Caveman Lake
The origin of this lakes name is befuddling.
There was a large fire in this area around 1863-1864. This fire is known as the North Kawishiwi River/Alice Lake/Cypress Lake/Saganaga Lake Complex. This burn began south of the current BWCAW's southern boundary near the town of Isabella, Minnesota.
Approach to Caveman Lake
Both Beaver Lake and River Lake offer approaches into Caveman Lake.
From Beaver Lake, a small bay near the eastern end of its long east arm provides the shortest of all routes into Caveman Lake. From the back of this small bay, it is roughly 45 rods through heavy forest to Caveman Lake’s west end. At least one of the approaches from River Lake, while a tad longer, may be easier.
The extremely long and thin north arm of River Lake where it comes near to Beaver Lake seems to offer the shortest approach into Caveman Lake from River Lake. There is another north arm of River Lake, due south of Scotch Lake, that also comes reasonably close to both Caveman Lake and Scotch Lake. This latter route, while a little longer than the other two, may be preferable since it offers travel through a narrow peat bog. The peat bog will be easier to move gear through and also provides visibility and simpler direction finding for would be bushwhackers. The other routes are strictly through dense forest, albeit maybe 20 to 30 rods shorter.
Bushwhack to Caveman Lake
See Scotch Lake page for the bushwhack from River Lake to Scotch Lake. Once you reach Scotch Lake, the bushwhack into Caveman Lake is pretty easy. Just follow the creek that connects the two lakes for about 20 rods. Much of this creek is deep and wide enough to allow you to stay in your canoe. Expect a beaver dam or fallen tree to make things interesting though.
Exploring Caveman Lake
Caveman is a bit larger than Scotch Lake. On the southwest corner of the lake is a small creek that is mostly floatable which drains an unnamed lake. You can paddle to the unnamed lake in a couple minutes as it is less than 20 rods away. There are no established campsites on Caveman Lake, but the forested and rocky shoreline (unlike Scotch Lake which has a lot of mushy areas around its perimeter) should provide places for setting up a tent.
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