![]() ![]() Fault lines run through Man Chain and Kahshahpiwi Lakes, cleaving perfectly straight granite and greenstone shorelines. The Boundary Waters mark the northern edge of the Vermilion Batholith, meaning most of the lakes are lined with granite. Ten-story granite bluffs rose from the depths, and flat swimming rocks the size of tennis courts crested a few feet above the waterline. Red pine leaned over the shoreline, and long runs of granite split the forest in two. Everything around us was water, stone or wood. The sun painted a white line from Crane Lake to Sand Point Lake. ![]() His twin-engine boat was fitted with canoe racks and an enclosed cabin for rough weather. “You’re not going to see one for a while.” “Use the bathroom if you need it,” he said. A good breeze had whipped up foamy whitecaps on the lake and Paul suggested we hurry up. Behind him was an aluminum boat and a million square miles of primitive wilderness. Ted Smith, who owned a lodge on Sand Point Lake for 39 years, met us at a dock on Crane Lake. We would propel ourselves the next 30 miles from Lac La Croix back to Ely. Paul wanted to paddle a section of the International Boundary Route and set us up with a water taxi for the first 40 miles, which runs through perimeter lakes where motors are still allowed. The second-generation owner, Bill Forsberg, set us up with 42-pound Kevlar canoes, tents, sleeping pads, sleeping bags, portage packs and food - ziplocked and labeled by meal and day. Thankfully, Boundary Waters Outfitters in Ely has outfitting down to a science. Most portages are a few hundred yards, Paul said, but some are up to a mile long. Escaping civilization means lugging your gear - canoe on shoulders, gear on back, feet on trail - across dozens of winding portages between lakes. Dry shoes are nice for camp.” Staying light is key on a Boundary Waters trip. Paul’s instructions for packing the night before: “Wear pants, a shirt and an insulating layer and pack a windbreaker. ![]() Seventy Canadian Inuit dogs - which the Schurkes use for tours at their Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge - howled in their backyard the morning my wife, Sara, and I set out with them a year ago on a three-day paddle through the Boundary Waters wilderness. The two have since traveled through remote regions of Greenland, Africa and Russia, with annual trips into the Boundary Waters from their home in Ely, Minn. In 1986, Paul was a member of the first expedition to reach the North Pole without resupply, using dog sleds and technical clothing stitched by Sue. The Schurkes have spent most of their lives getting away from civilization. The local Ojibwe (Chippewa) tribe still lives that way. ![]()
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