BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
September 17 2025
Entry Point 55 - Saganaga Lake
Saganaga Lake entry point allows overnight paddle or motor (25 HP max). This entry point is supported by Gunflint Ranger Station near the city of Grand Marais, MN. The distance from ranger station to entry point is 55 miles. No motors (use or possession) west of American Point. Access to Canada (the Crown land and Quetico Park). Large lake with many campsites and easy access. This area was affected by blowdown in 1999.
Number of Permits per Day: 15
Elevation: 1184 feet
Latitude: 48.1716
Longitude: -90.8868
Saganaga Lake - 55
Number of Permits per Day: 15
Elevation: 1184 feet
Latitude: 48.1716
Longitude: -90.8868
Saganaga Lake - 55
Moose River North to Iron Lake and back again
by billsta
Trip Report
Entry Date:
August 31, 2008
Entry Point:
Moose/Portage River (north)
Number of Days:
7
Group Size:
2
Trip Introduction:
This is the second BW trip that my 22 year old daughter Jamie and I are making together. Last year's trip was a bit of a test balloon for her, but we had such a great time that she was asking to return before our first trip was over.
Day 2 of 7
Sunday, August 31, 2008 My daughter Jamie and I were up fairly early. Our gear was packed and ready to go from the night before, so loading and setting out was a quick process. We left home at 7:00 AM and made our planned stop at Caribou for coffee and muffins. One additional stop for ice for the cooler and we were on our way. We hit two detours within the first hour, but eventually were on I-90 headed for the Wisconsin border from Illinois. Only 8 ½ hours to go. Our drive was pretty uneventful and we arrived in Ely just before 4PM. VNO welcomed us and chatted a bit with my daughter, who had been on a trip with her new fiancé, just 3 weeks prior. There was a small mix-up with finding our reservation folder, but since we were headed out for supper, they had everything back on track when we returned. Since the bunkhouse was full, they had us put up at the Ely Motel for Sunday night. We checked in, and headed to the Ely Steakhouse for a very nice supper. We planned on hitting our entry point (Moose River North) early the next morning, so VNO gave us our equipment pack, our personal pack, and strapped our canoe to the top of our vehicle that night. We’d visit them in the AM to pick up our food pack and bait. We stopped at the gas station across from the Ely Motel to pick up breakfast: Fig Newtons and power bars. We settled in at the motel and packed our personal gear. We were ready to go and turned the lights out shortly after 9PM.
Day 4 of 7
Monday, September 01, 2008 We wake up at 5:30AM. I take a quick shower while Jamie gets dressed. We are ready to go by 5:50AM. We head to VNO for our food pack and bait, and John gives us some last minute tips regarding Iron Lake. Our plan is to head to either Agnes or Boulder Bay (Lac La Croix) today and then on to Iron on Tuesday. As we leave VNO for the entry point, Jamie realizes she is still holding our room key. We make the short drive back to the motel and place the key in the drop slot, then backtrack to the Echo trail. We initially miss the turn-off, but recover quickly and reach the Moose River North entry point at about 7:15AM. By the time we unload our gear and park our vehicle, it’s almost 7:30AM. We planned on starting at 7AM, so we’re a bit behind schedule. We are double portaging and as we start our first trip, another group is unloading their car. We cross paths as we return for our second load. We hit the water close to 8AM. It is a beautiful morning with blue skies, but it’s already starting to get warm…I think it eventually reaches the low 90’s. We’re a bit concerned about traffic, especially groups coming out after the holiday weekend. This is borne out as we pass 11 groups headed out as we head in. We cross 9 beaver dams, although only 5 require “pull-overs”. We stop at a vacant campsite on Nina Moose Lake and use the latrine. We feel fortunate because it is fairly windy and the wind is directly at our backs. The groups exiting are having a tough time paddling directly into the wind. We reach Agnes Lake and paddle towards the north end. We find a beautiful campsite on a high point and decide to stop there for the night. I set up camp and Jamie cooks hotdogs for lunch. By the time we eat it is pushing 2:30PM. Jamie sets up her hammock and takes a nap. I’m anxious to do a bit of fishing, but it’s pretty windy and there are whitecaps on the lake. I fish from shore and catch one bass in about an hour. Eventually I hang the other hammock and stretch out for a while. When Jamie wakes up, we lay in our hammocks and talk for an hour or so. We decide to get up and venture out for some fishing. The wind is blowing directly onto the point we’re camped on and it seems like the perfect place to start. Unfortunately, it’s blowing too hard. We have problems paddling into the wind and keeping the canoe in one place. We get far enough up wind and drop the anchor, but we’re blown off of our spot. Even the anchor won’t hold us in place. We eventually give up and head for the lee side of the point. It’s quiet there and Jamie catches a couple of pike and a bass, but that’s all we get that night. We head back to our campsite and decide to skip supper due to our late lunch. We’re in our tent reading by flashlight before 8:30PM, and both fall asleep within an hour. 
