Portage Lake - Bowstring Lake

Located in Itasca County, Minnesota

Portage Lake is located in Bowstring Lake (Itasca County), Minnesota. This beautiful body of water is roughly 100 miles northwest of Duluth, 210 miles north of Minneapolis, and 44 miles northwest of Grand Rapids.

The closest location for emergency care is Essentia Health-Deer River, 24 miles south. The Duluth International Airport is 116 miles southeast in Duluth, Minnesota.

On the Lakes

The Bowstring Chain of Lakes includes two enormous lakes with the Bowstring Lake itself (9,200 acres) and Sand Lake (4,300 acres). You can often find residents fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and lounging on the water.

Portage Lake spans 63 acres surrounded by heavily wooded areas, so residents on the lake take advantage of the relaxing and serene atmosphere. Portage Lake is the smaller of its siblings, so it keeps a relatively untapped fish population.

Anglers can be lucky to find walleye, northern pike, jumbo perch, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, bluegill, and more. Neighboring Bowstring Lake was named one of Minnesota’s best fishing lakes for its monstrous walleye!

Visit Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids is less than an hour's drive from Portage Lake and makes for a fantastic day trip!

If you’re interested in learning the history of logging in this part of the state, head down to the Forest History Center. You can see a recreation of a white pine logging camp from 1900, listen to stories from loggers and forest service patrolmen from different eras, or get a bird’s eye view from a 100-foot fire tower.

Follow the yellow brick road to the Judy Garland Museum, where you can get a glimpse at the world’s largest Judy Garland and Wizard of Oz museum! Here, you'll find artifacts from Judy's life and movies, like the world-famous ruby-red slippers.

If you’re getting hungry, you can check out the great restaurants that Grand Rapids has to offer, like Mitu Srilankan and Indian Cuisine, Donkey Taqueria, and Heritage Restaurant.

Why Portage Lake?

Portage Lake offers all of the space for recreational fun while maintaining a secluded and relaxing atmosphere!