The Muddy Compass

By Staff | on August 04, 2023

Kallie Kantos (left) is pictured with her mom, Cheryl Berg, after leaving the Rainy Lake Visitor Center in Voyageurs National Park on the way to visit the Kettle Falls Hotel. Submitted photos.

The Muddy Compass. You may think it is a strange name for a column, but let me explain why I chose it. Not every adventure is cut and dry or well-planned. Some adventures you may wind up lost and have no idea where you are or what to do next, but you always learn something in the end—even if what you learned is to bring a compass or to trust your inner compass.

Hi, my name is Kallie Kantos. I live in International Falls. Hometown Focus (HTF) has been publishing my photographs and articles since 2016. For many years I only submitted photographs with short explanations with a couple of exceptions, but the past couple of years, I started to write more and submit the articles to HTF. You may have also read articles my dad, Tom Kantos, has written or maybe even the journal articles my pup, Duke, has written.

A little bit about me: I grew up in International Falls and had an amazing childhood. My parents were married to each other, we often went on family vacations, my sister, our pup Pepper, and I spent our summers swimming and fishing at the family cabin in Canada. Our babysitters were our grandma and our great-aunt.

This Voyageurs National Park map shows the location of the Kettle Falls Hotel, the Kettle Falls Dam and the dam overlook.

I tried to be athletic, but my sister was the athletic one. I enjoyed college and my family frequently asked me if I was planning on being a “professional student.” Believe me, if I could have, I certainly would have. They asked me this because I attended five colleges and graduated from four. The last degree I received was a Master of Science.

No matter how many times I moved away from International Falls, I always moved back home. Maybe it was because that was where I felt the most comfortable, maybe it was because it is easy to be close to nature here, or maybe it was because that was where my family lived? Being from a small family, the bonds are very strong. If I am being honest, I know the reason I always moved home was because of my family.

I enjoy spending as much time as possible outdoors kayaking, fishing, taking photographs, hiking, picking berries, and foraging for mushrooms. My mom always says she doesn’t know where I get my adventurous nature from. She says this because I enjoy things like skydiving, scuba diving, bungee jumping and ziplining. I don’t understand why people don’t like to do things like that. Sure, some people may be afraid of heights, but what better way to get over them than to do something that scares them? That is my logic.

The Kettle Falls Dam. There is about a 10-foot drop between Namakan Lake and Rainy Lake at Kettle Falls and Squirrel Falls. (Squirrel Falls is referred to as the Canadian Sister to Kettle Falls.) The two dams were built over waterfalls in 1914 to control the level of the lakes. The viewing platform can be seen to the right of the dam.

I am an animal lover, almost all kinds. I’m not a fan of mosquitoes (they are just something we all put up with living in Minnesota), but I really don’t care for cockroaches or pine beetles. Dogs, cats, ferrets, snakes, spiders are all wonderful in my book.

This column will focus on adventures I have been on, happenings in the International Falls area—including Ranier, Ray, Fort Frances (Ontario, Canada), Kabetogama and Ash River—and family. I welcome any article suggestions you may have.

Right now I would like to share information with you about a recent trip I took to Kettle Falls. I woke up the morning of our trip, rolled over, looked out the window, noticed the leaves were not moving and the sun was shining. I remember thinking, “This will be the perfect day to take a boat ride, the water will be like glass.” And I was right.

The water on Rainy Lake was as smooth as glass on the day of Kallie’s visit to the Kettle Falls Hotel.

We drove to the Rainy Lake Visitor Center in Voyageurs National Park and launched our boat. It didn’t take long to travel 34 miles. The water was very smooth, just like glass, on our way up to Kettle Falls. We could have arrived much sooner than we did, but along the way we admired the scenic beauty of Rainy Lake and even checked out a few campsites.

If you are wondering why we didn’t just drive to Kettle Falls, it is because the only way to get there is by water. A person can get there from Rainy Lake or Namakan Lake via boat or you can go by float plane. Once we docked the boat, we walked through the woods on a well-groomed, easy-to-navigate trail and boardwalk and made it to our destination, the historic Kettle Falls Hotel. The two-story white building with a red roof and accents sits comfortably in the woods. It is also referenced as “A jewel in the forest.” The hotel was built between 1910 – 1913.

Pictured is the front of the Kettle Falls Hotel. The guest rooms are on the second level. The dining room, bar and check-in area are on the first level.

Upon our arrival, we were ready to eat lunch. We chose a table in the screened-in porch that stretches across the front of the hotel. It was a warm day, but we decided it would be nice to relax outside instead of eating in the dining room. It was a busy area with people coming and going. The food was good and the staff were very courteous.

At the opposite end of the building from the dining room, you will find the famous bar—the Lumberjack Saloon. This isn’t your ordinary bar; the floor is very slanted. You won’t have a problem playing pool because the pool table is level, but you may have to stand on your tip-toes to make the shot. People from all over the United States and Canada come to visit Kettle Falls each year.

Once we finished eating our walleye and french dip, it was time to go for a hike. We walked across the front yard and were greeted by other visitors and their dogs. Yes, dogs are welcome at the Kettle Falls Hotel. The trail led us through the woods and it ended at the Trading Post on the Namakan Lake side. The Trading Post has a little bit of everything, including ice cream on those hot summer days and sweatshirts for the cool nights.

After a little bit of shopping, we headed back up the trail, but this time I noticed the sign, “Portage hours 7:30 a.m. to sunset.” For a fee, you can have your fishing boat or pontoon boat portaged from Namakan Lake to Rainy Lake or vice versa.

We walked up the trail to the viewing platform. This is where we had a good view of the dam dividing the two lakes. This is one of the few places a person can stand in the U.S. and look south into Canada. After spending a few hours at Kettle Falls, we headed back home.

So you may be left wondering how you can visit Kettle Falls if you don’t have a boat or an airplane. The good news is there are two different cruises you can take, one from the Rainy Lake Visitor Center or Ash River Visitor Center, both in Voyageurs National Park. For more information on the cruises, check out www.recreation.gov.

For more information on the Kettle Falls Hotel, hours of operation and rates, check out www.kettlefallshotel.com. If you ever have the opportunity to visit, I highly recommend it.

Enjoy life and don’t be afraid to venture off the beaten path. Life is an adventure.

Kallie Kantos lives in International Falls.

The Kettle Falls Historic District

The Kettle Falls Historic District was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It is located on the international boundary where Namakan Lake drains into Rainy Lake in Voyageurs National Park. It is in St. Louis County on the eastern end of the Kabetogama peninsula. This district is accessible only by boat or air travel through a sparsely populated wilderness. It is one spot on the international boundary where Canada lies to the south of the United States.

The Kettle Falls district includes the Kettle Falls hotel (which was already listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976), the Kettle Falls dam, and two log structures used by laborers during construction of the dam. The Kettle Falls Historic District is significant because of its association with transportation, industry and recreation.

Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, NRHP inventory nomination form.

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