Voyageurs National Park: Paddling the North Side of Dryweed Island to Lyle Mine Island

With clam winds and warm afternoon temperatures forecast for today, Noelle and I decided to take advantage and go for a canoe paddle while Sierra was in school. After dropping Sierra off at the bus stop we loaded up our gear and got the canoe strapped to the roof of the car and then made the short drive to the boat ramp on Highway 11 near Dove Island. We put the canoe in the water and started paddling northeast towards Big American Island. We made our way east along the south side of Big American

and then turned north into a a channel between Big American and Dryweed Islands.

We made our way over to Tango Bay and then started heading east along the north side of Dryweed Island.
There are lots of interesting islands in this area and some nice bays to explore as well.

We found a beaver lodge in one of the bays

and then continued on, headed east.

Eventually we found our way over to the campsite at Dryweed Island North. There was a nice sand beach to land the canoe.

We got out of the boat to stretch our legs a bit and ate a snack on some rocks in the sun.

There is a nice view north to Sandpoint Island Provincial Park across the international border in Ontario.

After relaxing for a bit we got back in the canoe and headed a little bit further east to another campsite at Lyle Mine Island.

We got out of the boat again to do some exploring. Like the name of the island suggests, there is a shallow mine pit on the island.

There is also a rock crib in the water near the dock,

perhaps the site of an ore dock. Besides the mine, there were wildflowers blooming on the island. They were the asters

and goldenrods

one might expect this time of the year. After our exploration of Lyle Mine Island we got back in the boat and started to make our way west. We decided to take a slightly different route back.

On the way back we paddled past an interesting looking high cliff.

Shortly after passing the cliff, Noelle noticed that there were some apple trees on the same island. We beached the canoe and got out again to have a look around.

We each ate a few apples and walked around the island to discover the Tango Channel Campsite. Then it was back in the canoe. The last leg of the paddle seemed to take the longest. There was a long section of open water between Tango Channel and the boat ramp at Dove Island. We got the canoe back on top of the car and stopped in Ranier on the way home for a beer at Loony's Brew. It was our first time at the only brewery in the area. The location, right on the water, is awesome. The beers were not so great though. My Lost Bay IPA tasted strongly like malt extract and lacked a good hop profile. Still, I would probably return to try a beer again, just not with huge expectations.