BOUNDARY WATERS CANOE AREA WILDERNESS

Trump administration wants to reopen logging in Superior National Forest

Jimmy Lovrien — Fri, 27 Jun 2025 15:42:47 GMT

DULUTH — The Trump administration said Monday, June 23, it wants to reopen logging on about 59 million acres of national forest land throughout the country, including 62,000 acres of the Superior National Forest, much of it adjacent to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said the so-called "roadless rule," which prohibits timber harvesting and the construction of roads to access timber stands, was burdensome.

"Once again, President Trump is removing absurd obstacles to common sense management of our natural resources by rescinding the overly restrictive roadless rule,” Rollins said in a news release.

The roadless rule was established in 2001 during the final days of the Clinton administration and covers just 2.2% of all national forest land in Minnesota. The Chippewa National Forest does not have any land covered by the rule.

Nationally, the rule covers approximately 30% of the 190 million-acre national forest system, primarily in the western U.S.

The roadless rule is not the same as official federal wilderness, and, despite its name, the areas may have roads that predate the 2001 rule. Instead, it prohibits new roads and logging but allows motorized recreation, such as snowmobiles and ATVs. It also allows mining.

Rollins said reversing the rule "opens a new era of consistency and sustainability for our nation’s forests."

"It is abundantly clear that properly managing our forests preserves them from devastating fires and allows future generations of Americans to enjoy and reap the benefits of this great land,” Rollins said.

But Randi Spivak, public lands policy director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said the roadless rule already included flexibility that allowed for wildfire mitigation in those areas, like the removal of small-diameter trees, as long as new roads weren't built.

"It's a handout to the timber industry," Spivak told the News Tribune. "(Trump) has no regard for ecology, natural areas, or the fact that they may be critically important to our water supplies, and recreation, and even sustainable communities. No, he just sees our national forests and other public lands as places to exploit so industry can turn a profit — there's no mystery there."

Ray Higgins, executive vice president of Minnesota Timber Producers, said that while more wood on the market is good for the industry, "it's not going to make a ton of difference."

"There's a reason these are roadless areas. ... They're hard to access. They're not close to any forest products mill like a paper mill or a big sawmill," Higgins told the News Tribune.

"So it's not like we've been knocking on the door trying to get the timber," Higgins said, "because it is hard to access."

But, he said, it could "give the Forest Service another tool in the toolbox" to take wildfire mitigation steps, like removing balsam fir left dead or dying by the spruce budworm outbreak, which contributed to last month's wildfires near Brimson.

Spivak, however, said additional roads in these areas could lead to more fires since people start most wildfires.

A timeline on when the rule could be reversed was not provided by the USDA. A potentially lengthy process must play out first.

Spivak said if the Trump administration wants to reverse the rule, it will have to justify its actions and have the change go up for public comment.

"They're going to have a very, very steep hill to climb to overturn the roadless rule," Spivak said. "It's incredibly popular, justified by science, held up in the court numerous times."

The George W. Bush administration attempted to reverse the rule, only to have a federal judge restore it in 2006.

Later, in 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court did not consider an appeal challenging the rule, which kept it in place.

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Boundary Waters entry fees may more than double

Peter Passi — Tue, 17 Jun 2025 03:25:04 GMT

BOUNDARY WATERS CANOE AREA WILDERNESS — Visitors who wish to explore northeast Minnesota’s pristine canoe country soon may need to dig a little deeper into their wallets.

The Superior National Forest has proposed to more than double entry permit fees for this federal wilderness area.

It’s not a done deal by any stretch. But federal officials have recommended substantially hiking the amount it charges for admission to this 1.09-million-acre stretch of relatively untouched Northland countryside interlaced with waterways.

At present, adults pay $16 per head to enter the BWCAW — a price that could increase to $40 if proposed increases take effect. Young people, less than 18 years of age, pay only $8 currently, but could be charged $20 for future admission.

The rate changes will be subject to public comment from now until Sept. 2, before any final decision by the Regional Recreation Advisory Committee.

A statement from the Forest Service said the proposed new rates would enable it “to increase education, maintenance and visitor experience.”

At present, the BWCAW has more than $11 million in deferred maintenance to address, according to Joy VanDrie, a public affairs officer for the Forest Service.

She noted that all the work is further complicated by restrictions that it must be completed by wilderness rangers using traditional hand tools. That includes felling and removing hazardous trees by hand saw and digging latrines one shovel spade at a time.

This is all the more challenging against the backdrop of recent federal cuts that have reduced staffing, including the number of places where BWCAW permits are issued.

Higher prices are never welcome news, but Drew Brockett, outfitting manager for Piragis Northwoods Co., based in Ely, said he doubts the proposed increases will deter many people from visiting the Boundary Waters, given the unique wilderness experience they have to offer.

