Pushing through the thick brush, I’m looking for the portage. The sound of the nearby rapids drowns out everything else. I’ve been looking for nearly 40 minutes, but the trail is nowhere to be found. Where is it? It’s unusual for a portage trail that’s printed on a map to disappear in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Most pathways are well-traveled, even if they are sometimes a little rough or overgrown.

Our group is on the second day of a six-day trip along a river system that snakes through pockets of tamarack bog and rocky ledges covered in lichen. I am a guide in the BWCA, and I know this area doesn’t see much in the way of traffic. At the edges stand massive white pines, white birch, and wind-worn spruce. It is nearing 80 degrees, rare for spring paddling like this in the BWCA. The ground is pungent with the scents of cedar, juniper, and dried needles. I pause in the sun, grab a snack, and look over the map.