Kyle Johnson made his first solo trip to the BWCA in May 2023. The trip impacted him in a profound way. Submitted photo
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A Life-Changing Trip to the BWCA
By Kyle Johnson
I was alone on South Temperance Lake. It wasn’t majestic at that moment. I was tired. I was anxious. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was not where I wanted to be.Â
What was I doing here?Â
How I ended up alone in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in May 2023 is a journey of transformation. As was my first solo trip to the canoe country, I would soon understand.Â
It was nearing the end of 2020 when I seriously questioned if I would make it as a filmmaker. I’d just gotten over a brutal bout with COVID, my illness disrupting an entire film set on Minnesota’s iconic Iron Range. I left the crummy hotel where I’d been quarantined and planned to return home to Minneapolis. I saw and felt the meaning of rock bottom.Â
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