Snowbank Lake (EP27) Gear Checklist
Snowbank Lake is the big, open water you must cross before you reach the quieter lakes behind it, and the people we read planned around that crossing. They launched early or booked a tow, kept a map beside the GPS because the signal wandered in the bays, and packed for cold, wet weather even in late summer. A solo paddler in September carried a weather radio and wished for dry storage. A group in a wet August planned extra days for storms.
What shapes your gear on Snowbank Lake
- Entry points 27 and 28 share the lake
- Entry point 27 is an overnight permit for paddlers or motors from the boat landing or canoe launch, with many routes for paddlers. Entry point 28, Snowbank Lake Only, requires you to camp every night on Snowbank, though day paddles to other lakes are allowed. Motors up to 25 horsepower are allowed on Snowbank, with one spare motor of 10 horsepower or less.
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
- Size and landing
- The Forest Service lists the lake at 4,650 acres, with 43 miles of shoreline and a deepest point of 150 feet. Its landing has a concrete boat ramp and dock. A route guide adds that the restroom stands by the motorboat landing, a couple hundred yards from the parking area, so go before you load.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Snowbank Lake Trail and Backcountry Sites and BWCAwild.com
- Wind on the crossing
- A route guide calls it a big open lake to avoid when the wind is up, with calmer water often returning around dusk. A group of two mothers and two small children, in an older forum post, left in calm air and met waves of 2 to 3 feet by the time they reached the larger island. A 2017 pair on a day trip met whitecaps of about 3 1/2 feet. A solo paddler leaving at 7 a.m. in September hit whitecaps at the end of Harri Island.
From BWCAwild.com, QuietJourney, Paddle Planner and BWCA.com
- Three ways off the lake
- The guide describes a direct 140-rod portage to Disappointment, an 80-rod portage near Wilderness Bay Lodge into Parent Lake followed by 85 rods to Disappointment, and two portages into Boot Lake that take most groups well over an hour of paddling. Both Disappointment routes cross the Snowbank Lake Trail, so a wrong turn is easy.
From BWCAwild.com
- Reports disagree on how hard the carries are
- The guide calls the 140-rod portage well worn and hard mainly for its length. A 2017 pair who walked it found rocks, overhanging branches, mud and some climbing, with trees snapped by earlier storms. For the Parent carry, an older forum post describes ankle-twisting rocks and short, tough uphill sections coming from Snowbank.
From BWCAwild.com, Paddle Planner and QuietJourney
- Tows and missed portages
- The 2017 pair booked an outfitter tow across Snowbank to the Disappointment portage and back after their day-trip scouting. They add that many paddlers aiming for Disappointment end up in Parent's bay, and a week later they met two men who had overshot the Parent portage and faced a longer walk.
From Paddle Planner
- Cold and wet weather
- A solo paddler heard a frost advisory on a weather radio in early September and woke to 32 to 34 degrees. A group that began on August 15 had rain nearly every day in an unusually wet August and twice came off the water for lightning.
From BWCA.com and Rocky Mountain Canoe Club
What the agency requires on Snowbank Lake
Motor limits on Snowbank
Snowbank is on the 25 horsepower list, and one extra motor of 10 horsepower or less may be carried. Day-use motor permit H is valid on Snowbank only.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations and Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points
Food and scented items up high or in a certified container
From April 1 to November 30, food, containers, trash and scented items go either 12 feet up and 6 feet from a trunk, or into an Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified container.
No cans or glass
Cans and glass bottles are not allowed in the wilderness. Fuel, bug repellent and medicine containers are the exceptions.
Sites with a steel grate and a latrine
During the ice-free season, camp only at designated Forest Service sites that have a steel fire grate and a latrine, and keep fires inside the grate.
What hikers carry on Snowbank Lake
A weather radio
A solo paddler in September used one to catch the frost advisory, and to see a thunderstorm front building on the last afternoon. The same trip opened with rain in sheets and whitecaps on the way across.
