Kevin and the boys were making plans for their annual Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW - which we all just call the BWCA, and which Kevin simply refers to as "The 'Dub") father-son trip when I decided that I would tag along and make it a family trip. With Mazzy working in the BWCA for the summer, this was an opportunity for us to all see her. We even considered bringing our non-swimming dog for a moment, but quickly realized he would be miserable (and thus, we would be too).
This was my 5th trip to the BWCA. It was Kevin’s 47th trip. He’s been coming up here since 2004. You do the math. There were a few summers when he made five trips between ice out and mid-October and he's never been less than twice a year.
His inaugural trip was a “Four Guys” trip that was won at a school fundraising auction. It was a fully-outfitted trip, meaning you just show up with some clothes and they take care of you. The guys returned and were fully confident they could out-do the marginal food supplied by the outfitter and a canoe was purchased. Kevin then added a father-daughter trip, which got Mazzy hooked on the BWCA. Her annual trips to Camp Menogyn were empowering and transformative and shaped her love for nature. Then Kevin added in Father-Son trips, solo trips, brother trips, cousin trips, and friend trips. Any excuse for a BWCA paddle and he’d take it.
If you have a chance to head up to the BWCA with Kevin, you should do it. He’s got it down, with extensive pre-trip planning (potential routes, lakes, and down to which specific campsites are top-rated), the best and most essential gear to bring. He’s a master paddler and tarp pitcher, single portage man, dehydrates a mean beef stew, and knows what to do when a canoe capsizes, among other things.
You can thank Jimmy Carter and Minnesota Democratic Congressman, Jim Oberstar for the BWCAW. He signed the BWCA Wilderness Act of 1978, creating the 1,090,000-acre wilderness area. Entrance to the BWCA, whether is a day trip or overnight camping, is limited by the number of permits available for each entry point. A maximum group size of nine people and four watercraft are allowed either at portages or campsite. The goal is to enjoy nature with minimal interaction with humans. This year, it’s the busiest year in decades in the BWCA, so plan ahead.
Here is our trip report from our Seagull Lake trip:
Day One (Friday):
Departure time was 3:30 am. This brings you into Duluth just as the sun is rising and into Grand Marais at 8:30 am for breakfast at the BlueWater Café. Then, we headed toward the end of the Gunflint Trail to Seagull Lake Outfitters, where Mazzy is working for the summer and where we would get a second canoe. Keep your eye out for wildlife on the Gunflint Trail. We saw 5 different foxes along the way this morning.
We were thrilled to see Mazzy after a couple of months. She’s in her happy place here, helping people with their trip plans and immersing herself in nature during her days off. She didn’t know if she’d have time off to meet us, but we would be in touch through Kevin’s Delorme InReach. The InReach (now owned and managed by Garmin). is an emergency SOS communicator with GPS, map, and text messaging capabilities, allowing the user to share the GPS tracking of their trip and communicate with family and friends (and rescue personnel) as needed.
It was a gorgeous first day with a bright sunny blue sky and just a little wind. I had to relearn how to paddle and Declan gave me a lot of grief because we couldn’t keep up with Cormac and Kevin. The steering comes from the back paddler in a canoe and the power comes from the front—but it’s important to be in sync with each other. Declan and I were not and we were way behind Cormac and Kevin.
We passed through an area called the Palisades. These 80’ tall rock cliffs are gorgeous. Just around the bend, we surprised a skinny-dipping older couple enjoying the lovely day.
Seagull Lake was devasted in 2006 and 2007 by wildfires. In 2006, the Cavity Lake wildfire burned 31,830 acres and most of south Seagull Lake. In 2007, the Ham Lake wildfire, started by a campfire that wasn’t properly extinguished, burned 75,851 acres. Both fires burned quickly because of a major blowdown in 1999, which created a lot of fuel. Looking at the shoreline, you can see the “stands” – the lone standing dead trees from the fire, surrounding by the 13-year forest growth. The fires, aided by strong winds, jumped across lakes to various islands but spared other areas within spitting distance.
