Our work at the Pine Island WMA on Lake Vermilion has continued over the last two years and we’re excited to offer some of the latest updates!
In 2024, Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters teamed up with onX Access and Stewardship Fund, MeatEaters Working for Wildlife Tour, and the Minnesota DNR to conduct daylighting and tree planting operations on Pine Island in an attempt to improve wintering habitat and encourage native tree growth. We are so incredibly thankful to the volunteers who boated with us across Lake Vermilion and worked all day in the heat! Check out the video about that big day here.
After two years of monitoring the area and checking trail cameras, we can confidently say the area is being heavily used by a diversity of wild animals including deer, black bears, fishers, beavers, wolves, coyotes, bobcats, grouse, waterfowl, and every manner of song bird the northwoods has to offer! The survival of the 1,000 trees we planted has been very impressive, with an extremely high percentage of them still growing despite cold winters and deer foraging.
We’re also very excited to announce that through the Minnesota “Get Out More Fund,” we have installed a brand new boat dock on the north landing! For those of you who volunteered with us in 2024, you know how difficult it was to offload 50 volunteers across the rocks and logs at the “landing.” Now you can conveniently tie up your watercraft to the dock, enjoy what this great plot has to offer, and head back out on the water. For those looking to portage a canoe from Canfield Bay to the North end of Vermilion, the trail we’ve cleared is perfect for you and saves a couple hours of paddling around the island.
This project highlights the value of partnerships between organizations like SFBW, companies like onX, and agencies such as the Minnesota DNR. Together, we can make enormous strides in habitat, access, and stewardship that benefit the fish, wildlife, and outdoor community. We hope to continue using this model in the future and that other organizations can do the same. Looking ahead, SFBW will continue to maintain the Pine Island WMA and look forward to new opportunities to take on important projects.
We’d like to remind anyone interested in visiting the Pine Island WMA to please be cognizant of property boundaries and that camping, snowmobiling, and littering are prohibited. Thank you for your support and enjoy the great outdoors.
