BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
January 05 2025
Entry Point 30 - Lake One
Number of Permits per Day: 13
Elevation: 1230 feet
Latitude: 47.9391
Longitude: -91.4792
My son Remy and I, and my friend Keith and his son Charlie put our canoes into Lake one at 9:30 Monday morning after dropping off a car at the Snowbank Lake landing. Lake One can be tricky to navigate. On our way to Lake Two we turned East too early and ended up paddling about a mile out of our way into a dead-end bay before we realized our mistake. We blamed the fact that Lake One was split between Fisher Maps #10 and #4 for our error. If the entire lake had been visible at once on a single map, we would not have made the wrong turn. Once we got back on course we portaged the 30 rods into a pond and then portaged the 40 rods into Lake Two. The weather was nice, and there was a bit of a tail wind out of the West. We stopped for lunch on the shore of Lake Two. After lunch we canoed through the North end of Lake Three and into Lake Four. We stopped for the night at a campsite on the West shore of Lake Four, just North of the channel heading toward Hudson Lake. We had to battle swarms of mosquitoes as we set up the tents. We then had a nice refreshing swim. Because we had brought steaks along for the first night, we didn't go fishing.
On Tuesday morning we had a bacon and eggs breakfast then packed up camp and headed out in our canoes. As we canoed past our campsite, we realized that Remy & I had left our hammocks pitched between trees. We landed again and quickly packed them up. Once again we had beautiful weather. We paddled East and completed 3 short portages before entering Hudson Lake. The 105 rod portage into Lake Insula was exhausting! Lake Insula is a large gorgeous lake broken up by multiple islands and penninsulas. We had lunch at a campsite on a large island just East of Hudson Lake. It felt like we had a tail wind as we were heading East, and then as we turned North it seemed like the wind shifted and was at our backs once again. We navigated Lake Insula flawlessly and camped for the night on the island just West of Williamson Island. After setting up the tents and a refreshing swim, Remy & I got back into the canoe and tried to catch some fish. We had no luck! At 9PM that night, just as we were going to bed, a thunderstorm rolled through. That night I was awakened several times by the loud croaking of bullfrogs from the shallows around our island. What noisy neighbors!
By Wednesday morning the weather had cleared, but the wind was now coming from the Northwest, pretty much in our faces. We paddled to the North end of Lake Insula and tackled the largest portage of our trip. The 180 rod walk to Kiana Lake actually seemed easier than the 105 rod carry into Lake Insula. We headed onward into Thomas Lake where we really started feeling the headwind. We finally made it to the campsite just Northeast of the portage into Thomas Pond in time for lunch. After lunch we proceeded across Thomas Pond and into Thomas Creek after hiking across the famous Kekekabic Trail. We managed to easily run the rapids in Thomas Creek and avoid the 2 short portages. We camped for the night on Hatchet Lake at the northern campsite. It was cool and windy, so we didn't swim. There was lots of threatening weather going by to the North of us, but we stayed dry. After supper we canoed back to Thomas Creek to fish and look for moose. No luck on either count, but we did see a beaver swimmming.
The weather was nice again Thursday morning, but the wind was out of the West which was the direction we were heading. We portaged into Ima Lake and canoed across it. Before portaging into Jordan Lake, we watched a bald eagle sitting in a tree get harrassed repeatedly by a seagull. The narrow channel leading into Jordan Lake is quite beautiful. It is narrow like a river with big rock outcroppings. We paddled across Jordan, Cattyman, Adventure, and Jitterbug Lakes. We found the Eastern campsite on Ahsub Lake taken, so we camped at the Western campsite which had a great place for swimming in front of it. There was a very brave loon in front of the campsite who didn't seem to mind if we got close to it. We tried our luck at fishing, but only caught 1 smallmouth which was too small to eat. Between 5:00 and 7:30 that evening we saw a number of canoes heading across Ahsub Lake from Disappointment Lake to Jitterbug Lake. We weren't sure where they were planning to camp, but it was getting late.
On Friday we awoke again to good weather. We paddled the length of Disappointment Lake and portaged into to Parent Lake and then on to Snowbank Lake. It was July 4th, and as we entered Snowbank Lake the sounfd of firecrackers reminded us we weren't in the wilderness anaymore. After a brief splash war on our way across Snowbank, we made it to the landing and our car was still there. What a great trip!
