Boundary Waters Canoe Camping, 2nd (Regional Paddling Series): Canoe Camping with Style
April, the Izaak Walton League, with four other groups, goes to court to stop the National Guard from conducting training flights as low as 2, feet over the Boundary Waters by F-4 Phantom Jet Fighters, which create sonic booms. The judge accepts the argument of environmentalist Harry Drabik, who sued on behalf of the state, arguing that the tower would ruin the scenic quality of an unspoiled wilderness. Nearly half of Minnesota's 6, moose die over a two-year period as a result of a "winter tick" infestation, leaving a population of about 3, moose. The original plan calls for widening the trail's clearance for construction of a mile-an-hour two-lane paved highway.
When the bulldozers start clearing the first segment from Tofte in , there is an uproar of protest. Many people believe the rebuilding will alter the trail's primitive character. The compromise results in special variances being sought from state and federal highway administrations, so that after the first 3 miles from Tofte the road is left unpaved and calcium chloride is applied for dust abatement. Road clearance is widened from 45 to 56 feet rather than the 64 feet originally proposed for a mile-an-hour, 9-ton road with foot driving lanes, 2-foot shoulders, and 3-foot ditches, with trees cleared an additional 10 feet on the ditch slopes on both sides of the road.
The road is rerouted near Plouff Creek, known as Dead Man's Curve because of its many accidents, reducing the overall length of the Trail from 24 to 23 miles. Clearance for the last six miles is not altered, so that the Sawbill Trail now has an increasingly rustic feel as it approaches Sawbill Lake. September 18, a windstorm causes major damage in the Superior National Forest, especially in the Gunflint Trail area. November 6, as a result of a year effort on the part of the Friends of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area truck portages that were to have been phased out as stipulated by the BWCA Wilderness Act are closed when the U.
Court of Appeals for the Eighth District reverses the decision of a lower court to allow them to continue operation. Many people object to some of the provisions, especially the proposal to reduce the group size limit from 10 to 6 persons. The population of the Eastern timber wolf is estimated at 1,, in Minnesota, 45 in Wisconsin, and 20 in Michigan.
A new BWCAW management plan is implemented by the Superior National Forest, reducing visitor-group size limit from 10 to 9 persons, limiting the number of watercraft per group to 4, and operating the visitor distribution program at 67 percent rather than 85 percent campsite occupancy. The moose and white-tailed deer populations in the Boundary Waters decline, with severe winter losses in and Major forest fire, in later years referred to as the "Sag Corridor wildfire," starts near Romance Lake, burns around Saganaga Lake, and spreads across 9 miles or 12, acres in the U.
Fire , the largest fire, burns the areas around Kawnipi, Falls Chain, and Saganagons lakes. Forest Service plan to properly manage the Boundary Waters wilderness. June 14, a forest fire burns 4, acres around South Temperance Lake. A federal mediation process is initiated by U. Senator Paul Wellstone to resolve issues relating to three motorized portages.
The process, which lasts nearly nine months, is concluded on April 28, , with recommendations for reducing airborne mercury pollution but without consensus on the core issues, losing an opportunity, in the words of Bill Hansen, for "the healing effect of a broad community consensus on wilderness policy. In part as a result of the debates surround the issue, membership in the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness peaks at 2, members. Motorized vehicles are permitted to continue transporting motorboats across two portages, Trout and Prairie, by a rider on an unrelated transportation bill passed by Congress.
The storm also damages 1, of the 2, campsites in the Boundary Waters and completely or partially blocks portages. About 25 people are injured, but there are no fatalities. About 25 million trees are downed. With trees stacked up as high as 20 feet, the fuel load for fire is 5 to 10 times higher than it was before the blowdown, and the U. Forest Service begins planning a series of prescribed, controlled burns to reduce the risk of large, intense, uncontrollable fires in the years ahead.
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March, the Canada lynx is listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, giving it federal protection. July 26, Art Madsen, the last of Quetico's 16 original rangers, dies at age Madsen worked as a ranger from to , sometimes traveling 1, miles a winter on snowshoes. For 70 years he lived at his home and wilderness resort on Saganaga Lake. February , the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources develops a wolf management plan. The plan seeks to demonstrate that Minnesota is prepared to assume responsibility for the Eastern timber wolf when delisting occurs and that Minnesota will ensure the long-term survival of the wolf as required by the federal recovery plan.
The moose population in the Arrowhead Region of Northeastern Minnesota declines from 5, to 4, from the previous year. After 30 years of only occasional sightings, more than two dozen Canada lynxes inhabit the Boundary Waters, according to estimates based on DNA analysis of animal hair and feces. For the first time ever reported outside captivity, three wildcat hybrids — mixes between male bobcats and female Canada lynxes — are confirmed by federal researchers, who analyzed DNA from hair and tissue samples from 19 cats in Superior National Forest.
There is concern that, if the hybrids can reproduce, they might dilute the genetic purity of Canada lynx populations. October 19, Mardy Murie dies at age Mardy was known as the "grandmother" and the "matriarch" of the modern conservation movement for her work on garnering support for the Wilderness Act and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In her testimony before Congress in support of expanding the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ANWR she said, "I hope the United States of America is not so rich that she can afford to let these wildernesses pass by, or so poor she cannot afford to keep them.
The estimated gray wolf population in northern Minnesota is just more than 3, animals, compared with an estimated 2, wolves in Because the DNR survey has a margin of error of plus or minus wolves, the population appears to be holding steady. Completed in the winter of , the survey uses field observations, habitat models, and data from radio telemetry studies. Also this year a lone wolf is found in Michigan's Lower Peninsula, the first sighting since Most of these wolves live in about packs averaging between 5 and 6 wolves each.