Day 2 of 7
Monday, September 01, 2008 We wake up at 5:30AM. I take a quick shower while Jamie gets dressed. We are ready to go by 5:50AM. We head to VNO for our food pack and bait, and John gives us some last minute tips regarding Iron Lake. Our plan is to head to either Agnes or Boulder Bay (Lac La Croix) today and then on to Iron on Tuesday. As we leave VNO for the entry point, Jamie realizes she is still holding our room key. We make the short drive back to the motel and place the key in the drop slot, then backtrack to the Echo trail. We initially miss the turn-off, but recover quickly and reach the Moose River North entry point at about 7:15AM. By the time we unload our gear and park our vehicle, it’s almost 7:30AM. We planned on starting at 7AM, so we’re a bit behind schedule. We are double portaging and as we start our first trip, another group is unloading their car. We cross paths as we return for our second load. We hit the water close to 8AM. It is a beautiful morning with blue skies, but it’s already starting to get warm…I think it eventually reaches the low 90’s. We’re a bit concerned about traffic, especially groups coming out after the holiday weekend. This is borne out as we pass 11 groups headed out as we head in. We cross 9 beaver dams, although only 5 require “pull-overs”. We stop at a vacant campsite on Nina Moose Lake and use the latrine. We feel fortunate because it is fairly windy and the wind is directly at our backs. The groups exiting are having a tough time paddling directly into the wind. We reach Agnes Lake and paddle towards the north end. We find a beautiful campsite on a high point and decide to stop there for the night. I set up camp and Jamie cooks hotdogs for lunch. By the time we eat it is pushing 2:30PM. Jamie sets up her hammock and takes a nap. I’m anxious to do a bit of fishing, but it’s pretty windy and there are whitecaps on the lake. I fish from shore and catch one bass in about an hour. Eventually I hang the other hammock and stretch out for a while. When Jamie wakes up, we lay in our hammocks and talk for an hour or so. We decide to get up and venture out for some fishing. The wind is blowing directly onto the point we’re camped on and it seems like the perfect place to start. Unfortunately, it’s blowing too hard. We have problems paddling into the wind and keeping the canoe in one place. We get far enough up wind and drop the anchor, but we’re blown off of our spot. Even the anchor won’t hold us in place. We eventually give up and head for the lee side of the point. It’s quiet there and Jamie catches a couple of pike and a bass, but that’s all we get that night. We head back to our campsite and decide to skip supper due to our late lunch. We’re in our tent reading by flashlight before 8:30PM, and both fall asleep within an hour. 
