BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
November 01 2026
Entry Point 12 - Little Vermilion Lake
Number of Permits per Day: 6
Elevation: 1150 feet
Latitude: 48.2995
Longitude: -92.4268
Little Vermilion Lake - 12
Mid-life crisis, Sasquatch, + 21 year old girl take on the BWCA
Entry Date:
June 14, 2025
Entry Point:
Fall Lake
Number of Days:
6
Group Size:
3
LILY(DAUGHTER): We left the outfitters bunk house around 5:30am and got to our Fall Lake entry point around 6 am and left there on canoe at 6:20am. Our morning started with water like glass and we were making great time. We portaged twice today and saw some pretty waterfalls. We made it to Pipestone Bay and began looking for a nice camping spot with no luck. We stopped 2 different times to get out, stretch, have a snack, and look at a map to check we are where we thought and heading where needed to. Everyone was getting tired and super sore! Some how we kept going! We finally found a "okay" spot right beside Basswood Falls. Which is nice because that is our first portage tomorrow. We got here around 4 and very slowly set up camp. Dad caught a decent small mouth and I caught a small one. All I've had to eat today was half of a breakfast bar, apple, and a beef stick. For dinner we are having steak and baked potatoes (It was delicious!). I am tired and sore and miss Harlow and Coltin. We saw what I thought was alot of people today. Ready for some rest and hopefully some fishing tomorrow!
MONTANA: The morning was worth 1,000 miles. Did better than I thought I would. First day out talking about wood Mark giving us the wood all the way to Basswood Falls.
LILY:We got up early because of the sun this morning. I slept like $h!t. The air mattress didn't hold air and we slept on a rock slab. Breakfast was good. We had spam, eggs, and toast. The first portage was terrible!!! It says that it is 1 mile but is definitely longer. Anddd we double portaged it so we walked it 3 times. It took like 2 hours and i thought i was gonna pass out. After that we had 3 more portages that weren't too bad and all had pretty views of the falls. We saw a dead nasty moose a the top of one fall in the water. It was swelled and stunk so bad. We decided after the long day of porting to find camp on crooked lake. We passed the pictographs. They were really cool! Once we found a camp we slowly set up and unpack. Me and dad floated around and fished while Montana stayed at camp and got wood ready. I caught a pike and dont care to ever catch one again. I also caught a small mouth that we had for dinner with mac+cheese and broccoli rice. Its was really good. I think I fixed the air mattress (fingers crossed). The toilets are so weird bugs everywhere. We are planning on staying here tomorrow also and fishing and taking it easy tomorrow. As I am literally writing this a moose crossed the lake a little ways to the right of us! It was awesome! I sat my hammock up and hope to read some tomorrow and relax. Still really really sore but having a great time! Oh yeah I have now been to Canada! (On portages)
MONTANA: Grass pad mattress=best sleep ever. Felt like Fess Parker teaching Jemima about getting last in the woods and Israel about navigation. The falls into crooked lake I want to shoot the rapids. I know a girl that has more sand than a golf course.
MARK: Started the morning with an awesome breakfast of hash browns, bacon, and pancakes with strawberry in them coffee and Tang. Fished for a few hours and caught a couple pike. Was windy and hot. Ate dinner 4:30 and I am glad that we did. After showering and gathering firewood a storm rolled in and big thunder and lightning filled the sky . Everything is soaked however spirits are high as in the morning we plan on moving tomorrow back towards our entry point to give ourselves 3days to get back covering the same distance that we traveled in 2 days on our way in. This is a very nice campsite in comparison to our first one.
LILY: Much needed rest day today. Slept till about 8 then made pancakes, bacon, and hash browns for breakfast. It was really good! It sprinkled off and on all day. We fished all day on shore at camp and in the canoe a little ways away. Nobody caught a thing! Me and Dad both had a few big pike on but they got off. Sucked we didn't catch anything but still had a good time with dad. We took camp showers today... well me and Dad did and Tana just went for a swim in the lake. The shower felt surprisingly good and I even washed my super thick and long hair. We had chicken noodles and mashed potatoes for dinner that were pretty good especially since they came from a bag. We ate an early dinner and I am glad that we did because it started raining and storming and our camp was starting to flood in spots. I'm worried that rain water will get in the tent and that this weather will continue and be like this while traveling tomorrow. I have got to read alot today in the hammock. The mattress leaked air again last night. Hoping for another good nights rest and a nice day of travel tomorrow as we begin to head back toward Fall Lake and the 1 mile portage from hell! We are still at the same camp sit as we were yesterday.
MONTANA: Eat better in the wood than at home. Most people are clueless about life. Went for a swim water is great. Rain lightning thunder. Loved it
LILY: We didn't get wet from last nights storm which was good! Sleep decent. Dad scared the crap out of me because he woke up a readjusted and I thought it was an animal outside of the tent. He said that I did the same to him. I had tea, pb+honey wrap, and oatmeal for breakfast. Wasn't my favorite. It took like 2 hours to pack up camp and leave. We left around 8:30am and slowly headed back toward Fall Lake. Had 3 decent portages today. They weren't to bad. We have our camp today set up across from our last portage of the day which is right beside a waterfall and like 10 minutes from our next portage in the morning which is the "1 miler" from hell. Once we got some stuff done at camp me and Dad headed out to fish near camp. I caught 2 small mouth and a pike. After I caught the first 2 i strung them to keep for dinner. A big pike kept coming up and eating on them and trying to pull them down. It was crazy watching pike attack them. We had the fish and dried beef and gravy for dinner. The fish was good, the beef and gravy...not so much. Super salty. After dinner me and Montana went back out and fished some more. A pike snapped my line on the second cast. :(
MONTANA: At a slower pace on the way out. More enjoyable. The only one who has but any thing on the table it the youngest and a women. I am not telling that story when I get home. After four days I am ready to STAY!