Mudro to Horse w/7 yr. old daughter
Entry Date:
May 28, 2010
Entry Point:
Mudro Lake
Number of Days:
4
Group Size:
3
We get up and get going from our house in Hibbing, MN at 6 am to get to the ranger station bright and early. We’re all very excited to get our paddles wet and get to Mudro uneventfully. As my wife and I begin unloading the car, Dorothy decides that she needs to see where we are putting in. After unloading the gear and a short reminder about appropriate canoe behavior, we’re off!
The first portage out of Mudro and into Sandpit is a bit hilly and not too difficult for an adult, but I was wondering if it would prove to be too challenging for Dorothy. She was a champ and double portaged with us carrying the leaches and her paddle.
We get to Horse and are very excited about the prospect of camping on the north end of the lake. There was not one occupied site on the way in, which we took as a good omen. Well, we paddled all the way to the north end of the lake only to find every single site on the lake is occupied.
We discuss our options at this point:
1) Horse River to the falls and press onward to Crooked. We quickly dismiss this idea because it would be too demanding on Dorothy. 2) Head to Fourtown. This was appealing, but again we were worried about the activity on the lake and the wear on Dorothy getting there and searching for a site. 3) Head back to Tin Can Mike. We knew the entire lake was wide-open and that Dorothy would handle that trip back.
We headed back to Tin Can Mike and check out the sites on the lake. We choose a peninsula site on the west side. After a lunch of summer sausage, cheese and pita, Dorothy was ready to fish. It was a solid drop off from the point we were on, so I set up Dorothy’s pole and let her fish while we set up camp. She caught a couple of smallies in the half-hour we were busy.
Since we had spent a few hours in the canoe already and the fishing appeared to be good from our site, we stayed put and relaxed.
We ate dinner played Go Fish and were to bed just after dusk.
We’re up early and have a nice little breakfast of oatmeal, berries and coffee. After breakfast we clean up camp and start exploring the lake. Dorothy and I start hitting northern and smallmouth pretty well, but my poor wife isn’t catching anything. After a couple of hours in the canoe, I can tell my wife’s patience is running thin, so we head back to camp and have lunch. Dorothy, Chris and I set out set lines and relax. Dorothy and I still hit fish and my wife does not. She’s becoming less and less amused about this...
We do a little bit of exploring and start a dinner of fish and curry with rice. After a couple of games of cards we hit the hay.
A front is moving in and the wind really picks up out on the lake. We aren’t affected as much in our east facing site by the wind. After attempting futility by trolling for fish in the wind, we head back to camp and throw setlines out. Dorothy occupies her time by playing with the leeches and exploring for wildlife on the rocks. A couple of beavers swim by dragging a rather large branch and we wonder if it’s going to be used for food, shelter or dam. After catching a few fish, Dorothy discovers that we have a visitor. Fred the turtle decided to come on shore and say “Hi.” Dorothy has a blast following Fred around and watching what he’s up to.
After lunch it starts looking ominous, so we clean up camp and prepare for some card games under the tarps. After a few hours of rain, the skies open up and the sun begins to peak through. We cook our last fish dinner over a fire and clean up. While the wife and I are doing dishes, Dorothy finds Fred again and she became very excited. It turns out that Fred is now Lulu. Lulu had originally come to shore to lay eggs and Dorothy found her in the act. Lulu took the name change in stride and finished her business and went back into the lake.
We watch the stars for a bit after dark and go to bed fairly early.
After a pancake breakfast, we pack up and lo and behold we have a new visitor. A large doe and small fawn come down just south of to drink from the lake. We watch them for a while and head out. It’s a very uneventful trip out, but we stop at The Boathouse in Ely for burgers. After lunch we visit the Bear Center just south of Ely and arrive home sunburned, tired and full of smiles.
Our youngest daughter, Grace, will be six next year, which means she gets to come with! We’re going to make it an easy trip, like we did for Dorothy on her first one last year. We’re thinking of hitting up the Lake One entrance and going down the Kawishiwi River.
