HOMER LAKE CAMPSITES: Campsite 1: (#2170) - Located on south shoreline near mid-lake (not in the BWCA) Campsite 2: (#2171) - This site is on the east end of the small island near mid-lake (not in the BWCA) Campsite 3: (#963) - On the west end of Homer Lake (requires a BWCA permit)
The access to this lake is on its very eastern end. The eastern two-thirds of Homer Lake lies outside of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA), therefore motorboats are occasionally seen.
There are three campsites on Homer Lake. Two of these campsites are outside of the BWCA. One is on the lakes south shoreline and the other is a little further west on a small island. As such, you can camp at these sites without a BWCA permit. There is one other campsite on the west end of the lake that is within the BWCA.
Homer Lake provides very few route options. It would be a good entry point to turn to if you want to avoid the long paddle across big Brule Lake, or if all the permits for that lake are taken. From Homer Lake, you can portage south into the "smoke" lakes. These lakes are all named after smoking paraphenalia; pipe, stem, tobacco. The portage from Homer Lake is into the Vern River and then another short portage into East Pipe Lake. From there, a quick portage west gets you into Pipe Lake where there are three campsites. The other way out of Homer Lake is a 20 rod portage into Whack Lake followed up by a 14 rod portage into the long and narrow Vern Lake. From Vern Lake you can paddle to the northwest to the portage to Juno Lake and then access Brule Lake from Juno Lake's far eastern end (backtracking a bit). That's it, there are really no other route options unless you have a taste for bushwhacking. Exploring up the Vern River may be interesting too.
The forest around the west end of Homer Lake experienced quite a bit of blowdown from a windstorm in 1986. The June 1996 fire that consumed about 4,450 acres and started near South Temperance Lake, came very close to Homer Lake (Beymer, 2006).
The lake is possibly named for Harry Homer, Sr. from Ely, Minnesota, a prolific logger of this area in the 1940's.
References:
Beymer, Robert, Boundary Waters Canoe Area – Volume 2 – Eastern Region (Berkeley: Wilderness Press, 2006), 73, 75, 77.
Pauly, Daniel, Exploring the Boundary Waters (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2005), 265.
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PADDLING FROM THE BWCA ENTRY POINT 40 LANDING TO U.S. FOREST SERVICE CAMPSITE 2170
Looking toward the left from the Homer Lake landing.
Traveling along the south shore of Homer Lake. This stretch of paddling is from the BWCA Entry Point 40 landing to Campsite 2170. Campsite 2170 does not require a permit for use, as it is outside of the BWCA. Only the very western campsite on Homer Lake is in the BWCA (and thus requires a permit). Visit Campsite 2170 -or- Explore Another Route ***********************************************END OF ROUTE***********************************************
PADDLING FROM U.S. FOREST SERVICE CAMPSITE 2170 TO U.S. FOREST SERVICE CAMPSITE 2171
View to the northeast from the campsite.
A quick trip between the two U.S. Forest Service campsites on Homer Lake. Campsite 2171 is on the east end of a small island. Visit Campsite 2171 -or- Explore Another Route ***********************************************END OF ROUTE***********************************************
PADDLING FROM U.S. FOREST SERVICE CAMPSITE 2171 TO BWCA CAMPSITE 963
Small island to the northwest of U.S. Forest Service Campsite 2170. U.S. Forest Service Campsite 2171 is on the island just beyond this narrow island in front of you. That campsite is on the east end of the little island near the center of your view (difficult to see that island against the background shoreline).
Paddling your canoe to the west end of Homer Lake. Here you'll find the only BWCA campsite on this lake. Visit BWCA Campsite 963 -or- Explore Another Route ***********************************************END OF ROUTE***********************************************
PADDLING FROM BWCA CAMPSITE 963 TO THE WHACK LAKE PORTAGE
East view from BWCA Campsite 963. This is the only campsite on Homer Lake that requires a BWCA permit.
Short paddle from the campsite to the Whack Lake portage. The start of the portage is tucked back into the shady inlet of the shallow bay on this end of the lake. A small stream trickles into Homer Lake here. Portage to Whack Lake -or- Explore Another Route ***********************************************END OF ROUTE***********************************************
PADDLING FROM THE VERN RIVER PORTAGE TO THE BWCA ENTRY POINT 40 LANDING
Paddling along the south shoreline of Homer Lake from where the Vern River flows out of the lake, eastward, to the BWCA Entry Point 40 landing.
Explore BWCA Entry Point 40 -or- Explore Another Route ***********************************************END OF ROUTE***********************************************
Route Connections for Homer Lake
From Homer Lake, you can portage to Star Lake (across the road) or Whack Lake. There is another portage to the Vern River. You can also bushwhack to Axe Lake. BWCA Entry Point 40 is located on the east end of Homer Lake.