From BWCA.com
A paper map and compass beside the GPS
A 2017 pair's GPS acted up in a bay while they looked for the Disappointment portage, and the Forest Service tells hikers on its Snowbank Lake page to bring a map and compass in case the GPS fails. A group in 2022 says to use the map and the fire grate to spot campsites that are hard to see.
From Paddle Planner, Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Snowbank Lake Trail and Backcountry Sites and Rocky Mountain Canoe Club
A hoodie and gloves for camp
A September solo paddler grabbed these at the last minute from the car, with mornings at 32 to 34 degrees and daytime temperatures in the mid 40s, and called them invaluable around camp.
From BWCA.com
Shoes you are happy to soak
The same paddler wet-footed every portage, even in cold rain. A 2017 pair listed water shoes in their day-trip kit.
From BWCA.com and Paddle Planner
Rain gear and a way to shelter from lightning
A 2022 group with an unusually wet August carried rain gear for nearly daily showers and pulled off the water twice for lightning. A 2017 pair also carried rain gear on a day trip.
From Rocky Mountain Canoe Club and Paddle Planner
Fishing rod and tackle
The Forest Service names northern pike, bass and trout for anglers on the lake. A 2017 pair arrived at the landing as another party unloaded a pile of fishing gear, and a 2025 solo paddler caught bass on Boot Lake.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Snowbank Lake Trail and Backcountry Sites, Paddle Planner and BWCA.com
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 Snowbank Lake
A ground tarp that collects rain
In a storm on Disappointment Lake, the solo paddler's tarp pooled water among the gear under the hammock. The paddler called that a dumb mistake and cleaned up the storage afterward.
From BWCA.com
Planning to cross the open middle
A 2017 pair set out early, hoping for calm water, and still ended up uneasy in whitecaps. They hugged the shore on the way back and ordered a tow both ways for their trip the next week.
From Paddle Planner
Looking for a campsite at 4 p.m.
The 2022 group advises finding a campsite by 2 p.m. and says that looking closer to 4 p.m. risks not finding one, which pushed them farther than planned on several days.
Wet portage gear as your only morning clothes
The September solo paddler woke at 5:00 a.m. in a hammock and had to swap warm, dry sleep clothes for the wet portage gear again, which felt miserable in rain at mid 40s.
From BWCA.com
Gear questions for Snowbank Lake
Can you use a motor on Snowbank Lake?
Yes. Snowbank is on the Forest Service 25 horsepower list, and you may carry one extra motor of 10 horsepower or less. Day-use motor permit H is valid on Snowbank only.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations and Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points
What is the difference between the two Snowbank Lake entry points?
Entry point 27 is the general overnight permit with many routes for paddlers. Entry point 28, Snowbank Lake Only, requires camping every night on Snowbank, but you may paddle day trips to other lakes.
From Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service): Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points
How rough does Snowbank Lake get?
Rough enough to plan around. A route guide calls it a poor launch in a howling wind, and reports from an older forum post, a 2017 pair and a 2025 solo paddler describe waves of 2 to 3 feet or whitecaps on the open stretch.
From BWCAwild.com, QuietJourney, Paddle Planner and BWCA.com
How do you reach Disappointment Lake from Snowbank Lake?
One route is a 140-rod portage straight in. The other is an 80-rod portage into Parent Lake and then 85 rods to Disappointment, which keeps you off the open water longer. Both cross the Snowbank Lake Trail, so check each junction.
From BWCAwild.com
Sources
- Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Entry Points · Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service) · Agency
- Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Rules and Regulations · Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service) · Agency
- Snowbank Lake Trail and Backcountry Sites · Superior National Forest (USDA Forest Service) · Agency
- Making Memories at a Milestone- EP 27 Solo Loop (trip report) · BWCA.com · Trip report
- Trip Report - Boundary Waters · Rocky Mountain Canoe Club, Louise R. · Trip report
- Trip Report - Day Trip Snowbank Lake · Paddle Planner · Trip report
- Boundary Waters - BWCA - Snowbank to Parent (portage database entry) · QuietJourney, KellyG · Forum thread
- Entry Point 27 - Snowbank Lake in the BWCA · BWCAwild.com · Blog