Archives for February 2016

The mile and a half long portage from Angleworm Lake to Tease Lake was untracked and hard to follow. Heavy, knee deep snow and numerous downed trees slowed our progress. At times it was hard to find the trail. When we were halfway across, the rain started in earnest. We were wet, but since we were working hard it was easy to stay warm.

We were headed to North Hegman Lake to see several pictographs. Long ago, someone painted several symbols on the granite cliff face. A person standing with outstretched arms, a moose, and another animal are clearly visible. There are other marks near this main set of images. The artist used a special pigment that bonded to the rock.

I have visited the North Hegman Lake pictographs many times, but I am always struck by how sharp they are. The red is so vibrant, I can imagine the artist snowshoeing down the lake hours before we arrived. What was their life like? Why were they moved to paint the rocks?

I imagine North Hegman Lake has remained largely the same since people left these markings on the cliff face long ago. The beauty of the Wilderness is that hundreds of years from now people will continue to paddle, ski, and snowshoe to the north end of this lake to stare up at the rocks with the same sense of wonder that Amy and I felt today.
It is critical that we defend the Wilderness from the sulfide-ore copper mines being proposed along the edge of the Wilderness, along with other threats. The Wilderness can’t walk through the halls of Congress or speak for itself. It needs all of us to stand up, be a voice for the Wilderness, and help defend this national treasure.

Please sign the petition by following the link in our bio, share our 365 day Wilderness journey with your friends, and learn more about how you can help @savetheBWCA.

#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #pictographs #hegmanlake #boundarywaters #bwca #onlyinMN

The Wilderness is full of surprises. This morning the dogs started making a racket. When we went out to investigate, we realized a wolf pack was slowly walking across the lake. We watched them for a long time and they are still hanging out down the shoreline. We wonder if it is the same 5 wolves we saw on Jackfish Bay several weeks ago. They are lounging around seemingly unconcerned by our presence.

On our 137 days in the Wilderness this is another striking example of what is at stake. It is critical that we stop sulfide-ore copper mines that threaten to pollute the Boundary Waters and fragment the Superior National Forest. Now is the time to act. Please use the link in our bio to learn more and sign the petition, share this with your friends, and help protect our nation’s most popular wilderness.
#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #wolves #wild #wilderness #onlyinMN #BoundaryWaters #winter #wildlife #minnesota #BWCA

“The reason to preserve wilderness is that we need it. We need wilderness of all kinds, large and small, public and private. We need to go now and again into places where our work is disallowed, where our hopes and plans have no standing. We need to come into the presence of the unqualified and mysterious formality of Creation.”
– Wendell Berry
The lakes are in great shape for exploring, covered in a thin layer of snow. We will enjoy it while it lasts because there is more snow on the way in a few days.
Wilderness helps us put things into perspective. Often it is the simple things that matter most. Let’s work together to @savetheBWCA so future generations can reap the benefits of this untrammeled maze of lakes and rivers.

#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #wilderness #winter #fun onlyinMN #dogsofinstagram

Amy and I have a new tent-mate. Acorn has a small sore on the tip of her tail. We think her daughter Tina may have bit it. They usually get along wonderfully and even groom each other sometimes, so it seems odd that Tina would have nipped at her mom, but we are unsure what else could have caused the injury. Regardless of the cause, the warmth of the tent will help her tail heal. Acorn has proven to be a well-mannered guest and spends most of her time sitting or laying on her sleeping pad. When we are cooking, there is lots of sniffing and curiosity. Some intense staring might be categorized as begging if we were sitting at a dinning room table, but we aren’t, so it is cute rather than annoying. She has certainly proven to be the best behaved sled dog we have ever had in our tent.
We feel lucky to be working with Acorn. She is a great lead dog with many miles under her paws. Plus this is her second adventure advocacy project. In 2011 she was the lead dog on Frank Moe’s team during Sled Dogs to Saint Paul. Frank, Acorn, and the rest of the team delivered thousands of petitions to the Minnesota Capitol. The petitions were signed by people who were concerned about the threats that sulfide-ore copper mines proposed in Northern Minnesota bring to the region. We are honored to have Acorn and her children, Tina and Tank with us now as we raise awareness about these same threats.
Please learn more and sign the petition by following the link in our bio, share our 365 day journey in the Boundary Waters far and wide, and take action today! This Wilderness is too precious to risk.

#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #dogs @seekoutside @helinox @kleankanteen

The ice is burping and groaning as the temperature drops. With luck the cold night air will freeze up some of the slush that remains hidden under innocent looking pockets of snow, waiting surprise us.
We had a wonderful run today, visiting 3 new lakes: Mudhole, Thunder, and Beartrap. We often found ourselves racing across large icy patches, which were covered in deep snow just a few days ago. A snow storm last week weighted down the ice and caused water to seep up through cracks. In many places the overflow was so deep it inundated large patches of snow, which formed glare ice once the temperature dropped.
Most of the slush has frozen up thankfully, but we did hit several big pockets that covered our skis and boots with ice. It looks bad, but our feet stayed warm and dry all day. “To those devoid of imagination a blank place on the map is a useless waste; to others, the most valuable part.” – Aldo Leopold
#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #ice #BoundaryWaters

It is hard to believe that it is February. Our winter in the Wilderness is quickly passing. Our bodies have become used to the cold and on “warm” days we find ourselves taking our time as we set up camp and choosing to eat our breakfast outside our tent.
We hope to still have several months of winter ahead, but like the groundhog, we have been lingering in the sun more and more, enjoying the extra rays that arrive with each passing day.

Each day we are reminded of what a special place the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is. This Wilderness is just too precious to risk. Please join us in our efforts to @savetheBWCA.

#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #winter #onlyinMN #breakfast @helinox @patagonia @seatosummitgear @seekoutside

Photo by (Peter Schurke) Often we describe the tranquil times, the silence, sunsets, and countless beautiful moments that one encounters when they are immersed in Wilderness. Wilderness has many moods: blizzards that chill you to the bone, drenching rains that fill the canoe and leave you soggy, wondering if you will ever see the sun again. Then there are bugs, blisters and giant portage packs that send you wobbling down the portage trail. These uncontrollable factors are often the fuel for our most memorable and transformational Wilderness experiences.
A few days ago we found our selves traveling into a still headwind, constantly scrapping frozen slush from our skis and toboggans, and setting up camp by headlamp. We were tired when we zipped up our sleeping bags around midnight, but it’s the hard days that stay with us long after we leave the Wilderness.

The challenges that Wilderness travel often affords are one of Wilderness’s greatest (but often overlooked) assets, and are an important reason to protect Wilderness for future generations.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced in the Wilderness? How did it affect you? It is important to share those moments with others. Tell your elected officials about how those challenges have shaped you. The changes Wilderness imparts on us ripple through our lives and our communities long after we leave the Wilderness, which is one important reason we need to @savetheBWCA.
#wildernessyear #savetheBWCA #winter #wearethewild #onlyinMN