The wolf population in Wisconsin is approximately animals living in about packs. In Michigan's Upper Peninsula the population is about animals in about 86 packs. June 4, Lloyd Skelton, an experienced year-old outdoor adventurer, buys a day permit to hike the mile Angleworm Trail, deciding to delay his solo kayak trip until the weather improves. On June 17 his daughter reports him missing. When searchers find only his clothing and wallet, they assume he has succumbed to hypothermia and "paradoxical undressing," an irrational behavior that sometimes occurs when a person's core body temperature drops into the low 80s.
As reported by Larry Oakes in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, despite "a thorough search of the surrounding area with the help of dogs," no sign of Skelton's remains are found. There are wolves, bears, ravens. The longer it's been, the less the chance you'll find something. August 6, after more than a month of drought, lightning ignites a fire that sweeps across nearly 1, acres near the Canadian border between Alpine and Seagull Lakes, an area with dead trees downed by the blowdown.
The fire is the largest in 10 years and threatens 70 homes, cabins, and businesses on the Gunflint Trail, a few miles to the east. Firefighters set up containment lines with 35 miles of hose, 44 water pumps, and more than sprinklers. With the assistance of three Bombardier CL aircraft capable of scooping 1, gallons of water in 11 seconds, they contain the fire on August The 33 emergency incidents in are nearly double the number of search-and-rescue missions in each of the three previous years: In there were 21 medical evacuations, 12 search-and-rescue missions, and 1 fatality, for a total of 33; in there were 0 medical, 14 search-and-rescue, and 3 fatalities, for a total of 17; in there were 14 medical, 3 search-and-rescue, and 2 fatalities, for a total of 19; and in there were 11 medical, 2 search-and-rescue, and 4 fatalities, for a total of According to Kris Reichenbach, a Forest Service spokesperson, one possible reason for the increase in evacuations is that more people are carrying cell phones and relying on them to call for help.
Most deaths in the Boundary Waters are from drowning, and the majority of reported injuries are from falls. July 14, a lightning strike starts a fire near Cavity Lake and expands north to Sea Gull Lake near the end of the Gunflint Trail, a mile road that leads northward from Grand Marais on Lake Superior into the wilderness area. The fire is one of at least eight burning in the Boundary Waters and Quetico Park that week, all started by lightning.
Fueled by dry winds and timber blown down in the storm, the Cavity Lake fire burns about 50 square miles about 39 square miles excluding lake surfaces , an area that makes it the largest fire in the Boundary Waters since About 60 campsites in the fire area are damaged or destroyed, but no one is injured and there is no damage to private property. Smoke blowing east from fire is so thick that motorists on the North Shore turn on their headlights to drive during the day.
A series of prescribed burns since the storm that reduced the amount of downed timber on more that 37, acres prevents the fire from consuming an even larger area. As the fire continues to expand, an elite team of firefighters known as the Pacific Northwest National Incident Team No. By August 4, the fire is reduced to hot spots and is declared 85 percent contained. By August 12, the fire is declared 95 percent contained, and according to Warren Wolfe writing for the Minneapolis Star Tribune there are signs the forest is rejuvenating: September 15, about people evacuate a mile stretch of the Gunflint Trail at the "strong suggestion" of Cook County Sheriff Mark Falk because a long, narrow finger of a fire is moving northward toward the dead-end trail.
About 14 people decide to remain on their properties. The fire was started by a lightning strike near Famine Lake, north of Brule Lake, on September 7 or 8. A smaller fire at Redeye Lake started around the same time. It is the fire's location rather than its 3.
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The Famine Lake fire eventually consumes more than 6. Fish and Wildlife Service is "de-listing" or removing the western Great Lakes population of gray wolves from the federal list of threatened and endangered species. The Service is also proposing removal of the northern Rocky Mountain population of gray wolves from the list.
Both actions are taken in recognition of the success of gray wolf recovery efforts under the Endangered Species Act. Gray wolves were previously listed as endangered in the lower 48 states, except in Minnesota, where they were listed as threatened. May 5, following a prolonged drought, a fire starts near Ham Lake , apparently from an unattended campfire. Before it is extinguished, it becomes Minnesota's largest and costliest forest fire since the Cloquet fire. On May 6, a mandatory evacuation order is issued to about people on the last seven miles of the Gunflint Trail as the rapidly spreading fire is fueled by strong winds.
As with the Alpine Lake fire in and the Cavity Lake fire in , the fire's intensity is at first limited because the fuel load of downed trees on its eastern flank had been reduced from prescribed burns , but f our structures near Sea Gull Lake are destroyed. Many buildings in the fire's path, however, are spared, probably because of propane-powered outdoor sprinkler systems installed since the blowdown. On May 9, firefighters conduct an intentional "burnout" in the fire's path to rob it of fuel. On May 10, Twin Cities residents can smell smoke carried by northeastern winds.
According to Matt McKinney, writing for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, residents who saw the blaze described it as "a roiling black monster throwing off green clouds, white thunderheads, and a noise like a a freight train. Finally, on May 22, after consuming nearly square miles in Minnesota and Canada, the fire is contained, and the last seven miles of the Gunflint Trail are reopened. Lakner, 37, Jay A. Olson, 19, Zachary R. Barton, 19, Travis J. Erzar, 20, and Casey J.
During a night of drinking beer and discharging firearms, they terrorize and harass dozens of campers, including families with children. During the spree the men are reported to have shouted, "Fucking tourists. From the two boats authorities recover a high-powered, semi-automatic assault-style rifle with three round clips, a. Lake County authorities file 79 charges against the six including terroristic threats, aggravated harassment, criminal damage to property, reckless discharge of firearms, underage possession of firearms, and underage alcohol consumption.
The group also faces felony counts and charges from federal and Canadian authorities because they crossed into Ontario's Quetico Provincial Park, where they continued their rampage. Newsweek and other publications link the night of terror to deep-seeded resentment on the part of local people who oppose the restrictions limiting their access to the area. Some of these people were forced to sell their resorts and cabins when the area was set aside as protected wilderness. Newsweek asks if the behavior was "just youthful indiscretion or a troubling community character flaw?
