We launched our canoe in Pietro Lake after making the portage over from Gull. We could see across to where we would begin looking for the next portage, which happened to be in an expanse of burn. We thought we had gotten used to seeing the landscape left by the Pagami Creek fire that burned through this area four years ago. That familiar landscape consisted of
many barren black and gray tree trunks and a dense mixture of underbrush coming up– including miniature pines.
But across Pietro looked different. It took a while for us to realize what exactly it was that looked different about this particular landscape. Hardly any remaining standing trunks were visible. This spot must’ve burned hotter. We didn’t know how much was growing here as we gazed across the
lake. The word “moonscape” entered our conversation. But as we got closer and began to hunt for our portage, we could tell there was life here too. The hillside was covered with grasses, thorny wild roses with shriveled rose hips, and strawberry plants– some even blooming like this
one. Despite the appearance from afar, there is abundant life here and the forest is returning. #wildernessyear #savethebwca #bwca #bwcaw #boundarywaters
many barren black and gray tree trunks and a dense mixture of underbrush coming up– including miniature pines.
But across Pietro looked different. It took a while for us to realize what exactly it was that looked different about this particular landscape. Hardly any remaining standing trunks were visible. This spot must’ve burned hotter. We didn’t know how much was growing here as we gazed across the
lake. The word “moonscape” entered our conversation. But as we got closer and began to hunt for our portage, we could tell there was life here too. The hillside was covered with grasses, thorny wild roses with shriveled rose hips, and strawberry plants– some even blooming like this
one. Despite the appearance from afar, there is abundant life here and the forest is returning. #wildernessyear #savethebwca #bwca #bwcaw #boundarywaters
