Parking
There is no road access to Anderson Bay. Reach the Rainy Lake trailhead by private boat, a local rental, or water taxi; site-access information describes about 20 miles of water travel to the bay.
Overview
About Brown Lake Trail from Anderson Bay
Why go
- Reaches an interior lake and the Brown Lake backcountry campsite.
Heads up
- A substantial boat trip is required before the five-mile hike.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Voyageurs map
Full mapElevation1,125–1,348 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
2 active Voyageurs alerts
- ClosureDryweed Island-area sites closed for bear activitySeventeen campsites, houseboat sites, and a day-use site on Dryweed Island and nearby islands are closed through the end of October 2026 because of continued bear activity and unsafe bear-human…Official details
- CautionNavigation markers and buoys absent on park lakesUse caution while boating on Rainy, Kabetogama, Namakan, and Sand Point Lakes because park hazard markers and secondary navigation aids have been removed, and most primary navigational buoys are also…Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Voyageurs Tour Guide
Your drive to Brown Lake Trail from Anderson Bay, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Voyageurs National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
- 29 audio storiesacross Voyageurs’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Gray Wolf, Moose, Bald Eagle, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 19 trails, 49 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Brown Lake Trail from Anderson Bay
Plan the backcountry hikeBrown Lake Trail from Anderson Bay is a remote out-and-back to campsite B3 on Brown Lake.
Brown Lake Trail from Anderson Bay is a remote out-and-back to campsite B3 on Brown Lake. Follow the northern end of the Cruiser Lake Trail network, then take the short Brown Lake spur. The mapped Anderson Bay route is about 2.5 miles each way, or 5 miles round-trip; one access notice gives 2.7 miles each way, so allow a little extra. Budget about three hours for the walking, apart from the boat trip and time at camp.
Anderson Bay has no road access. Reach the trailhead by your own boat, a local rental, or water taxi; the site's access information describes about 20 miles of water travel. A longer hike from the Cruiser Lake trailhead is a separate 5.5-mile approach each way.
The short Brown Lake spurMost of the hike follows the Cruiser Lake route.
Most of the hike follows the Cruiser Lake route. The Brown Lake branch leaves it for the last about 0.2 mile to B3. The trail's published surface, crossings, shade, and wayfinding are not well described, so those details remain uncertain.
There is another route from Browns Bay: a 0.6-mile walk to a staged canoe, then about 0.8 mile paddling to B3. That portage-and-paddle access is a different itinerary; its 0.6-mile figure is not the Anderson Bay hiking distance.
B3 is an overnight campsiteBrown Lake B3 is a backcountry overnight site with one tent pad, a bear pole, a fire ring, a…
Brown Lake B3 is a backcountry overnight site with one tent pad, a bear pole, a fire ring, a pit toilet, and a canoe assigned to the campsite permit. The staged canoe is not a day-use rental. Day-use access to the campsite shore is not clearly stated, so confirm it with the park before arranging the boat trip. Pets are not allowed on backcountry trails.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Voyageurs
10 sightingsGray WolfMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
12 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
67 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
79 sightingsLoonMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
41 sightingsWhite PelicanMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
19 sightingsTrumpeter SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Voyageurs. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