This isn't folk hero material. Such actions should horrify everyone. September and October, near-record rainfall ends a nearly two-year drought in the boundary waters area, but fire danger remains. As reported by the Associated Press, "The Forest Service is more than halfway toward its goal of purposely burning square miles to create a strategic series of firebrakes across the [] blowdown area.
That's still out there, still a possibility. First published by the Minneapolis Star Tribune: When Ernest Oberholtzer was 17, he suffered a severe bout of rheumatic fever that weakened his heart. His doctors told him he wouldn't survive the year. On June 6, , after a lifetime dedicated to preserving the Minnesota-Ontario lakes region as wilderness, his damaged heart gave out, and he died at the age of Ober was a man of many passions. At 28 he paddled with Ojibwe trapper and guide Billy Magee across the Canadian Barrens to Hudson Bay and back, completing the 2,mile, four-month exploration in freezing temperatures and blowing snow just before the onset of the sub-Arctic winter.
He fought to protect an area he considered "one of the rarest of all regions of the continent, if not the world," spearheading the defeat of a plan to convert the boundary waters lakes into a four great storage basins for the production of industrial hydroelectric power. He photographed Native Americans and wildlife. He gathered Indian stories and legends. He studied the Ojibwe language at a time when our national policy was to suppress native culture and languages among Indian children. He played classical violin, collected books, and entertained friends by the dozen on his small Rainy Lake island.
More than anything Ober wanted to write. He wrote dozens of articles, thousands of letters to friends, and thousands more in support of his plan for wilderness preservation, but he never achieved his lifelong ambition: He never wrote a book about his travels with Billy Magee or about Native American legends.
This failure haunted him as one of the great frustrations and disappointments of his life. In his final years Ober was robbed of his ability to speak by a series of minor strokes. As reported by Joe Paddock in Keeper of the Wild: The Life of Ernest Oberholtzer, however, he still had good days. According to Hall, "The whole morning there hadn't been a word you could understand. He just communicated by signs.
And as we were crossing the street, an Indian woman called out to him and started a conversation. Not until Ober's friend had gone did Hall realize that, in Ojibwe, Ober had been "completely, absolutely articulate. In there were no automobile roads in the forest area. Sparks from the stacks of the locomotives which were pulling carloads of logs through the woods were a serious fire hazard.
This was especially true on uphill grades where they poured on the coal to build up power causing fire to pop right out of the stack. Although there were rules about screening the stacks, the practice was not always observed. The area was littered with white pine slash. Frank Kelly, the General Logging Company's superintendent in charge of the operation, had formerly been with the Forest Service and was very much aware of the fire danger and totally cooperative in trying to prevent fire.
He had a speeder patrol follow each logging train to watch for stray sparks and he had arranged to have slash removed from the right of way and from other hazardous areas. Slash removal was also the subject of a Minnesota state law but it was not being consistently followed by all loggers. In spite of all precautions, it was at 11 a. Five minutes later, the Pine Mountain Lookout also called in to report the smoke.
They found a camp foreman and 30 lumberjacks fighting to control the blaze, which, fanned by west winds, had already jumped to the east side of Star Lake. He was able to get the message through just before the camp's telephone line burned out. The Grand Marais ranger got the message and immediately ordered a substantial fire-fighting crew to be sent to Brule. Transportation difficulties prevented a speedy response. Firefighters from Duluth and Ely had to drive long distances to the intersection of the railroad and the Sawbill Trail.
There a logging train was waiting to take the first 70 men another 16 miles to the scene of the conflagration. Meanwhile, more firefighters from the logging company's camps at Swan and Flour Lakes in the Gunflint area came south by railroad. By evening, a substantial fire control force was assembled.
On the fire lines, though, things were going badly. The superintendent who was at dinner did not feel the situation could be all that serious and failed to take action. Fortunately, all personnel escaped before the camp burned. The attack on the fire began in earnest at 3 a. Although the crews worked eighteen hours a day, the fire continued to spread west and north during the next three days, jumping Homer Lake. On July 26, 70 more firefighters were sent from Duluth. A seaplane, which arrived from Ely with supplies, was used to scout the fire.
Nevertheless, it burned over two more square miles to the north, approaching Juno Lake. On the night of July 27, the wind shifted again, threatening the town of Cascade. Superintendent Kelly directed a dramatic fight to save the village, but elsewhere the fire raged out of control. Two small logging camps on the south shore of Brule were destroyed. Lumberjacks from one of these camps were being evacuated by barge when the barge caught fire out on Brule Lake. The situation was complicated by a spot fire two miles north of Brule Lake which necessitated shifting crews back and forth across the lake.
Seventy more firefighters arrived from Duluth on August 1. Still the fire raged on and was only brought under control when a substantial rain fell on August 7. Workers spent four more days grubbing out fire lines around the area to prevent further spreading. The Cherokee Lake Fire. In , there were three serious fires in the Sawbill area, devastating nearly ten thousand acres. The afternoon of Saturday, July 11, was exceptionally hot with large thunderheads in the sky. Shortly after noon, a light shower began, preceded by heavy flashes of lightning somewhere north of Sawbill Lake.
The tower man at Kelso Lookout reported several lightning strikes a few miles northeast of his post, but no smoke was visible. Simultaneously, the Brule Lake Lookout reported the smoke. A cross-reading placed the fire near the portage between Gordon and Cherokee Lakes.
Reaching the fire was a difficult matter as all those canoeists who have made the trip to Cherokee and Gordon Lakes can attest. Two principal routes were used. This entailed making three or four portages as well as paddling miles across the lakes. The second route was by truck and logging railroad from Grand Marais to Brule Lake.
From there motor boats, barges and canoes were used to transport people and equipment through North Temperance and Sitka Lakes to Cherokee. This trip, including two difficult portages, took about eleven hours compared to four or five hours from Sawbill. After all Sarah was there when I decided to start Wilderness Journey guiding and outfitting, and when that part of my life came to an end she was the first person I told.
