BWCA Entry Point, Route, and Trip Report Blog
July 09 2025
Entry Point 40 - Homer Lake
Number of Permits per Day: 2
Elevation: 1825 feet
Latitude: 47.9043
Longitude: -90.6605
Homer Lake - 40
Journey to Manhood
Entry Date:
May 26, 2006
Entry Point:
Sawbill Lake
Number of Days:
4
Group Size:
2
We spent last night in the van in the parking lot of Sawbill Outfitters, then got the canoe and gear down to the landing just before the outfitter opened up. We were the first ones on the water . The first portage was no problem. Jaryd did great--he was really pumped. He carried the food pack the whole 80 rods. Second portage was a little harder–more rocks and hills. Third was a brutally rocky 92 rods. Fourth one was brutally long but we made it without incident. Boy, was I proud of Jaryd! He never complained, we both just kept on pushing. Some nice folk from Eau Claire told us about a nice campsite on Cherokee straight across from the entrance to Cherokee Creek. We were happy to see that it was available. Set up camp and ate lunch, which was peanut butter sandwiches because I forgot the jelly. We went out fishing for awhile but had no luck. After dinner we sat by the fire enjoying the sunset and watched the stars come out. It was at that point we had our man to man talk, well I talked he listened. Good first day. 
We were up before 6:00. You would think after a tough first day we would have slept longer. Made a great breakfast: egg and sausage bagel sandwiches with o.j. Took our time packing up and were on the water by about 9:00. First portage to Sitka Lake was brutally hilly and kind of long, the hardest one of the day. We leapfrogged it. We met two guys and a boy from Two Harbors who were coming from Brule. Sitka is a beautiful lake; I’d like to come back and fish it. A guy could come in from Brule and North Temperance pretty easily. Portage from Sitka to North Temperance was next–not bad. Next portage was from North Temperance to South Temperance–piece of cake. Jaryd and I both reveled in it after the other ones we had been on. The first site on the north shore closest to the portage was taken by a couple from The Cities with two dogs. The one English Springer tried to hitch a ride on our canoe, nearly causing our first spill. We moved on to the site on the northwest corner. It was a pretty nice site; however, some previous campers forgot their bait bucket or were too lazy to carry it out. I’m guessing it was the latter and if that was you–shame on you! It’s been somewhat windy since we arrived around 1 pm. After setting up camp Jaryd and I thought we’d take a swim. We thought the same thing yesterday with the same results: the water was too cold. So we just waded in and got our heads wet and washed off our pants. Tomorrow’s the big one: the Temperance River portage. I was praying that we could just float the river, but the Fisher map says it’s 240 rods and I assumed the portage was there for a reason. The river must be too shallow or clogged with timber to get through. We went to go check it out. After checking out the river, it looked like it could be floatable, but after talking to the couple with the dogs, they convinced us to just use the portage instead. We went out fishing and caught one bass. Talked to two guys staying on Brule and they said the fishing hasn’t been that good for them either. We had a good dinner of Rice-a-Roni and potatoes, saving some potatoes for breakfast. Man, this is great! Jaryd did very well today for having one of the harder portages–I’m very impressed with his good attitude as he keeps on plugging away. Hopefully we have gotten rid of some more weight foodwise, so each day should be easier. The big one was first thing tomorrow. It’s great just hanging out with my son by the fire, watching the stars come out. What an awesome place! 
We were up before 6:00. You would think after a tough first day we would have slept longer. Made a great breakfast: egg and sausage bagel sandwiches with o.j. Took our time packing up and were on the water by about 9:00. First portage to Sitka Lake was brutally hilly and kind of long, the hardest one of the day. We leapfrogged it. We met two guys and a boy from Two Harbors who were coming from Brule. Sitka is a beautiful lake; I’d like to come back and fish it. A guy could come in from Brule and North Temperance pretty easily. Portage from Sitka to North Temperance was next–not bad. Next portage was from North Temperance to South Temperance–piece of cake. Jaryd and I both reveled in it after the other ones we had been on. The first site on the north shore closest to the portage was taken by a couple from The Cities with two dogs. The one English Springer tried to hitch a ride on our canoe, nearly causing our first spill. We moved on to the site on the northwest corner. It was a pretty nice site; however, some previous campers forgot their bait bucket or were too lazy to carry it out. I’m guessing it was the latter and if that was you–shame on you! It’s been somewhat windy since we arrived around 1 pm. After setting up camp Jaryd and I thought we’d take a swim. We thought the same thing yesterday with the same results: the water was too cold. So we just waded in and got our heads wet and washed off our pants. Tomorrow’s the big one: the Temperance River portage. I was praying that we could just float the river, but the Fisher map says it’s 240 rods and I assumed the portage was there for a reason. The river must be too shallow or clogged with timber to get through. We went to go check it out. After checking out the river, it looked like it could be floatable, but after talking to the couple with the dogs, they convinced us to just use the portage instead. We went out fishing and caught one bass. Talked to two guys staying on Brule and they said the fishing hasn’t been that good for them either. We had a good dinner of Rice-a-Roni and potatoes, saving some potatoes for breakfast. Man, this is great! Jaryd did very well today for having one of the harder portages–I’m very impressed with his good attitude as he keeps on plugging away. Hopefully we have gotten rid of some more weight foodwise, so each day should be easier. The big one was first thing tomorrow. It’s great just hanging out with my son by the fire, watching the stars come out. What an awesome place! 
Jaryd and I were both up early. We packed up camp and headed for the portage between Smoke and Sawbill. It was sunny and beautiful. Knowing this was our last portage and we’re back where we started was plenty of motivation to breeze through the 90 rods. From the portage to Sawbill landing we saw several other groups heading in. There were two rangers headed out on patrol. We exchanged hellos. That was the first time in four years that I have seen forest rangers in the Boundary Waters. We arrived at the landing around 8:30 am. I bought Jaryd a t-shirt, we took some pictures, and we’re off down the Sawbill trail. One interesting note: a few miles or so from camp was a depression in the road filled with water. Any of you who have been to Sawbill probably know what I’m talking about–it’s like a small pond. Anyway, I was caught off guard because my attention was drawn to the little red flags on the four corners marking the pond. Splash! At about 35 mph, it was like the log ride at an amusement park. It was only then that I remembered seeing the pond on the way in. The difference was that it had been dark and I was already driving slow. It was a “unique” experience. We made it through.
So that’s our trip. I took a boy to the wilderness and brought back a man, well a small man, but a man none the less. We were headed home down the North Shore to I-35 and all the holiday traffic waiting for us. I love the North Shore drive–it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. Happy paddling! 
