Site Details
Closest Access Point: Kiosk (Access # 29)
Distance to Access Point: 13 KM (2.5-3 hours)
Difficulty of Travel From Access Point: Easy (there is a 1.3 KM portage to cross though)
Maintenance Level: Regular
Date Visited: May, 2022
This is one of two sites on a small-ish island towards the northeast end of Manitou. I wasn’t blown away by this spot, but I didn’t hate it either. It would be a perfectly serviceable site for a night or two.
Terrain: There’s a bit of uphill from the water to the fire pit area, and then a bit more to get up to a couple of tent pads and the thunderbox. It’s not too steep, there aren’t any stairs installed like on other Manitou sites, but it is still a rise. Ground cover is a bit grassy near the water. No major tripping hazards beyond the odd rock or root.
Canoe Landing: The shoreline is dominated by a shelf of sloping rock. We found a spot to ground the bottom of the boat on some underwater rocks and climbed out from there. The nice thing is you can use the shoreline almost like a dock and climb in and out from anywhere. No significant underwater obstacles I can recall.
Fire Pit: The fire it area is a bit underwhelming. The pit itself is decently constructed, but it’s kind of just plopped there on the side of the hill. On the plus side, it’s got a nice, unobstructed view out to the water.
Tent Sites: There’s flat ground for a few tents in the back of the site. No preconstructed tent pads or anything, but certainly enough room for two or three shelters.
Swimmability: Pretty decent swimming. There are plenty of rocks to slip in from and hte underwater terrain is rocky, not mushy. Water shoes are a good idea.
Thunderbox: The thunderbox is out the back of the site and reasonably distanced. It’s also in pretty decent shape. The only concern I’d have is that this is a small island so there’s a chance someone using Site 6 might stumble on you while they’re looking for their own box.
Accessories: Not many accessories to speak of. The fire pit “benches” are basically just semi-rotted logs. You’ve got your choice of grills, ranging from small and sketchy to big and sketchy.
Views: This is a pretty open site. There isn’t much tree cover to the north or northeast meaning you’ve got some great views up Manitou. There’s also a nice little spot on a rise facing Pine Island (south-ish) that’s got a clear view over water.
Notes: I visited this site on the May long weekend and it was buggy. The wind was coming out of the south, and given the northern exposure here it was very well sheltered. That’s great in the fall, less great when you want some bug clearing airflow.