Kettle Falls Hotel — Hotel in Fort Frances

This is an incredibly unique experience within the NPS and the best way to really experience Voyageurs NP. Voyageurs is a water park with few roads and fewer places for you to access the park without a boat. In fact, the vast majority of the park, 3 of the 4 lakes and entirety of the Kabetogama Peninsula, cannot be accessed from a car. So, if you don't have a boat, one of the only places you can stay is Kettle Falls which is a hotel located on the very end of the Kabetogama Peninsula between Namakan Lake and Rainy Lake. For over a hundred years is has served as a lodging for visitors, loggers, bootleggers and hundreds of National Park guest. ||This is an experience; it is not luxury lodging. It is camp style lodging with common restroom over a cozy lobby and boarding house dining room. There is a nice, covered porch and the local bar for the park. It is nicer than a tent, but without internet or TV, it is oddity more like the early history of the park where you engaged total strangers in face to face conversation. Again Kettle Falls is not the destination but the experience, and it is one you cannot get anywhere else.||One of the great things about Kettle Falls is the stay gets you a boat ride to see the park. Ok, it is a $45 charge, but with a room at $70, I preferred to look at it as a normal hotel room with a boat ride into the park included. On that ride we saw several bald eagles which was so cool. As the electronic entertainment amenities are low, this place is made to get outdoors with hiking, kayaks and boat rentals and more. Unfortunately, the day of my visit was steady rain so I did not get to take the kayak out, but I did some hiking to the dam and see the spot where you can look south into Canada from the US. ||The last part of traditional entertainment of the hotel is the bar for people all around the park to come to and it is a bar you will want to see. The original foundation was not on stable ground, so the porch and bar floor began to sink, so much that there is a visible and pronounce lien in the building. When the NPS stabilized the building, they kept the slope in the bar and porch, so you can still experience this. The best part is the pool table that rises above the floor on one side to keep it level, adding to the uniqueness of this visit. Again for me this is all about the experience and while my experience did not have the best weather, it did not stop me from enjoying this...

It’s over a hundred years old, and has been owned by locals father (Rick) and son (Sean) for 20 years. It can only be accessed by boat, and part of the fun is getting there. Rick picked us up at Ash River visitor center and took us to the hotel dock, about a 30 minute ride. Once docked, Rick loaded us into a golf cart and took us to check in. The hotel is a real throw back, with a large screened porch, a dining room with tables inside and out on the porch, and a communal room where guests can gather. Rooms are what you would expect from an old hotel, smallish, with a dresser, bed and nightstand. Bathrooms are shared. Our view looked down the dirt road to the lake. It was perfect. We spent the afternoon walking around the grounds and down to the dam. We rented kayaks and attempted to paddle for a few hours, but a storm was coming in and the wind kicked up. We were worried that we would have a difficult time getting back to the hotel between the wind and current from the dam, so we cut the paddle short. On the way back an eagle swooped down in front of us, and landed on a nearby rock. Magical! Kevin, the cook, made us an outstanding dinner (Walleye) and equally outstanding breakfast (loaded hash browns … my husband and I split this order and Kevin individually plated it for us). Treenie, our waitstaff was a delight. This place is lively during the day, with Sean portaging boats between lakes, anglers coming in for some outstanding food, and tour groups stopping by, in addition to the regular hotel guests. We met people visiting from many places, and one couple from Australia told us some people they had met at lunch the day before invited them out on their boat for the afternoon. It’s that kind of place! For a unique adventure full of peace, solitude and wonderful people, I recommend Kettle...

Parked my car at Ash River Visitor Center and was picked up by Craig in the hotel boat - a $45 round trip. The hotel was simple but clean and comfortable. The shared bath was also very clean. There were only two rooms being used at the hotel the nights I was there - I would think the three available bathrooms would be enough if all the hotel rooms were in use. Ate three meals at the hotel. The fresh catch - Walleye - was excellent. The only reason I didn't give this five stars was that during the day and into the night - till 11:00 pm or so -- every person who is camping on an island or renting a houseboat comes to the hotel for a drink at the bar. I didn't see anything about this in the literature I read. I woke up from a nap by barking dogs and went downstairs to find 50 people in the bar and on the porch. It was fine except that 20 of these people stayed for hours and became louder and louder as they became more intoxicated. It was impossible to relax. Walking outside was not possible because of mosquitos due to recent flooding. I'm not sure if this would be a problem later in the season. I stayed two nights and hired Craig for a boat ride on the second day. The park is stunning. It is definitely worth the drive to northern Minnesota...