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A Bird’s Eye of the BW – Telling the Story from Above
It started as a funny game of sorts. As I was scrolling past google satellite imagery dreaming of future canoe country routes and trip plans, I would begin noticing the occasional canoe group on the photos. I soon began looking for them. It was a game of “I spy,” picking out small floating canoes and…
BWCA Superlatives – Setting the Facts Straight
It all goes back to a BWCA trivia contest. That’s when it sank it anyways. I consider myself a BWCA nerd, down to the root, so maybe these things are more obvious to me. In any case, an organization that should have been experts in the topic were incorrect in the answers they provided for…
Worst BWCAW Reviews – The Wilderness is NOT for Everyone
This time of the year, the itch for that perfect summer canoe trip begins to intensify as permits are pulled, routes are planned, gear is cleaned, and the days begin to lengthen! It’s also time to remember that for every person who lives and breathes their wilderness trips, there is another who writes theirs off…
5 Guide Tricks for Finding Great BWCAW (or Quetico) Campsites
Finding a great campsite can be one of the great joys of a canoe trip. Waking up in a stand of majestic pines, enjoying a cool breeze rolling off the lake on a midsummer afternoon, and cooking over a campfire without worrying about bugs can make a campsite that much more memorable. Occasionally, these sites…
Finding Solitude in the BWCAW
Though the Boundary Waters is the most visited wilderness area in the United States, it’s refreshingly empty compared to most national or state parks and seldom feels crowded. For many, the occasional encounter with another group is no big deal. But all of us dream about wilderness solitude at some point in our outdoor career:…
Map Mondays – Week 12 – Little Indian North to Moose River 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 route works through parts of the BWCAW’s far western end from the furthest west EP of the BWCA through big lakes…
2022 Border Challenges
Everywhere one walks and paddles in the BWCA there is a unique connection with the past. Every lake, every portage is filled with stories of legendary figures and lives lived. And through those stories come the marvelous tales of adventure and achievement born of adversity and hardship amidst the beauty. This coming week, a…
Map Mondays – Week 10 – Angleworm to Wood
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. Let’s check it out! Total Mileage: 45.5 milesNights: 5Paddle Distance: 36.7 milesPortage Distance: 8.7 miles Day 1: Miles: 7.6Target Campsite: Thunder LakeDescription:…
Let’s Break the Ice on a BWCA November Canoe Trip!
It’s been snowing all week here in Ely which points to a winter season fast approaching. In the meantime, this is one of the more challenging seasons for wilderness travel with many big lakes still open, smaller lakes starting to freeze, and trails and forests covered in fresh, wet snow. To the majority of…
Wildlife in Wildlands – A History of BWCA Wildlife
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Superior National Forest, and Voyageurs National Park make up the largest wild landscape in Minnesota as well as being one of the largest wild spaces east of the Mississippi in the US. Combine that with wildlands directly across the border in Quetico Provincial Park and the surrounding crownlands, and…
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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.