Isle Royale National Park - 2025
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September 2025 represented 20 years since this same group completed the Minong Ridge Trail in Isle Royale National Park. Although we've aged, we still attempted the longer Greenstone Ridge Trail from Rock Harbor to Windigo.
Our Day 1 flight from Hubbell, MI to Rock Harbor was delayed by morning rain and clouds. Eventually, we were in the air on the 45-minute journey to Isle Royale National Park. Clouds cleared and we arrived at Rock Harbor and completed the self-checkin. We started the 6-mile hike to Daisy Farm camp around 12:30pm and arrived at 3:30pm. Having slept very little on the drive to Hubbell the night before, we were pretty tired. We counted the minutes until 5pm for us to have dinner. Fortunately, we started and completed dinner early, for an evening rainstorm started shortly thereafter. Furthermore, we were delighted to have a four-sided shelter this night.
Day 2 was our longest day. The 9.2-mile hike would include the ascension of the Greenstone Ridge via the Mount Ojibway Trail. This would allow us to partially ascend the Mount Ojibway tower. Following a lengthy snack at the tower, we continued the remaining 7.5 miles to West Chickenbone Camp. There was some green algae at the lake edge dissuading me from swimming, and a very bold fox persistently entered our camp looking for favorable items.
The third day would take us through Mount Siskiwit, the highest point of the island and 7.7 miles to Lake Hatchet. The day involved a series of ridges and woodlands. It was another hot day with a lot of sun. We reached the group camp at Hatchet Lake around 3pm. On this afternoon, I took a short plunge in the lake, and it was great.
Day 4 was a very straightforward and short day from Hatchet Lake to South Lake Desor Camp involving 8.1 miles. We reached Ishpeming Point around lunchtime and had a short lunch. The mosquitos were active, and we congregated under the center of the tower. We reached the group camp at South Lake Desor around 2pm, surprisingly fast. The sun was shining again, and the beach beyond Group Camp #1 was fantastic. A USCG helicopter was rescuing someone at North Lake Desor, which was an unusual site to witness. Apart from the rescue, the afternoon and setting of Lake Desor was incredibly enjoyable. We met two hikers who left Windigo in the morning. This piqued our curiosity about skipping Island Mine camp and proceeding to Windigo.
Day 5 was a very short hike of 5.4 miles from South Lake Desor to Island Mine. We considered skipping Island Mine for a few reasons. First, it was 0.4 miles off the trail and would have to be re-hiked on the last day. The additional logistics of an added stop was a consideration. Second, Island Mine is in a lower grassland, and the mosquitos already were prominently involved in all our activities. Third, by skipping Island Mine we may catch an earlier flight back to Hubbell. We decided to make a decision when we reached the junction. As it turned out, we encountered a couple near the junction at 11:40am. They said there were a lot of mosquitos at Island Mine. Since it was still early, we decided to continue to Windigo. By 2:30pm, we were in Windigo and obtained a four-sided shelter. That night, we had a nice faucet water supply, nice bathroom facilities, a shelter from the mosquitos, and a picnic table. That night, we two male moose were combatting in the water in front of our shelter, and the stars filled the sky.
Day 6 we packed up our gear and had the last of our meals. We still had a small number of snacks. Hoping to catch an earlier flight, we headed to the seaplane dock at 11:45am. While hiking up the trail, we encountered an individual you asked for us by name. He was scheduled to leave at Noon but couldn't leave unless we left earlier. This was perfect. So, we caught the earlier flight, making our long drive to Chicago a lot easier.