Then I told her I was keeping the website and changing it to a Bucket list blog. The day I stopped by their house to invite them to Belize I told her how much I appreciated her and that she earned this trip and tossed an unmarked file on the table in front of them, when they opened it I could see the expression on both their faces.
In the file was a rough itinerary and two round trip tickets to Belize, I told her I was going for 3 weeks and She and Freddie would be going the first 6 days, the only thing I asked of her was to make the resort arrangements and I had a couple of suggestions. I wanted to be near San Pedro on Ambergris Caye but outside of town away from the party animals. Along with them a long time friend Lora would be joining me for the duration of the entire trip. It is impossible to write everything that we experienced in Belize in one newsletter so I will break it into three different newsletters broken into the three different weeks we were there.
But that first morning when I woke up before dawn and had my first cup of coffee on the veranda on our beachfront room I knew this trip was going to be everything I thought it was going to be. I could literally see the famous Belize Barrier reef the second largest reef in the world miles of meandering coral and sea-life. San Pedro Town is the major settlement on the island. The island has the largest concentration of visitor accommodations in Belize and its hotels, fishing and diving facilities are some of the best in the country.
The town is a picture postcard setting beside the clear turquoise sea.
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Coconut palms sway and rustle in the gentle cooling trade winds. Yes, tourism is the number one industry in what was once a fishing village. Now, fishing is still most excellent, but tourism has far surpassed it as a contributor to the local economy. This is not, however, the edgy tourism of Cancun, with millions of package tourists hitting the beach.
No building is higher than a tall coco palm, or three stories. This is a genuine description of San Pedro in the 21 days I spent in Belize, San Pedro and Hopkins are the two towns that I fell in love with, San Pedro is a little larger and more touristy than Hopkins but it has a lot to offer and quite of a few unforgettable memories were experienced here. Most of the fishing here is reef fishing and November is not the best month for fishing February, March and April are the top months for fishing. However, we were still able to catch snapper, grunts, grouper, porgies plus Lora caught a 5 to 6 foot nurse shark that put up quite a battle.
Just keep what you want to cook for one meal and give the rest to the first mate and captain. By the way it was delicious. I have snorkeled in Mexico and in the fresh waters in Michigan but I was not prepared for the beauty and excitement of snorkeling in Belize. I was never really interested in scuba diving but now that this trip is over, I will be getting my PADI certification for next years bucket list trip to the Galapagos islands where anyone that reads our newsletters is welcome to join.
When we approached the area everyone on the boat was excited and then the first mate tossed over the anchor and within seconds the water was literally boiling with a dozen sharks including one that was at least 9 foot long. The guides were great, one is always in the water and the other mans the boat. The guide grabbed a 5 foot shark turned her over and it was as if she was in a trance, everyone could pet it and he also did the same with a 3 foot sting ray.
The guide had a plastic Pepsi bottle filled with cut-bait fish and he knew where all the marine life was, he would swim down look into the coral come back to the surface and say watch this, he then swam back down and placed a small piece of fish in a empty conch shell place it about 3 feet in front of the hole and slowly a 5 foot green eel came slithering out and took the bait.
Link to a go pro video of Snorkeling in Shark Ray Alley. San Pedro is the place we ended our trip after our 21 day travel across this Central American country and it also will forever have a place in my heart. I have already decided to stop there on my way back from the Galapagos islands next year. Its mostly Mayans that reside here, everyone speaks English. I have always been the kind of person that is on the go and honestly it took me about a week to start to absorb the Belizean way of life. I think we all can learn from them. The kids wear school uniforms, everyone knows each other and they all respect each other and the guest that visit their country.
The food is great try the Ceviche. The trip was greatly enhanced with my travel companions Lora and especially my Niece Sarah and her husband Freddie who had proven to be very…very adventurous people. Our last meal together before Sarah and Freddie head back to the real world. This is also the airline we used to cross the country. They have an exceptional staff and will make you feel right at home. The next newsletter will include stories and photos about fishing, snorkeling, zip lining on a 2.
Along with stories about Placencia and Hopkins. Jim let me know that his wife Carol is interested in going if we can get another adventurous woman to join the group. So come on folks! Anyone out there ever dream of running their own team of dogs across virgin snow in the middle of the wilderness…Then give us a call. Life is short make the most of it! Our arrival date is February 27th: We will watch the start of the Wolftrack classic Dog-Sled race on the morning of the 28th then immediately head into the woods with our gear, guides and enthusiasm.
Peter was kind enough to customize this trip for us. We will be going through areas that I have been through many…many times and many of my past clients and friends are familiar with. We will see 3 waterfalls, Native pictographs and some of the most incredible vistas ever created. So before writing this newsletter I researched the meaning of the word adventurous and this is what I found:.
Willing to take risks or to try out new methods, ideas, or experiences. We are not first and foremost a racing kennel or an arctic exploration kennel. Peter McClelland and Chris Hegenbarth run White Wilderness and Peter has been reading our newsletters for years and to help set us off on this new bucket list format he is giving everyone that books this trip a great deal! And I would like to thank him for his generosity. This is the email he sent me last week: First and last night are included at the lodge.
We will decide where we want to do that later. The guides will go over all your clothing and the trip details then. The Boundary Waters is a remote region of wilderness lakes, rivers and forests that straddles the Minnesota-Canada border. Comprised of more than one million acres of pristine lakes, the densest concentration in America, and off limits to motorized vehicles, it is a frozen maze of trail possibilities that beckon in winter.
Though skiers, snowshoers and ice fishing enthusiasts explore the periphery, dogsleds are the way to get truly deep in to this wilderness. Expect to see tracks of timber wolves, fox and perhaps an otter sliding across the snow. Sleep under the stars for a chance peek at the northern lights, or certainly a star-filled winter sky.
