June 4-10th - See Plan D below!

Seagull to Alpine
Alpine to Ogishkemuncie
Ogish to Knife
Knife to Red Rock
Out via Seagull
Leaves a day or two for layover

Likin this a lot. Never been on a trip off the Gunflint, might as well start at the end and work my way back haha. Looks like a good setup with Seagull Outfitters right at the put in, they look like a legit outfit just by google and I did call to make sure I can set up the permit pick up there and my buddy can rent canoes. Back together with some good friends and their 2 teenager kids. Ok now I can’t wait to go!

Did a loop from Brant, through Ogish, and out at Seagull. Used Seagull Outfitters and they were top notch! Enjoy the Palisades

You will love it, scat, and never return to “the dark side”.

It’s a great route, you should be able to catch all the major species of fish, be sure to get trout stamps.

Break camp early and set up camp early, avoid that wind that picks up mid-morning.

You will enjoy it. It’s one of my favorite areas. I’ve been on both sides of the BWCA and I’m a Gunflint loyalist now.

Awesome thx guys, I’m psyched! Ok I ordered map number 6 from the BWCA site, can’t believe I didn’t have it, when I get that maybe I can get all the route books off the side of my bed and sleep with that under my pillow haha
Of course I welcome any thoughts about the route. What I’m excited about is seeing a different part of BW terrain so to speak, not so much boreal forest like on the west side, more glacial maybe, different type of scenery. Am I on track there. I mean how many people can say they camped on a lake called Ogishkemuncie, so cool.

You should take a look at map F32. Has your entire route plus some ideas for other trips.

Thx a million for the suggestion, that is just what I need and was looking for actually, ordered one. Hoping it has water depth info hard to tell, says it does. Was trying to get a McKenzie map but I couldn’t figure out what to get from the site. I got a voyageur map 6 from this site so I’ll give one to my partner. Perfecto!

I think that Knife to Red Rock (Bay or Lake) will be a very long day on the water. I know that you say you have a couple of days for layover. We had a tow to American Point and even with that we were only able to get to the far end of Ottertrack. I know, that is right up against Knife, but that still leaves several miles of extra travel south into Red Rock Bay or Red Rock Lake. If you encounter any wind at all out on Sag, this will be a long slog.

Otherwise, the route sounds doable. Even short for a couple of days. E.g. Alpine to Ogish is not a full day of travel.

Of the 4 times I have been on Ogish, it has been completely full twice. Once was in June, the other in August. Just noting this so you are prepared for that possibility. Ogish is a well known fishing destination lake.

Some special spots to visit:

Mueller Falls. Go south out of Ogish to Mueller Lake and take the portage to Agamok. About half way through, the portage crosses the Kekakabic
Trail. Turn east and walk about a quarter mile and you will encounter a campsite for the trail and a little further you will see a bridge over falls.

Eddy Falls - On your way to the South Arm of Knife, as you drop down from Eddy Lake to SAK you will walk beside Eddy Falls. Take the time to fall several of the trails into the falls for spectacular views.





Eddy Falls.


Don't forget to take the chance to hike to the top of "Thunder Point".
This on the spit of land where Knife splits into South Arm of Knife.

Awesome info and very much appreciated! So Knife to Saganaga camp there, then head to Red Rock next day is more reasonable. That’s cool cuz my buddies wife likes to travel and those extra attractions, hikes etc., are spot on what they like to do. Thx a million for sharing that.
What is SAK, I keep reading that and can’t figure out what it is.

scat: "Awesome info and very much appreciated! So Knife to Saganaga camp there, then head to Red Rock next day is more reasonable. That’s cool cuz my buddies wife likes to travel and those extra attractions, hikes etc., are spot on what they like to do. Thx a million for sharing that.
What is SAK, I keep reading that and can’t figure out what it is."

South Arm Knife.

Watch out for any strong southerly wind on Seagull, as that’s the one direction that can cause problems there:

G-D SOUTH WIND!

Did almost the exact same trip last year, same week in June. Very good experience with Seagull Outfitters. When you travel to Ogish, start early, it was full when we went through. This route is very scenic. There wasn't a lake or area on that route I wouldn't have spent more time on. If you are fishing be aware the water is crystal clear. Walleye more active in low light. Good Trout in Seagull. Topwater bass should be good at that time as well. Have fun!

You guys rock, awesome info and very much appreciated.

scat: "Awesome info and very much appreciated! So Knife to Saganaga camp there, then head to Red Rock next day is more reasonable. That’s cool cuz my buddies wife likes to travel and those extra attractions, hikes etc., are spot on what they like to do. Thx a million for sharing that.
What is SAK, I keep reading that and can’t figure out what it is."

Where Knife Lake splits into two long narrow bodies (at Thunder Point), the northern body of water continues to be known simply as Knife Lake. The Southern segment is known as South Arm of Knife (SAK) to help differentiate the two long arms of the lake.

