Saxon Harbor in Iron County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Flambeau Trail – Gateway to the Flambeau Trail

Iron County Heritage Area

By Paul Fehrenbach, July 18, 2011

1. Flambeau Trail – Gateway to the Flambeau Trail Marker

Inscription. The most popular gateway to the Flambeau Trail started here, on the shore of Oronto Bay. Also known as the “Montreal River Trail”, it was the only route inland into the dense virgin forest until the late 1880’s.

The Trail was an ancient Indian trading and war route that connected LaPointe on Madeline Island to Lac du Flambeau, 90 miles to the south.

The first 45 miles of the Trail was a portage, an overland “bridge”, linking Lake Superior to navigable river ways to the south.

When a lively commerce in fur trading began in the late 1700’s, to satisfy European demand for beaver fur hats, the Trail became the “highway” over which trade goods were exchanged for fur pelts.

On this shore, French Canadian voyagers transferred cloth, gunpowder, and other trade goods, brought by canoe from the trading post at LaPointe, into 80 pound tote packs. Each voyager carried packs over the difficult “120 pause” portage, so named for the number of times they stopped to rest – about every one-half mile.

In exchange, millions of dollars of beaver pelts from the Northwest Trading Company post at Lac du Flambeau were toted back to this point destined for LaPointe, Quebec and finally Europe.

Location. 46° 33.722′

By Paul Fehrenbach, July 18, 2011

2. Flambeau Trail – Gateway to the Flambeau Trail Marker

(Inset) “The Flambeau portage is narrow, full of overturned trees, obstacles, muskeg…inhabited solely by owls because no other animal could find a living there.” - Francois Victor Malhoit, Clerk, Northwest Fur Trading Company, 1804

N, 90° 26.246′ W. Marker is in Saxon Harbor, Wisconsin, in Iron County. Marker can be reached from County Highway A 2 miles north of State Highway 122. Touch for map. Marker is located in Saxon Harbor County Park, in east parking lot. Marker is in this post office area: Saxon WI 54559, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 7 other markers are within 14 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Gogebic Iron Range (approx. 5½ miles away); Flambeau Trail – Flambeau Trail Crossing (approx. 12.7 miles away); Penokee Iron Range Trail - Plummer Mine (approx. 12.7 miles away); Penokee Iron Range Trail - Plummer Location (approx. 12.7 miles away); Penokee Iron Range Trail - Plummer Mine Geologic Layer Cake (approx. 12.7 miles away); Penokee Iron Range Trail – A Company Town (approx. 13.3 miles away); Penokee Iron Range Trail – Montreal Location (approx. 13.3 miles away).

Categories. • Exploration • Native Americans •

By Paul Fehrenbach, July 18, 2011

3. Flambeau Trail – Gateway to the Flambeau Trail Marker

in Saxon Harbor

By Paul Fehrenbach, July 18, 2011

4. Flambeau Trail – Gateway to the Flambeau Trail Marker

Looking north out toward Lake Superior

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on July 27, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 292 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 27, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.