Six months into their yearlong BWCAW stay, Dave and Amy Freeman are hearty, happy, and healthy. Every couple of days the young couple moves and sets up a new camp. Amy and Dave hope to use their experience as a way to bring attention to two proposed copper-nickel mines that are going through the permit process and, if permitted, will be built near the BWCAW. Both have the potential of leaking sulfide into the water table, which could harm fish and wildlife if it reached rivers and lakes.
Acorn had an intestinal bug, was listless and not feeling well. He needed medical attention, but there are no veterinarians or doggy medical supply stores in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) so a choice had to be made. Acorn would have to go home and get some medical attention.
On Tuesday, March 29, Frank and Sherri Moe dogsled into Dave and Amy Freeman’s camp on the western edge of Ensign Lake and retrieved Acorn. They also picked up Tina but left Tank behind.
“Dave and Amy said they wanted to keep Tank for the summer. They said they would teach him to canoe with them. He’s a big friendly dog with a good disposition, so he will make a good companion,” said Frank.
The Moes, who own and operate MoeTown Kennel, are friends of the Freemans, the young couple spending a year in the BWCAW as a form of protest to the proposed building of two open-pit copper-nickel mines near the southern edge of the BWCAW.
The Moes loaned the dogs to the Freemans so they could get around the BWCAW for the winter.
“We have visited 150 lakes so far, many of the lakes we have visited several times,” said Dave Freeman when reached a couple of days after his meeting with Frank and Sherri.
“We spent the winter in the greater Ely area because resupplies were more difficult and required that groups had leaders that were experienced with winter travel. Once the ice goes out we will head east. We are planning to spend May, June, and the first half of July exploring the eastern half of the BWCA Wilderness.”
When asked about difficulties they have faced, Dave responded, “We haven’t had too many scary days. We traveled over some thin ice during freeze up and had some big wind storms in the fall, but nothing too crazy.”
Although they are in the heart of the wilderness, the Freemans haven’t seen a lot of wildlife. “We saw two moose last fall. Lots of wolf and otter activity. We saw three packs of wolves over the winter. Now the birds are coming back. Geese and swans, gulls, and owls. Spring should be a neat time to watch the birds return.”
Dave and Amy sleep in a SeekOutside 8-person tent that comfortably sleeps four in the winter when the wood stove is in place and six in the summer when the stove is removed. Nine people, said Dave, can comfortably sit and visit inside the tent.
They use a few small solar panels to charge a battery pack, which powers their cameras and laptop.
Meals are simple but nutritious. Most days the Freemans start with oatmeal or granola. Lunch can be tortillas with cheese, trail mix, as well as a variety of Clif Bars, Patagonia Provisions fruit and nut bars.
“For dinner,” said Dave, “We usually rotate between pasta and rice and lentils. However, people send or bring all sorts of homemade baked goods, chocolate bars, fruit, meat, fresh bread, and veggies from their gardens, and all sorts of treats. We have never eaten this well!”
With no hot tubs, bathtubs or saunas available, bathing can be interesting. “We have been using Sea to Summit /Wilderness Wipes, which are like a big wet wipe that isn’t scented. We have biodegradable soap, which we use to wash our clothing in a contraption called a Scrubba, which is basically a modified dry bag with a built-in washboard. It allows us to wash our clothing using a small amount of water that we gather from the lake and allows us to dispose of the dirty water 150 feet or more away from the lake.
“We have been taking polar plunges about once a month. We have gotten used to not bathing and it isn’t a big deal,” said Dave.
A normal day for the Freemans— if there is such a thing—can be hectic. Dave and Amy work with students from across the country through their Wilderness Classroom, which they teach online. “We are also blogging regularly for National Geographic Adventure, Canoe and Kayak Magazine, the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters, GearJunkie.com and a variety of other sources. Links to most of the content we publish can be found at www.savetheboundarywaters.org/wilderness year.”
They also move their camp about twice a week during the winter and three or four times a week during the ice-free season.
“When we move camp we usually are traveling for eight to 10 hours. On days we don’t move camp we often go out on day trips. Some are 14-hour marathon days and others are an hour or two to skijor with the dogs, or to canoe to one of two lakes we haven’t visited yet to do water testing. Some days like today we probably won’t travel at all. It is windy and the lakes are mushy because of the warm weather we have had lately. Today we are finalizing our taxes, writing blog posts, and processing photos, and just working on documenting our journey.
“We really are out here to bear witness to the wilderness and remind people that we have an amazing national treasure, that we need to protect our back yard.”
While they miss seeing their friends and family on a regular basis, the Freemans are rarely lonely.
“We have been inspired by the number of people that are concerned about the risks that proposed mines along the southern edge of the wilderness like Twin Metals pose to the region. Their enthusiasm to support our efforts to protect the Boundary Waters watershed from sulfide-ore copper mining has been amazing. We have had over 20 groups of people come into the wilderness with supplies. In order to stay within the nine-person group size limit we have had to stagger visits throughout the course of a day several times because of the large numbers of people that want to be involved.”
To date, over 120,000 people have shown support for the Freemans’ efforts. “Petitioners make up about 95,000 of the 120,000 people who have taken action,” Dave said.
The Freemans plan to leave the BWCAW on September 23, 2016, which will mark 366 days living in the wilderness because of the leap year.
They are working on a book about their experience and are in the process of finding a publisher. Post wilderness plans include speaking to K-12 groups, colleges, environmental groups, businesses, outdoor stores, clubs and other venues.
And, said Dave, “Hopefully we will be able to go to Washington, D.C. to meet with decision makers as well.”
The Freemans have been to Washington, D.C. two years ago, paddling from Ely through riverways and lakes to D.C. with a petition to Congress and the Senate asking them to stop the proposed Polymet and Twin Metals mines from being built. While that effort gained a lot of attention, this time around the Freemans hope their message gains more support from the public and legislators.
“Every day we gain greater understanding and appreciation of this amazing maze of lakes and rivers. It truly is a national treasure,” said Dave Freeman.
As far as Acorn, Frank Moe said he is doing well. “He just needed some antibiotics. He’s back to his old self. We miss Tank, but he’s in good hands.”
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