Hey everyone I'll be take a good group of middle-aged adults to Ensign lake. Our primary goal will be fishing and camping all while using Ensign as a base camp. I've heard there is usually good fishing on the east end. Has anyone every been to those campsites?

Also, I hear it can get pretty busy. Can anyone speak to that? I am wondering if busy means a lot of flow through or if it gets fished pretty heavily!

Also, if anyone has any idea on good spots on the lake for fishing that would be helpful.

I research A TON so please share!

One thing that stuck out for me on Ensign was a relative lack of nice, big campsites. Lots of them are pretty brushy looking, so you'll want to get in early. If you stick with it you'll find fish. There are plenty of nice bass and some good eater-sized walleyes. That time of year start shallow.

There is three campsites on the east end of Ensign that I have seen six tents on.

I have been there many times in June. You should have your pick of the sites in May or the first 2 weeks of June. After that it get crouded, until after Labor Day. You will be going at the start of a busy time. I would leave on the first tow available, book the tow right after the permit. That way you will be at the portage by about 6:30 am. This will put you on the east side of the lake in 2 hours. We usually are in camp about 10:00am. This gives you the best chance to get the site you want while the other groups are still paddling on moose lake, or taking the next tow. It gets fished heavy during the year. I paddled in the bow one trip and was amazed at all the bait fish in this lake. Lots of bait fish equals lots of game fish.

I stayed at the 1215 site (average site) the last night of a May/June trip last year. It's the second one west of the portage out of Ashigan. There were three boats of walleye jiggers working a complex of humps just offshore of the site. Bet they boated 20 fish in less than two hours out there. We did well on bass along the shore from the portage all the way to the little pocket a bit west of our camp. Caught several bass north of three pounds, and some decent northerns in the eastern third of Ashigan as well.

Nice. Thank you everyone. I figure once we have a nice base camp the amount of people around shouldn't matter. I do have a question in regards to people fishing. I have read that many people travel the BWCA just to camp and canoe. I do it really to fish as much as possible. Do you find that people are on
Ensign to fish or camp? I understand this would most likely be a guessing game, but experience speaks volumes.

We were there first week of Aug and we had company but would not say crowded. Saw as many bear as we did full campsites. Definitely take the tow up Moose. We stayed on the west end and the bass practically jumped in the canoe, really nice sizes but only hooked a couple of walleye. I got a nice one jigging with a leech and my buddy got a smaller one doing same with a worm so any live bait works. Did see a lot of bait fish around rocks and stumps. Both walleye were caught around the narrows between the west and east sides. Water was low and was not totally impressed with campsites on the west side. We checked out 5 or 6 before picking the center site on the island just west of the narrows. Had a nice landing, bluff area for fire pit and kitchen and lower pad for tent. Maybe would hold 2 tents max.

We had at least 2 bears on the island but neither one bothered us and the grouse were very friendly.

I don't want to burst your bubble at all, but we went through there the second week of June a couple years ago. Never fished it because I couldn't wait to get off the lake it was so crowded. by 7 am it was 4 tows deep waiting to unload at the splash lake portage. Then waited 40 minutes at the Ensign portage for other groups ahead of us to get through it. Then could see no less that 12 other canoes on the lake from the portage itself, my son counted them, not to mention a bunch more as we traveled through it with many, many occupied camps.

Lots of folks like the lake, but it sure wasn't the Boundary Waters experience I was looking for.

I just want to make sure we still get that BWCA feel