March 14, 2016 at 08:56AM

Perched in the shade of a tiny island in the middle of Snowbank Lake, we waited for our visitors to appear. Soon they rounded a point and came into view. Six people walked across the ice hauling a small dogsled and two pulks filled with their supplies along with food and treats. Tank, Tina, and Acorn pulled us across the icy lake on our skis with ease. The powerful sun had softened the ice, forming a surface that the dog’s paws could easily grip, but our skis slid across the nearly frictionless surface. These perfect conditions typically only last for a couple hours on a warm, sunny day. The dogs trotted towards our friends, easily pulling us across the ice; no skiing or poling required. We were not the only ones out enjoying the beautiful spring day. We spotted several other parties in the distance as we traveled across the lake to meet our guests.

After hugs and introductions we all walked, skied, and dogsledded back to our campsite for lunch. Tina, Tank, and Acorn pulled Land Tawney and most of the supplies back to camp. Land is the CEO of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers and it has been a privilege having him camp with us and introduce him to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Backcountry Hunters and Anglers is a member of the @sportsmenbwca Coalition, which is a group organizations working to protect the Wilderness from Twin Metals and other sulfide-ore copper mines that are being proposed along the southern edge of the Wilderness.

In the afternoon most of our visitors had to head home. The dogs were raring to go so we decided to add a few additional passengers to Land’s dogsled. Pretty soon the dogs were trotting across the lake hauling Becky, Hellen, Land, and a giant backpack! The extra weight didn’t faze the dogs at all!

#wildernessyear #sportsmenbwca #savetheBWCA #BWCA #BoundaryWaters #dogsledding #fun #onlyinMN #dogs #strong