Got it thx! Been reading about the legendary clear water on Knife Lake for years. Def a must see must go to.

Good to go! My buddy reserved the permit no prob, reserved 2 Kevlar canoes from Seagull Outfitters for his wife & 2 teenagers already, I’m bringing my Prism. Really excited to check out this area, been reading a lot of intel from this site and sounds awesome. Thx again for the feedback.
C’mon June 4th!

Deb & her crew at seagull outfitters are the best ! done this trip many times(seagull & to SAK) Always nice to get an early start on seagull as the west end can get rolling , had to wait more than once at the end of 3-mile. After the fire/burn Jasper has become more of a pass through lake BUT loaded with them 19" lakers. but really only one good campsite by the kingfisher portage as the fire destroyed most of the standing trees. SAK to red rock lake is doable in a day but it will be a full day. Jasper & eddy falls definitely worth some extra time. Toe lake in the SAK is a cool little lake , packed with pike and beautiful smallies , (pic of jasper falls & toe lake smally.

Thx shock- You da Seagull man haha. Been reading a bunch of your posts with tips on the area, very cool and much appreciated.
Think 1st day we will target Ogish instead of Alpine. Get us further along on the route, maybe catch Alpine on the way out thru Red Rock. We should have enough time for a layover day or two, see how it goes.

After doing some research on this site and getting tons of good info Thx so much. Plan B:

Tow to American point on Sag
Hump to SAK - camp
Maybe hang one day - Fish & explore
Hump to Ogish- camp hang one day
Fish & explore
Work back to Seagull - maybe camp on Alpine
Hump out back to Seagull Outfitters

I’m likin this more, less time wasted paddling all day thru Sag, leaves more time to fish & explore the area. Likin this a lot actually for several reasons. Thx again for the input.

Cheers, scat

scat: "Thx shock- You da Seagull man haha. Been reading a bunch of your posts with tips on the area, very cool and much appreciated.
Think 1st day we will target Ogish instead of Alpine. Get us further along on the route, maybe catch Alpine on the way out thru Red Rock. We should have enough time for a layover day or two, see how it goes."

My pleasure Scatman ;) getting to Ogish day one sounds like a prefect plan. We always B-lined to SAK and base camp for 5 days. Generally it's about a 8.5 hour journey from the seagull landing. feel free to message me anytime, darrylldeb425@gmail.com

Thx a million shock - See my plan B post above, gonna get a tow to American point to start off.

scat: "Thx a million shock - See my plan B post above, gonna get a tow to American point to start off. "

yes , so are you going into SAK via Ester and hanson lake then ? and leave through eddy-jennie-annie-ogish ? June 4th all species should be turned on , probably will have to get a little deeper for lakers thou BUT they average close to 5lbs in knife , a heck of a fight on #8-#10 test theres a ton of down trees/wood in those back bays of knife , thats where we caught a lot of smallies hanging out in the shadows of the down timber. It's going to be an EPIC trip !!

I've done at least a dozen trips in this area....you will love it.

I was going to share a trip report that I thought I had posted...but it isn't in my list, so a very short version. This was a small scout group. A dad and his two scouts with me taging along to assist and provide some comic relief.

Day 1 we got the tow to American Point from Voyageurs Outfitters and traveled to the end of Ottertrack Lake. We stopped to explore the Ben Ambrose homestead site and had some sandwiches we think within the walls of his old cabin.

Day 2 was a day trip through Lake of the Clouds and back around through Amoeger. Once on knife we started casting/trolling and caught a ton of smallies while we made our way back to camp.

Day 3 we packed up and made our way to thunder point where we had lunch and checked out the view before we started on our way down SAK. Camped not far from the portage to Toe Lake. We had time that afternoon to explore the area a bit, catch some fish for dinner, etc.

On day 4 the weather was pretty iffy so we decided to use up our second layover day. We fished and checked out Toe Lake...which is a pretty cool little lake that feels like it should have Moose. When the weather cleared a bit we decided to check on Eddy falls.

The trip continued on Day 5 as we made our way to Ogish and ended up snagging the lake campsite available. Was a warm day so spent the afternoon swimming and chilling.

Day 6 was our last full day and we travelled from Ogish to Seagull. Camped near the Palisades.
The next morning we travelled up the Seagull river to Voyageurs. Excellend trip!

Awesome dude. I think the tow is a good idea, have two teenagers in tow so to speak, don’t want them paddling all day on Sag or Seagull on the first day. Get off to a good start close to the good spots, be fun too, never did a tow. I like the direction going east back to the landing also. I read there might be runnable rapids from Alpine to Seagull and I’d rather have winds at my back from the west on the Seagull crossing. Of course it won’t be haha.

dont run the rapids. esp with canoes you don't own.... or you might end up owning them. :)

Ok - I do have my Prism but will certainly take your advice under consideration. I thought I read some might be runnable, being spring and all…
This coming from a guy who once bent a canoe around a rock on the 11 point River in the Ozarks haha.

