The Uncertain Future of the Boundary Waters
At 1.1 million acres, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is one of the largest and most popular backcountry destinations in the U.S. and a longtime proving ground for adventurers. But now the region is facing the threat of sulfide-ore copper mining. Stephanie Pearson paddles into the wild.
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The new moon is invisible, and the night is black.
My sister, Jen, is paddling in the stern. Her shivering wobbles the bow where Im sitting. Canoeing in 45-degree weather at midnight dressed in T-shirts and underwear is not our normal behavior while camping in northern Minnesotas Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in September. But an enormous black bear is on its hind legs, ten feet away, aggressively swiping at the food pack dangling from a low tree branch at our campsite. By the sound of its grunts, its hungry.
In our panic, we failed to forage for layers. Jen scooped up her sleeping bag and white Labrador, Sunny, I grabbed my knife and headlamp, and we tripped over ourselves to get to the waters edge, where we launched the canoe.
Can you see it? Jen asks while Sunny barks in docile intervals. The dogs genes have been so greatly diluted that she doesnt seem to be aware that were facing a wild animal that can run at speeds up to 30 miles per hour and swim long distances.
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