BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
July 06 2025
Entry Point 30 - Lake One
Lake One entry point allows overnight paddle only. This entry point is supported by Kawishiwi Ranger Station near the city of Ely, MN. The distance from ranger station to entry point is 21 miles. Access is a canoe landing at Lake One.
Number of Permits per Day: 13
Elevation: 1230 feet
Latitude: 47.9391
Longitude: -91.4792
My son Remy and I, and my friend Keith and his son Charlie put our canoes into Lake one at 9:30 Monday morning after dropping off a car at the Snowbank Lake landing. Lake One can be tricky to navigate. On our way to Lake Two we turned East too early and ended up paddling about a mile out of our way into a dead-end bay before we realized our mistake. We blamed the fact that Lake One was split between Fisher Maps #10 and #4 for our error. If the entire lake had been visible at once on a single map, we would not have made the wrong turn. Once we got back on course we portaged the 30 rods into a pond and then portaged the 40 rods into Lake Two. The weather was nice, and there was a bit of a tail wind out of the West. We stopped for lunch on the shore of Lake Two. After lunch we canoed through the North end of Lake Three and into Lake Four. We stopped for the night at a campsite on the West shore of Lake Four, just North of the channel heading toward Hudson Lake. We had to battle swarms of mosquitoes as we set up the tents. We then had a nice refreshing swim. Because we had brought steaks along for the first night, we didn't go fishing.
On Tuesday morning we had a bacon and eggs breakfast then packed up camp and headed out in our canoes. As we canoed past our campsite, we realized that Remy & I had left our hammocks pitched between trees. We landed again and quickly packed them up. Once again we had beautiful weather. We paddled East and completed 3 short portages before entering Hudson Lake. The 105 rod portage into Lake Insula was exhausting! Lake Insula is a large gorgeous lake broken up by multiple islands and penninsulas. We had lunch at a campsite on a large island just East of Hudson Lake. It felt like we had a tail wind as we were heading East, and then as we turned North it seemed like the wind shifted and was at our backs once again. We navigated Lake Insula flawlessly and camped for the night on the island just West of Williamson Island. After setting up the tents and a refreshing swim, Remy & I got back into the canoe and tried to catch some fish. We had no luck! At 9PM that night, just as we were going to bed, a thunderstorm rolled through. That night I was awakened several times by the loud croaking of bullfrogs from the shallows around our island. What noisy neighbors!
By Wednesday morning the weather had cleared, but the wind was now coming from the Northwest, pretty much in our faces. We paddled to the North end of Lake Insula and tackled the largest portage of our trip. The 180 rod walk to Kiana Lake actually seemed easier than the 105 rod carry into Lake Insula. We headed onward into Thomas Lake where we really started feeling the headwind. We finally made it to the campsite just Northeast of the portage into Thomas Pond in time for lunch. After lunch we proceeded across Thomas Pond and into Thomas Creek after hiking across the famous Kekekabic Trail. We managed to easily run the rapids in Thomas Creek and avoid the 2 short portages. We camped for the night on Hatchet Lake at the northern campsite. It was cool and windy, so we didn't swim. There was lots of threatening weather going by to the North of us, but we stayed dry. After supper we canoed back to Thomas Creek to fish and look for moose. No luck on either count, but we did see a beaver swimmming.
The weather was nice again Thursday morning, but the wind was out of the West which was the direction we were heading. We portaged into Ima Lake and canoed across it. Before portaging into Jordan Lake, we watched a bald eagle sitting in a tree get harrassed repeatedly by a seagull. The narrow channel leading into Jordan Lake is quite beautiful. It is narrow like a river with big rock outcroppings. We paddled across Jordan, Cattyman, Adventure, and Jitterbug Lakes. We found the Eastern campsite on Ahsub Lake taken, so we camped at the Western campsite which had a great place for swimming in front of it. There was a very brave loon in front of the campsite who didn't seem to mind if we got close to it. We tried our luck at fishing, but only caught 1 smallmouth which was too small to eat. Between 5:00 and 7:30 that evening we saw a number of canoes heading across Ahsub Lake from Disappointment Lake to Jitterbug Lake. We weren't sure where they were planning to camp, but it was getting late.
