16 days. 15 states. 4,800+ miles driving. 60 miles hiking. 10 nights camping. Two family visits. One canoe delivered to the Boundary Waters.
The canoe transport was the overall impetus for this trip. A little over 40 years ago, my dad built a beautiful cedar strip canoe. I always loved that canoe. After much thought and wrestling though, I finally came to terms with the fact that, living in the desert, that canoe wasn’t going to get a lot of use with me. So I did what I do and searched for a better use for it. That use came through a community group in Ely, MN that does Boundary Water canoe trips with youth in the area.
The Boundary Waters has a special place in our family’s heart. We went on many long backpack/canoe trips there as kids with my dad, and those experiences were formative in my adult life. It was great to get back up there, and I even got out on the water a bit.
Other highlights of this trip were seeing my sister and my nephews, visiting Mackinac Bridge which I hadn’t seen in over 40 years, camping on Lake Superior, revisiting Badlands National Park (this time with Brad), many miles of Route 66 (on its 100th year celebration), and lots more miles in our beautiful country. We visited two wilderness areas and lots of other wild places. Some of the animals we saw included bison, deer, hundreds of pronghorn, 13-lined ground squirrels, prairie dogs, an eagle, loons, and many other birds.
Pro tip for campers out there in our age range: You can get an annual senior America the Beautiful pass that doesn’t have an abhorrent picture on it for just $20. Not only is that good for any national park admission, but also got us discounts on camping at several federal campgrounds. And for those of you who want the regular America the Beautiful pass, it will be available again in a better format in January.
I still haven’t gotten on a plane since COVID. That has resulted in some lovely longer road trips, with this one being our third in the last year. We look forward to many more.
[If you’d like to support the Boundary Waters, which is now in great jeopardy due to recent Congressional action, here are two ways to help.]