Scatman , we did do those rapids once from alpine to seagull , there very mild and narrow (more clay than rock) but as Mocha stated dont want to damage a $3000-$4000 rental kevlar canoe But Coming from jasper you dont save a whole lot of time as the paddle is longer , and the 100 rod portage is flat and wide , easy for a 100rd.

Yeah ok, I think the book did say it would be quicker via the portage. My partners are renting Kevlar and kinda newbies. Duly noted, I’ll have to find another way to put a few new nicks in my Prism. Again great advice Thx!

scat: "Ok - I do have my Prism but will certainly take your advice under consideration. I thought I read some might be runnable, being spring and all…
This coming from a guy who once bent a canoe around a rock on the 11 point River in the Ozarks haha."

I too have ran the 11 Point! I love that area. Jacks Fork. Current. All good floats.

Hey Maize - I was on an Outward Bound led trip in high school. Was amazing, have many stories. One of them being that yes, my buddy and I did bend an aluminum canoe around a rock like a tin can in a rapids on the 11 Point and had to leave it there and go 3 man the last 2 days. It was all his fault trust me…
True story - When we put in to start the trip it was right after this huge spring that shot straight out of the ground, like 70 yards wide I would say now, and shot straight up into the air like 20-30 feet high. This is how the 11 Point River starts, suddenly spurting out of the earth. We put in a bit down stream from this amazing natural phenomenon. My buddy gets in the canoe, tips us over immediately, all our stuff is soaked 10 seconds into the trip. And so it went…. Great trip, young reckless and stupid you betcha.

Those springs are neat…I remember how cold and clear the water would be downstream from one. I dumped my Golden Hawk in the Jacks Fork. Came around a bend, fallen tree created a strainer. I almost paddled out of it but my stern loop caught a root…down goes Frazier.

Good thing my buddy figured out to get a tow to American Point we need a permit for Saganaga not Seagull so we switched our permit to Sag no problem. That does sound right now that I look at it.
Plan C haha. Now to set up the tow and wait….
And read and take notes.

18 years ago when our guys starting going to the BWCA we started in Ely. After 3 years of going to the Ely area a veteran of the BWCA told me that those that fall in love with the BWCA start in Ely, then move to the gunflint due a lot less people, more of a wilderness feel, etc. So our fourth year we took him up on it. We have never turned back. 15 years of Gunflint trips through a variety of entry points. Our favorite lake by far for scenerey is Seagull. Favorite for fishing and just relaxing is Red Rock.

Plan B sounds more doable and enjoyable...

But note that you need a Sag permit for plan B.
You need a Seagull permit for plan A.

Changed to the Sag permit - Plan D:

Day 1 - Tow to American Point - Hump to Ester - Camp/fish for trout
Day 2 - Hump to SAK thru Hanson - set up camp/fish
Day 3 - Hang out on Knife - fish explore
Day 4 - Hump SAK to Ogish - set up camp/fish
Day 5 - Hang out on Ogish - fish/explore
Day 6 - Hump to Alpine - set up camp/fish
Day 7 - Alpine to Seagull - paddle out

Final plan haha. I really like this.
Thx for all the input, much appreciated.

There's an infinite number of possabilities and opinions on this loop. This is a good thing and those opinions exist as there are alot of great lakes and campsites in and around your loop. To add to the options and discusion, I would say - I like the North Arm of Knife better than the South. Less traffic, more scenic and better lake trout fishing.

Ogish is an amazing lake. the west side is better as it's out of the burn zone from the ham lake fire. Great fishing - make sure to check out Mueller / Agamok falls (already mentioned) while you're on Ogish. Camp#785 is a favorite.

I’ll second camp 785 on Ogish. Stayed there three nights in September ‘24. Wonderful site!

I'm probably in the minority here, but I actually hate Ogish. With your route, I'd rather omit the night on Ogish and spend an extra day in the Henson/Cherry/Topaz area. You can easily get from SAK to Alpine in a day. Or stay on Ogish and skip Alpine. My 11 yo daughter and I were able to exit from Ogish to Seagull in half a day with an early start - it would have been an easy day if I didn't get turned around on Seagull and end up on the wrong side of the lake which made us paddle into the strong wind along 3 Mile Island.

Get an early start in the morning when traveling, the wind can be an issue especially on the big lakes.

I would plan on getting an early morning start when traveling as the wind can be a real problem, especially on the big lakes.

Thx guys duly noted. Rock on!

I second the wind caution on Ogish, especially the west end in the wide open bay. We earned our dinner that day!

If you want a smallie haven, check out Jenny lake. I don't know if you're going that far or not. It's just on the other side of Ogish, and that west bay in Jenny treated me well. Such clear water, like Eddy and Knife. One of my favorite bass spots in the BW.

Am going thru Eddy, Jenny & Annie from SAK to Ogish. I will try it out, a lot of good fishing in this area from reports, can’t wait to check it out. Thx for all the great suggestions guys!