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!
Number Lakes Loop- First time out West
Entry Date:
September 06, 2012
Entry Point:
Lake One
Number of Days:
7
Group Size:
3
I was on constant rock duty through the Kawishiwi River. The dead and fire scarred trees were interesting at first but as the day drew on, they started to get a little depressing. Lots of wildflowers though. Super healthy and vibrant. Lake Insula’s south half was scorched as well, but we finally put our backs to the brown and black stubs and found a lovely cozy site along the western shore about halfway up the lake. The water was perfectly calm and the sky perfectly clear. We could not have asked for better weather to start our trip. We spent the evening relaxing around camp and watching the stars come out. The Milky Way swooped overhead and the stars reflected in the water like tiny floating candles. 
We followed the Kawishiwi River once more and it was a joy to paddle with small rapids, glittery gabbro outcrops, and chattering kingfishers. By lunchtime, we made it to the Fishdance Lake Pictographs and feasted at a perched campsite across from the giant cliff. Before we left we floated along side the face of the cliff and gazed in awe at the ancient paintings. One couldn’t help but feel the presence of history here. Early afternoon came and we started looking for home. We juggled between two sites on either side of an island in the Kawishiwi River and opted for the northern site for it’s superior swimming hole. Not long after unpacking I utilized said swimming hole with great relief. It was a hot sunny day of paddling. This site features a nice rocky ledge high off the water with great views to the western shore. From here we watched a family of eagles hunting fish, and plentiful beaver activity. More stargazing and a lovely evening fire. 
Adams Lake was my favorite of the trip and featured a continuous shoreline of craggy basalt. Small trees clung desperately to the surface. Lots of rocky islands! We have definitely climbed in elevation from the river and the water is crystal clear. Rocks the size of vans litter the bottom of the lake. Getting out of Adams and into Boulder was not quite so fun. Lots of slogging through shallow channels, hefting the boat over two beaver dams, and the wind has picked up again. The struggle to get to Boulder Lake is worth it though and we ended up having the lake to ourselves. My Dad had camped on this lake as a boy and we headed over to an island which he said boasted a fantastic site. Many huge erratic boulders line the site and the view from the throne is great especially if you like geology.
Finally, some cloud cover and sparse drops of rain to give us relief from the glaring sun. Like my favorite outdoor humorist Pat McManus writes: “Camping is a fine and pleasant misery.” After all, what would a canoe trip be without blazing sun, wind, and mucky beaver dams? It just wouldn’t be right without them. ~River Lake, Beaver Lake, Adams Lake, Boulder Lake 
By now, the wind had gotten noticeably stronger which made the crossing of Roe and Cap Lake harrowing to say the least. I was too busy churning up a froth to notice any pain in my arms. My eyes stayed fixed to the farther shore willing it to get closer. We found out later that the gusts were up to 27 mph! The next lake was a little better wave wise but the gusty winds made me wish for a decent camp and pronto. Finally we made the quick portage into Shepo Lake and, after taking a look at the numerous whitecaps on Fraser Lake, we decided to stay here. The only site on Shepo is open and rocky only offering a little protection from the swirls of wind. Naps were taken, a few games of Yahtzee played and hot beverages consumed. We had a lot of time to kill and not a whole lot to explore.
Turns out my Dad left his Nalgene at the portage into the lake so we had to paddle back out to retrieve it. While returning, we spotted a few distant plumes of smoke to the north signaling a wildfire. Of course that unsettled us and even though we knew it was VERY far away, all sorts of scenarios start running through your head. Every wispy cloud turned into potential smoke plumes and our site faced away from it so we couldn’t keep tabs on the situation. Dusk started to fall and the excitement continued. Strange noises were occurring across our bay: Grunting and rather large trees falling. We assumed this to be a beaver since we had heard and seen much beaver activity earlier in the day. At least that’s what we were hoping. On top of that, we haven’t seen a soul in two days. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, but if crazy things are happening its kind of reassuring to know there someone else nearby. Night fell and the crashing continued to get closer and closer to our site and then it all fell eerily quiet. We vowed to leave at first light tomorrow to beat the wind and leave the strange creatures behind. ~Cap Lake, Roe Lake, Sagus Lake, Shepo Lake 
Fraser Lake was fairly calm this morning, which was great because it took a while to reach the other side. We met some other early morning paddlers with the same idea as us. Finally back into a smaller lake: Kiana. The fall colors are really popping now. The blueberry and diervilla turned plum purple and the maples yellow and scarlet. When we finally reached Insula again, there was only a short diagonal trek between us and “home.” We set up camp on Williamson Island, a small rocky island only inhabited by mice and a red squirrel. A welcome change from Shepo. We relaxed on the rocky front porch with oatmeal and coffee in hand because we had missed breakfast that morning. The wind picked up again but our site was well protected. After a very short tour of the island, we took our appointed baths and had a nice afternoon tea on the rocks. The only thing to watch out for on this site was the abundance of mice rummaging all around. Heard wolves again in the distance. Not too many loons on this trip, though. Watched shooting stars under the chilly clear sky until the fire dwindled. A much more relaxing evening. I think I’ll sleep well tonight. ~Shepo Lake, Fraser Lake, Thomas Lake, Kiana Lake, Insula, Lake 
Definitely a little bite in the air today and we saw many flocks of geese heading south. The fire pit area boasted an incredible view of the sky and we watched a fireball leave a bright streak across the sky! ~Insula, Lake, Hudson Lake 
