The WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast duo of Matthew Baxley and Joe Friedrichs met up with Kevin "The K-man" Kramer and "Omaha" Erik Dickes for the 2023 fishing opener. 

The group set out in search of fish and open water.  Not long after portaging around a stretch of rapids on the Temperance River, the adventure went sideways. 

This was not the fishing opener the group expected it to be.

Episode 90 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

It's all about hammocks in Episode 92. 

Back to share stories and information and hammocks and hammock camping in the Boundary Waters is none other than Shug. Well known for his YouTube channel and extensive hammock-camping adventures in the BWCA and along the Superior Hiking Trail, Shug shares information about Superior Gear hammocks, along with tips of the trade for hammocks in the BWCA. 

Also featured is Kevin "The K-man" Kramer, an experienced Boundary Waters paddler who ditched his tent years ago in exchange for a hammock.

Episode 92 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

A large section of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness will be closed near the end of the Gunflint Trail due to the ongoing threat from an active wildfire.

The closure area will include an area west of the Gunflint Trail. Lakes and campsites included in the closure are Ogishkemuncie Lake, sections of Knife Lake, Ottertrack Lake, Jasper Lake, Kekekabic Lake, Spice Lake, Hanson Lake, and Ester Lake, among many others (see map above). Day-trip paddling and overnight camping is currently prohibited in the closure area. The Kekekabic Trail is also closed at this time. Approximately 80 campsites are off-limits in the BWCA as a result of the fire and subsequent closure area.

The closure went into effect Friday, June 16.

There is also a campfire ban in effect for the BWCA at this time. Learn all the details in this short track of the podcast.

News Track: Campfire ban, wildfire, and BWCA Closure Area

For many paddlers, the BWCA is the ultimate destination for all trips.  For others, its the training ground for trips further north.  

Maddy and Cory, two sisters, grew up on the edge of the Boundary Waters Wilderness. Both eventually found themselves paddling further north in Canada, though took very different paths to get there. Outdoor writer, Sam Cook, returns to share stories of his own travels into far northern territories. Get inspired and pick up some tips while following along on these tails of adventure.

Episode 93 North From the Border

The Barefoot Paddler returns to the podcast, this time to share stories of walking every portage in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. 

Mark Zimmer, more commonly referred to as the Barefoot Paddler, took several years to walk every maintained portage in the BWCA. He tracked his steps and created a map of the portages. He intends to offer this digital map to the paddling community in the near future. 

Also featured in this episode is co-host Joe Friedrichs sharing an experience from the wilderness on the tail-end of a bout with COVID. The wilderness doesn't cure everything, but it can add some perspective on the journey, as Joe and Matthew Baxley discuss throughout the episode.

Episode 94 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

There are unexplainable things that can happen to people in the Boundary Waters. 

Strange energy. Powerful feelings that someone, or something is nearby. One campsite, located on an island on Tuscarora Lake, is occasionally referenced when this discussion surfaces. 

It was here, in May 2020, that a young man from Indiana died after their canoe capsized. Others have reported strange energy at the island, in fact leaving the campsite to travel on before the campers spent a night on the island. 

In this episode, Matthew and Joe travel to this island on Tuscarora Lake. At the island they met Thang Huynh. Thang, his family, and others, were camped on the island in late July. They shared their experience with the podcast duo. 

Also featured in this episode is Nataly Yokhanis, Billy Cameron's girlfriend up until his passing in 2020. We also hear from  Shy-Anne Hovorka, an Indigenous musician, songwriter, and educator who lives in Canada near Lake Superior.

Episode 95 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

The Paddler Profile Series continues on the podcast with the inspiring story of one incredible human's walk across the wilderness. From a boy in Iowa to an adventurer in Ely, this is as much about life's journey as it is about a journey through the woods.  And swimming the lakes, in October.

In this installment of the Paddler Profile Series of the Boundary Waters Podcast, we learn more about Jason Zabokrtsky from Ely Outfitting Company.