We save this rugged trip for March, when the days are longer, the dogs are at peak condition and lake travel is typically easier. This traverse of the Boundary Waters will cover well over miles on a route crossing the heart of the wilderness and home to our kennel. Mush pass windswept islands with rugged glacier carved granite cliffs. Test your mushing agility as we navigate tricky portage trails between lakes. If you thrive on hands-on opportunities, have some outdoor camping experience under your belt and are craving an adventure off the beaten path, consider joining us for an unforgettable dog-sledding trip.
Coming up on November 13th we will be taking an epic 3 week vacation to Belize during which we will be sending a weekly newsletter of our adventures from Belize. Then its onto tarpon and deep sea fishing expeditions along with cave tubing and of course laying on the beach.
The next destination will be on to Placencia where we will be snorkeling, fishing and checking out Cockscomb Jaguar preserve. Then our last destination will be Dangriga for an epic Zip-lining adventure where we will be zip-lining 2. Real time newsletters and GO-Pro footage to come. Now the real reason for this newsletter, This will be the first newsletter where we are trying to recruit people to test themselves…to check that box off their bucket list so read on and book this trip. We have 3 people committed to this this 5 night 6 day trip and are looking for 3 more.
Everyone will run their own dog team. We will ice fish 2 days for Northern Pike and Lake trout. Watch the start of the Woldtrack classic Dog-Sled race on the morning of the 28th then immediately head into the woods with our gear, guides and enthusiasm. After 8 years guiding in the wilderness and careful consideration I have decided to close this chapter in my life and start a new one.
I had been thinking about this since the spring of Then after my brother had a serious accident in June, I had to cancel a trip drive back to Detroit and make sure he was going to be out of the woods then return to Ely, where I took out trips the entire season wondering if he was going to be alright while in the wilderness, without a phone or anyway to know if he was alright or not. This was just one of many reasons for my decision. At the age of 53 I started to lose many friends from October to just last month I have been to 7 funerals, I know death is a part of life but it was the not being with my family and friends for 5 months a year and not knowing who was next that wore on me.
Life is incredibly short and there are many other things that I wanted to accomplish. Then when the very last show was over I put the word out that I was looking for a job. Well within the first 4 days I had 4 offers and with the help of my brother John and his friend Mike Lafferty they hooked me up with a great company that was willing to let me guide and my job would still be there waiting for me.
But after working for them for 3 weeks I knew I found my place. When I told my boss I was thinking about quitting the guide business and wanted to work for them full time they were excited, I had to immediately let them know that I still wanted some major time off because of my bucket list they were more than glad to accommodate me. Because of my work ethic and always striving to be the best at whatever I do within 4 months I have risen through the ranks at my new job to the top of the food chain.
Without making enemies try doing that! Four months into this new chapter has reawakened the adventurer in me and now its time to work on my bucket list. The new plan is every year I will be taking several trips trough the year to check off trips from my extensive bucket list. Before I go any farther I looked up what exactly Bucket list means and when I read it I chuckled because they have it all wrong, It said that a bucket list is a list of accomplishments that one tackles when one retires…WRONG!
I will keep up the website and a quarterly newsletter. Because I will invite anyone on the email list to come along on these trips, especially past clients. Just to give you an idea of what is on my bucket list and like I said everyone is welcome to join. Grand Canyon, Washington D. I have been very lucky my family and friends have supported me in my guiding business from the get go, not one person try to talk me out of it. But the one person I really want to thank is my niece Sarah she was there from the beginning to the very end and I could of never accomplished this business without her.
She was there for me when I was struggling and she was there when I was overwhelmed with bookings.
When I made this decision I had one friend ask if I regret the last 8 years. I laughed and said are you kidding me I have caught more fish than dozens of hardcore fishermen have caught in their entire lifetimes. I have taught hundreds of people how to fish, camp, travel in the wilderness. I have had so many wildlife experiences that I can write several books about my encounters and experiences.
But one of the most surprising experiences I have had over the last 8 years are the clients that I have had the pleasure of taking out into the wilderness and give them experiences they never knew existed. Many have become friends of mine. The dams would affect the 14,square-mile Rainy Lake watershed by significantly raising water levels above natural levels Little Vermilion Lake by 80 feet, Loon Lake by 33 feet, Lac La Croix by 16 feet, and Saganaga and Crooked lakes by 15 feet.
Conservationist and explorer Ernest "Ober" Oberholtzer — with support from attorneys Sewell Tyng, Frank Hubachek, Charles Kelly, Frederick Winston, and many other conservationists — wage a five-year battle to defeat the plan. September 17, the Little Indian Sioux, the Caribou, and the Superior "roadless areas" of the Superior National Forest are designated as a ,acre roadless wilderness area under a policy issued by the U.
Forest Service under U. Agricultural Secretary William Jardine to "retain as much as possible of the land which has recreational opportunities of this nature as a wilderness," curbing an ambitious road plan to push "a road to every lake. A logging camp is built and a logging road is constructed between Moon and Popular Lake. In the early s the logging road becomes part of the Banadad Ski Trail. January 27, the Quetico-Superior Council holds its first meeting, with Ernest "Ober" Oberholtzer as its president, for the purpose of promoting an International Peace Memorial Forest on both sides of the border, encompassing the entire Quetico-Superior region.
Total annual precipitation is below normal, producing "the great drought of the s," a decade-long hot, dry period. May 16, Minnesota's record northern pike — weighing 45 pounds, 12 ounces — is caught in Basswood Lake by J. Major forest fires fueled by slash left from logging burn in the boundary waters area. On July 22, a fire starts on Star Lake and moves north, nearly trapping a fire crew camped on the south shore of Brule Lake near the Juno Lake railroad spur.
On July 31, another fire starts north of Brule Lake and east of the Cone lakes. Together the Brule Lake fires burn 25, acres of forest, the largest fires in the Sawbill area in the 20 th century. July 10, , the Shipstead-Newton-Nolan Act, the first statute in which Congress expressly orders land be protected as "wilderness," is signed into law by President Herbert Hoover at the urging of a group of conservationists led by Ernest "Ober" Oberholtzer. The Act withdraws all federal land in the boundary waters region from homesteading or sale, prevents the alteration of natural water levels by dams, prohibits logging within feet of shorelines, and preserves the wilderness nature of shorelines.
