Apostle Islands Base Camp and Kayak Tour for Women Veterans
Overview
Join us on a kayak tour of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Experience a series of sea kayaking and hiking day trips from our Little Sand Bay Base Camp, including beautiful Sand Island, the Mawikwe Sea Caves, Bark Bay Slough, or the shipwrecks of Red Cliff Bay. So many day trip options await you on this popular Apostle Islands offering just north of Bayfield, Wisconsin. Enjoy delicious food, experience breathtaking sunsets over Lake Superior, and listen to waves crash along the shore. The Apostle Islands National Lake Shore is great for beginning sea kayakers and seasoned paddlers alike.
Itinerary
Day 1: Welcome to Wilderness Inquiry’s beautiful base camp at Little Sand Bay.
In the afternoon meet at our beautiful base camp at Little Sand Bay. Review personal gear, participate in a sea kayaking orientation, and get to know your trip mates. Learn about the Lake Superior “Cedar – Hemlock” forest unique to this area, and take a hike to School Bus Rock, a huge boulder deposited by the glaciers 10,000 years ago. Spend the evening at camp roasting marshmallows over the fire.
Day 2: Explore the Mawikwe Bay Sea Caves by day and enjoy a campfire by night.
Rise early for a delicious breakfast paired with a steaming cup of coffee. Review paddling skills with your guides and start exploring the area. Depending on the weather and wind direction, explore the spectacular Mawikwe Bay Sea Caves or drive to Red Cliff to explore Buffalo Bay and paddle among 19th century shipwrecks. Enjoy a casual paddle back to the beach and head back to base camp for dinner. Listen to stories about many of the Lake Superior shipwrecks around the campfire in the evening.
Day 3: Paddle a scenic route from Little Sand Bay to Sand Island.
Kayak out to Sand Island to explore the Swallow Point Sea caves, Justice Bay, and the historic Sand Island lighthouse on the northeast shore. Eat lunch on a remote beach and, weather permitting, kayak in and out of the caves’ sculpted rock chambers. Enjoy one last night at our Little Sand Bay Base Camp with hot showers, great food, and good company.
Day 4: Enjoy one final adventure before saying farewell to your trip mates.
After breakfast, partake in one final adventure. Enjoy sharing stories with your trip mates over lunch before your afternoon departure.
Accommodations: You will enjoy your stay at our Little Sand Bay Base Camp. At night you will sleep on comfortable cots in platform tents. Typically, there are 2-3 people per 4-person platform tent (other arrangements can be made). Our Little Sand Bay Base Camp has very nice bathrooms and shower facilities with hot water.
Transportation: Veterans may either meet the shuttle at the Wilderness Inquiry St. Paul headquarters or meet the group at the starting location.