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10 Tips and Tricks for Nightime Canoe Travel
The vast majority of BWCA visitors paddle and hike during daylight hours and for good reason. It’s safer, there’s more to see, and daylight travel aligns with normal sleep cycles. Night travel, on the other hand, provides a higher risk of getting lost while paddling; it’s also easier to fall and get hurt while portaging.…
Footsteps of the Past – Tracing Minnesota’s Historic Portages
. In 1992, a report was concluded as portages of historical significance were surveyed in order to be included in a bid for the National Register of Historic Places. As part of this survey, archeologists looked for signs of the past and recorded the conditions of the trails and how time had changed them. The results were varied. Some trails had vanished completely or become so overgrown that they were nearly impossible to follow. In a few places in Minnesota though, there are still opportunities to trod in the tread of voyageurs and native peoples alike with a canoe on your shoulders and a sense of adventure in your heart. The spirit of the portage is still very much alive in the land of 10,000 lakes. Here are some of the most historic portages in the state.
Map Mondays – Week 3 – Crab Lake/Cummings Lake to Big Lake
As part of our continuing series on the “route planning game,” we are creating routes using randomly selected entry points, exit points, and number of days to create unique and fun BWCA routes. This week is an arduous 6 night trip through the far western reaches of the BWCA. This area of the BWCA can…
The Route Planning Game
“Probably the best remedy for the canoe freak is map watching. Pouring over maps can often get you through the canoeless season when nothing else can. I recommend it highly. If you coat the maps with plastic, you can even use them as tablecloths, curtains, and all sorts of things. However, no matter what you…
In the Context of Wilderness
Earlier this week, September 3rd, was the 59th anniversary of the 1964 Wilderness Act which established the BWCAW and 53 other areas as newly defined wilderness. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness has since gone on to become one of the most well-known and widely-beloved wilderness areas in the country. In examining the BWCAW today,…
Map Mondays – Week 4 – Bower Trout to Little Indian Sioux North
As part of our continuing series on the “route planning game,” we are creating routes using randomly selected entry points, exit points, and number of days to create unique and fun BWCA routes. This week’s randomly selected entry points set us up for a cross-BWCA trip. It’s a long, 10-night trip that covers most of…
How Trees Tell the Story of the BWCA
Today is the International Day of Forests which means it’s the perfect day to celebrate the trees of the BWCA. The Boundary Waters are a unique mosaic of forests born out of wildfire, windstorms, logging, and the passage of time. Despite the history of disturbance, the Boundary Waters contain the largest tracts of old growth…
How to Start Wilderness Winter Camping on a Budget
The wind howls around the steep rocky palisade displacing snow which softly blanketed the lichen-speckled crag the night before. The cold wind bites the face as the eyes turn upwards towards brilliant hues of pink and orange igniting the morning sky. The evening dark and long makes the dawn all the more magical. And with…
Map Mondays – Week 1 – Hog Creek to Skipper/Portage
As part of our continuing series on the “route planning game,” we are creating routes using randomly selected entry points, exit points, and number of days to create unique and fun BWCA routes. This week is a big trip of nine nights from Hog Creek to Skipper/Portage. It’s certainly a big and challenging route, but…
Good stuff! But I feel like you missed an important point with the newest design – they are intended to increase accessibility for people with limited mobility by providing edges to grip for support. And the lids keep flies from bringing poop germs into the camp kitchen. And rangers often portage in a new latrine with the hole over their head!
Old enough to have experienced the original! Great article.
In each of my 15 BWCA adventures I conclude by making a video entitled “Walk to the crapper”. A simple video that starts at the campsite with a walking tour to the latrine. It’s often my favorite video of the trip.