BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
September 20 2026
Entry Point 64 - East Bearskin Lake
East Bearskin 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 26 miles. Motors allowed on East Bearskin Lake only. No motors on Alder and Canoe. This area was affected by blowdown in 1999.
Number of Permits per Day: 3
Elevation: 1471 feet
Latitude: 48.0407
Longitude: -90.3800
East Bearskin Lake - 64
Number of Permits per Day: 3
Elevation: 1471 feet
Latitude: 48.0407
Longitude: -90.3800
East Bearskin Lake - 64
Canoe Lake base camping
by bigapplepaddler53
Trip Report
Entry Date:
September 20, 2026
Entry Point:
East Bearskin Lake
Number of Days:
6
Group Size:
4
Trip Introduction:
This was the fourth annual canoe trip (three in the BWCA and one in the Adirondacks) for four guys ranging in age from 29 to 72. We are made up of father&son along with two uncles/brothers-in-law. We gather each year from NYC, Boston and Nebraska for some outdoor adventures.
Day 1 of 6
Sunday, December 20, 2026 We all arrived in Duluth the day before, the East Coast guys coming in by commercial flights and the road warrior uncle driving up from Nebraska to meet us. After a night in a bunkhouse at Voyageurs Canoe Outfitters we had a hearty breakfast, got squared away with all our gear and were driven to our entry point. We were on the water by 10:30 a.m. and enjoyed a brisk tailwind as we paddled east along the south arm of East Bearskin. We saw several people paddling against the wind and they were certainly struggling. The 49-rod portage into Alder was very easy and my 29-year old nephew did yeoman work carrying two Granite Gear Duluth packs at a time on all portages. As the senior member of the crew, I did my best to keep up. The westerly winds were even stronger as we paddled along Alder looking for an open campsite. Our outfitter had told us that this year is unusually busy as people are making up for trips lost during the recent closure, and we were unable to find an open site that we liked on this lake. There were some hairy moments as we turned into the wind during our search, but we managed to keep the canoes right side up. After another easy 22-rod portage into Canoe Lake we saw that site 701 was open and after a quick paddle across we pulled into the very easy landing and set up camp on this spacious site. As is always the case, we had some trouble finding a tree from which to hang our food bag, but we found one in the end. My nephew tried some fishing from the shore before dinner with little luck. After nightfall we enjoyed some amazing stargazing before retiring for the night. ~East Bearskin Lake, Alder Lake, Canoe Lake
Day 2 of 6
Monday, December 21, 2026 The wind from the south was quite strong all day, blowing directly into our south-facing site. One gust took the tarp from our kitchen area, tearing out most of the grommets. At least I hadthe opportunity to practice my knots setting up the tarp. There were also periods of rain throughout the day, so we spent the day in camp reading and catching up on each other’s lives. We are a tight-knit group that doesn’t get to see each other often enough, so days like this are a blessing.
Day 3 of 6
Tuesday, December 22, 2026 The rain continued into the wee hours of the morning. By dawn the skies had cleared and the morning mists rose from the water as the sun touched the tips of the pines across the lake and reflected in the water, a sight that is never quite the same and always sparks wonder and joy. The winds, however, continued to be strong. The two uncles opted for another day in camp, foraging for firewood and basically doing nothing, which is our wont. Father and son set off in a canoe to do some fishing, again without much luck. They did, however, get caught by a sudden crosswind capsizing their canoe. They lost some fishing tackle and a bit of dignity, but were wearing their PFDs (always) and came to no other harm.
Day 4 of 6
Wednesday, December 23, 2026 When we planned this trip we realized that base camping on Canoe Lake would present us with some interesting day trips and today was perfect for one of them. The winds had died away, the blue sky was laced puffy clouds and the temperature hovered in the mid-60s. In other words, a perfect day for paddling and hiking. We paddled to the northeastern corner of Canoe Lake and left our canoes at the portage into Pine Lake, carrying only our lunch and Nalgene water bottles along the grueling 202 rods to Pine Lake. Once we reached Pine Lake we continued along the path to Johnson Falls, which was well worth the effort. My nephew is an avid hiker and recently completed the entire Pacific Crest Trail, which runs from the California/Mexico border to the border between Washington State and Canada. He basically skipped along the portage to Pine and path to Johnson Falls. His father and other uncle moved at a pretty good pace for guys in their mid-60s. I arrived at Johnson Falls a little later than they did without incident. There were three other people swimming in the pool at the base of the Falls when we arrived, so we had our lunch at a discrete distance until they finished, got dressed and left. The other three guys swam in the pool and also bushwhacked their way to the upper falls. Knowing my limits, I chose to remain at the main falls lost in the serenity of the setting. We hiked back to our canoes at Canoe Lake, each at his own pace, and we met a couple of burly guys from the Twin Cities who had portaged their canoes and gear over the 202 rods from Pine. They looked pretty wiped out by the experience and we expressed our admiration for their feat. Father and son did some fishing on the way back to camp, again with little luck. The two uncles continued into Paddle Lake from the western end of Canoe. The passage between these two lakes is very easy. Requiring you to float the canoe once through a shallow passage. Paddle Lake is quite small, has no campsites and is pristinely beautiful. I recommend it to anyone who is even passing through Canoe Lake. ~Pine Lake, Paddle Lake
Day 5 of 6
Thursday, December 24, 2026 This was another perfect day for a day trip, so we set off after breakfast for a visit to three other lakes and another hike. From the southeastern corner of Canoe there is an easy 50-rod portage into Crystal Lake, a long narrow lake with only one campsite. Near the eastern end of Crystal there is an easy 37-rod portage into Spaulding Lake, another pristinely beautiful lake with no campsites. The 109-rod portage from Spaulding into Bench Lake id pretty rough, so we left our canoes at the landing and hiked, each at his own pace, to Bench Lake where we had our lunch. Father and son fished in each Lake, again with little luck. The late afternoon paddle back to camp was beautiful, especially as we traveled west along Crystal Lake.~Crystal Lake, Spaulding Lake, Bench Lake
Day 6 of 6
Friday, December 25, 2026 Our last day on the water. We broke camp after breakfast and retraced our route back to EP 64 through Alder and East Bearskin Lakes. The winds had shifted in our favor, and we once again had the wind at our back for the long paddle. We saw quite a few people on their way into the lakes, working against the wind. They were all interested in any info we had on open campsites, which we were happy to share. Back at the EP we had some lunch while waiting for our outfitter to pick us up. We enjoyed watching a man training his black lab to fetch from the water. Everyone had fun with this activity, none more than the dog. Back at VCO we packed all of our gear for the next day’s departure and then drove to Gunflint Lodge for a nice dinner during which we discussed plans for our next paddling adventure. ~Canoe Lake, Alder Lake, East Bearskin Lake
Lakes Traveled:
Canoe Lake,
Alder Lake,
East Bearskin Lake,
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