BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
April 19 2024
Entry Point 20 - Angleworm Lake
Number of Permits per Day: 2
Elevation: 1260 feet
Latitude: 48.0659
Longitude: -91.9303
Angleworm Lake - 20
Mudro to Horse w/7 yr. old daughter
Entry Date:
May 28, 2010
Entry Point:
Mudro Lake
Number of Days:
4
Group Size:
3
We get up and get going from our house in Hibbing, MN at 6 am to get to the ranger station bright and early. We’re all very excited to get our paddles wet and get to Mudro uneventfully. As my wife and I begin unloading the car, Dorothy decides that she needs to see where we are putting in. After unloading the gear and a short reminder about appropriate canoe behavior, we’re off!
The first portage out of Mudro and into Sandpit is a bit hilly and not too difficult for an adult, but I was wondering if it would prove to be too challenging for Dorothy. She was a champ and double portaged with us carrying the leaches and her paddle.
We get to Horse and are very excited about the prospect of camping on the north end of the lake. There was not one occupied site on the way in, which we took as a good omen. Well, we paddled all the way to the north end of the lake only to find every single site on the lake is occupied.
We discuss our options at this point:
1) Horse River to the falls and press onward to Crooked. We quickly dismiss this idea because it would be too demanding on Dorothy. 2) Head to Fourtown. This was appealing, but again we were worried about the activity on the lake and the wear on Dorothy getting there and searching for a site. 3) Head back to Tin Can Mike. We knew the entire lake was wide-open and that Dorothy would handle that trip back.
We headed back to Tin Can Mike and check out the sites on the lake. We choose a peninsula site on the west side. After a lunch of summer sausage, cheese and pita, Dorothy was ready to fish. It was a solid drop off from the point we were on, so I set up Dorothy’s pole and let her fish while we set up camp. She caught a couple of smallies in the half-hour we were busy.
Since we had spent a few hours in the canoe already and the fishing appeared to be good from our site, we stayed put and relaxed.
We ate dinner played Go Fish and were to bed just after dusk.
We’re up early and have a nice little breakfast of oatmeal, berries and coffee. After breakfast we clean up camp and start exploring the lake. Dorothy and I start hitting northern and smallmouth pretty well, but my poor wife isn’t catching anything. After a couple of hours in the canoe, I can tell my wife’s patience is running thin, so we head back to camp and have lunch. Dorothy, Chris and I set out set lines and relax. Dorothy and I still hit fish and my wife does not. She’s becoming less and less amused about this...
We do a little bit of exploring and start a dinner of fish and curry with rice. After a couple of games of cards we hit the hay.
A front is moving in and the wind really picks up out on the lake. We aren’t affected as much in our east facing site by the wind. After attempting futility by trolling for fish in the wind, we head back to camp and throw setlines out. Dorothy occupies her time by playing with the leeches and exploring for wildlife on the rocks. A couple of beavers swim by dragging a rather large branch and we wonder if it’s going to be used for food, shelter or dam. After catching a few fish, Dorothy discovers that we have a visitor. Fred the turtle decided to come on shore and say “Hi.” Dorothy has a blast following Fred around and watching what he’s up to.
After lunch it starts looking ominous, so we clean up camp and prepare for some card games under the tarps. After a few hours of rain, the skies open up and the sun begins to peak through. We cook our last fish dinner over a fire and clean up. While the wife and I are doing dishes, Dorothy finds Fred again and she became very excited. It turns out that Fred is now Lulu. Lulu had originally come to shore to lay eggs and Dorothy found her in the act. Lulu took the name change in stride and finished her business and went back into the lake.
We watch the stars for a bit after dark and go to bed fairly early.
After a pancake breakfast, we pack up and lo and behold we have a new visitor. A large doe and small fawn come down just south of to drink from the lake. We watch them for a while and head out. It’s a very uneventful trip out, but we stop at The Boathouse in Ely for burgers. After lunch we visit the Bear Center just south of Ely and arrive home sunburned, tired and full of smiles.
Our youngest daughter, Grace, will be six next year, which means she gets to come with! We’re going to make it an easy trip, like we did for Dorothy on her first one last year. We’re thinking of hitting up the Lake One entrance and going down the Kawishiwi River.
