Voyageur Boundary Waters Map Index:
Ten jumbo maps cover the entire BWCA in beautiful detail. Laid out for the canoeist with crisp, clear lake outlines; portage and campsite information; and detailed topographic lines. Lake contour coverage for those who love to fish, plus summaries of DNR fish surveys. An excellent overview map and full lake name index of the whole BWCA on the back of each map with historical notes as well.
Forest Service and outfitter reviewed!
Dimensions: 38 3/4" x 28 3/4"
Folds to 6"x 10"
Waterproof paper
Weight: 4 oz
Bundle of all ten also available.
Buy Voyageur Maps Complete Bundle of 10 Maps Here
Maps can be purchased online from our own Boundary Waters Catalog or by calling Piragis Northwoods Company at 1-800-223-6565.
Map 1
Covers portions of the far northeastern Boundary Waters, including entry points north of the Echo Trail. This area offers excellent paddling on dozens of fine wilderness lakes, as well as opportunities to explore magnificent Lac La Croix on the U.S. - Canada border.
In general, the majority of visitors to portions of the BWCAW shown on Map 1 will stick to the edges , either staying along the border lakes, including Little Vermilion Lake, Loon Lake and Lac La Croix; or will tend to stay on the more southern routes through the Pauness Lakes, Shell Lake, Lynx lake, Oyster
Lake, and down into Nina Moose Lake. More isolation, as well as more difficult travel, will be found in the smaller lakes just south of Lac La Croix.
Caution should be exercised when crossing the largest lakes of Map 1 in a canoe. In particular, the big open stretches of Lac La Croix can develop large waves that are difficult or hazardous to navigate in a canoe. Early morning is often the best time to cross these big areas.
In addition to paddling, limited hiking opportunities are available.
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Map 2
Covers a portion of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) stretching from Lac La Croix in the west almost to Basswood Lake in the east, primarily showing Crooked Lake and areas within the BWCAW south of the U.S.-Canada border.
The main corridor for canoe travel on Map 2 within the Boundary Waters is along the border lakes from Lac La Croix to Iron Lake, through Crooked Lake and then on to Basswood Lake (shown on Map 5). In addition, portages are maintained on the west side of Map 2 around Lake Agnes, the Stuart River, Dahlgren River and up through Rush Lake to Iron Lake.
Another route south out of Friday Bay in Crooked Lake also contains maintained portages through Papoose Lake down through Wagosh Lake and beyond.
Other large interior sections of Map 2 do not contain maintained portages and are much more difficult to traverse. No portages between Stuart and Sunday Lakes are maintained. Similarly, no portages from Beartrap Lake, up through Sunday Lake, and on to Parley Lake by way of the Beartrap River are maintained. Jackfish Lake, on the south east edge of Map 2, is not accessible by maintained portages. These interior areas lie within the Sundial Lake and Tick Lake primitive management areas.
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Map 3
Covers the Boundary Waters south of the Echo Trail, plus a small part of the area north of the Echo Trail. The two most popular Boundary Waters entries on Map 3 south of the Echo Trail are in the west at Trout Lake (EP1) and in the east at Crab Lake (EP4). Motorboats are prohibited on all lakes within the BWCAW on Map 3 except Trout Lake, which allows motors up to 25 horsepower with a proper permit.
The majority of visitors to the BWCAW south of the Echo Trail enter from Trout Lake or Crab Lake. Greater solitude can generally be found by starting at one of the northern entry points or by paddling deep into the wilderness from Trout and Crab Lakes. See Maps 1, 2, and 4 for more information about areas north of the Echo Trail.
The long portage into Crab Lake from Burntside was rerouted in 2003 after a dispute with a private landowner over the old portage trail. During high water it may be possible to paddle Crab Creek to Crab Lake, but beaver dams and fallen trees are likely to make travel difficult. The long portages in the northeast corner of Map 3 receive infrequent maintenance and are quite challenging.
Caution should be exercised when crossing the largest lakes of Map 3 in a canoe. Burntside, Vermillion, and Trout Lakes can all develop large waves that are difficult or hazardous to navigate in a canoe. Early morning is often the best time to cross these lakes. Cummings is also prone to developing large waves when the wind is from the west.
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Map 4
Shows all of Basswood Lake within the United States, as well as the main corridors for travel into and out of Basswood.