“Even at that price, it’s still a relatively cheap trip, if you ask me,” he said, comparing it to the per-night cost of a hotel, much less a trip to Disneyland.

In a reply to questions posed by the News Tribune, Forest Service officials said market analysis suggested the BWCAW would still offer a good deal compared to other similar destinations.

A forest service response said, “Market comparisons of neighboring Quetico Provincial Park and Voyageurs National Park found that visitors pay two to three times more than those visiting the BWCAW for comparable trips.”

Visitors to the BWCAW pay the same entry fee regardless of how many nights they stay. But a quota system is employed to stave off overcrowding.

Members of the public are invited to weigh in on the proposed rate increases, which could take effect in 2027 if approved.

Three public hearings are scheduled:

July 14, 4 to 6 p.m. at the Kawishiwi District Office in Ely July 22, 4 to 6 p.m. at the Gunflint District Office in Grand Marais July 15, 4 to 6 p.m., a virtual online meeting at fs.usda.gov/r09/superior/events

Brockett said he appreciates that members of the public will have an opportunity to share their thoughts. But he wasn’t overly concerned by the proposal.

“To come up here and enjoy what the Boundary Waters have to offer is more than worth it. The fees have been so low for so long,” he said.

Brockett noted that many things have gone up in cost since the Forest Service last adjusted the price of its entry fees in 2008.

“Part of this is going to be for the crews out there maintaining latrines and campsites and portages. So, we’ve got to have people doing that if people are going to have a good experience,” he said.

The BWCAW remains the most-visited wilderness area in the nation, welcoming more than 150,000 people per year. The reserve straddles a 150-mile border with Canada.

The annual economic impact of the wilderness area is estimated to be about $100 million, according to the Forest Service.

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BWCAW mining language stricken from US budget bill

Jimmy Lovrien — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 16:30:03 GMT

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans have removed a provision in the federal budget bill that would have reversed a pause on mining on federal land within the same watershed as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and reinstated leases to a copper-nickel mining company wishing to mine in that area.

An amendment by the House Rules Committee on Tuesday strikes portions of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” that would run afoul of Senate rules that Republicans are relying on to pass the upper chamber with a simple majority instead of 60 votes.

The amendment removes Section 80131 of the spending bill, which sought to end a Biden-era 20-year moratorium on mining on 225,000 acres of federal land within the watershed and return two mineral leases to Twin Metals, which is owned by Chilean mining conglomerate Antofagasta and is hoping to build a large underground copper-nickel mine and dry-stacked tailings storage facility near Ely and Birch Lake, within the Rainy River Watershed and 5 miles from the BWCAW.

The full chamber was expected to vote on the changes Wednesday, Politico reported.

U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., who introduced a bill earlier this year seeking to make the mineral withdrawal near the BWCAW permanent, celebrated the removal of the language.

“Today marks a victory in our fight to protect the Boundary Waters. Buried deep in President Trump and Republicans’ Big Beautiful Bill was a provision that gave a foreign mining company full permission to build a copper-nickel sulfide mine right on the doorstep of the Boundary Waters. I vowed to do everything in my power to protect this precious place,” Smith said in a statement Tuesday evening. “Today, I am relieved to announce that we were successful in forcing Republicans to drop this language attacking the Boundary Waters from the bill.”

U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Hermantown, an ardent supporter of mining and Twin Metals, did not immediately respond to the News Tribune’s request for comment.

Twin Metals declined to comment.

Mining Minnesota, a copper-nickel mining industry group, said the move further delays establishing a domestic mineral supply chain.

“Our nation’s energy future depends upon the steps we take today to create a resilient supply chain from the ground up,” Julie Lucas, executive director of Mining Minnesota, said in a statement. “While the decision to remove language that confirmed the importance of Minnesota’s mineral potential was due to a niche, procedural provision unique to the U.S. Senate, unfortunately, it delays those first steps needed to ensure Americans can build and power tomorrow with responsibly mined minerals. Leaders from both sides of the aisle recognize the need to increase our domestic production of minerals and we welcome conversations about Minnesota’s role in meeting those mineral security goals.”

Meanwhile, groups like Friends of the Boundary Waters and Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters celebrated the removal of the language.

“The Boundary Waters is a natural treasure, ecological wonder and vital economic driver. Thanks to the tireless efforts of public lands defenders in Congress, today brings good news for the millions who cherish this iconic place,” Ingrid Lyons, Executive Director of Save the Boundary Waters, said in a statement Tuesday evening. “America’s most visited wilderness has narrowly escaped inclusion in the Big Beautiful Bill, which would have almost guaranteed irreversible pollution from toxic copper mining in this fragile ecosystem.”