On Friday we awoke again to good weather. We paddled the length of Disappointment Lake and portaged into to Parent Lake and then on to Snowbank Lake. It was July 4th, and as we entered Snowbank Lake the sounfd of firecrackers reminded us we weren't in the wilderness anaymore. After a brief splash war on our way across Snowbank, we made it to the landing and our car was still there. What a great trip!
Number of Permits per Day: 13
Elevation: 1230 feet
Latitude: 47.9391
Longitude: -91.4792
My son Remy and I, and my friend Keith and his son Charlie put our canoes into Lake one at 9:30 Monday morning after dropping off a car at the Snowbank Lake landing. Lake One can be tricky to navigate. On our way to Lake Two we turned East too early and ended up paddling about a mile out of our way into a dead-end bay before we realized our mistake. We blamed the fact that Lake One was split between Fisher Maps #10 and #4 for our error. If the entire lake had been visible at once on a single map, we would not have made the wrong turn. Once we got back on course we portaged the 30 rods into a pond and then portaged the 40 rods into Lake Two. The weather was nice, and there was a bit of a tail wind out of the West. We stopped for lunch on the shore of Lake Two. After lunch we canoed through the North end of Lake Three and into Lake Four. We stopped for the night at a campsite on the West shore of Lake Four, just North of the channel heading toward Hudson Lake. We had to battle swarms of mosquitoes as we set up the tents. We then had a nice refreshing swim. Because we had brought steaks along for the first night, we didn't go fishing.
On Tuesday morning we had a bacon and eggs breakfast then packed up camp and headed out in our canoes. As we canoed past our campsite, we realized that Remy & I had left our hammocks pitched between trees. We landed again and quickly packed them up. Once again we had beautiful weather. We paddled East and completed 3 short portages before entering Hudson Lake. The 105 rod portage into Lake Insula was exhausting! Lake Insula is a large gorgeous lake broken up by multiple islands and penninsulas. We had lunch at a campsite on a large island just East of Hudson Lake. It felt like we had a tail wind as we were heading East, and then as we turned North it seemed like the wind shifted and was at our backs once again. We navigated Lake Insula flawlessly and camped for the night on the island just West of Williamson Island. After setting up the tents and a refreshing swim, Remy & I got back into the canoe and tried to catch some fish. We had no luck! At 9PM that night, just as we were going to bed, a thunderstorm rolled through. That night I was awakened several times by the loud croaking of bullfrogs from the shallows around our island. What noisy neighbors!
By Wednesday morning the weather had cleared, but the wind was now coming from the Northwest, pretty much in our faces. We paddled to the North end of Lake Insula and tackled the largest portage of our trip. The 180 rod walk to Kiana Lake actually seemed easier than the 105 rod carry into Lake Insula. We headed onward into Thomas Lake where we really started feeling the headwind. We finally made it to the campsite just Northeast of the portage into Thomas Pond in time for lunch. After lunch we proceeded across Thomas Pond and into Thomas Creek after hiking across the famous Kekekabic Trail. We managed to easily run the rapids in Thomas Creek and avoid the 2 short portages. We camped for the night on Hatchet Lake at the northern campsite. It was cool and windy, so we didn't swim. There was lots of threatening weather going by to the North of us, but we stayed dry. After supper we canoed back to Thomas Creek to fish and look for moose. No luck on either count, but we did see a beaver swimmming.
