Editor’s Note: There’s been a steady stream of editorials, letters to the editor, and other op-ed pieces written about the Nov. 5 election as it relates to the Boundary Waters. You can read some of those here and here. In this piece, first-time BWCA Wilderness paddler Julie Censullo, a radio producer who lives in Minneapolis, shares a story about her first time visiting the Boundary Waters for an overnight outing. The trip took place this fall. It’s a reminder that paddling and portaging will continue, so long as people care to make it happen.

ECHO TRAIL – A few months ago, my friends Jeff and Emily asked me if I wanted to go camping in the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness with them.

“Sure!” I said, not thinking much about what “camping in the BWCA Wilderness” would actually entail.

“Sure!” I said, forgetting that I haven’t been camping in 10 years, and that the thought of sleeping anywhere but my bed makes me deeply uncomfortable.

“Sure” I said, with the enthusiasm of a Minnesota transplant who has survived in this state for 10 years by never saying “no” to a social invite.

And with that lackadaisical “sure,” I somehow found myself sitting in the back of Jeff and Emily’s car a few weeks later, heading north to Ely, and googling all the ways I could die in the BWCA Wilderness on my phone.

But, as someone who has lived in the Twin Cities for 10 years, I have always been curious about this place that everyone claims is so special. After all, the Boundary Waters is the most visited wilderness area in the country. Approximately 150,000 people visit the BWCA Wilderness each year – so there must be something compelling about it, right?