The regulations apply to a 4,square-mile area extending from Lake Superior on the east to Rainy Lake on the west. Passage of the Act represents a defeat for Edward Wellington Backus's plan to build a series of dams in the Rainy Lake watershed to create storage basins for industrial waterpower. The General Logging Company ceases its railroad logging operations around Brule and Gunflint lakes, bringing to an end the railroad logging era in the boundary waters area.
May, the final segment of the mile Sawbill Trail is completed. The first segment was constructed as a road to the Springdale settlement around April 19, despite vigorous opposition by Minnesota Power and Light, legislation applying the protections of the Shipstead-Nolan Act to state lands is passed by the Minnesota Legislature.
Forest Service in the boundary waters area to put people back to work. In the fall of two permanent camps are built at Lake Three and Alice Lake. During the brutal winter that follows, several workers become ill, and the foreman dies at the Lake Three camp, apparently the result of sewage seeping into the water supply. The Civilian Conservation Corps CCC enlists thousands of unemployed men to plant trees, rebuild and improve portages, build canoe rests, install landing docks, post direction signs, build four lookout towers, fight forest fires, and do other conservation projects in the boundary waters area.
Fourteen major camps, each housing approximately young men and dozens of highly skilled outdoorsmen, are constructed in and around the wilderness areas of the Superior National Forest. The docks, signs, and rests are later removed to comply with the Wilderness Act, but still evident today are the raised walkways, the rocks placed to reinforce trails, the canoe landings now mostly submerged , and other signs of trail improvements. The Committee's purpose is to consult with and advise the State of Minnesota and the several federal departments and agencies operating in the Superior National Forest area.
October 29, Edward Wellington Backus, lumberman and industrialist, dies of a heart attack in his hotel room in New York City, ending a nine-year struggle with Ernest "Ober" Oberholtzer and other conservationists for control of the Quetico-Superior region. Jack pine, black and white spruce, balsam fir, northern white cedar, aspen, and paper birch are logged during "the pulpwood logging era," the second major logging era to affect the boundary waters area.
The first era was the taking of red and white pine during "the big-pine logging era" of July 6, a state record-tying high temperature of degrees, first established in , is recorded in Moorhead, Minnesota. Prolonged record-breaking hot summer weather combined with a seven-year drought results in widespread forest fires, including 30 small fires in the eastern Superior National Forest.
A lightning-ignited fire starts on July 12 and burns 3, acres of forest around Cherokee Lake and 3, acres around Frost Lake.
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A tollgate is erected on private property on Four Mile Portage by Henry Chosa, who charges canoeists, resort owners, and anglers a fee to pass through. May 1, Ojibwe trapper and guide Billy Magee dies. Superior National Forest's three wilderness areas are renamed the Superior Roadless Primitive Areas under a plan formulated with the help of Robert Marshall, then in charge of recreation in the Washington office of the U.
The designation protects the areas from development but allows timber cutting and motorboats. Smallmouth bass are introduced to boundary waters lakes. Improved and less costly outboard motors, including small, easily portaged models that are usable on canoes, are now available. The Izaak Walton League of America establishes a fund to purchase private lands and resorts in the boundary waters area to be turned over to the government. From to , the League purchases nearly 7, acres. Populations of spruce budworm, native to the boundary waters area, increase to epidemic proportions, perhaps as a result of fire suppression.
In the latter half of the twentieth century the budworm, a defoliator that eats the new needles growing from buds each spring, kills vast areas of spruce, jack pine, and balsam fir which despite its name is the spruce budworm's prime host , creating high fuel loads that can result in high-intensity, seed-killing fires. December 19, a vast area of federal timber within the roadless area, north, east, and west of Lake Isabella is sold to the Tomahawk Timber Company, which represents several Wisconsin firms.
The area includes about square miles of land and water, with a net land area of some 73, acres in federal ownership. Logging of this area continues for two decades. Calvin Rutstrum's The Way of the Wilderness is published. Nearly 20 resorts serviced by pontoon-equipped planes are operating on Basswood, Crooked, Knife, La Croix, Saganaga, and Seagull lakes. Some offer amenities such as bars, slot machines, and motorboats, with Ely now serving as the largest inland seaplane base in North America. The Thye-Blatnick Act, Public Law , is passed by Congress, directing the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire resorts, cabins, and private lands within the boundary waters area and prohibiting any permanent residents after The Act provides for in-lieu-of-tax payments to Cook, Lake, and St.
Louis Counties for federal wilderness land. The amendments are denounced by the commissioners of Cook, Lake, and St. Louis counties and by the Ely Chamber of Commerce as "another ruthless inroad on the economy of affected counties. Railroad tracks are laid to Lake Isabella and construction begins on Forest Center, a logging town carved out of the southern edge of the roadless area, in preparation for logging by the Tomahawk Kraft Timber Company.
A large turnaround and sawmill are built by the lake, and eventually more than 50 homes — as well as a church, restaurant, school, store, and recreation hall — are built, along with five smaller camps in the area. Logging by Tomahawk ends in , when loggers reach a buffer zone created by the Shipstead-Nolan Act. By the town is gone, though the alteration in the southern boundary of the present Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness remains. June, a forest fire burns 1, acres at Plouff Creek, crossing the Sawbill Trail and stranding guests at Sawbill Lodge for several days.
Until the late s a gap in vegetation is noticeable to people driving along the Sawbill Trail. March 27, the Ely Rod and Gun Club reconfirms its support for an airspace reservation over the boundary waters at a meeting in which Forest Ranger Bill Trygg faces down angry opponents. Later that night a homemade bomb explodes outside the house of Bill Rom, an outfitter who supports the ban, but it causes little damage. April, Friends of the Wilderness is founded by William "Bill" Magie, Frank Robertson, and other conservationists, to represent organizations supporting a ban on airplanes over the boundary waters area.