Episode 96 Paddler Profile Jason's Walk Across the Wilderness

There are new rangers at the Cache Bay Ranger Station in Quetico Provincial Park. 

For the first time since the passing of Janice Matichuk, the new rangers could become something of a fixture on what is known as Her Island. Matichuk, the longest serving ranger in the history of Quetico, passed away in August 2020. 

The new rangers are Peter Kranenburg and Stacey Hofer. Both in their late 30s, the young couple celebrated their first year at Cache Bay this summer. They also got married in July, making for a summer Peter and Stacey say they will never forget. Their plan, Peter and Stacey say, is to return to Cache Bay for years to come. 

The Boundary Waters podcast duo, Matthew Baxley and Joe Friedrichs, visited the Cache Bay Ranger Station in August 2023. They share a full report in this episode.

Episode 97 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast Cache Bay Revisited

Life can be hard. It's almost always busy. There are responsibilities, tasks, and to-do lists abundant. Anyone who listens to this podcast regularly understands the BWCA offers a relief from these burdens with the anticipation of a profound connection with the real world that wilderness offers. 

Heath Larson takes on an incredible 6-day solo journey through the wilderness for his second Boundary Waters trip ever. His goal, to explain why this place has captivated his attention in such a profound way. 

Follow along on his journey, insights and reflections in episode 99 of the WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast.

Episode 99: Solo on the Louse River Loop

It's been a journey. 

100 episodes. 

In this milestone episode, it goes back to the beginning, with Gaby, the German paddler who was featured on Episode One of the WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast. 

Over the past 100 episodes, hosts Joe Friedrichs and Matthew Baxley have learned so much about the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Quetico Provincial Park. This learning has come, largely, through the stories shared by those who've appeared on the podcast. That learning continues in a deep way with Gaby's return to the podcast. 

Also featured in this episode is Rick Slatten, the captain of the St. Louis County Rescue Squad. Slatten also appeared on Episode 91 of the podcast, talking with Joe about a capsizing event from May 2023 where the podcast duo faced their most intense experience in the BWCA. 

Other voices familiar to podcast listeners appear in this episode, including Bear Paulsen, Kevin "The Kman" Kramer, Jana Berka, Aubrey Helmuth Miller, Erik Dickes, Dave Freeman, Shug the Hammock Camper, Josh and Kaylan Dix, Adam Mella, Jason Zabokrtsky, and Ian Tamblyn.

Episode 100 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

A love letter to the BWCA, deployed at Omega Lake, a mix for the quietest rave. An incredible autumnal trip that saw the aurora borealis make an appearance for three nights in a row. Music for listening during the quiet hours...


TRACKLIST:

Toàn :: malachite :: Phonolite

KMRU :: Uneven :: Drawing Water

Taylor Deupree :: Rhythn :: Harbor

Hainbach :: Into The Fabric :: Voice Magnetic

ovïd :: everything changes, nothing perishes :: everything changes, nothing perishes

TEREKKE :: Swim :: Plant Age

Alexi Baris :: Tilde :: Support Surfaces

DJ Olive :: Baby's Out :: Fir

Echoton :: Deafening Silence :: Metamachine

Illusion of Safety :: Stillpoint :: In Opposition To Our Acceleration

Yumi Iwaki :: Sleepless Forest :: Nocturnal

Glacis & The Humble Bee :: Five (V3) :: 6X5

Gramm :: siemens.bioport :: personal rock

Günter Schlienz :: September :: Autumn

Annea Lockwood :: For Ruth :: Tête-à-tête

Omega Lake - BWCA Mix '23

It's the second duck hunting trip featured on the WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast. 

Podcast friends Dean and Baylee share information about how to successfully hunt waterfowl in the BWCA in this episode. They also paddle alongside Joe and Matthew during an October hunt in 2023. Ducks were found, stories were shared, and the notion of a "mentor in the BWCA waterfowl hunting world" emerged on a crisp autumn day in the wilderness.