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Sen. Tina Smith, advocates rally to protect Boundary Waters

Mary Murphy — Thu, 08 May 2025 23:07:21 GMT

ST. PAUL — U.S. Sen. Tina Smith and advocates for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area rallied Thursday, May 8, as the federal government makes moves on mining projects and public land sales.

Thursday’s rally at the Capitol featured roughly 200 advocates and comes as Congress advanced a bill on Tuesday with language introduced by Rep. Pete Stauber, R-CD8, to lift a 20-year mining moratorium covering federal land south of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and reinstate two federal mineral leases to Twin Metals that Former President Joe Biden had revoked.

It also comes as U.S. House Republicans advanced a bill on Wednesday to authorize the sale of public lands, and as President Donald Trump’s “National Energy Dominance Council” designated NewRange Copper Nickel’s Northmet project as a priority for federal permitting on May 2.

Smith introduced legislation on April 9 to place a permanent ban on mining roughly 225,000 acres of Superior National Forest land currently covered by the moratorium.

Smith said Tuesday that Stauber’s legislation is “nothing more than a huge giveaway to this foreign mining company,” and that the leases, if passed, would have immunity from any federal judicial review.

“These are our public lands,” she said at the rally. “They are our resources, and we are not going to stand by while they get auctioned off to the highest bidder. We’re not going to put up with it.”

The rally was co-organized by Save the Boundary Waters, Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters, Minnesota Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Trust for Public Land, Minnesota Conservation Federation, Audubon Society, Minnesota Trout Unlimited, National Parks Conservation Association and Voyageurs Conservancy.

“If those who wish to sell the boundary waters like Representative Pete Stauber succeed, the wilderness could be next in line for industrial mining that threatens everything that makes it so special,” Ingrid Lyons, executive director of Save the Boundary Waters, said Thursday. “The second that any of this package becomes law, it’s not just about one mine, it’s about a precedent that says no public land in America is safe.”

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Boundary Waters burning ban, closures announced amid fire danger

Jess Myers — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 15:40:49 GMT

ELY — With the driest September ever recorded in Minnesota recently concluded, this is no time for open fires in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Effective one minute past midnight Tuesday, Superior National Forest officials restricted the use of campfires, which include charcoal grills and barbecues as well as coal and woodburning stoves. Gas and propane cook stoves, which are advocated as a safer option, are still allowed during the ban. The restrictions will stay in place until further notice.

“We have seen warmer and dryer conditions across much of the Superior National Forest, especially within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. We want the recreating public to be safe as they enjoy the Forest,” Tom Hall, Superior National Forest supervisor, said in a news release announcing the ban.

In addition to the open fire ban, the forest service announced the reinstatement of travel restrictions to four lakes in the BWCAW due to the ongoing Wood Lake Fire, which has burned 32 acres since it was first reported on Sept. 10. The fire, which was human-caused and remains under investigation, has increased in size by 5 acres due to dry, windy conditions. Aircraft were used to drop water on the north side of the fire in recent days in an attempt to cool down some hot spots.

As a result of the recent spread, the Superior National Forest is reinstating the closure of Wood, Good, Hula and Indiana lakes and the connecting portages due to concerns for the public’s health and safety.

The closures come on the heels of a day when 39 Minnesota counties were under a red flag warning due to the unusually hot, dry conditions in several areas of the state.

Additional information can be found at fs.usda.gov/superior.

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Range Republicans oppose deal to sell state land in BWCAW to feds

Jimmy Lovrien — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 21:25:49 GMT

DULUTH — Republican state lawmakers from the Iron Range oppose a proposed deal to sell approximately 80,000 acres of state-owned school trust land scattered throughout the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness to the federal government, which already controls the area.

The five legislators instead said the state should exchange its land within the BWCAW for federal land outside the wilderness.

Last month, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Office of �� Trust Lands proposed selling the land and said it was considering buying other school trust land outside the BWCAW from the environmental nonprofit The Conservation Fund. �� trust lands are intended to support Minnesota school districts by generating revenue from mining and timber harvesting on the land, but both activities are banned within the BWCAW, leaving the state unable to use the land locked in the wilderness for its designated purpose.

In an Aug. 15 letter to DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen, the five Republican lawmakers argued the proposal would violate federal law, which requires state or private land to be exchanged for federal land of equal value instead of sold, and that additional, active school trust lands would generate more ongoing funds for schools than a one-time sale.

"While the price of the proposed land sale is still not known, any one-time payment pales in comparison to ongoing revenues that would be generated for the Permanent �� Fund if these lands are exchanged for federally owned lands where economic activity may occur," the lawmakers wrote.