December 17, Executive Order is signed by President Truman creating an "airspace reservation" that bans private flights below the altitude of 4, feet above sea level, in part as a result of the work of activists Sigurd Olson, Charles Kelly, Frank Hubachek, William "Bill" Magie, and others. Truck portages into Basswood Lake, Lac La Croix, and Big Trout Lake are established, providing easy access to these lakes and their connecting waters by large, high-speed motorboats.
Aluminum canoes and boats are now widely available, making travel easier and resulting in dramatic increases in the number of canoeists accessing remote lakes. The white-tailed deer population, dependent on new-growth forest, collapses from a loss of prime deer habitat with maturing forests in the early logging areas and in the extensive burn areas of , , , and The moose population begins to recover from a decline that began in the early s. The beaver population is significantly reduced by a dieoff caused by tularemia. Spruce budworm population increases to epidemic proportions throughout the boundary waters area and Quetico.
In localized areas the population remains continuously epidemic from to the present. Sigurd Olson's The Singing Wilderness is published. Under protection from trapping, the fisher regains its former population levels. As a result, the number of porcupines, which are preyed on by the fisher, declines dramatically.
The wolf population in the lower 48 states is at an all-time low. Minnesota's wolf population is estimated to be around animals. Other estimates place the population at in northeastern Minnesota and about 20 on Isle Royale. Snowmobile use in the Boundary Waters, Voyageurs, and Quetico grows, resulting in increased stress on lake trout populations from winter fishing. Despite regulations designed to control both the amount and type of recreational activities in the Boundary Waters, visitor use increases nearly threefold.
Roy Anderson and graduate student Murray Lankester demonstrate that a parasite, a brainworm known as Parelaphostrongylus tenis, normally found in white-tailed deer, causes "moose sickness," an ailment first observed in Minnesota in The estimated moose population of about 3, doubles to about 6, in northeastern Minnesota and to about 2, in the Boundary Waters. Peregrine falcons are extirpated from all of Minnesota and adjacent regions as a result of DDT poisoning. The last nesting pair in the Boundary Waters is reported this year.
In the mids, only 35 nesting pairs are reported in the entire U. September 3, the Wilderness Act, U. Many of the Selke Committee's recommendations for restrictions on visitor permits, motor use, and logging are implemented by Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman in a new management plan for the Boundary Waters. One recommendation is that permits be required for entrance. In addition, the plan divides the BWCA into an Interior Zone of , acres, which is closed to logging, and a Portal Zone of , acres, which is open to logging.
The plan also calls for the immediate addition of , acres to the no-cut zone, with another , acres to be added by as existing logging contracts are completed. This would bring the total no-cut area to , acres by Together the two programs resulted in the killing of more than wolves annually. White-tailed deer population further declines in the Boundary Waters and Superior National Forest as a result of a series of severe winters, a loss of prime deer habitat caused by maturing forests, and increased predation by wolves.
By , deer no longer winter in the Boundary Waters. A mandatory permit system for visitors with no fee is instituted by the U. The gray wolf in the lower 48 states is listed as "endangered" under the Endangered Species Preservation Act. A maximum group size limit of 15 persons for visitors is instituted by the U. The whitetail deer population in the Boundary Waters further declines and wolves switch from killing deer to moose, a more challenging prey. As a result of DDT poisoning, the American bald eagle population declines to its lowest level, with only about 10 active eagle nests remaining in the Superior National Forest.
A ban on the use of DDT is implemented on January 1, By , the number of active nests increases to Voyageurs National Park is established by Public Law , as amended by Public Law , enacted by Congress on January 8 and signed by President Richard Nixon, to "preserve, for the inspiration and enjoyment of present and future generations, the outstanding scenery, geological conditions, and waterway system which constituted a part of the historic route of the Voyageurs who contributed significantly to the opening of the Northwestern United States.
A rule limiting visitors to "designated campsites" on heavy-use routes is instituted by the U. Cans and glass bottles are prohibited from the Boundary Waters. According to the U. May , the Little Sioux fire, the largest forest fire in northern Minnesota since , a crown fire, spreads from a slash fire and burns 14, acres or 24 square miles in the western Boundary Waters, killing the world record jack pine. A limited moose hunt is authorized for the first time since The Endangered Species Act is passed by Congress, declaring timber wolves an endangered species and affording federal protection.
Since , when the last bounty was paid on a wolf in Minnesota, approximately animals were killed annually. Quetico Provincial Park is given full wilderness protection. All logging is permanently banned, snowmobiles are banned, and a motorboat phaseout is begun. A year of exceptional drought results in forest fires burning 1,, acres of forest in northwestern Ontario. On July 27, a camper-caused fire burns 1, acres around Prayer Lake. The rule limiting visitors to "designated campsites" that was instituted by the U.
Forest Service on heavy-use routes in is extended to the entire Boundary Waters. The maximum group size limit for visitors is lowered from 15 to 10 persons by the U. The ruling is reversed on appeal in The bill is strongly opposed by environmentalists. A severe drought, with only. May 7, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness is formed with Miron "Bud" Heinselman as chair, in opposition to Representative James Oberstar's bill, which would remove land from a designated wilderness for the purpose of creating a recreational area that would allow logging and mechanized travel.
Its purpose is advocating greater protection of the Boundary Waters and "promoting the biological, intrinsic, aesthetic, economic, scientific, and spiritual values of wilderness. Summer, a sophisticated visitor distribution system, using entry-point quotas on visitor numbers as a mechanism to redistribute visitor use and impacts throughout the wilderness, is instituted by the U. Cans and glass bottles are prohibited from Quetico Provincial Park.
