Winter camping continues to be a favorite activity for the WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast team. In February 2021, Matthew Baxley and Joe Friedrichs took a TV news team from Duluth for a trip to the BWCA. Alex Laitala and Dan Wolfe from KBJR joined the podcast duo for a trip to the far eastern reaches of the designated wilderness. Temperatures dropped to 10-below zero and Matthew shares a report from the wilderness along with added reflection from a memorable trip. 

Also in this episode, podcast contributor Lindsey Gau talks with Ty Olson about his epic and important journey through the Boundary Waters and other border lakes. Ty traveled more than 270 miles over 27 days in February and March across the border lakes of Minnesota and Ontario. He called his journey ‘Ski For Fire’ and he did the trip to raise money for firewood for the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Lindsey sat down to talk with Ty just moments after his trip ended on the shores of Lake Superior in Grand Portage. 

The March sun is slowly melting the surface of some lakes in the BWCA. The season of change nears.

A special thanks to Claire Campbell and Ian Tamblyn for their musical contributions to this episode.

Episode 39 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

Recorded at Seagull Lake, Boundary Waters Canoe Area, 9:30AM July 8, 2013.
Audio-Technica AT3032 mics in Variable (medium) Boundary Array. Tascam DR-680, 16bit/48khz, low cut/limiter- off.

Conditions (Grand Marais Airport, ~50 mi. SE) 57 deg. F, wind 0 kts. It felt more like 65.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=48.144818,-90.930742&hl=enll=48.144814,-90.930748&spn=0.008476,0.01929&sll=48.144818,-90.930742&sspn=0.004238,0.009645&t=h&z=16&iwloc=near

Song Sparrow and Ravens

On the bluff above the 'beach' campsite at Seagull Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a time-compressed recording from ~9pm - 1:30am. The wind rises and falls. Ruffed grouse drum and loons call in the middle distance. Is that a large ungulate passing through the woods?

N48 08.737 W90 55.920 elev. 1491ft.

Dual Primo EM172 capsules in Medium variable boundary array recorded 48khz/16bit to Olympus LS-11.

130708 Beach site bluff twilight to midnight

Season Two of A Podcast to Save the Boundary Waters launches Monday morning, March 14! 

Since the end of season one of this podcast, the Campaign has seen significant progress in the fight to protect the Boundary Waters from sulfide-ore copper mining. At the end of the last season, we were just heading into a 90-day comment period in which the Bureau of Land Management solicited public comments on the application to ban copper mining in the watershed of the Boundary Waters for 20 years. 
The Campaign and its partners helped to generate a record breaking quarter of a million comments in support of Boundary Waters protection. At the same time, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources hosted a 30-day comment period to solicit public input as it considers whether or not Minnesota's state mining rules are adequate to protect the Boundary Waters. Thank you to everyone who participated in these opportunities to speak up on behalf of the Wilderness!

2022 has seen this momentum continue - in January, the U.S. Department of Interior announced that it was canceling the two federal mineral leases held by Twin Metals in the watershed of the Boundary Waters. This move effectively kills the Twin Metals mine, as the company no longer has rights to any of the federal land or minerals on which their mine plan depends. In February, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz's administration also announced that it would no longer consider the Twin Metals mine plan, and expressed concern over the proposed location of the mine's tailings facility. 

This year is the year of the Boundary Waters - a forever wilderness and a beloved canoe country. While we continue our efforts on advocating for the future of the Boundary Waters in court, Washington, D.C., St. Paul, and through legislation, we can't forget the tangible memories and moments formed year round that create our connections to this landscape. That's why in season two of A Podcast to Save the Boundary Waters, we head into the Boundary Waters for winter camping adventures. 

Again, Season two of A Podcast to Save the Boundary Waters launches Monday morning, March 14.

Meanwhile, look for the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters at Canoecopia in Madison, Wisconsin, this weekend! (March 11-13)

Season Two Preview Of A Podcast To Save The Boundary Waters

July 28, 2021, 10:22 PM. A late night aquatic visitor on Seagull Lake.

Most Likely A Moose

29 June, 2016, ~17:45 CDT
N48 04.511 W90 17.411

16 bit, 48 kHz
Lightweight Modular Partially Baffled Boundary Array
Audio-Technica AT3032 Omni Condenser Mics
Sound Devices MP-2 preamp w/limiter
Olympus LS-11 recorder
Post-processing: iZotope RX5 De-Clip, gain adjustment


160629 Caribou Lake Thunderstorm Approach

Morning at the north end of Red Rock Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. An everyday, yet dramatic moment in the BW: Eagle scores breakfast, everybody gets a little uptight for a few minutes.
On top of a 25-ft bluff, overlooking an L-shaped inlet. The eagle was perched on the opposite shore of the bay.
2 foam-nosed partially-baffled boundary arrays spaced 40 feet apart, w/ Audio-Technica AT3032 &  AT4022 microphones, recorded to Tascam DR-680, 48/16.
Ravens, Common Loon, Bald Eagle, Blue Jay, Red Squirrel, Red-breasted Nuthatch, more species IDs to follow.

Episode 39 WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

WTIP Boundary Waters Podcast

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