Clearwater Lake

Clearwater Lake is a 640-acre, non-motorized lake in the Kawishiwi district of the Boundary Waters, in Lake County northeast of Ely near Silver Rapids. The nearest entry points are all non-motorized and sit five miles or more away, and every portage connecting to the lake itself runs at least 120 rods and is rated difficult, which keeps it quieter than water closer in.

The lake covers its 640 acres within a relatively compact 7.6 miles of shoreline, more one open sheet of water than the bay-riddled lakes nearby. With less shoreline broken into bays to duck into, open crossings here can catch more wind than on a lake with more sheltered water to work around. It reaches 46 feet at its deepest, and the water runs clear, with visibility commonly near 13 feet, letting light reach well down into the lake.

Northern pike are the headline fish here, present in above-average numbers for the area and running a solid average weight. Lake whitefish and white suckers turn up in more typical numbers, while yellow perch stay scarcer than on most lakes nearby.

Four campsites sit on the lake, none of them closed, a modest count that matches how lightly this lake gets visited. With the shoreline this compact, they're spaced well apart from each other, so privacy usually isn't hard to find even without many sites to choose from.

Clearwater Lake suits paddlers willing to work for a quieter pike lake, set apart from busier water near the entry points by portages that don't let up.