The most serious threats to the wilderness character of the area now known as canoe country are the result of the people. Whether they travel in canoes, motorboats, by foot or on snowmobile people will, to varying degrees, have an impact on the area they visit. It is ironic that the thousands upon thousands of people who wish to visit the area out of a love for the wilderness are clearly its worst enemy.

The area has been the focus of a long history of conflict regarding development and resource management. Proposed legislation calls for increased motorized access to the park and the establishment of a local monitoring body. To understand what the proposed legislation means and what is driving the present conflict it is important to place today's issues in a historical perspective.

When glacial ice began to retreat from the area, some 12,000 years ago, it revealed some of the oldest exposed rock on the face of the earth. Thousands of years later, when soil formed and plants could grow a landscape of thick forests, crystal clear lakes, meandering rivers and wetlands abundantly rich in fish and wildlife was formed. The greenstone rock remains as an ancient back-drop to a long history of conflict.

The area's first residents had little impact on their environment. Archeologists believe people have been in the area for about ten thousand years. The first to arrive were probably following the retreat of the glacier, hunting the moose and the caribou for food. Two thousand years later the area was inhabited by those known as the Archaic People. Archeologists have discovered the stone tools they used to work with wood. In fact, they were probably the first to travel the lakes in dugout canoes. After three or four thousand years -- things changed more slowly back then -- a thriving trade developed for the copper wares the inhabitants of the area created. Evidence of copper originating in the area has been found as far south as Mexico. Two thousand years ago the area was inhabited by a people known as the Laurel. They hunted small game, fished and harvested native plants, including wild rice, for their food. They lived in small groups throughout the area but were centered around Rainy Lake. The ancient rock still bears the marks of the inhabitants of the region, pictograph sites are easily viewed throughout the area. The pictographs were most likely left by the Ojibwe or the Dakota Sioux within the last four or five hundred years. Pictographs show evidence that the artists had been exposed to European explorers. There were probably as few as 500 people living in the entire region when the Europeans arrived.

The Fur Trade

With the Europeans came the fur trade, and a greatly accelerated impact on the environment. Millions of pelts, many supplied by the native population, were transported across what came to be known as the voyageur highway. The image of the voyageur, singing and laughing, as he and his companions paddle a huge birch bark canoe packed with furs is an indelible part of the history of the region. The fur hat was quite fashionable in Europe and demand was high for quality furs. The routes through rivers, rapids, lakes and portages used to carry Voyageur cargo are still in use by recreational canoeists today.

In 1890 the railroad reached Ely Minnesota. In a very short time logging camps were established around the area and the tall pines began to fall. There was no such thing as conservation logging and by the 1920's the mills were closing as the few remaining mature trees were cut. Today, there is a huge log jam at Chatterton Falls that dates back to this period. In the 1940's demand for paper products created an attractive market for pulp wood. Logging of the jack pine that had been left by the loggers in the 20's began.

Efforts to preserve the area have been going since the late 1800's. In 1909 the United States formed the Superior National Forest and Canada formed the Quetico Forest Preserve. These were not protected areas -- far from it. These areas were seen as resources to be utilized. The period from 1910 to 1960 was one of commercial logging, fishing, and trapping. Mining companies were exploring the area for mineral deposits. In the U.S. state and local governments and the private interests of logging and mining companies were lobbying for money to build roads. The Echo Trail, frequently driven by canoists is one such road.

There were plans to build roads from Ely to the Gunflint Trail, to Lac La Croix, Loon and Trout Lakes. The areas not accessible to the loggers were becoming popular recreation spots. Privately owned cabins and resorts were springing up wherever there was a road to get the vacationers there.

In the late 1920's there was a serious effort to dam much of the area for hydroelectric power. Dams were proposed at Crane Lake, Curtain Falls, Rebecca Falls, and at Basswood Lake, Knife Lake and Kawnipi Lake. The dams would have allowed loggers access to areas that had previously been inaccessible. Proponants of the dams believed that the plentiful electric power they generated would create significant economic growth in the area.

Conservation groups such as the Izaak Walton League opposed further development of roads and dams. A group known as the Quetico- Superior Committee began opposing further development of the area and proposed a protected wilderness park managed by a cooperative effort of Canada and the United States. In 1930 President Hoover signed the Shipstead-Nolan act. The act prohibited logging within 400 ft of the natural waterline in all federal lands. The act also stated that the water level should be maintained at the natural level. The plans to dam much of the Boundary Waters were abandoned.

