Day 2 of 2026 Bowron Lakes Canoe Circuit
"Muddy Portage"

Date: August 14, 2026

Day 2 started at Site 7 and would take us east to a portage to Isaac Lake to Site 14. 

After navigating through the march at the end of Indianpoint Lake, we reached our only portage for the day.  It was less than a mile long and we were told it was the worse one.  It had rocks and mud, but in the end would not be the worst one we had to deal with.  

Two of the adult canoes were made of thin Kevlar.  That made them very light, but more fragile than our other boats.  We were told that if we were not careful on this trail, we could smash our canoe against a rock and end our trip.  Because of this, we moved a slower over the many rocks on the trail and lifted the Kevlar canoes carefully over a few spots.  Honestly, it wasn't all that bad.  If this was the worse of the portages, the rest should be so bad.  We later found that other portages had even more rocks and mud, and did have spots where lifting was required.  

When the ranger told us how bad this portage was, she may have been referring to the optional portage around the marsh at the end of Indianpoint Lake.  This is used when water levels to low to allow canoes to navigate the marsh.  That portage is in terrible condition and we were told to NOT use it.

The beach here was covered in sticky mud.  Care must be taken to lift canoes over obstacles to the left trail.  The right route took you to a dock that was surrounded by mud that would try to swallow your shoes.  The longer route to the left is recommended for the future. 

Dock in background
This beach was a much better launch point

We finally made it to Isaac Lake