BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
January 15 2025
Entry Point 39 - Baker Lake
Number of Permits per Day: 2
Elevation: 1497 feet
Latitude: 47.8452
Longitude: -90.8169
Summary: A 5-day loop from Baker up the Temperance lakes to Cherokee, and back through Sawbill and Smoke lakes back to Baker. A fairly difficult trip.
Day 0: We drove up from Stillwater in the morning and camped at one of the 5 walk-in campsites at Baker Lake, and it was nice.
Day 1 (Baker to S. Temperance) - A beautiful day, we decided to paddle all the way to South Temperance the first day which was a great paddle with easy portages except for the last one. We picked the campsite on top of a huge rock that was close to the middle of the lake. Tried fishing some but no luck
Day 2 (Rest) - In the night, we encountered the worst storm of the entire season. While we were there 19 people had to be rescued from the BWCA. We had about 50mph straightline winds, and I'm still surprised that the huge tent we had stood up to it. We slept in and took a rest day because of the intense winds. Amazingly beautiful sunset.
Day 3 (S. Temperance to Cherokee) - We left as early as we could to beat the heat, but it was no good. The lengthy, hilly portages were challenging and by the last portage we were pretty beat. We overpacked and single portaged which led us to speedier exhaustion. Still amazing weather. North Temperance was a beaut- I wish we had stayed there instead of South. We took the southeasterly facing campsite on Cherokee on the southeastern skinny island. Neat little site.
Day 4 (Cherokee to Sawbill) - Left a little later in the day but it was ok. We took our time going down the river letting out of the southwest part of Cherokee and it was a great area. BEWARE: The area between Ada and Skoop Lakes appears to be floatable, but a dam built recently has made the portion impossible to float. Be prepared for a long portage through muck and water. A guy that we saw there said he had been going to the BWCA for 40 years at least once per year and it was the worst portage he had ever seen. By the time we got to Sawbill it was pretty hot. We paddled all the way down to the site next to the portage onto Smoke.
Day 5 (Sawbill to Baker) - Cooler, cloudier weather for the first time on the trip. We were pretty hungry (I underpacked food a little and I felt really bad) and we were taunting each other with vivid descriptions of the burgers we were going to eat ASAP after getting out. We paddled back to Baker and returned our gear to Sawtooth outfitters.
Overall great route.
Rasta Wilderness 2005-2
Entry Date:
September 09, 2005
Entry Point:
Little Gabbro Lake
Number of Days:
7
Group Size:
4
We made Gabbro in a little over half an hour and reached our site just as the sun was setting - got camp set up, had a drink by the fire and retired for the evening! Saturday we were greeted with 90 degree weather! Tim + Duane made a wood run while Joe and I set up the tarp and set up the camp. Sunday was another gorgeous 90 degree day that featured plenty of laziness and relaxation on our parts! We got rained out on Monday and things were looking rather gloomy at that point for the other three guys and their pursuit of some Walleye for upcoming suppers. (I don't fish...) Tuesday it cleared up nicely and the guys had plenty of luck fishing. They brought back four nice-sized Walleye and we enjoyed some fabulous "Lake 2 Plate" fillets, complete with wild rice and real potatos (with just the right touch of all-spice)! By Tuesday night, the weather was getting rather chilly at night - dipping into the 40's. The guys fished some more on Wednesday and by Thursday we were ready to hit the road back to dull and dreary civilization...
For the past couple of trips, I have borrowed a cousin's Coleman canoe - it weighs over 85 pounds empty! I have decided to bit the bullet and purchase a used Kevlar canoe! Upcoming trips planned for '06 are going to not only warrant it, they'll require it!
Happy trails to you all...
scott
Rasta Wilderness...
Little Gabbro Lake
Gabbro Lake