Here we go. The season is already under way with visitors pouring in by the busloads, literally, to explore the endless opportunities along Minnesota’s pristine north shore. The endless convoy of vehicles pulling campers and/ or boats, strapped with canoes en route to a wilderness adventure— where lifelong memories are made.
As a Gunflint Trail fishing guide, I have met a variety of customers that share a love for the north shore, despite different backgrounds or tax brackets they are stitched by this common thread. Forest management does not truly exist without compliance, and I love that I can walk a portage knowing that it looks exactly as it did a century ago, which is hard to believe considering how many campers paddle through the BWCA each summer.
Gracing the bar stool at Windigo, many moons ago, I also met a variety of campers, often fresh from the woods drooling over a greasy cheeseburger and a cold brew as if they had never eaten one before. Doctors, lawyers, mechanics, and teachers who might dress differently at their jobs, wore the same battered look of a rough week in the woods. Tradition is thrown into every conversation as you meet three generations sharing their favorite week of the year, beyond the range of cell phones, braving the elements instead of complaining about the traffic, or luke-warm lattes.
“Leave No Trace” is more than a slogan, it is a responsibility to anyone fortunate enough to visit the living history of the BWCA. I think its success is more a testament of the type of visitors the BWCA attracts, than the implications of its rules. The same people that pass by thousands of pieces of litter back home would likely pick up any trash found in the woods because they understand more than any of us how magical our neck of the woods really is. Thanks for preserving this tradition for my kids.
Cory Christianson has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing or wildlife reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail.com. You can also visit Cory’s website at Gunflintfishingguide.com.
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