Rose Lake
Gunflint Ranger District
Rose Lake is very popular, so expect to see lots and lots of people. Most will be congregated around the Stairway Portage area. The Stairway Portage is a staircase made of natural, fitted rocks with about 83 steps. After you climb the staircase from Rose Lake, at the top is a great viewing location for Rose Falls. Rose Falls is formed by the creek flowing out of Duncan Lake dropping down to Rose Lake. Duncan Lake is 138 feet above Rose Lake.
The Stairway Portage is intersected by the Border Route Trail. There are fine overlooks of Rose Lake just a short distance down the trail from where it intersects the Stairway Portage. Also, just east of the Stairway Portage, again down the Border Route Trail is the junction with the Caribou Rock Trail. This junction is just across the little rickety bridge that crosses the creek just above Rose Falls.
The portage to the east out of Rose Lake is named the Long Portage. This 660 rod portage takes you to either Daniels Lake or Rove Lake. There can be some flooding at times along this portage due to beaver activity. This portage follows the same path as the Border Route Trail.
Besides the Stairway Portage area, the Rose Lake Cliffs provide another good dose of scenery. In many areas along the shoreline, these cliffs rise 300 to 400 feet above the surface of Rose Lake. The Canadian side of the lake also has high cliffs. These cliffs are formed by the Rove Formation, a geological formation formed of hard slates that resist erosion. The long west arm of Rose Lake provides a very scenic paddling experience.
Rose Lake is part of the Arrow River system, which flows through the lake. The Arrow River drains out of the lake to the east to Rove Lake. The super long portage between Rove Lake and Rose Lake follows the south side of the river. Rose Lake itself is fed by Duncan Lake from the south via Rose Falls, South Lake and Rat Lake to the west and a large body of water known as Arrow Lake to the north in Canada.
Rose Lake is along the international border and thus is part of the old Voyageurs Route.
Exploring Rose Lake
View of Rose Lake from the Stairway Portage.
Rose Lake cliffs along the Canadian shoreline as seen from the Stairway Portage.
Route Connections for Rose Lake
From Rose Lake you can take the famous Stairway Portage up to Duncan Lake. You can also portage to Daniels Lake, Rat Lake and Rove Lake. The portage to Rove Lake is one of the longest portages in the Boundary Waters. Also both the Border Route Trail and the Caribou Rock Trail are accessible from the Stairway Portage. You can also paddle into Arrow Lake in Canada.
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