Rose Lake Falls is a short day trip into the BWCA wilderness. This is a great trip for those new to canoeing as well as the more experienced.
Rose Lake Falls
Start at the public access on the east end of West Bearskin Lake, off Clearwater Road/County Road #22. If you are not comfortable transporting canoes on your vehicle, Golden Eagle Lodge can pick-up and drop-off canoes, for a small fee. From this point, canoe all the way to the west end of West Bearskin Lake where you will find the portage into Duncan Lake. Portage into Duncan and canoe to the far northeast shore until you see the Rose Lake portage. Leave your canoe at the entrance of Duncan Lake and walk the portage. Keep an eye on the right side of the path and you will come across Rose Lake Falls. This portage is also known as “The Stairway Portage” due to the long set of steps from from the top of the portage down into Rose Lake.
Bottom of Stairway Portage, Rose Lake
For the canoe lover that wants to spend even more time on the water, you can start from the beach at Golden Eagle Lodge and canoe west on Flour Lake to the Hungry Jack Lake Portage. From Hungry Jack Lake, canoe north, across the lake, to the short, 20 rod, West Bearskin portage. Once you are on West Bearskin Lake, continue with the directions from above.
Plan on 4-1/2 hours round trip when launching from the West Bearskin public launch area. Add an additional 2 hours, round trip, when canoeing right from Golden Eagle Lodge.
Route Map
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