This week, we have some big wilderness trips in motion! Each camper had the opportunity to choose which of the six trips they wanted to sign up for. The first trip left on Monday, and the sixth trip left this morning (Wednesday). Everybody will return on Friday afternoon to share their tales from the trails, but we won’t leave you hanging that long! Keep reading to discover which adventures our Birchwood boys have set out for this week.

Canadian Fishing #1 – 5-Day Trip

This trip is led by Birchwood counselors, Dragon (left) and Nairo right), with Senior Leadership Camper – Rex (second from left).

Every single camper in this group has taken a trip or two into the Canadian Crownlands with us before. They are veterans and expect to be eating fish for dinner every night of their 5-day trip. These gents will paddle straight from our docks up into Saganaga Lake, through the north channel, and into Trafalgar Bay in hopes of catching the big one!

Follow them on their adventure: https://share.garmin.com/N4V2F (Birchwood 2)

Canadian Fishing #2 – 5-Day Trip

This trip is led by Birchwood counselors, Luigi (back left) and Hero (back right), with Senior Leadership Campers – Nate (second from left) and Simon (second from right).

This trip is quickly becoming a favorite among our campers who are nuts about fishing after hearing previous tales of catching monster fish and eating the catch-of-the-day for supper each night! This group is also headed to the Canadian Crownlands in search of monster fish, but instead of paddling in, they will be driving from camp, through the Pigeon River crossing, and inland to Northern Lights Lake. Unlike the group paddling in, these campers have never been to the Crownlands before! They’re in for a real treat!

Follow them on their adventure: https://share.garmin.com/N4V2F (Birchwood 6)

Voyageur Highway One – 5-Day Trip

This trip is led by counselors Wall-E (left), Frizz (third from left).

A classic route – yet not one of these campers has been on this trip! It’s a camp favorite for a reason though! This is a trade route that French Canadian voyageurs would’ve traveled, trading pelts with the native Ojibwe people of this land. The segment they are paddling spans from Ely, MN (where they began) to camp (where they’ll end), totaling around 50 miles with lots of fun landmarks in between like Dorothy Molter’s island and Benny Ambrose’s old house foundations. Google those names for some fun local stories. They’ve added a fun side quest to their trip, which is a visit to Eddie Falls for a good soak in the water.

Follow them on their adventure here: https://share.garmin.com/GXMPD (Birchwood 1)

Hike and Climb – 4-Day Trip

This trip is led by counselors Hemi (back left), Oaken (second from right), and our rock-climbing expert Flash (back right), with Senior Leadership Camper – Shea (back row, third from right).

These ambitious campers are headed to the north shore of Lake Superior to do some hiking AND rock climbing! We love this trip because it allows our campers to get out of the canoes and try their hand at some other skills. That being said, it is an ambitious trip given the added weight of climbing gear. Kudos to these strong climbers!

Follow them on their adventure here: https://share.garmin.com/GXMPD (Birchwood 8)

Duncan Loop – 4-Day Trip

This group is guided by counselors Waldo (left) and Mac (right) with Senior Leadership Camper – Oliver (back row, second from left).

Putting in at Duncan Lake, this group has one of the meanest (and most beautiful) portages in all the Boundary Waters up first – The Stairway Portage! As you might infer, the stairway portage has many stone steps that route around a stunning waterfall into the even more stunning Rose Lake. From Rose, they will paddle through several small lakes to pop into Mountain Lake, where they’ll camp out before deciding which southern chain of lakes to drop into. They have two options, the Pike Lake loop or the Pine Lake loop, both will send them back around close to where they began.

Follow them on their journey here: https://share.garmin.com/65CZR (Birchwood 7)

Pop In, Pop Out – 3-Day Trip

This group is guided by Nemo (left) and Puddin’ (right).

They have named this trip the Pop In, Pop Out because they will pop in on Poplar Lake, paddle into Meeds Lake, camp on Horseshoe or maybe Caribou (depending on campsites), and pop out back into Poplar Lake on Friday. This crew may be small, but they pack an energetic punch, and we know they’re in for a fun time!

Follow them on their journey here: https://share.garmin.com/65CZR (Birchwood 4)

As our campers set their sights on adventure, let’s send them off with wishes of good fishing and even better company! May lifelong friendships be forged and a stronger sense of self be discovered! We’re also putting in a special order for some sunshine for these boys!

Happy Trails,

Ashley, Director