Bikerafting from Ely to Grand Marais, Minnesota
6-minute read
“There’s so much untapped potential for packrafting in the Midwest,” says Minneapolis photographer and paddler Jamie Cooper. “It’s way more attainable than people think.”
Jamie is an avid packrafter and bikerafter. He and his buddy Ryan Rumpca recently spent four days and three nights traveling 150 miles of gravel roads plus more miles of creeks, rivers and lakes in northern Minnesota on a trip they call Between Hubs.
We chatted with Jamie to hear about his trip and the packrafting scene here in the Midwest.
Here’s our conversation with Jamie Cooper:
AQUA BOUND: Tell us about your recent trip up in northern Minnesota.
JAMIE: This was a trip that a fellow filmmaker and photographer and I have been wanting to do. He made the dive into full-time freelancing earlier this year and sent me a one-word text: “Bike packing?” I immediately responded, “Absolutely.” All of a sudden, we were looking at maps and areas we could go.
The trip connected the two main hubs of northern Minnesota: Ely and Grand Marais. We did a bikepacking trip, traversing the southern border of the Boundary Waters. The whole idea was to explore an area most people drive past to go into the Boundary Waters.
The map of their bikeraft route
There are tons of great waters to be paddled without having to go into the Boundary Waters. So Ryan and I decided it’d be a unique experience to connect Ely and Grand Marais.
It was a 4-day, 3-night trip. We did about 150 miles of riding. The rafting ended up being much shorter than what we expected—we ran into the highest concentration of beaver dams I’ve ever come across. We spent more time walking our packrafts around dams than actually in the water!
Crossing one of many beaver dams along their way
But that’s part of the spirit of adventures like that. We’re producing a film about it that we're going to submit to a couple of festivals next year.
[We’ll be sure to follow up with Jamie about that film and let you know.]
AQUA BOUND: What was your goal with this trip?
JAMIE: To find an area close to home and explore it in a way that isn’t really explored—by bike and packraft. We were able to get into some waterways that canoes and kayaks can’t.
Also, to show you don’t have to go too far out of your backyard to find some unique adventures.
AQUA BOUND: What kind of gear did you bring along?
JAMIE: Mostly ultra-light stuff, just because that goes quite well with bikepacking. The bulkiest, most weight-intensive things we brought were actually the paddling side. The packrafts were about five pounds apiece. The PFDs, being big and bulky, took up a lot more room.
I had a light Gossamer Gear backpacking tent. Ryan is a hammock guy, so he brought his whole hammock setup. We ate freeze-dried meals. Tried to be as lean and light as we could.
We used Alpacka Raft Caribou packrafts, their entry-level model. We bought the ones with the cargo bay so we could put our items inside. It acts as a dry bag and helps with space inside the boat. Super convenient as you don’t have to be lugging along extra dry bags.
They have tie-offs so you can load them up, and they’re very easy to paddle, especially on flatwater. Even mild whitewater, which we had to go through a little bit. They handled great.
Both of us used Aqua Bound’s Whiskey Carbon paddle. It’s great for what we were doing. Lightweight and durable. We had to rely on them even a walking staff at times. It was my first time using that paddle, and I highly recommend it.
AQUA BOUND: What were the biking routes and waterways like?
JAMIE: The majority of the riding was on forest service roads, with a few old logging roads and old ATV roads. Leaving town and entering town was the only time we were on pavement. We tried to stay off the beaten path as much as we could.
We paddled on a couple of rivers that connected some lakes, and explored some skinny water that was quite overgrown with willow. We did a little bit of paddling on the lakes, including Hogback Lake. It was a little rainy that day, so we took our time and just kind of floated around and enjoyed the leisure of being on the lake.
AQUA BOUND: Besides the beaver dams, did you have any surprises?
JAMIE: No, I wouldn’t say anything really surprised me. We’ve spent many nights out there. That actually made the dynamic work quite well. That was the first time Ryan and I had met in person. We’ve been following each other on Instagram for years and have very similar interests. Being able to go with essentially a stranger in real life, you want to know they’re going to be competent in that area.
We both had that comfort knowing we’re familiar with Northern Minnesota and lot of the roads we were on.
AQUA BOUND: In your experience, how popular is packrafting in Minnesota?
JAMIE: There’s a small group of people and it’s growing. In the last few years, it seems like more and more people are doing it. We see a lot of packrafts around the [Twin Cities] Metro.
And the bike culture in Minneapolis is fantastic, so these are great disciplines to have together. You can pack a raft up on your bike and strap your bike to the packraft to float down Minnehaha Creek, connect to a couple lakes, or get on the Mississippi River.
I’m seeing it a lot more and more around the Metro, but you can see other areas of Minnesota and the Midwest starting to have more packrafting happening, too.
Cruising on a rare stretch of pavement
AQUA BOUND: What do you want people—especially in the Midwest—to know about packrafting and bikerafting?
JAMIE: It’s way more attainable than people think. It’s not an over-complicated sport, especially with the weight of the packraft being so minimal. Packrafts are cheaper than a lot of new canoes or kayaks, and you don’t have to worry about trying to put a canoe or kayak on top of your car.
And it’s so accessible—you can go anywhere there’s water. It’s a way to explore areas that are normally overlooked. You’ll find in Minnesota that many of the riverways also have bike paths along the way. And you’re able to camp on a lot of the rivers, like the Mississippi and St. Croix. You can do a self-shuttle that makes the logistics a lot easier.
There’s so much untapped potential for packrafting in the Midwest, and it’s such a unique experience. I’m a canoeist by trade, but packrafting has opened up more possibilities of where you can go and how you can get out.
I have a young daughter, and bringing a toddler in a packraft just seems a little bit more stable than a canoe. It’s so family-friendly. You can have anyone hop in and hop out.
It’s something that’s overlooked. Hopefully, more people decide to give it a shot because it’s just a fun way to be on the water.
Ryan (left) and Jamie (right)
Our thanks to Jamie for his time and photos! You can learn more about his photography on his website, www.jamiecooperphotography.com. You’ll also find him on Instagram.
Ryan has a website as well: www.ryanrumpca.com.
What paddling questions can our friendly Customer Service team help you with? Contact us at 715-755-3405 or sales@aquabound.com, or choose our online chat option.
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