie Portage R Rose Lake S Saganaga Falls South Lake Swamp Lake (near Saganaga)