The weather was nice again Thursday morning, but the wind was out of the West which was the direction we were heading. We portaged into Ima Lake and canoed across it. Before portaging into Jordan Lake, we watched a bald eagle sitting in a tree get harrassed repeatedly by a seagull. The narrow channel leading into Jordan Lake is quite beautiful. It is narrow like a river with big rock outcroppings. We paddled across Jordan, Cattyman, Adventure, and Jitterbug Lakes. We found the Eastern campsite on Ahsub Lake taken, so we camped at the Western campsite which had a great place for swimming in front of it. There was a very brave loon in front of the campsite who didn't seem to mind if we got close to it. We tried our luck at fishing, but only caught 1 smallmouth which was too small to eat. Between 5:00 and 7:30 that evening we saw a number of canoes heading across Ahsub Lake from Disappointment Lake to Jitterbug Lake. We weren't sure where they were planning to camp, but it was getting late.
On Friday we awoke again to good weather. We paddled the length of Disappointment Lake and portaged into to Parent Lake and then on to Snowbank Lake. It was July 4th, and as we entered Snowbank Lake the sounfd of firecrackers reminded us we weren't in the wilderness anaymore. After a brief splash war on our way across Snowbank, we made it to the landing and our car was still there. What a great trip!
Mudro to Horse
by WildernessJunkie
Trip Report
Entry Date:
October 23, 2015
Entry Point:
Mudro Lake
Number of Days:
3
Group Size:
2
Trip Introduction:
Report
DAY ONE...So it all began bright and early in Duluth at 0400 for our venture to Ely. My friend a very inexperienced 22 year old outdoorsman with hopes to understand the wilderness and me a 22 year old outddorsman with a few BWCA trips under my belt and a few other trips also. Around 0615 we figured we must be close.... soon to realize we missed a turn and were now in Silver Bay and an hour out of our way when we are meeting my cousin to pick up the canoe. Shout out to Canadian Waters owner Dan for hooking us up with a nice kevlar canoe and paddles for the weekend as a birthday gift when the store is closed for the season. upon arrival for the canoe we find my cousin half asleep in his truck patiently waiting for us. So far all is good and we get to entry point 23 Mudro lake, weather is nice and no wind. I think as soon as we touched the canoe to the water the rain began to fall. It was not just a light rain but lasted all night and was very steady. The first portage to Sandpit lake from Mudro is an uphill battle. The second portage to Tin Can Mike was a straight shot with no hills and was a very nice walk due to the trees blocking most the rain. The 3rd portage From Tin Can Mike to Horse lake was slightly uphill but was very short and had a lot of cover from the rain. Finally we are on Horse lake and can see our campsite from the end of the last portage. We get to the second campsite on horse lake because the first one was taken by the people we saw that were very cocky about their outdoor skills and how they said they were based out of Ely when ask where they were from. So it is pouring rain and we need to set up the tent. First we put up the tarp so we have a little room to work with so the inside of the tent does not get soaked. Tent is set up all is good until we go to put the rain fly on. I pull it out of the bag and it is a motorcycle cover. So we made a makeshift rain fly out of the extra tarp we had and did what we could to keep what was still dry, dry. We had our fireplace completely covered with wood and rocks to basically have a way to heat our food that is a challenge when everything is soaked already but I got it going. By the time we had our food cooked and tent set up it was beginging to get dark out. So we hunkered into our tent and played cribbage for 3 hours against each other. DAY TWO.... Bright and early! 0645 I am awake. The rain has stopped it is dark but the weather is 100 times better then the night before. So I got get my morning rolling and let my friend sleep a little bit. Lost a few little slimers but that didn't discourage me I just enjoy being out there away from everything. Well 1100 rolls around and my buddy is starting to awaken from his slumber. We are both up and deceide to go do some trolling in the canoe. About 20 minutes of trolling and I lose another little pike. Finally I catch my first fish. A 4 inch perch I snagged underneath the belly.... safe to say it was a catch and release kind of fish. After that we chose to go look for some grouse. So we go grab the shotguns and cases and bring them over to the portage trail we had walked 1 day prior. About 25 yards into the trail I spot my target standing underneath a tree munching on the ground. BOOM! target down and lunch is looking great. Thats all we saw for birds before lunch so I brought it back across the lake and taught my friend how to clean a grouse missing