We found an excellent large campsite on the west side of Miles Island. This island was definitely affected by the wildfires, but the area around the campsite had some old growth.
What makes an excellent campsite you ask?
1. Canoe landing - ideally this has sand and is not too rocky with a shallow approach. Be aware, there are very few landings like this in the dub.
2. Lakeshore - I prefer having a large rock shelf at the lakeshore. It heats up during the day and makes for a good sock and wet-shoe drying, nice dining, and star gazing area, among other things.
3. Good tent pads and hammock location - This site could have easily accommodated 3 tents, but we had only 2. Kevin’s hammock spot was enviable- with right on the water.
4. Good fire pit - This site had a fire pit facing away from the lake, which wasn’t ideal, but it’s the wilderness and you can’t just order up a room.
5. Latrine location that doesn’t freak me out at night - Some latrines have lids. This one did not, so you had to wave out the flies, check for bees and spiders before taking a seat. Kevin was treated to the grouse family visiting him during his morning latrine visit one day.
6. Sunset view - This site faces west and we were treated to totally different sunsets each night - each more beautiful than the night before.
After setting up camp and relaxing a bit, Kevin and I went for a paddle while the boys planned to go for a swim. A snapping turtle thwarted their swim, but they got jump starts on their books, while Kevin and I gathered some firewood.
Day Two (Saturday):
I woke up early and had a chance to read my book by the lake, watch the grouse family make their way through the campsite, listen to the juvenile eagle calling out as it circled overhead, and explore the area around the campsite. Just past the latrine, there are tall rock outcroppings. By scrambling up a downed tree and using some small birches as handholds, the view from the top of the rock gave a spectacular panorama of the islands and lake. The juvenile eagle was perched upon one of the “stands” and more than a few droppings indicated this was a popular spot for moose.
The rain started shortly after we had our breakfast. We all headed back to our tents/hammocks with our books. The rain continued until well in the afternoon. We spent some of the time under the tarp and in the larger tent, playing cribbage.
When we got a break in the weather we decided to try a paddle, but after a short bit, the rain and wind started again and sent us back to camp.
Day Three (Sunday):
Mazzy found out on Saturday, she would have Sunday and Monday off. She was only able to get a day-permit, so she couldn’t stay overnight with us, but she paddled out to join us for the day.
We did a paddle through Alpine Lake, which is known for its heightened bear activity this year. Given all the new BWCA visitors (many newbies), the bear (or bears) are getting most, if not all of their food from campsites. Mazzy talked to one camper who had their bear-proof food container taken by a bear and he searched for the bear den and then successfully retrieved his food. There was no bear sighting on our paddle today.
We paddled around Alpine and used an unoccupied campsite to have our picnic lunch. We typically have sausage, cheese, crackers, and trail mix for lunch. Afterward, we continued our paddle, battling a bit of wind and waves and headed back to Seagull.
After a beef stew and mashed potatoes dinner, with peanut m&m's for dessert, Mazzy headed back to Seagull Outfitters and we watched an amazing sunset.
Day Four (Monday):
Declan had a row with his sleeping pad during the night (it lost air and the valve was stuck), so he didn’t sleep much. When we woke, we gave him one of our pads and let him sleep for a few more hours, while we ate breakfast and slowly packed our stuff. While Kevin and Mazzy prefer to do routes and move every day, the boys (and myself) prefer to “base camp” and do day trips, rather than move from spot to spot. With so much more traffic in the BWCA, finding a top campsite can be tricky. You have to be flexible and take what you can, but we lucked out with this nice campsite.
Paddling back in, we still couldn’t keep up with the Cormac/ Kevin canoe duo, but I was grateful to have been included on this trip and to spend time chatting with Declan - when he wasn't giving me a hard time about lily-dipping.