Day 2 of 7
Sunday, August 31, 2008 My daughter Jamie and I were up fairly early. Our gear was packed and ready to go from the night before, so loading and setting out was a quick process. We left home at 7:00 AM and made our planned stop at Caribou for coffee and muffins. One additional stop for ice for the cooler and we were on our way. We hit two detours within the first hour, but eventually were on I-90 headed for the Wisconsin border from Illinois. Only 8 ½ hours to go. Our drive was pretty uneventful and we arrived in Ely just before 4PM. VNO welcomed us and chatted a bit with my daughter, who had been on a trip with her new fiancé, just 3 weeks prior. There was a small mix-up with finding our reservation folder, but since we were headed out for supper, they had everything back on track when we returned. Since the bunkhouse was full, they had us put up at the Ely Motel for Sunday night. We checked in, and headed to the Ely Steakhouse for a very nice supper. We planned on hitting our entry point (Moose River North) early the next morning, so VNO gave us our equipment pack, our personal pack, and strapped our canoe to the top of our vehicle that night. We’d visit them in the AM to pick up our food pack and bait. We stopped at the gas station across from the Ely Motel to pick up breakfast: Fig Newtons and power bars. We settled in at the motel and packed our personal gear. We were ready to go and turned the lights out shortly after 9PM.
Day 5 of 7
Thursday, September 04, 2008 We rise early and have a “no cook” breakfast (power bars, orange Gatorade and fruit snacks). We are on the water by 9 AM. The paddle to the falls takes about an hour. We troll shad raps the entire way and as we near the falls and Canadian water, we reel in. I discover that I have a small (about 12”) walleye hooked…too small to even put a noticeable bend in my rod. We reel in, but leave the depthfinder on. As we pass the last point on the US side, we begin to mark fish in 30 to 35 feet of water. We decide to wait and fish that area on the way out. As we paddle our way upstream, we see two canoes coming through a small set of rapids, to the right of a small island. We head to the left of the island, but quickly realize that we won’t be able to paddle through there. We head back around to the opposite side and find that will be difficult as well. Eventually, we pull up to a rock outcropping, unload our packs and carry the canoe across to calmer water. We paddle up and through the next set of rapids. We pull over into calmer water and realize that we’re not going to be able to paddle any further. I’m not thinking and/or not paying close enough attention, because I don’t realize that there is a portage to the falls. We’re very close to the portage and we actually don’t realize it until we’re home. I look at pictures and see the portage behind us. We depart, assuming that we are being turned back because of low water. This will become our reason to make another trip here in the near future. We paddle back towards Iron Lake and as we get a short way, we begin to mark fish in 30 to 35 feet of water. We drop anchor and tie on jigs with leeches. It’s about 11 AM. We catch fish immediately. We reel in 6 walleye (all between 12” and 14”) in about 20 minutes and then I catch the largest crappie I have ever seen. ..between 16” and 17”. We catch a few more crappie and the things shut down. We reel in and start our trip to LLC. It’s almost 12:15PM. We reach bottle portage about 2 PM and as we enter LLC we see multiple motor boats. The first is a tow boat from Zup’s, but there are a few fishing boats out as well. We find a campsite near Tiger Bay and pull in at about 3:45PM. Jamie cooks Mac & cheese with hash browns, while I set up our tent. We have a great supper and after cleaning up, decide to fish for the last hour of daylight. Today was mostly cloudy with some sunshine mixed in, but it is quickly cooling off as daylight fades. We stay close to camp and finally turn in at about 8PM to read and fall asleep. 
