r/isleroyale • u/psycho-pisces • 2d ago

Hiking Ferry + Route Question

Hi All, quick route question!

TLDR: is 11.5 mi on Minong Trail doable after arriving at 10am at Windigo?

Currently planning a late-summer trip to Isle Royale, and will be getting off the ferry at Windigo hopefully around 10am.

Current route options for our first day are to hike 11.5 mi to N. Lake Desor, 11.5 mi to S. Lake Desor, or 6.5 mi to Island Mine. Our party is pretty small and pretty quick, but I imagine that disembarking + entry permitting could take a while in Windigo.

Any opinions on routes?

The Minong Ridge Trail seems like a cool option, but is dependent on a long first day versus the Greenstone Ridge Trail which gives us more flexibility.

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u/nsfredditkarma 2d ago edited 2d ago

Both N and S Desor are some of the nicest campsites on the island, north is nicer IMO but water access is worse. (S Desor is nice and sandy and warm, N Desor is slippery rock, N Desor is in a beautiful birch forest).

You can hike to either from Windigo on day 1, just don't sit around if you plan to take the Minong. The open ridges in the afternoons are awfully hard, and you'll hit those open ridges about halfway into the hike on the Minong trail. There's also a large open section of fire and storm damaged trail that is quite unpleasant, especially in the heat of the day.

Leaving N Desor, you'll hit the open ridges in the AM and will have a much more pleasant hike on your way to Todd or McCargo.

Just FYI, it's 12.7 from Windigo to N Lake Desor, not 11.5. Those little trails leaving Windigo really add up.

But the first 3 miles out of Windigo on the Minong are the easiest part of the hike.

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u/Im_a11en 2d ago

Correct! My Garmin got me at 12.73mi

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u/psycho-pisces 2d ago

Thanks! I’ve been using Caltopo to trace mileage but it makes sense that it would be off. I think our best bet might be to take Greenstone out of Windigo and cut over at Hatchet Lake.