BWCAW Quota Permit — Moose Lake (EP25)

Moose Lake (EP25): what makes it different

Moose Lake is a big motorboat landing about 20 miles outside Ely, and it is the usual door for parties heading to Knife, Ensign, Birch or Basswood, many of them by tow boat. One longtime BWCAW site calls it the busiest entry point in the wilderness.^7,3

Getting to the start

From Ely, go east on West Sheridan Street for 1.2 miles, then about 17 miles up Highway 169 (the Fernberg Trail) to Moose Lake Road. Turn left and drive 2.3 miles to a very large lot split into two sections, with a restroom at the landing.³

Outfitters line the road in. One hobbyist site names Williams & Hall, LaTourell's, Canoe Country Outfitters and Canadian Border Outfitters, and Williams & Hall runs a lodge on the shore with its own dock and tow boats.^3,7

The same site lists a 20-rod carry from the lot to the water.³

The first leg

Most parties turn right, to the northeast, and cross into the wilderness as they pass the end of the island on their left. The water then runs through Moose, Newfound and Sucker lakes, with Prairie Portage at the northwest end of the chain.^3,4

Parties bound for Knife usually stop short of Prairie Portage and cross a short carry in the northeast corner of Sucker into Birch Lake.⁴

Paddling times differ. One 2013 poster on bwca.com needed about three hours to reach the tow drop-off, while a 2020 poster who skips tows calls it a two-hour paddle.^4,5

A carry from the back of the lot reaches Flash Lake, and from Flash you can portage to Snowbank and close a loop back to Moose.³

Terrain and difficulty

This is a boater's chain. A 2020 bwca.com poster says resort boats and locals head for Prairie Portage between about 6:30 and 9 a.m., so paddlers take wakes from the side. Strong west winds can put whitecaps on the paddle out.⁵

The border portages from Birch to Carp to Knife are wide, flat and well used. The Ensign to Vera to Knife carries are harder.⁴

Quota at this entry point

• 2026 daily quota at Moose Lake (EP25), overnight paddle: 27 groups a day. This is the most common daily total on the Recreation.gov calendar from May to September 2026.²
• 2026 daily quota at Moose Lake (EP25), overnight motor: 27 groups a day. Motor has its own quota row; the two are separate pools and do not add up to 54.²

Rules specific to this entry point

Motor use or even possession needs an overnight motor permit, with a 25 horsepower limit. One extra motor of up to 10 horsepower may ride along if the motors running at once stay within 25.^2,1

Day-use motor zone F covers Moose, Newfound and Sucker only. Zone G adds Prairie Portage and the motor part of Basswood, where a commercial portage service runs. Portage wheels are allowed on Prairie Portage.^1,2

Staying on the US side needs no Canadian paperwork, per a 2013 poster. For Quetico from Prairie Portage, Explore Magazine reports Canada ended its remote-area border crossing permit on September 14, 2026, so check the current Canadian rule first.^4,8

Where it leads

Knife Lake is the favorite goal: a tow to the Birch portage, the border lakes east, then home through Vera and Ensign. Ensign, Splash and Wind lakes are the other main choices, and Prairie Portage opens Basswood and Quetico.^5,4,3

A Labor Day 2024 report ran an 11-portage, roughly 20-mile loop through Ensign, Cattyman Falls, Disappointment and Parent lakes, leaving by way of Snowbank.⁶

What trip reports say

In a 2013 bwca.com thread, one paddler who took the earliest tow from Williams & Hall, at 7 or 8 a.m., had the Knife portages to themselves. Another says a 5 a.m. start gets you to the Birch portage ahead of the tows.⁴

In the 2020 entry-point thread, a party using a LaTourell's tow found Birch busy and most sites full on a Friday night. A Labor Day weekend 2024 report found the east end of Ensign very busy and every Disappointment Lake site taken, which pushed the party on to Parent.^5,6

When to go from here

Timing matters more than month. One 2013 poster says motor traffic is heaviest on weekends and Mondays. In the 2020 thread, a paddler a week out found none of the 27 Moose permits left for June 5 and one for June 6.^4,5

Compare with nearby entry points

• Fall Lake (EP24): Fall Lake also has a boat landing, but its routes to Newton, Basswood and Mud lakes use extra portages, where Moose reaches Basswood along a motor chain with a single carry at Prairie Portage.^1,2
• Snowbank Lake (EP27): The Snowbank day-motor zone covers Snowbank Lake only, while Moose allows motors on three lakes in a row. The two connect through the Flash Lake carry.^1,3
• Wood Lake (EP26): Wood Lake is paddle only and starts with a 180-rod portage, whereas Moose is a drive-up boat landing with a short carry and a motor option.^1,3

Sources

1. Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points, Superior National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
2. Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Permit, Moose Lake divisions and 2026 availability, Recreation.gov. Read 2026-10-15.
3. BWCA Entry Point 25 - Moose Lake (visits 2016 and 2021), BWCAwild.com. Read 2026-10-15.
4. BWCA EP 25 Moose Lake- Knife (trip planning thread, December 2013), BWCA.com Trip Planning Forum. Read 2026-10-15.
5. BWCA Entry Point of the Week: EP 25 Moose Lake (May 2020), BWCA.com Trip Planning Forum. Read 2026-10-15.
6. Entry Point 25 - Moose Lake trip report, Labor Day weekend 2024, BWCA.com Trip Reports. Read 2026-10-15.
7. BWCA Tows and Transportation, Williams and Hall Outfitters. Read 2026-10-15.
8. The Happy Camper: Canada Ends Quetico's Remote Area Border Crossing Permit, Explore Magazine. Read 2026-10-15.
9. Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Permits, Superior National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.

Safety & planning

Alternatives to a Moose Lake (EP25) permit