In the period that followed the Shipstead-Nolan Act, the resorts continued to flourish. Guests were frequently flown in to remote areas. The remains of one such resort can still be found on the Crooked Lake side of Curtain Falls. In 1948 a bill was passed that authorized the Forest Service to purchase land where development would impair the character of the wilderness. Private conservation groups and individuals purchased land and donated that land to the Forest Service. By 1951 plane landings on the lakes of the area were prohibited in the U.S. and Canada.

Conflict over the use of the area continued. Logging of pulp wood continued into the 1970's. Plans to extract minerals near the area created the potential for leaching and water contamination. Wilderness proponants continued to lobby and propose legislation to further protect the area. In 1972 Quetico Park was designated a wilderness area. In 1978 President Carter signed the bill that created the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The bill was opposed by many local residents concerned about the impact on local economic development and logging.

Once the area was designated as a wilderness the Forest Service began placing restrictions on motors and motorized portages within the park. Even without the resorts operating within park boundaries the numbers of annual visitors toting their canoes across the portages continued to increase. I have heard many say that the impact on the area of a few resorts providing motorized access to the lakes for their guests would be less than the impact of the thousands of canoeists. They are probably right. The conflict over the BWCAW has been one of wilderness advocates opposing the interests of local residents concerned about economic development. It is within this historical context that we should consider the issues of today.

The Bills

Several bills have been proposed in congress that would increase motorized access to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. They call for a committee of local interests to oversee the management of the park. This conflict is not new, the issues are similar to those debated in the 1930's. How much of the area should remain protected federal land and how much should be available for local interests to pursue economic development? How do we balance the interests of wilderness advocates, those interested in recreation and those concerned about the economy of the area? It should be no surprise that the management of this area continues to be the focus of a great deal of controversy.

The Lac La Croix First Nation

In July of 1994 an Agreement of Co-Existence was signed by the sovereign government of the Lac La Croix First Nation and the government of Ontario. The agreement is an effort to provide for economic development for the Ojibwa community and preserve the wilderness character of the region.

The Lac La Croix First Nation is an Ojibwa community on the north shore of Lac La Croix. There is no all-weather road to the traditional community of about 260 people. The limited access has resulted in a lack of economic opportunities for the community's residents. A few members of the community have been able to find work guiding fishing trips from canoes with small outboard motors in the park. Today there are 15 to 20 guides operating out of fishing camps located near the Lac La Croix First Nation. Most of the guides are men in their forties. The young men of the community are seeking work elsewhere.

The agreement established a process to work towards the eventual elimination of mechanized recreation within the park. According to the agreement ten lakes will be open to mechanized guiding during the 1996 season.

• Beaverhouse

• Quetico
• Tanner
• Cirrus
• Wolseley
• Minn
• Mcare
• Argo
• Crooked
• Basswood

The agreement establishes a liaison officer to work with both the community and the park and a fire crew to operate out of the Lac La Croix community. An Ojibwa interpretive program developed and operated by the community will be established for Quetico Park. Plans are underway to upgrade the road to the community and provide a long-term economic development plan.

Both the Ontario government and the Lac La Croix First Nation have demonstrated a desire to work together to find mutually agreeable solutions to issues facing the park and the community.

Too Many Visitors

The single greatest challenge to the effort to preserve the wilderness character of the area is the number of annual visitors. The area's popularity is increasing steadily. Anyone who has visited the area for a number of years has seen the effect of the sheer volume of traffic. Both the BWCAW and Quetico Park now use an entry quota system. Some wilderness advocates have suggested closing all or part of the area to visitors for a period of years to allow the natural processes to repair some of the damage.

The area has always provided tremendous resources to it's residents and visitors. There are few remaining places where one can experience the wilderness that once blanketed the North American continent. If the wilderness character of this area is to be preserved for future generations everyone, including canoeists, must cooperate and make compromises. If we fail, what we stand to lose is beyond my ability to describe.

You will not experience what could be lost by flying over or traveling the area in a motorboat. To experience what could be lost you must travel the area in a canoe or on foot. You must experience the calm before a thunderstorm, hear the echos of the birds that inhabit the area, feel and smell the air that has been cleansed by nature and scented by pine forests. You must be close enough to the environment that you become conscious of the clear connections between you and all other life. You must stand next to a waterfall, bend down to taste the clear water and feel humbled by the power of the falls, yet wonder at how the most delicate of creatures can live their entire lives within it's power. Are we so different in anything but our arrogance?

Sources:

Border Country, 1988
Blacklock, Blacklock, Klein

BWCA Wilderness News 1995, 1996
Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness

Touchstone, 1995, 1996
Friends of Quetico Park

Quetico Provincial Park Factsheet, 1996
Ministry of Natural Resources