The BWCA Trip

On Sunday, July 27, nine intrepid canoers (six adults and three kids) left CTK and headed for the BWCA (Boundary Waters Canoe Area). If you don’t know much about the BWCA, it’s a wilderness area where you pack everything in and pack it all out. There are no motors allowed into the BWCA, so you canoe in and portage all your “stuff” from lake to lake. Canoes, paddles, life jackets, food bag, cooking utensil bag, sleeping bags, tents, Duluth packs full of personal gear. You think to yourself, I thought I packed lighter this year…

We portaged. We canoed. We swam in our clothes. We fished. Andy cleaned the fish, Seth cooked the fish, Caleb buried the fish guts in their final resting place. We critiqued boil-in-the-bag camp meals. Catherine made a ton of pancakes with blueberries foraged by Megan and the kids. Zach, Oren, and Sophia entertained themselves by fishing, playing in the hammock, and playing card games. We thanked God for the beauty of this place, and considered what the world would be like if we treated the rest of the planet with as much love and respect as we did the BWCA.

We had an amazing group of people, and they made the trip wonderful. They were flexible, helpful, gracious, and understanding. They all have stories to share. Ask Andy, Caleb, Catherine, Zach, Oren, and Sophia about fishing. Ask the adults (Caleb, Andy, Catherine, Seth, Megan, Jan) about those portages: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Ask the kids about the snakes. Ask anyone about the beauty and peacefulness of the Boundary Waters. My mother-in-law, Janet, summed it up this way: “The sunrises and the sunsets, the beautiful night sky, the canoeing, swimming, the loons, eagles, beavers, one snake, (thankfully no bears) was amazing. I’m filled with gratitude…for the kindness, helpfulness, and graciousness of our group of campers and for the peacefulness of the BWCA. On our way out I realized how much stronger I am physically and emotionally.”