Protect the BWCA

I taken a few trips to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) in Northern Minnesota, and I would go yearly if I could. It is an amazing place. Patagonia has a neat blog post about a couple conservationists who paddled their way to Washington DC from the BWCA to raise awareness about a potential mining operation that could threaten some of the ecosystem in the National Wilderness Area.

Take a peak at the video. If it is something that moves you, read the blog and consider signing the petition to protect the BWCA at this link HERE.

Ol' Reliable

"I don't recollect I've ever told you about Ol' Reliable before?"

Quote from "Trusty." He's on the right.

Just because you go to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) in the summer doesn't mean you will have summer weather. Any day it can be hot and humid, asking for bare skin and cool dips in the lake, or frigid and damp pushing you into a sleeping bag all day long. I've been to the BWCA and seen each of these scenarios and everything in between. The one thing I always hoped for, was a breeze. A nice breeze means fewer bugs. Even with perfect weather, biting black flies, horse flies, and mosquitos can challenge what would have otherwise been a perfect trip. All of these things, the bugs, the elements, the hard work paddling to your campsite, drain you. You feel tired in a good way, but tired none-the-less. But for some reason, when you are that exhausted, a warm meal is all it takes to fuel you for another long day.

Every morning and night of those trips we had that green, metal, Coleman 2-burner stove that everyone is so familiar with, wind guards flapped, ready to boil water for anything from hot chocolate to cheese tortellini. The stove was a dependable companion that I never doubted for a second. At the time, I suppose I took it for granted.

That stove we used in the BWCA was a good friend's. My parents had one as well. They provided us with many a hearty meal. As I have grown and began camping on my own, I started to pick up my own gear. A sleeping bag here, water bottles there, eventually a tent, and finally a cook set. When I was deciding on a stove, I spent a long time trying to figure out which one I wanted. What was most important to me was dependability. I wanted to know, when camping any month of the year, I could count on my stove to heat up some tea, soup, or tuna helper with out any issues.

My "Trusty" - That's a good boy.

Eating while camping can be a second thought or a show stealer. I don't want my cook stove to stop me from having an awesome meal. As such, it is no coincidence Coleman stoves have been a mainstay in my campsite cooking. Truth to be told, I can't imagine that changing any time soon.

“Sponsored by Coleman and hosted by the Outdoor Blogger Network, this is my submission for the Coleman Camping Heritage Essay Contest.”

Dreaming of the BWCA... or am I?

OBN's at it again with another photo prompt, this time looking at dream destinations. Just like everybody, I have so many places I want to go, making this particularly difficult. I would love to see Alaska, ride the Siberian Railway, travel Chile north to south, dine in Cambodia, hike in New Zealand, etc etc etc.

Okay, as I write this, right now in fact, I'm changing the direction of the post. I was going to tell you, whenever I dream of a place to go, I long after the quiet, summer shores of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA). I have been a few times and I absolutely love it. The smell of warm, musty pines, picking blueberries, moose, bear, great fishing, northern lights, no motorized vehicles allowed.

photo by: Brandenburg, J from http://www.wildernessinquiry.org/photo.php?dest=bwcacanoe&groupsize=15&filepath=%2Fimages%2Ftrip_images%2Fgallery%2F&filenum=10

I've dreamed and dreamed of having a small cabin up there, or at least making a yearly trip for the rest of my life. But then I realized, as I was typing the list of places above, there is another dream. One more exciting and adventurous. One that, admittedly, will be difficult to pull off, because of real world commitments. But as long as we are dreaming, maybe I should shoot a little higher, eh?

I've already mentioned it. Chile. For some reason, I've been fascinated with the diversity of landscapes within the country. With national parks like Torres del Paine (pictured below, thanks national geographic), el pacha, Easter Island, Santiago, fishing galore, what is not to desire?

Photograph by Jerry Alexander/Getty Images

So there it is. It has been set. I choose Chile. The BWCA almost had it for a second, but then, like Ohio, or Kansas, or Duke, or whoever else you didn't expect to lose during March Madness, a twist out of nowhere.

I would travel the cities and the parks. Fishing when I can and eating all the street food my bowels would allow.