The two most popular entries in the entire BWCAW are shown on Map 4: Moose Lake (EP 25) and Lake One (EP 30). Mudro Lake (EP 22 and 23), Fall Lake (EP24), Wood Lake (EP 26), North Kawishiwi River (EP 29), South Farm Lake (EP 31) and Snowbank Lake (EP 27) are also shown.
One of the two remaining truck portages in the Boundary Waters continues to operate on the Canadian Border at Prairie Portage.
During peak boating season a contractor uses four-wheel drive trucks and a trailer to pull boats over the U.S. side of the portage. Typically canoeists take the much shorter portage trail along the Canadian side of the border, which is not motorized.
Caution should be exercised when crossing the largest lakes of Map 4 in a canoe. The big open stretches of Basswood Lake can develop large, dangerous waves. Early morning is often the best time to cross these big areas.
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Map 5
Covers a stretch of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) south of Quetico Provincial Park along the U.S. - Canadian border, including most of Basswood Lake.
One of the few remaining truck portages in the Boundary Waters continues to operate on the Canadian Border at Prairie Portage. During peak boating season, generally starting around the U.S. fishing opener in May, a Forest Service contractor uses four-wheel drive trucks and a trailer to pull boats over the portage on the U.S. side of the border.
Typically canoeists take the much shorter portage trail along the Canadian side of the border, which is not motorized.
Caution should be exercised when crossing the largest lakes of Map 5 in a canoe. The big open stretches of Basswood Lake can develop large waves that are difficult or hazardous to navigate in a canoe. Early morning is often the best time to cross these big areas.
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Map 6
Covers some of the finest wilderness areas within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) stretching up along the end of the Gunflint Trail.
Seagull Lake (Entry Point 54) and Saganaga Lake (Entry Point 55) are the two most popular starting points for trips into the BWCAW on Map 6; but Brant Lake (Entry Point 52), Missing Link Lake (Entry Point 51), the Cross River (Entry Point 50), and Larch Creek (Entry Point 80) are alternative canoe entry points. In addition, trips up the Granite River system starting at Magnetic Lake (Entry Point 57) are also shown in part on Map 6.
Notably, the Kekebabic Trail starts at the east side of Map 6 and extends across Map 6. Various cross country skiing trails are also shown.
The wilderness area at the end of the Gunflint Trail has some of the most fascinating natural history in all of North America. Not only does this landscape include a magnificent network of pristine lakes and exposures of glacial carved bedrock, but it also offers a living window into the effects of two of nature’s most powerful forces: wind from an incredible 1999 storm and fire from subsequent forest fires. This combination of wind and fire will offer visitors in coming decades an excellent opportunity to observe changing, regenerating forest.
In addition, significant portions of these areas were not heavily impacted by the blowdown or subsequent fires, so visitors have an opportunity to effectively “travel through time” to view everything from new forest growing up out of mineral soils, to mature forests that have not been significantly impacted in many decades.
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Map 7
Covers portions of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) at the end of the Fernberg Road (County Road 18), as well as areas accessed by Highway 1, County Road 23, and the Tomahawk Road (Forest Service Road 377).
Fourteen different water entry points are shown on Map 7, including such popular entries as Moose Lake (EP 25), Snowbank Lake (EP 27), and Lake One (EP 30).
The Lake One entry is the second most popular entry in the BWCAW, after only Moose Lake. If you enter through Lake One during the summer months expect to see numerous other visitors. You’ll find fewer other campers as you head further east toward Lake Insula, but even this area is still relatively popular.
The South Kawishiwi River area is very beautiful, but also fairly well traveled. The best opportunities for isolation will be found by heading to smaller lakes that are not on main travel corridors.
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Map 8
Covers portions of the southeast Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). Four canoe entry points are shown on Map 8: Hog Creek (EP 36), Kawishiwi Lake (EP 37), Sawbill Lake (EP 38), and Baker Lake (EP 39).
All lakes within the BWCAW on Map 8 are paddle only, with no motorized watercraft allowed at any time. As is often true in the BWCAW, the farther you travel from an entry point the fewer other paddles you will likely encounter, especially if you cross over large portages along the way.
