Boundary Waters Trips for Families

  As BWCA canoe outfitters and parents we’ve had the opportunity to take a number of family canoe trips into the Boundary Waters. We love paddling with our kids and think a Boundary Waters canoe camping trip is one of the best family vacations there is.

     While there are a number of great BWCA trips to choose from for your family we’ve decided to list a few here for you to choose from.

Top 5 Family Trip Recommendations

1.      Saganaga or Red Rock Base Camp – We’ve done this BWCA trip even when our kids were in diapers. We’ve taken a tow boat ride to the Red Rock portage or to a campsite on Saganaga.  We’ve taken day trips, swam, picked blueberries, fished and had an awesome time.

2.      Duncan and Rose Lake – When the kids got a bit older we took them into Rose Lake. Stairway Portage is a beautiful portage that is next to a waterfall and is great fun to play in when hot outside.  It crosses the Border Route Hiking Trail that can be accessed for day hiking trips that entertain kids for hours. 

3.      East Bearskin, Alder, Canoe, Pine – Give this route a try if your kids are able to carry a small day pack.  A nice day trip is to walk the portage to Pine and then to Johnson Falls.  You can camp at one site or multiple sites during this trip.

4.      Granite River – A great trip for a young family to do a 3-5 day canoe camipng trip.  While there are lots of portages you can break them up by camping at multiple sites.  It’s a great trip for avoiding wind because there isn’t big water on the route. 

5.      Seagull, Knife Saganaga – If your children are a little bit older and have been on another trip then this is the perfect BWCA route.  It’s a great 5-6 day loop route that has lakes of all sizes, great fishing and scenic vistas.  It requires a bit of paddling and portaging and is a great route for families who want to cover some ground and water!

BWCA family canoe trip