Clear Lake was covered in a blanket of fog this morning when I climbed out of our tent to light the camp stove to boil water for oatmeal and coffee. The low temperature during the night had been below freezing. As we ate breakfast the sun slowly burned through the fog. After breakfast we finished packing up and loaded the canoe to head southeast towards Bald Eagle Lake. We portaged our canoe and all our supplies from Clear Lake into the South Kawishiwi River and were soon stripping of layers of warm clothes as the sun rose higher in the sky.
Today we paddled through Little Gabbro Lake and Gabbro Lake. Twin Metals has been test drilling about a mile from Gabbro Lake and less than a 1/2 mile from the Wilderness boundary. Last year Amy and I portaged a canoe from Gabbro Lake to one of the test drilling sites just outside the Wilderness. I guided numerous canoe trips through Gabbro and Little Gabbro this summer and every time I paddle through this area I think about portaging to that test drilling site, how close it is to Gabbro and Little Gabbro. The edge of the Boundary Waters, our nation’s most popular Wilderness, just isn’t the right place to build a copper mine in a sulfide-ore body.
Today we paddled through Little Gabbro Lake and Gabbro Lake. Twin Metals has been test drilling about a mile from Gabbro Lake and less than a 1/2 mile from the Wilderness boundary. Last year Amy and I portaged a canoe from Gabbro Lake to one of the test drilling sites just outside the Wilderness. I guided numerous canoe trips through Gabbro and Little Gabbro this summer and every time I paddle through this area I think about portaging to that test drilling site, how close it is to Gabbro and Little Gabbro. The edge of the Boundary Waters, our nation’s most popular Wilderness, just isn’t the right place to build a copper mine in a sulfide-ore body.
I am going to sign off now and watch the family of otters playing off our campsite. This is a special place, a place worth protecting. Please help us speak loudly for this quiet place. Sign the petition at http://ift.tt/1x2erSX. #savethebwca @savethebwca #OnlyinMN #sunrise #moon
