Lake Saganaga
Encyclopedia
Saganaga Lake is a large lake
on the Minnesota
– Ontario
international border
. It is protected by the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
in the United States
and by Quetico Provincial Park
and La Verendrye Provincial Park
in Canada.
It is both the deepest and largest lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with a maximum depth of 280 ft (85.3 m) and surface area of 13832 acre (5,597.6 ha).
Saganaga is a popular fishing
destination, with northern pike
, walleye
, lake trout
, smallmouth bass
, and lake whitefish
among others. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has issued a consumption advisory for some fish in Saganaga Lake due to mercury pollution
. The Lake is the eastern boundary of the historical Hunter Island
region. Saganaga Lake is bordered to the south by Seagull Lake, home to Wilderness Canoe Base
.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
on the Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
– Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
international border
International Border
The India–Pakistan Border , known locally as the International Border , is the international boundary between India and Pakistan that demarcates the Indian states of Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat from the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Sindh. Pakistan borders India in the east. The border...
. It is protected by the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness , is a wilderness area within the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota under the administration of the U.S. Forest Service...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and by Quetico Provincial Park
Quetico Provincial Park
Quetico Provincial Park is a large wilderness park in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, renowned for its excellent canoeing and fishing. This park shares its southern border with Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which is part of the larger Superior National Forest...
and La Verendrye Provincial Park
La Verendrye Provincial Park
La Verendrye Provincial Park is a waterway provincial park located in Ontario, Canada, on the border of Minnesota, USA. The park stretches from Quetico Provincial Park through Lake Saganaga, up the Pine River, across the Height of Land Portage, then down the Pigeon River to Pigeon River Provincial...
in Canada.
It is both the deepest and largest lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with a maximum depth of 280 ft (85.3 m) and surface area of 13832 acre (5,597.6 ha).
Saganaga is a popular fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
destination, with northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
, walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
, lake trout
Lake trout
Lake trout is a freshwater char living mainly in lakes in northern North America. Other names for it include mackinaw, lake char , touladi, togue, and grey trout. In Lake Superior, they can also be variously known as siscowet, paperbellies and leans...
, smallmouth bass
Smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus...
, and lake whitefish
Lake whitefish
The lake whitefish , also called the Sault whitefish or gizzard fish, is a species of freshwater whitefish from North America. Lake whitefish are found throughout much of Canada and parts of the northern United States, including all of the Great Lakes. A valuable commercial fish, they are also...
among others. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has issued a consumption advisory for some fish in Saganaga Lake due to mercury pollution
Mercury in fish
Fish and shellfish concentrate mercury in their bodies, often in the form of methylmercury, a highly toxic organic compound of mercury. Fish products have been shown to contain varying amounts of heavy metals, particularly mercury and fat-soluble pollutants from water pollution...
. The Lake is the eastern boundary of the historical Hunter Island
Hunter Island (Ontario)
Hunter Island, or Hunters Island, is a large land mass — now known to not be an actual island — which occupies the area between the two most historically significant fur trade waterway routes in northern Ontario, Canada: the Kaministiquia and the Grand Portage...
region. Saganaga Lake is bordered to the south by Seagull Lake, home to Wilderness Canoe Base
Wilderness Canoe Base
Wilderness Canoe Base borders the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on Seagull Lake near the end of the Gunflint Trail, about 50 miles from Grand Marais, Minnesota, USA. Part of the camp is on the northern half of Fishhook Island and another tract resides on nearby Dominion Island. It has been...
.
