Just curious to hear from fellow Duluth residents. If you were crunched for time and had just a single night to go up and spend in the BWCA on say... a Saturday. Which lake would you choose, with all things considered (driving time, little to no portaging, the crowding, etc).

For the date I am looking at in July I could get a Sawbill, Isabella, or Lake one. Would grab permit Friday at SNF headquarters here in town, and hit the road around 3-4am so I can be on the water before 6:30am Saturday, spend the day paddling and exploring a bit, pick a campsite by 3, hang out, read a book, make dinner, etc... Head out whenever I feel like it on Sunday.

I did a longer trip in May and I have two more longer trips this Fall, but I have a few weekends with no plans this Summer so it seems fitting to head up there for a night.

Of all the entry points, I think Little Gabbro is the closest to my house in Duluth (if approached from the south, not through Ely). But for whatever reason Sawbill has been much more of a home base for me.

Of the three you mentioned, they could all be great, just depends on what kind of exploring you want (mostly lakes with Sawbill and Lake One, or mostly river travel with Isabella).

I think Lake One would tend to be the busiest. I think they all would offer minimal portaging for a short trip.

brulu: "Of all the entry points, I think Little Gabbro is the closest to my house in Duluth (if approached from the south, not through Ely). But for whatever reason Sawbill has been much more of a home base for me.


Of the three you mentioned, they could all be great, just depends on what kind of exploring you want (mostly lakes with Sawbill and Lake One, or mostly river travel with Isabella).

I think Lake One would tend to be the busiest. I think they all would offer minimal portaging for a short trip."

Leaning towards Sawbill I think. You are right that it seems like a good home-base entry. I have been up there a few times just never in the Summer months. Lake one even though it's only another 10 miles from me, just seems so much further away. I dont know why. If Gabbro had a permit open I would probably go that route to see some new lakes, but it was spur of the moment.

The drive up the shore is a nice additional factor in favor of Sawbill.

I would say Lake 1 and then you can get to Lake 3 quite easily. But even better I think for a single night is find some rustic free campsite on a lake... Like Harriet Lake for example.

x2jmorris: "I would say Lake 1 and then you can get to Lake 3 quite easily. But even better I think for a single night is find some rustic free campsite on a lake... Like Harriet Lake for example. "

Thought about a non-BWCA lake with rustic campground as well but generally shy away from those because the campgrounds always seem to have a group that is a nuisance, or a group that lets their dog run wild all over the place, and that would be a big issue for my dog. So we stick with the boundary waters where I can avoid contact with other dogs pretty easily. Plus, if I am not mistaken, most of the rustic campgrounds surrounding the BWCA have boat landings are are accessible with motors, which I'm not a huge fan of.

Not sure why I forgot about South Kawishiwi (EP 32), it's a teensy bit closer than Little Gabbro, and would also be a fun one day, one night exploration destination with minimal portaging and lots of campsite options.

I'm from Duluth also. What about a Snake River permit and paddle into Bald Eagle?

If you enter from Sawbill, think about Wonder Lake, (From Alton) I was there last week and it has a beauty of a campsite on it and you may be the only one on the lake during the weekday. The middle site on Kelso is also a beauty.

AlexanderSupertramp: "

x2jmorris: "I would say Lake 1 and then you can get to Lake 3 quite easily. But even better I think for a single night is find some rustic free campsite on a lake... Like Harriet Lake for example. "

Thought about a non-BWCA lake with rustic campground as well but generally shy away from those because the campgrounds always seem to have a group that is a nuisance, or a group that lets their dog run wild all over the place, and that would be a big issue for my dog. So we stick with the boundary waters where I can avoid contact with other dogs pretty easily. Plus, if I am not mistaken, most of the rustic campgrounds surrounding the BWCA have boat landings are are accessible with motors, which I'm not a huge fan of."

It is true some of the more popular ones would be like that. But you can get off the motor boat area and find a lot of remoteness. Here is one example.

Scarp Lake

and the part I want you to see from that link is as follows

"Scarp Lake is a designated trout lake located about 10 miles east of Isabella that is close to 40 acres in size with a maximum depth of 15 feet. Anglers fishing from watercraft typically access the lake via a 20 rod portage trail from Hogback Lake. Shore anglers can use the hiking trails maintained by the US Forest Service that surround the lake to access shore fishing spots that include two remote campsites. The lake is managed for Rainbow Trout"

A.S: Grab an SNF map and target a lake outside of the BWCA with "carry down" access and a single campsite. You will be amazed and so will your dog.

I was on the cloquet river last week. With the drought it was easy to paddle upriver. There are campsites, check the dnr map. It’s a half hour drive from my house and much more remote than the bwca

jwartman59: "I was on the cloquet river last week. With the drought it was easy to paddle upriver. There are campsites, check the dnr map. It’s a half hour drive from my house and much more remote than the bwca"

I've looked at it on the map before and always wondered. Never gave it much thought because I assumed the water would always be really fast. Maybe I'll check this out too, is there really just the one place to enter up near the dam on Island Lake?

AlexanderSupertramp: "

jwartman59: "I was on the cloquet river last week. With the drought it was easy to paddle upriver. There are campsites, check the dnr map. It’s a half hour drive from my house and much more remote than the bwca"

I've looked at it on the map before and always wondered. Never gave it much thought because I assumed the water would always be really fast. Maybe I'll check this out too, is there really just the one place to enter up near the dam on Island Lake? "

Nope. Look harder at that map. And bring enough road clearance. :-) (I haven't been there in a while, so go at your own risk and let us know the condition of the road in.)

I am hard pressed to think you will find better advice for the Cloquet River than this thread:

Anyone live near Brimson, MN or the upper Cloquet River?

I would go to a lake like Shoepack or Thunderbird. No people, no permit, no restriction and closer. How ever the b dub has become trendy in the last 30 years and everyone wants the shirt and sticker.

I would look at Baker, Homer, or Brule.

Duluth here, too.
We've done one-nighters to Slim, Lake One, Wood, and a couple others. Slim was my wife's favorite, and I liked Lake One because we caught walleyes. If you get up early and come home late, it's a pretty good substitute for a longer trip.