The crew at Seagull Outfitters gear up for the 2026 paddling season. Photo by Joe Friedrichs
BWCA Outfitters Open Doors for 2026 Paddling Season

By Joe Friedrichs
Outfitters and other businesses operating near the Boundary Waters are opening for the season. Paddle & Portage media stopped at Seagull Outfitters along the Gunflint Trail to check out how things are going as the doors open for the 2026 season.
Many outfitters along the Gunflint Trail store canoes in bunkhouses, cabins, and other buildings over the winter months. Seagull Outfitters is among them, as Grant, Dwight, and Mimi share with us in the video. Then there’s the water lines to turn on for the season, with many outfitters along the Gunflint pulling water from the nearest lake.
There’s still ice on many BWCA lakes at the start of the quota season, which began May 1. It’s still time to take out the canoes for the season though, as the team at Seagull shares with us in this dip into life on the Gunflint Trail.
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