Day 7 of 7
Friday, September 05, 2008 I am up at 6 AM and boil water for coffee. It’s a beautiful morning and the water is calm. I decide to tie on a top water lure and cast for a bit. As I head toward the lake, Jamie comes out of the tent. She sees my first cast hit the water and get engulfed by a 2 lb. bass. I catch 2 bass on my first 3 casts. Jamie gets her rod and joins me. We fish for about an hour and catch a few more bass. I miss a nice bass that may have been in the 3 lb range. We are in no hurry today. We will make the short trip to Agnes and stay there for the night. We have coffee and Jamie pumps water for Gatorade while I start taking down the tent. We have oatmeal for breakfast and by the time we clean up and pack, it’s 10AM. We paddle towards Boulder Bay and stop to fish a few spots where we mark fish on the depth finder. At each location we catch a few fish, a mix of walleye and crappie. The portages into the Boulder River and Agnes are uneventful. At the end of the portage to Agnes, it starts to drizzle and we break out the raingear. Again, we fish jigs and leeches wherever we mark fish. We catch more crappie and walleye. I would guess that while traveling today we have caught a dozen walleye and 6 or 7 crappie. The site we’d like sits at the SW end of Agnes on the last point. It is occupied when we get there, so we wind up taking the campsite immediately north of the entrance to the Moose River. Not a great site, but it is close to our exit point from Agnes. There is an adequate landing for our canoe, a decent fire pit and a woeful tent pad. It takes me 15 minutes just to decide where I should place the tent and in what orientation. I finally realize that there is no good way, it is more a question of which way we ‘d like to slant while we sleep. We decide to sleep with our heads “uphill”. We eat a late lunch and go out to fish the nearby point. The occupants had been fishing the south side of the point, but move to the east side as we approach. This is a good size lake and we don’t want to crowd them, but we only have a couple hours to fish and don’t want to spend most of it paddling. We eventually find a spot near further north. We paddle a bit until we mark fish. We are in 22 feet of water. We drop anchor and then our jigs. In two hours we catch 16 to 18 walleye and 6 crappie. None of the walleye are over 15”, but the crappie are all very decent fish. We are not cooking this night, so all of the fish are released. We return to camp and pack all of our fishing gear. We have decided to leave early in the morning rather than fish. It is our hope to see more wildlife if we leave early, possibly even a moose and we are willing to give up a morning of fishing toward that end. We cannot find an adequate spot to hang our food pack, so we leave it in plain sight with our cookgear on top of it. We are pretty much ready to go for the morning. A traveling breakfast and lunch are near the top of the food pack and our nalgene bottles are full. We turn in by 9PM and read by flashlight until we fall asleep. 
Day 8 of 7
Saturday, September 06, 2008 We rise at 5:30AM and pack. We’re on the water paddling before 7AM. The Moose River seems a bit higher than it was on our way in. As we paddle through the “wetlands” area just out of Agnes, we see movement in the water ahead of us. Jamie thinks it looks like snakes in the water, but as we get a bit closer, a head pops up and we see that it’s a group of 5 otters. They seem disturbed that we have interrupted their breakfast. They paddle to the side, all the while watching our every movement. Periodically their heads come full out of the water and crane back and forth watching us. We watch for about 5 minutes and Jamie takes a short video on her digital camera. They are grumbling as we slowly paddle past them. We find out later that Jamie’s 2 minute video has become a 15 second video because her memory card filled up shortly after she started recording. We paddle on and about 15 minutes later see another group of 4 otters. They swim alongside us (from a safe distance) for about 100 yards or so, checking to make sure we leave I guess. When we reach Nina Moose Lake, Jamie notices something swimming along the far NW shore. It’s a large animal and both of us are thinking “moose”. As we head towards the Moose River inlet, it appears that we are heading on a collision course with this animal. We have almost the full length of the lake to paddle. As we get closer, it becomes apparent that it is too small to be a moose. We finally see that is a deer and that we are indeed headed toward the same location. Just before we exit the lake into the Moose River, he exits the water up on to shore. We get a pretty good look and snap a few decent photos. Our quest to see a moose is unfulfilled, but in no way dampens our trip. In fact, it will be a reason to return next year. The rest of our exit was uneventful, and the heavy rain waited until about 3 minutes after we started driving away from the entry point. Cold beer and showers were wonderful, as was lunch. We drove straight through to the Chicago area, arriving home just before 1AM. This was my first trip on a river in the BWCA and it was really a great route. It was a very nice mix of rivers, lakes, reasonable portages, good fishing and great scenery/wildlife. We saw many bald eagles, otters, loons, deer and various ducks. It is our second trip together and we have become good traveling companions. I have noticed that our paddling is more efficient and our work in camp is better coordinated. The really exciting thing is that our conversations were not about if we would return, but rather when we would return! 
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