Cast and Blast with Backcountry Hunters & Anglers

Posted by Lukas Leaf

After a few days of rain in Canoe Country, we were blessed with two, back-to-back bluebird days in the BWCA, complete with 65 degree weather and a stiff wind. Sitting atop a rocky point, the lake spit October gusts into our fire-grate as I tended to the coals of our cookfire. Smoke rose from the soggy wood and around the fire sat Land Tawney and Katie McKalip of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, longtime friends and allies in our fight to protect the Wilderness. We were also joined by a handful of journalists for a cast and blast BWCA trip, and to visit the proposed mine site to see the stark contrast between that and the landscape that brings all of us, you included, together.

We spent long days hunting, fishing and exploring the South Kawishiwi River. We bagged a few birds, a handful of fish and talked about how what we were looking at would change. We talked to business owners who would be the first to feel the effects of the proposed sulfide-ore copper mine, from pristine to polluted water, to decreased property value, to fewer visitors through their business. We chased timberdoodles with Steve Brosseau, an artist based out of Ely, and thanks to some sharp shooting by our board chair, Bob-St. Pierre, we bagged enough to make a meal of them.

This most recent trip was one for the books, and every year as I tuck my paddle away for the winter I think about trips long past, trips I took this summer, trips I hope to take in the future, and how they all fit together. A constant theme of this last trip was what our generation’s place will be in our country’s long history of conservationists, hunters and outdoor explorers.

Growing up, the Boundary Waters was the wildest place I could think of. There was never any question that there was a vast Wilderness at the end of a winding road, teeming with fish, full of pristine water and tucked away from the rest of the world, waiting for anyone with enough gumption to explore it.

This trip left me filled with resolve and confident that like generations before us who worked to protect the Boundary Waters, ours can do the same. We’ll need the help of our entire community of likeminded hunters, anglers and outdoor explorers to make an impact.

For our Public Lands and Waters,

Lukas Leaf

Take action to protect the Boundary Waters here:

• Send a message to your member of Congress
• Make a tax deductible donation to protect the Boundary Waters from proposed sulfide-ore copper mining in its watershed. Click here to donate now.

Categorised in: Blog, Fishing, Hunting, Partnerships, Updates