Parking
There is no road-access parking for this water-access route. Approach the Kabetogama end at Gold Portage Trailhead by water, and plan how you will leave the Black Bay end before setting out.
Overview
About Gold Portage Trail
Why go
- A direct land link between Kabetogama Lake and Black Bay.
- Rapids give the crossing a distinctive natural feature.
Heads up
- Water-only access takes planning for a very short walk.
- Uneven, hilly tread may slow a kayak dolly.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Voyageurs map
Full mapElevation1,115–1,152 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
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 Gold Portage Trail, 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.
More stories near here in the app
- The Living Patches on Rock
- Woodenfrog’s Beach and Campground
- The Name Behind Woodenfrog
- Echo Bay’s Wetland Walk
- 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 Gold Portage Trail
The crossingGold Portage is a 0.
Gold Portage is a 0.43-mile point-to-point portage between Kabetogama Lake and Black Bay of Rainy Lake. Hikers can cross on foot, and paddlers use it as a land connection between the waterways. Allow about 20 minutes one way; walk back along the same line for an approximately 0.86-mile out-and-back. A stretch of rapids is the route’s distinctive feature.
What the walk is likeDetailed tread and grade information is sparse.
Detailed tread and grade information is sparse. One paddler described moderate hills and rough upkeep, and found a kayak dolly hard to use, so don't assume a wheeled carrier will roll smoothly. Summer mosquitoes and biting flies have also been reported. The path is short, but carrying a boat over uneven ground may take longer than the walk alone.
Plan your accessThis is a water-access route, not a roadside hike.
This is a water-access route, not a roadside hike. Arrange your arrival and onward travel at both the Kabetogama and Black Bay ends before setting out. Published descriptions round the crossing to half a mile; the mapped route measures about 0.43 mile one way. The Park Service limits vessel travel over Gold Portage to the Kabetogama-to-Black-Bay direction; that is a boat rule, not a hiking direction restriction. Pets are not allowed on park trails; service animals are permitted.
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.
