Mystic Lake Campground

About this place

Mystic Lake is 16.8 acre 22' deep that lies at the south end of Bear Paw Ridge. A short hike down offers a day use lake for excellent fishing opportunities. Cutthroat trout are planted on a regular basis. Several undeveloped dispersed sites and a concrete vault toilet are located above the lake at the south end. Users can access the lake by hiking down a fairly steep slope to the shoreline. No boat launch is available. Cutthroat trout are planted on a regular basis. Eastern brook trout are also present. If you do wish to camp, Browns Lake and South Skookum Lake are located within a few miles of the lake. History: The story of William Vane begins in the late 1800's in the village of Newport, Idaho during the time when the Great Northern Railroad laid tracks through Northern Idaho and Pend Oreille County (Piper). According to Rick Just, writer of Idaho history posts says that in late 1890's, William Vane, a man known to value money over morals, arrived in Oldtown, back when it was called Newport. William Vane attained ownership of much of the town by 1893 (Piper). He was also involved in multiple court actions, and lawsuits, guilty of theft and robberies, profited from landowners in scandalous ways, all the while was appointed as Justice of the Peace and established the first hospital in town (Just). His legacy came from a series of robberies, and it ended up to series jail time. Vane goes on to fake his death, while his family testified their father was at their camp on Mystic Lake the day of the robbery, contradicting Vane's testimony (Piper). An accomplice of Vane gave up the story that he didn't drown, but that he was hiding at his cabin (Piper). Vane was discovered and arrested, and jailers found him the next morning, dead of strychnine poisoning.

From the USFS.