What is This? BWCA.

[SledNeck]

This is on an Island in Trout Lake. My guess is something for hooking up a boat or something from the loggin' days of yesteryear.

Biggest snake Ive ever seen in the wild (in Minnesota). It was on the shores of Little Trout Lake.

[lars0926]

SledNeck,

I'm extremely interested in this object. Can you tell me where Trout Lake is? How big is this island? Does it contain any greywhack stone on it? Would you, by any chance, have GPS coordinates on it?

[jparrucci]

I believe that the loggers used to tie off sections of lake by stringing line across the lake to those hoops. There is a large one like that on Vermilion in the Wolf Bay area. The loggers used to float the logs across bays of the lake or something to that extent, and they used to keep the logs in a section of the lake. The area of Vermilion with the same type of ring has lots of OLD deadheads still floating around, and if I remember correctly there is one like that on Pelican also, in the NW part of the lake. Lots of old deadhead there too. So..in short, I believe that is related to the old logging industry in the area. Anyone else know exactly what they are for?

[jonny_redhorse]

sledneck.......I've run into many similar iron rods (pins), pipes etc. while up in the Voyageurs park area throght the last 35 years or so....what they are are iron pins and other "fasteners" embedded in the rocks by logging companies at the turn of the century(or even before) usually on the rock points of small bays to hold back logs in those bays(by stretching steel cables between the pins or fasteners from point to point ) during the logging era days....then they'd float em up to the various sawmills as in international falls or wherever.....say the Rainy Lake Logging company....hope this helps....jonny

[jonny_redhorse]

Sled...here's a photo of one of my favorite camping areas in the voyageurs park........one can see one of the iron "pins" sticking out of the rock on the lower right in the photo...that pin has to have been drilled and pounded in by hand and can only imagine how they must have did it in that white, granite rock(over a hundred years ago)...these pins are on almost every point in that particular area of sandpoint lake...some of the pins also have a "ring" attached ...jonny

[caseymcq]

lars -

The lake is located in NE MN north of Vermillion. There isn't any greywacke up in these parts. You would be looking at igneous rock up here.

[fishermn]

Yep, thats generally what they were for... Tying off the boom to hold the logs back in a certain area. JonnyR, what are the brown boxes at that site? I Havent camped in voyageurs before...

Also, have ya fished oxhide at all this year? I was thinking of trying to get out there after bass one of these weekends. Hit twin lakes last tuesday and had a blast with the largemouths and northerns!

[jonny_redhorse]

hey fishermn!....the brown boxes are "bear boxes"..put your edibles in em so they don't come in your tent at night ....kinda nice .....and yes....I have been to oxhide a couple times this spring........had a great time with the largemouth!....no one on the lake but me!....if you scroll back,I posted some pics of the largies I caught on oxhide around june 10th or so.......under("largemouth from a canoe" 5 pics).......jonny

[Slyster]

About the snake... a Garter Snake... Fox and Bull snakes get a lot bigger in MN.. approaching 7 feet.

[fishermn]

Yep, thats what I was thinking those were, thats a nice feature, no hanging the food in the trees. Do all of the sites in Voyageurs have those??

[lars0926]

Ok. So there's many of those iron pins. Makes sense about the logging industry. SledNeck, can you confirm for me how far away was the next nearest shore or island to the eyehole? (i.e. 200', 1/4 mile, etc.) Also, those who are familiar with the iron pins. Have you seen these with the eyehole so developed? Is the anchored mooring ring entirely welded shut or is there a seam? Sorry to ask such bizarre questions, but any of you who have seen them could really help me out.

[shortfatguy]

i have seen them just like this on birch lake near babbitt mn. out of curiosity lars whats is so facinating about them to you?

[lars0926]

shortfatguy,

If you have seen these moorings, can you confirm whether the eyehole is closed or open? Where is the nearest shoreline to the ones you have seen?

I'm happy to tell you what's so fascinating about them, but not here. Let's just say I'm a bit of a KRS treasure hunter and that everything we see is not always as it appears. My email is [email protected]

[Jackpine Rob]

Those things are fairly common. Nothing at all unusual about them.

If hunting for treasure, please be aware that many/most are located on State or Federal lands or waters, and need to be left in place.

As for the design features, the eye is closed on those that I have inspected closely, and most look to be of identical manufacture - at least in the Ely area. From some of the old boxes and crates and barrels that I have stumbled upon, it appeared that many of the iron pieces used in the logging industry were manufactured in the East and shipped to the logging areas.