Restroom at Entry Point: Yes, over by the motorboat landing which is a couple hundred yards away
Entry Point 28 (restricted) - Snowbank Lake
Kawishiwi Ranger District
The restriction of this permit is that you MUST camp on Snowbank Lake all nights. However, you may travel to other lakes in the BWCA during the day.
Snowbank Lake is just up the road from Lake One. To get to Snowbank Lake Road, take Minnesota Highway 169 heading east out of Ely. Soon the highway becomes the Fernberg Road. A nice thing about the Fernberg is that it is paved the whole way to Lake One. For about 15 miles, stay on this road until you see a sign for Snowbank Lake. The Wilderness Bay Lodge and Smitty's on Snowbank are also accessed from this turn off. If you miss the turn, you will only be able to go about another quarter mile before you come to Lake One. The Lake One entry point is at the end of the road.
The Snowbank Lake Road out to the entry point is not paved, but it is usually in pretty good condition. It has lots of twists and turns and is not very long. It passes through forest that sometimes sees some logging or other form of tree removal activity. You pass the parking lot for the Snowbank Lake Trail and the west end of the Kekekabic Trail along the way.
There is a restroom at the Snowbank Lake Entry Point, but it is over by the motorboat landing. There is a sign showing the way at the entrance to the parking lot. You can park your car in a loading/unloading area very close to the lake. The launch location for your canoe is by the dock.
Snowbank Lake is a big, open lake so it is not a great place to put a canoe in the water when the wind is howling. The lake is also clear and deep. The very north shore of the lake still shows evidence of the 1999 Independence Day windstorm. The July 21, 2016 windstorm brought down some additional trees in the area.
Most paddlers entering on Snowbank Lake start early in the day to avoid the wind and big rollers. Likewise, returning in the evening if often a good plan as the wind and the waves often calm down around dusk. It can be nasty anytime of day though, so plan for this.
There are three portages that most groups head for when setting out across Snowbank Lake. If you are heading to Disappointment Lake, there is a 140 rod portage connection. This portage is well worn and not that difficult except for length. This portage crosses the Snowbank Lake Trail, so don't take a wrong turn. Another way to Disappointment Lake is by paddling over to the Parent Lake portage (near Wilderness Bay Lodge). This minimizes the time on Snowbank Lake, so it's a good option if the wind is up. It is 80 rods to Parent Lake. However, you then have to paddle across Parent Lake to another portage. The second portage, which gets you to Disappointment Lake, is 85 rods. This portage also crosses the Snowbank Lake Trail, so don't take a wrong turn. Parent Lake is a pretty lake and has clear water. It's a much better place to be when the wind is up too. The last portage exit along a route from Snowbank Lake is into Boot Lake way up in the northeast end of the lake. It will take most groups well over an hour to cover this distance of about 3 1/2 miles. It is two portages into Boot Lake. These two portages are separated by a small pond.
Exploring the Entry Point
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Near the entrance to the entry point parking lot. That sign in the distance shows the direction to the restrooms (to the left). They are next to the motorboat landing (July 25, 2015).
A view of the parking area. You are looking toward the entrance to the main road while standing next to the bulletin board (to your left out of view) in the unloading area (July 25, 2015).
Bulletin board. If you need a day permit, they are in the box on the left. Restrooms are to your right. The path down to the lake starts just to the left (October 3, 2021).
The former Snowbank Lake bulletin board. This is the car unloading area. As the arrow shows on the sign, the restrooms are to the right. You head out to the main road and hook a left. The restrooms are at the motorboat landing and about 200 yards from here, so don't wait until the last second (July 25, 2015).
Close up of the former bulletin board (July 25, 2015).
View to the right from the landing. You can make out the motorboat landing down the shoreline to the right (center of view) (October 3, 2021).
Early evening on Snowbank Lake. The water at the end of the dock is fairly deep (5 feet maybe). (Note: This dock wasn't present in October, 2021, but it may still be here during the summer months. I don't know for sure.) Close to the shore the water is perhaps just over a foot deep. Large boulders cover the lake bottom. If you are not at all good getting into a canoe off a dock, you could zip over to the motorboat landing and slide your canoe in there (staying out of the way of folks trailering their boats of course). The way to the Parent Lake portage is straight out to that point on the left side of your view. You aren't far from the portage when you reach that point (July 25, 2015).
Taking a tour of the Snowbank Lake Entry Point. This is both Entry Point 27 and Entry Point 28 (July 25, 2015).
Now that you've reached the shore of the lake, visit:SNOWBANK LAKE
