by Joe Friedrichs | Aug 2, 2026 | The Podcast
The Reopening of the BWCA Wilderness After weeks of disruption and uncertainty, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is in the process of reopening. Large swaths of the BWCA, including the entire Gunflint and significant portions of the wilderness on the Ely...
by Joe Friedrichs | Jul 21, 2026 | The Podcast
Scouts Evacuate the Wilderness During Wildfires Paddlers from Northern Tier High Adventure, a Scout organization with strong ties to the Ely area, were among those evacuated from the Boundary Waters in July 2026. In this episode, we hear their firsthand accounts of...
by Joe Friedrichs | Jul 16, 2026 | The Podcast
BWCA Closure Update: News & Stories Smoky skies, closures, evacuations, and displacement of people have dominated conversations across the Boundary Waters region during recent days. The BWCA Wilderness shut down July 14 amid a series of wildfires and excessive...
by Joe Friedrichs | Jul 10, 2026 | The Podcast
BWCA Stories and News From Ely There are enough stories, news, and information happening on the Ely side of the Boundary Waters on any given day to produce an episode of this podcast. And while that might happen at some point down the road, let’s start with this...
by Joe Friedrichs | Jul 1, 2026 | The Podcast
Quetico Park Revisited – Paddling in From the South As we’ve reported in a recent episode of the podcast, access to Quetico Provincial Park from the Cache Bay and Prairie Portage ranger stations is once again an option for many paddlers. This development...
by Joe Friedrichs | Jun 27, 2026 | The Podcast
The Rising Cost to Cancel a BWCA Permit The cost to cancel a permit to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is likely on the rise. The U.S. Forest Service, in an attempt to reduce the number of BWCA permits canceled each year, is planning to make it more...
