Daniels Lake (EP61) Gear Checklist
Daniels Lake is a quota-of-one entry off Hungry Jack Road, reached by a short paddle across West Bearskin Lake and a 60-rod carry. The lake is small and quiet, and everything beyond it is a very long carry toward Rose or Rove Lake along the Border Route Trail. The writers we read were a two-day backpack that started on the Daniels Lake spur trail, an April snowshoe trip that crossed Daniels on the way out, and an outfitter writing about the shared parking lot. People carry mud-ready footwear, bug leggings, a topographic map, a tarp and their own toilet paper, and they regret thin cold-weather gear and a start too late for the ridge storms.
What shapes your gear on Daniels Lake
- Getting to the water
- The Forest Service lists Entry 61 as overnight and paddle only, with a 60-rod portage from West Bearskin Lake into Daniels. A BWCA directory says the parking lot is shared with the Duncan Lake entry, the walk from the lot to West Bearskin is about 8 rods, and the paddle to the Daniels portage is 0.6 mile to the northeast. The directory lists a pit latrine at the lot and calls the carry generally well kept.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points and BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA
- Carry numbers disagree
- The Forest Service says 60 rods into Daniels and 665 rods on toward Rose Lake. The entry-point page text says 50 rods into Daniels and over 300 rods to Rose or Rove. The lake page lists 60 rods, then 380 to Rose, 325 to Rove and an 83-rod carry up to the Long Portage.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points, BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA and BWCAwild.com: Daniels Lake
- The lake itself
- The directory gives Daniels as 509 acres and 90 feet deep with four campsites. A hiking trail follows the south shore and runs through two of those campsites, which canoeists and hikers both use. The daily quota for the entry is 1 on the entry page.
From BWCAwild.com: Daniels Lake and BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA
- Border Route Trail neighbors
- A June backpacker started on the spur trail along Daniels, found ankle-deep mud near the start and an easy, flat walk, joined the Border Route Trail after a few miles and saw no one in two days. The trail is called rugged and hard to follow, and the writer had to shoot a bearing more than once. A spring group from the Duncan side crossed a flooded portage and the lake on snowshoes.
From Hello Stranger and Backpacking Light
- Conditions in the reports
- In late June bugs were bad in the interior but tolerable on the lakes and overlooks. An April trip had lows in the high single digits to low teens and slush in the middle of the lakes. An outfitter checks the weather before a trip on Duncan and often postpones when wind is forecast, because westerlies make the afternoon return harder.
From Hello Stranger, Backpacking Light and Bending Branches
What the agency requires on Daniels Lake
Paddle only
Entry 61 is listed as overnight and paddle only. Motors may not be used or even possessed on a paddle-only lake.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points and Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations
No cans or glass bottles
Any can or glass bottle is illegal in the wilderness, with exceptions for fuel, insect repellent and medicine. Food and drinks go in containers made for repeat use.
A bear-resistant container or a hang rope
From April 1 to November 30 food and scented items must hang at least 12 feet above the ground and not less than 6 feet horizontally from a trunk, or sit in a certified bear-resistant container. Never leave food unattended on a portage or in camp.
Designated campsites and a small stove
During the ice-free season camp only at Forest Service campsites with steel grates and latrines. Fires are allowed only in those grates, and a fire restriction can require a stove.
Group size limit
The most allowed together are nine people and four watercraft.
What hikers carry on Daniels Lake
Footwear for ankle-deep mud
The first stretch of the Daniels Lake spur trail was ankle-deep mud for the June backpacker, and later sections of the Border Route got muddier and rockier with a real risk of a twisted ankle.
From Hello Stranger
Bug-proof leggings
The same backpacker wore bug-proof leggings and counted four bites on the legs against forty on the arms, with bugs worst in the interior of the trail.
From Hello Stranger
A topographic map for the area
The entry page lists Fisher map F-13 and McKenzie map 2 for Daniels. The June backpacker recommends the McKenzie sheet for navigating and says you need a compass and practice with it, since cell service is absent.
From BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA and Hello Stranger
Snowshoes and a tent that handles snow, in April
An April pair used snowshoes, a three-season tent on a stomped-out platform, and a canister stove that was finicky at night. Their base weight was about 14 pounds.
From Backpacking Light
Your own toilet paper
A canoe-paddle company's guide to the shared lot says the only latrine is at the lot on Hungry Jack Road and tells visitors to bring their own paper. The directory confirms a pit latrine there.
From Bending Branches and BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA
A packed lunch and a weather check
The outfitter writer always carries lunch, since there is room to sit at either end of the Duncan portage and at Rose Falls. Wind forecasts decide whether they go at all.
From Bending Branches
9 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Daniels Lake
A shelter that cannot take blowing snow
The April pair said their three-season tent was not suited to real winter and that they would look for lighter shelters that can handle drifting snow.
From Backpacking Light
A glove dropped while tired
The April writer lost a mitt, backtracked about a mile and found it in the trail, after a night shift and a short sleep. The writer blames neglecting the map, compass and mitts.
From Backpacking Light
Being on an exposed ridge in storm season
The June backpackers were on an exposed ridge when storm cells arrived and waited under a tarp for two hours. The next day they aimed to be back at the car by 3 p.m. to dodge afternoon storms, and made it by 3:20.
From Hello Stranger
Planning a hike home in the dark
The backpacker warns that dropping back toward camp from the Watap Cliffs after sunset is risky, and that camping outside a designated campsite is illegal.
From Hello Stranger and Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations
Gear questions for Daniels Lake
How long is the portage from West Bearskin Lake to Daniels Lake?
The Forest Service and the lake directory both say 60 rods. The entry-point page text says 50. All describe a well-kept carry.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points, BWCAwild.com: Daniels Lake and BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA
How far is the carry from Daniels Lake to Rose Lake?
Sources split. The Forest Service lists 665 rods, the lake directory says 380, and the entry-point page says over 300. Treat it as a very long carry along the Border Route Trail and plan on a double carry.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points, BWCAwild.com: Daniels Lake and BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA
Are there toilets at the Daniels Lake entry point?
Yes, one pit latrine, up a signed trail from the parking lot. An outfitter writer says it is the only one on the route and that you need your own paper.
From BWCAwild.com: Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA and Bending Branches
Can you hike the Border Route Trail from Daniels Lake?
Yes, a spur trail runs along the lake to the Border Route. The June backpacker called it flat and easy at first with ankle-deep mud, then rugged, hard to follow and not a beginner route.
From Hello Stranger and BWCAwild.com: Daniels Lake
Sources
- Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations · Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service) · Agency
- Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points · Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service) · Agency
- Entry Point 61 - Daniels Lake in the BWCA · BWCAwild.com · Blog
- Daniels Lake · BWCAwild.com · Blog
- Trails and Adventures on the Gunflint/BWCA · Hello Stranger, Maddy Marquardt · Blog
- Winter in the BWCA (April trip report) · Backpacking Light, Matt F · Forum thread
- Day Canoe Trip to Stairway Portage & Rose Falls · Bending Branches, Sharon Brodin · Blog