Brule Lake to Cherokee Loop

Overview

The Brule Lake to Cherokee Loop begins and ends at Entry Point 41 on Brule Lake, a large lake in the Tofte District. From Brule the route threads a chain of smaller interior lakes west to Winchell, continues through Long Island Lake to Cherokee Lake, then returns to Brule by way of Sitka and the Temperance lakes. It's a longer loop, built around a wide mix of open water and tight interior chains rather than one repeated lake type.

Brule and Long Island are the loop's two largest lakes, both open enough that wind is worth watching. Between them, the route narrows into a dense run of smaller lakes — Lily, Mulligan, Wanihigan, Winchell, Gaskin, Henson, Omega, Phalanx, and Finn — each connected by a short portage. Cherokee and Long Island both hold lake trout. The return leg is where the loop asks the most of a group: the portage from Cherokee to Sitka runs 165 rods and the one from Sitka into North Temperance runs 102 rods, both individually rated difficult rather than moderate.

This is a multi-day trip for a group ready for real portaging, not just long paddles — the two difficult carries on the return leg are a different kind of work than the short lifts earlier in the loop. Camping is not a concern: campsites are spread across eight of the loop's lakes, from Brule and Winchell near the start to Cherokee and the Temperance lakes on the way back, so there's real room to set a daily pace rather than push for one specific stop.

Route Highlights

• Cherokee Lake and Long Island Lake both hold lake trout
• The Cherokee-to-Sitka and Sitka-to-Temperance portages on the return leg are individually rated difficult, longer and harder than the short carries earlier in the loop
• Brule Lake's open water, 4,300-plus acres, anchors both ends of the loop