BWCAW Program Manager Ann Schwaller took some time out of her busy day to answer some questions about the steps taken to get the Boundary Waters certified as a Dark Sky Sanctuary (DSS).
Q- What prompted a move to seek a DSS status for the BWCAW?
A- All four agencies that manage federally designated wilderness manage for wilderness character. When considering the condition of the solitude or primitive and unconfined recreation quality of wilderness character, night sky obfuscation has been a measure for the BWCAW since 2017. However, we spoke about the Dark Sky Places notion with the Quetico Provincial Park Superintendent around 2009 as he too was interested in the concept. The conversation furthered during the years at Heart of the Continent Partnership round tables.
Q- Why did it take so many years to achieve this status?
A- The Forest is continually working on many projects that can often take years to complete depending on what amount of data needs to be gathered and analyzed, outside partner participation, where the project falls in the list of priorities, other issues that arise unexpectedly like fires, blowdown, litigation, covid, etc. I was also trying to work in tandem with the other land managers so we could share light meter data along our borders and not duplicate work. So those Park Superintendents had to prioritize the project along with our Forest Supervisor in order to schedule work together. Although we seek different dark sky certifications, we can still share light data. There are a lot of moving parts and pieces to this type of project, so the timing matters.
Q- The BWCAW is already a very popular destination. Are you worried this could make it even more popular and that this designation could drive more people into an already busy place, which could lessen the quiet wilderness experience many people seek?
A- If a visitor wants to view the night skies from within the Wilderness, they would most likely spend the night to do so. Since we have overnight quota, their use would be captured within that visitor distribution system. I want to stress that visitors, if not camped right next to or in town, can most likely see beautiful dark night skies from all over the Forest and not just from within the Wilderness. The Superior National Forest has about 40 campgrounds and a couple of hundred backcountry campsites outside the Wilderness, along with dispersed camping, where visitors can view the night skies. This naturally helps to disperse visitors.
This certification acknowledges the special opportunity to view and preserve the dark night skies in the Wilderness. That view is a part of wilderness character that we manage for per the 1964 Wilderness Act. Communities, resorts, outfitters, cooperators, guides, and local businesses market the BWCAW annually, along with many media/website/blog outlets.
For example, before the sanctuary certification, Visit Cook County held a “Dark Sky Festival” in 2019 that included the community, UMD and local businesses. This might be an interesting question, or conversation in general, for some of those information channels and community organizers, and their role in welcoming more people into the area and the wilderness messaging surrounding those invitations.
Making sure that visitors follow the regulations and rules that affect a “quiet wilderness experience” will go a long way in protecting the visitor experience. Some of those include keeping to a maximum of nine people in a group with four watercraft, or considering smaller groups; not gathering in groups at destination locations like waterfalls; taking breaks away from landings, portages, and trails; avoiding loud noises as sound travels especially well across water; avoiding portable radios, speakers, DVD players; etc. All of the regulations and rules are designed to work together to protect social as well as physical resources. Sounds and views are integral parts of the wilderness experience.
For more information, see our updated Trip Planning Guide: www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd611535.pdf.
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