Behind the Photo Friday: A Morning in the Boundary Waters

A Morning in the Boundary Waters

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is one of the most beautiful places I have ever explored. It’s one of the places on this earth where you can find the adventure of a lifetime.

Located in Northeastern Minnesota, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) has a million acres of wilderness, with over 1,000 pristine lakes and streams, and over 1,500 miles of canoe routes.

It is considered by some as the most beautiful wilderness they have ever seen. National Geographic named it one of 50 Destinations of a Lifetime.  (from bwca.cc)

My adventure began, well, adventurously. I was part of a large group that set out on a glorious summer day. The sky was a brilliant blue and the water sparkled like glass.

After lunch our group split into the two smaller groups we would be with for the week and paddled our separate ways. As the day went on the blue sky filled with white puffy clouds that got bigger and bigger. Thunderclouds loomed in the distance as the rain began to fall.

Sitting in metal canoes on a lake in a thunderstorm isn’t a very good idea so we sought land and a safe place to wait out the storm. Soaked to the bone before we were able to get to our rain gear I was cold and shivering by the time we made land. I was also happy as a clam because I was in the middle of a grand adventure.

One of the physical ailments I live with is  Raynaud’s Disease. Basically, I don’t do well with cold temperatures. As the rain fell and the storm raged, the temperature dropped and my fingers and toes turned white and numb.

As the rain began to let up, and on orders from the rest of my group, I went into the woods and changed into my rain gear. It wasn’t warm, but it was dry. We needed to find a place to set up camp.

We set out in our wet canoes and looked for a campsite. In the BWCA a campsite is marked by a grate to grill food on and an outhouse (minus the house) somewhere in the woods. As you can imagine, we weren’t the only ones looking for a campsite and there were none to be found.

We couldn’t go any farther and decided to camp at an old site that had neither grill or toilet seat. We set up our tents, changed into warm clothes, hung things out to dry, and thanked the Lord we were well prepared. That night I dug a hold in the ground to bury my business and felt quite proud of my rugged experience!

I’ll never forget the beauty of the next morning. I opened my tent to discover thick fog and limited vision. As we cooked breakfast the fog began to lift and the sun began to break through.

I grabbed my point and shoot camera and snapped a quick photo before packing things up. Little did I know how well my little camera captured this beautiful scene. And that my friends, is the story of how I captured A Morning in the Boundary Waters. Click to Tweet!

Until we meet again,

Josie