Towards the end of June, Sandi and I took a trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). The area rests on the top of Minnesota and comprises the border between Canada and the United States and is referred to as the most visited wilderness area in the United States.
The lakes of the BWCAW are located in depressions formed by differential erosion. For the past two million years, massive sheets of ice have repeatedly scoured the landscape; the last glacial period ended with the retreat across the Boundary Waters about 17,000 years ago. The resulting depressions in the landscape later became the lakes of today.
The BWCAW contains over a thousand lakes and attracts visitors with its reputation for canoeing, canoe touring, fishing, backpacking, dog sledding, and remote wilderness character. The BWCAW has nearly 2,200 backcountry campsites. Most campsites in the BWCAW are accessible only by water. About 75% of the BWCAW's water area was reserved for non-motorized boat travel. Most lakes and rivers are interconnected by portage trails, resulting in over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of canoe routes.
Boundary Waters was beautiful and a nice break. Sandi and I started at Brule Lake and portaged over to Vernon Lake. Vernon Lake was a rather large lake with its own Island. Sandi and I happened to be the only people on the Lake. We had a great time relaxing, swimming, and eating Mountain House meals. I really love the solitude and time for reflection that the outdoors provides.
Eagle Mountain is the highest point in Minnesota, at 2,301 feet (701 m). The summit is inside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Superior National Forest. Eagle Mountain is only about 15 miles (24 km) from Minnesota's lowest point, Lake Superior, at 607 feet (185 m). Sandi and I visited hiked up to the high point and then later that evening camped on the shore of the low point. The trail to Eagle Mountain was around 600 ft up hill over the course of 2.5 miles. It was a nice relaxing hike after several days of paddling through gorgeous lakes.
On our way home to Iowa we stopped at a Split Rock Lighthouse State Park which had handcart camping. It sits on the western shore of Lake Superior. We visited a few more parks along Lake Superior and made our way south to our final stop the Mall of America. Mall of America is located in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis & St. Paul). It is the largest mall in terms of retail space. It has parking for 20,000 and a Nickelodeon based theme park at its center. Sandi did a little shopping and bought a few things at H&M.
The lakes of the BWCAW are located in depressions formed by differential erosion. For the past two million years, massive sheets of ice have repeatedly scoured the landscape; the last glacial period ended with the retreat across the Boundary Waters about 17,000 years ago. The resulting depressions in the landscape later became the lakes of today.
The BWCAW contains over a thousand lakes and attracts visitors with its reputation for canoeing, canoe touring, fishing, backpacking, dog sledding, and remote wilderness character. The BWCAW has nearly 2,200 backcountry campsites. Most campsites in the BWCAW are accessible only by water. About 75% of the BWCAW's water area was reserved for non-motorized boat travel. Most lakes and rivers are interconnected by portage trails, resulting in over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of canoe routes.
Boundary Waters was beautiful and a nice break. Sandi and I started at Brule Lake and portaged over to Vernon Lake. Vernon Lake was a rather large lake with its own Island. Sandi and I happened to be the only people on the Lake. We had a great time relaxing, swimming, and eating Mountain House meals. I really love the solitude and time for reflection that the outdoors provides.
Eagle Mountain is the highest point in Minnesota, at 2,301 feet (701 m). The summit is inside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Superior National Forest. Eagle Mountain is only about 15 miles (24 km) from Minnesota's lowest point, Lake Superior, at 607 feet (185 m). Sandi and I visited hiked up to the high point and then later that evening camped on the shore of the low point. The trail to Eagle Mountain was around 600 ft up hill over the course of 2.5 miles. It was a nice relaxing hike after several days of paddling through gorgeous lakes.
On our way home to Iowa we stopped at a Split Rock Lighthouse State Park which had handcart camping. It sits on the western shore of Lake Superior. We visited a few more parks along Lake Superior and made our way south to our final stop the Mall of America. Mall of America is located in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis & St. Paul). It is the largest mall in terms of retail space. It has parking for 20,000 and a Nickelodeon based theme park at its center. Sandi did a little shopping and bought a few things at H&M.
2 comments:
What fun places to visit! Looks like you are enjoying your summer. We love that you are blogging things and we can keep track of what you are up to. If you come to visit Utah any time soon, give us a call so we can see ya!
I just set my blog to private. Can you send me your email so I can add you to my blog? My address is
rachel.w.clark@gmail.com
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