In addition to excellent lakes, Map 8 offers some of the finest opportunities in the Boundary Waters to paddle beautiful slow moving, winding rivers: the Perent River in the southwest offers good one-way trips to Isabella Lake (on Map 7); the Kawishiwi River provides good travel in the northwest; the Temperance River in the southeast is beautiful; and both the Frost River and Louse River allow
exceptional remote areas to explore. Both the Frost and Louse Rivers are significantly more challenging than the other rivers mentioned here.
On July 4th, 1999 a massive wind storm struck northern Minnesota, blowing down trees on nearly half a million acres of the Superior National Forest, including on about a third of the BWCAW.
Most damage occurred north and east of the areas shown on Map 8, but there was considerable blowdown in the northwest corner, around Fraser Lake, parts of Alice and Thomas Lakes, and in the Boulder Lake vicinity. During dry periods expect fires to be restricted or prohibited in areas of significant blowdown, and in the entire BWCAW when fire danger is particularly severe.
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Map 9
Covers portions of the eastern Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) on both the north and south sides of the Gunflint Trail. This area offers world class canoe routes, good hiking opportunities, and a network of excellent groomed cross-country skiing trails. A total of fourteen different canoeing entry points are shown on Map 9.
Map 9 differs from all other Voyageur Maps in that the North-South dimension is longer than the West-East dimension. This was necessary in order to cover all parts of the BWCAW from the Canadian border town to Kinogami Lake.
Many lakes on Map 9 are long and thin, stretching from west to east between towering hills of gabbro bedrock. As a result of their size and orientation, many of these lakes channel westerly winds down their length. Of note is Brule Lake, which often develops large waves coming out of the west. These waves can complicate travel on Brule, because movement along a north-south course can be treacherous when the wind is blowing out of the west. For this reason,
Plan travel on Brule with winds and weather in mind. Winds are usually calmest at dawn, so this is often the best time to try to cross the big open stretches of Brule.
The geology of this area also heavily impacts portage difficulty. Most portages that follow an west-east axis, or connect the east and west ends of lakes, are relatively flat and easy. In contrast, portages having a north-south axis are often quite hilly and challenging.
If you’re looking to explore Map 9 by land, the Border Route Trail provides some of the nicest wilderness hiking in Minnesota. The Gunflint Trail area also has tremendous cross country skiing options, including miles of maintained trails. The Banadad ski trail, located south of Gunflint Trail, is one of a handful of maintained ski trails that is actually within the BWCAW. Other good skiing can be found (for example) at Gunflint Lake, Poplar Lake and Flour Lake.
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Map 10
Covers eastern portions of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), including Clearwater, East Bearskin, Pine, and Mountain lakes. Eight different water entry points are shown. Motorized watercraft are allowed within the BWCAW only on Clearwater and East Bearskin lakes, and then only with a 10 horsepower or smaller motor.
Most lakes within the BWCAW on Map 10 are long and thin, stretching from west to east between towering hills of gabbro bedrock. As a result of their shape and orientation, many of these lakes channel westerly winds down their lengths. Larger lakes, such as Mountain, Moose, Pine, and Clearwater are particularly prone to developing big waves when the wind is out of the west. Travel on these lakes is often best undertaken early in the morning before winds pick up.
The geology of this area also heavily impacts portage difficulty. Portages that follow a west-east axis, or connect the ends of lakes, are typically relatively easy. In contrast, portages having a north-south axis are often quite hilly and very challenging.
The most difficult portage on map 10 is certainly the 232 rod portage between Pine Lake and Canoe Lake. This portage climbs over 200 feet in elevation along a switchbacked trail. Fortunately the path itself is relatively smooth.
The Border Route Trail, stretching across Map 10, provides some of the best wilderness hiking in Minnesota. In addition, other hiking and cross country ski trails are maintained along the west end of the Map 10, near Daniels, East Bearskin, and Flour lakes.
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The back of all Voyageur maps contains a large, detailed finder map including a thorough index of Boundary Waters lakes. In addition, information about navigation in the Boundary Waters, safety, rules & regulations, basic entry point information, hiking opportunities, winter activities, fishing, and sources for further information is provided.
The overview map is a great asset for trip planning, but has been simplified to an extent that it is not suitable for navigation. In addition, campsite locations are not as carefully reviewed as those shown on the detailed fronts of each Voyageur map.
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