one very important detail. While cooking all the fresh grouse we get the meat on the pan. The legs, the breasts, the heart, and the Gizzard. Well it was all amazing until I realized the step I missed. I bit into that Gizzard that was plump full of rocks and grouse fecal matter. I dont think it could have tasted much worse and realizing I just had grouse poop in my mouth wasn't a good feeling either. In the evening we went out to the island not far away from our camp to do a little shore fishing off the island right before dark. My friend is on one side of the island and I am on the other. I was using a little white jig and tail with a spinner and a little crappie minnow and here I latch onto the biggest northern I have ever fought with. I got it to the edge of the rocks no joke the size of my leg and I am 6 foot 3. Well with no net im holding my pole with my left hand way up in the air to keep tension on the line while I brace myself because I need to get down to the water so I can grab this fish and get it onto the land before it takes off. so here I go to grab and and poof... There I go sliding off the wet rocks right into the water with the monster. I must have scared it because it took off snapping my line so quick There was no second hope for this fish and I was soaking wet now heading back to my friend to explain to him what I just expierienced while he struggles with his fishing pole. We made it back to camp and with coals still burning in the fire to get my clothes dried out before bed and to get the jiffy pop cooked. While I am cooking my friend asked me a very weird question that I didn't notice when coming back to camp. "Did we leave our food and food bag scattered around the camp?" looking up I do then see our food was everywhere and half eaten. Looking for animal prints we found nothing on the ground to show what it was but with all the little holes in the bags we seem to think it would be a raccoon or small coyote that clearly couldnt find anything worth eating except for the banana chips. After sitting by the fire drying out the clothes for awhile we deceided to go to bed around 2000 "8pm" but first I needed to beat him in three quick rounds of cribbage. DAY THREE....Waking up on sunday I was up at 0715 because I thought I heard a grouse. So I got up out of bed and wandered around a little bit until I found the son of a gun. It looked pretty calm so I figured I would wake up my friend who was still asleep so he could get a chance at a bird. My friend has never shot a shotgun before so he got his chance. I watched the bird until he was able to get out of the tent and get his gun ready. I said stand right where I am and ill walk around and flush it for you. DO NOT SHOOT ME! I told him. So I walked down the hill a little ways and there it is about 6 feet ahead of me. I told him ill have to take the shot if it flys but if you can make it down here you can have the shot. He scampers down the hill and takes the shot. Instantly I knew it was a good shot. When I grabbed the grouse I really knew it was a good shot because the grouse no longer had a head or neck. Now with bird fever on his mind we hung that one up in the tree in a bag to hopefully eat with another bird after our hike. We hiked back into the woods behind the camp area and up to the highest point of the island to hopefully get a nice picture while hunting. After getting the perfect photo of Horse Lake from the highest point we deceided to scale the wall down. To our surprise we find a grouse sitting under a pine tree about half way down the cliff side and get our second grouse of the day. We venture back to our campsite with no luck of getting a third bird then clean both birds up remembering to clean the gizzard out this time and bag them for a late lunch. We quick ate some oatmeal with granola and syrup before packing up all of our gear and headed out back towards the car. First portage was a breeze, second portage was a breeze, but the third portage back to Mudro Lake was 1000x worse then it was when it was the first portage compared to the last. Also this way was way more uphill then coming from the otherside so we finished with the hardest portage we encountered but we made it through to the lake. Paddling across Mudro to the little creek at the end we enjoyed viewing a Bald Eagle flying nice and low to give us an excelent view of him and a little muscrat swimming back and forth in the creek looks like it was showing off to us. Made it up the creek and go tthe gear to the car. Loaded up the car felt bad I was leaving wish I could stay forever but had to be to work monday morning. So we dropped the canoe off and then enjoyed some Sir G's Pizza and Beer to celebrate the trip we enjoyed. I couldn't ask for a better way to spend my birthday. Went into the boundry waters at the age of 22 and came out the age of 23. What a good feeling.(:
discuss this trip report (10 comments) - last post on December 06, 2015