Episode 101 - Waterfowl Hunting In The BWCA

Every year, canoeists in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness need to be rescued from a dangerous situation. In modern times, the call for help can come from a cell phone, a satellite phone, or an emergency beacon like a Garmin inReach. It wasn't always this easy to help people who recreate across the canoe-country wilderness. In this report from KFAI producer Joe Friedrichs, we learn about the history of search and rescue operations inside the most visited wilderness area in the nation, the Boundary Waters.

MinneCulture is hosted by John Gebretatose and edited by Julie Censullo. Support for MinneCulture on KFAI is provided by the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

When Danger Strikes in the Boundary Waters

Minnesota’s moose population remains relatively stable, following the results of the 2024 moose survey in northern Minnesota. 

After wrapping up the moose survey in early Feb., the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said the recent population estimate is approximately 3,470 animals. 

Nancy Hansen, the Minnesota DNR’s area wildlife manager in Two Harbors, said the number is not a “highly precise population estimate.” Still, it gives the DNR an overall sense of the current status of moose in northern Minnesota. 

The 2024 results are a 5 percent increase from the estimated 3,290 moose in the 2023 population survey.

In this week's Outdoor News Podcast host Kalli Hawkins speaks with Nancy Hansen, the Minnesota DNR’s area wildlife manager based in Two Harbors, about the 2024 moose population survey and ongoing moose habitat improvement efforts in northeastern Minnesota.

Moose Population Remains Relatively Stable In Northern Minnesota

In this episode, Tim and his daughter Sylvie embark on the trip of a lifetime. The crossing of the BWCA from west to east along the voyageur highway is abruptly interrupted by a tragic slip on the Granite River.  What unfolds next is a skillful evacuation by fellow paddlers that redeems everyone's belief in the power of human kindness.

This episode is sponsored by:

Ely Outfitting Company
Friends of the Boundary Waters
Women's Wilderness Discovery
Sawtooth Outfitters
Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters
Voyageur Canoe Outfitters

Episode 13: Rescue on the Granite River

We caught the last stretch of summer during this year's BWCA camping trip. Deployed at Sawbill Lake for a night that led to another excellent showing of auroras, viewed from the hammock on the island, in range of a belligerent beaver. Music for listening during the quiet hours...

TRACKLIST:

Duluth Bell :: Sean Jacobi

2521 :: Jake Meginsky :: Trinities

All Hands Bury the Dead :: Wilson Tanner :: II

85e Jour :: Marc Leclaire :: Musique Pour 3 Femmes Enceintes

Carolina Yin :: Joe Westerlund :: Elegies for the Drift

Vibraphonspulen :: Jan Jelinek :: Kosmischer Pitch

Rain 33 Version :: Jamie Hodge :: Rain Revisited

Solutes :: Halftribe :: Lucent Forms Travelling

Vocal Studies :: Toàn :: Vocal Studies 

Once :: Erik Mowinckel :: This too will change

Feeling Remembering :: Ulla :: Tumbling Towards a Wall

Pinned :: Purelink :: Signs

Postdrome :: Lord of the Isles :: Night of the Endless Beyond

Sawbill Lake - BWCA Mix '24

WTIP is the community radio station serving Minnesota's North Shore. We share a variety of outdoor news content from the region, including Lake Superior, Isle Royale and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. From fishing and hunting to environmental issues, this locally-produced podcast covers important outdoor news relevant to our broad community of listeners.

This podcast is produced by people who live near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Quetico Provincial Park. It is the source for storytelling, news, and information about the canoe-country wilderness.

MinneCulture is KFAI’s award-winning audio storytelling program. We produce audio documentaries exploring Minnesota’s art, culture, and history — stories about musical sensations, small town heroes, cultural icons, local lore, and everything in between.

New tracks tagged #BWCA