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June 6, Ernest "Ober" Oberholtzer born February 6, dies at age Explorer, photographer, student of Ojibwe legend and oral tradition, authority on the Minnesota-Ontario boundary lakes region, lifetime President of the Quetico-Superior Council, and one of eight founders of the Wilderness Society, Ober devoted his life to preserving wilderness and protecting the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. July 8, an effigy identified as Sigurd Olson and Miron "Bud" Heinselman is hung outside the Ely High School, where approximately 1, people gather to participate in a Congressional hearing.
Some places should be preserved from development of exploitation for they satisfy a human need for solace, belonging, and perspective. In the end we turn to nature in a frenzied chaotic world, there to find silence — oneness — wholeness — spiritual release. The Eastern timber wolf is reclassified from "endangered" to "threatened" by the U. The law still prohibits the killing of wolves with the exception of problem animals causing agricultural damage. The Fish and Wildlife Service also adopts a recovery plan revised in for the purpose of increasing the number and range of timber wolves to ensure the animal's survival in the eastern half of the U.
The recovery plan sets a population goal for Minnesota of 1, to 1, wolves by the year , a goal that is achieved in the early s. In a wolf population survey estimates the statewide population at between 1, and 1, animals. Public Law , is signed by President Jimmy Carter. The act adds 50, acres to the Boundary Waters, which now encompasses 1,, acres, and extends greater wilderness protection to the area. The Act bans logging, mineral prospecting, and mining; all but bans snowmobile use; limits motorboat use to about two dozen lakes; limits the size of motors; and regulates the number of motorboats and motorized portages.
Public Law , ending some 85 years of logging in the Boundary Waters. January, acidification of Boundary Waters lakes is detected, with 1, of 1, lakes identified as "sensitive" and identified as "extremely sensitive," after a one-year investigation by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in conjunction with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Department of Health.
January 13, Sigurd Olson dies at age 82 after suffering a heart attack while snowshoeing with his wife Elizabeth near his home in Ely. Canoe outfitter, guide, educator, conservationist, wilderness advocate, and elder statesman of the Minnesota environmental movement, one-time president of the National Parks Association and of the Wilderness Society, eloquent and outspoken advocate of wilderness values, Sig published 9 books and more than articles.
February 5, Calvin Rutstrum dies at age A conservationist who worked with his friend Sigurd Olson in the successful campaign to restrict airplane travel above the Boundary Waters, Calvin published 15 books on wilderness, nature, and canoeing. March 4, William "Bill" Magie dies at age Bill was a canoe guide in the waters around Ely from to , a co-founder of Friends of the Wilderness, and a lifelong advocate of wilderness protection.
March 8, the BWCA Act is upheld when the Supreme Court decides in an decision with Sandra Day O'Connor casting the dissenting vote not to review lower court rulings in a three-year legal battle by the State of Minnesota and others challenging the constitutionality of the law. August, Benny Ambrose dies at age 86, 84, or 83 birth date uncertain , probably of a heart attack. His body is found by Forest Service rangers next to the burned remains of his summer kitchen. Benny came north from Iowa after World War I to prospect for gold and lived for more than 60 years alone in his one-room cabin on Ottertrack Lake, becoming the second to the last permanent resident of the Boundary Waters.
The peregrine falcon is placed on the federal endangered species list. After a year absence, peregrine falcons are reintroduced into the wild in Minnesota, including in Cook County. In the falcon is removed from the endangered species list. By its population in Minnesota reaches 36 nesting pairs. The peregrine falcon is the world's fastest bird. When it goes into a dive called a "stoop" , it can reach miles per hour.
May June 24, a small island on Lake Two is set on fire by a careless camper, resulting in a major forest fire. For the first time in 76 years, a significant fire in the Boundary Waters is allowed to burn without intervention by the U. Motors are banned from Brule Lake. In response to strong opposition to a motor ban on Brule, an exception was written into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act providing that motors could be used on Brule until January , or until businesses already in operation in were terminated.
With the closing of the last business on Brule, the Sky Blue Water Resort, the motor ban goes into effect. In subsequent years, use by canoeists increases significantly. Canada lynxes are no longer permanent residents in Minnesota but only occasional wanderers from Ontario searching for food, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. December, Dorothy Molter dies of natural causes at age 79 while living alone in her cabin on Knife Lake. Dorothy was the last permanent resident of the Boundary Waters. Because of her homemade brew, she was known to many as the "Root Beer Lady.
March 20, following the Lake Two fire, a new prescribed natural-fire-management program is adopted by the U. Forest Service and implemented in the Boundary Waters. The policy allows lightning-ignited fires that pose no threat to people or property to burn themselves out naturally. This departure from the policy of suppressing all fires ends the "fire-suppression period" of management that began in September 14 and 15, an emaciated female black bear mauls two campers in a rare attack of a human by a black bear.
He is hospitalized in stable condition with multiple lacerations, including a large head laceration and a fractured bone in his shoulder. Cleaveland's injuries include bites and claw marks on his thigh, forearm, shoulder, head, and neck, and a badly twisted knee. In both cases the bear is driven off by other campers hitting it with a canoe paddle.
On September 16, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources game wardens shoot the bear as it is ransacking a campsite near the scene of the attacks. The bear, an eight-year-old female weighing only pounds, may have been suffering from digestive problems. Normal weight for a bear of this age and gender is to pounds. These attacks are two of only four recorded incidents of bears attacking humans in Minnesota. The other two, also non-fatal, occur in September , while year-old researcher Miles Becker is studying woodcock in the Four Brooks Wildlife Management Area 10 miles north of Milaca Becker suffers broken facial bones, puncture wounds to his head and left leg, and a broken fibula; after the attack he radios his partner, who locates him partly by following his directions and partly by homing in on the radio transmitters Becker has with him to attach to woodcocks , and in September , when year-old Kim Heil-Smith surprises a sow with her cub in her garage in rural Grand Marais Heil-Smith suffers scratches and bites on her head, shoulder and thighs, some of which require stitches; she escapes when she grabs the bear's nose and yells, "Get out of my house!
July 1, peregrine falcons produce young in the Superior National Forest for the first time in 28 years.