State Rep. Roger Skraba, R-Ely, led the letter, which was signed by State Reps. Ben Davis, R-Merrifield, and Spencer Igo, R-Wabana Township, and State Sens. Justin Eichorn, R-Grand Rapids, and Robert Farnsworth, R-Hibbing.

In a statement Friday, the DNR stood by its agreement to sell the land.

"The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources believes that the agreement between state and federal partners upholds Minnesota’s fiduciary responsibility to generate income for the Permanent �� Fund and helps to provide a continual source of funding for Minnesota’s K-12 schools," the agency said.

Under the agreement, the state would remove the school trust designation from the 80,000 acres before the federal government purchased the land with Land and Water Conservation Funds.

The proposal to sell the state land replaced a plan introduced in 2012 that would have seen the state give the land to the federal government in exchange for federal land outside the BWCAW that the state would then use as school trust land.

While environmental groups hailed the decision to sell, some mining and logging interests wanted a total land exchange to transfer more federal land into state control, potentially easing access for mining and logging companies.

With the land exchange called off, the U.S. Forest Service is looking to buy 15,000 acres of land in the Superior National Forest, but outside the 1.1-million acre BWCAW, from The Conservation Fund.

The DNR has previously said it is consulting with the U.S. Forest Service, tribes and counties for the possible purchase of other school trust lands outside the BWCAW from the same group.

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Family opens new accessible resort near Ely

John Myers — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 11:00:33 GMT

ALONG BIRCH LAKE — In an era when many small resorts are sold off for their waterfront land values and developed into condos or lake homes — Minnesota has fewer than half the “ma and pa” resorts it did 50 years ago — Sean and Jill Leary are bucking the trend.

The Learys are building North of North, a three-cabin resort on 11 acres of raw land at 12265 State Highway 1, 10 miles east of Ely, from scratch.

The first cabin was ready for guests last week, the other two were just about finished and their website went live this week to accept reservations.

“It’s taken a little longer than we expected, but we’re almost there,” Jill Leary said as she unpackaged steak knives from a box for one of the cabin kitchens. “There was nothing here before. No driveway. ... The first time we came to the property, we had to come by boat.”

It’s been exhausting work and many trips back and forth from their home in Minneapolis. They cut a path from Highway 1 into the property and slowly figured out how the cabins would fit onto the landscape.

North of North is an all-new destination for lovers of the Ely experience, the Superior National Forest and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness — just a stone's throw up the Kawishiwi River. But it’s also perhaps unique in the Northland woods for being built, from the ground up, to be accessible for many people with disabilities.

It hasn't just been Sean and Jill Leary on the job. It’s been a family affair with daughters Annika,10, and Britta, 7, helping along with the family’s sled dog, Freya.

The idea sprouts

The Learys were on their first post-pandemic family vacation to the Yellowstone National Park region a few years ago when they decided they wanted their own destination in the northwoods of their home state. Moreover, they wanted a place where others with disabilities — Sean has been using a wheelchair for 23 years — could enjoy Minnesota’s “up north” like everyone else.

They had an idea to build a small resort using accessible design principles so people at any stage of their lives, from the elderly to families with infants and strollers, could get around. Even the waterfront lot they chose was picked because of its relatively flat topography, with easy access to the lake.

From the gentle slopes between the driveway to the cabins, and paths to the lakes, to the height of the cabin counters and tables, to the wheel-in showers and the 425-foot boardwalk and floating dock on the lake, many parts of North of North are designed to be accessible under accepted guidelines.

Little things, like lower light switches and shower controls, and an opening under the sink so a wheelchair-bound person can wash dishes, are icing on the cake.

Even the doors to the barrel-style saunas have been widened to make way for wheelchairs.

“People throw around 'accessible' pretty easily,” Sean said. “Everyone has a different definition. ... Hopefully, we are there for most people.” He’s also been visiting Ely restaurants and other attractions to take note of accessibility and offer tips for his future guests.

It’s all about removing barriers, from thresholds of cabin and sauna doors to getting into a kayak on the lake. It’s the Learys’ goal to create a place that is not only welcoming and accessible for anyone to stay but also opens access to the great outdoors to people who haven’t always been able to get out.

“It really doesn’t take that much more thought to do this in a way that works for people in chairs,” said Sean, 41. "Yet, most of the time, people still don’t think of it when they are building something.”

Access to outdoor adventure

Sean Leary was 18 when he was driving home from a long day of work one night during his summer before college. He drifted to sleep and his truck left the road. The accident cost him the use of his legs and he has been in a wheelchair ever since.

But it didn’t take long for Sean to move on. An avid wilderness paddler and snowboarder before the accident, he adapted his outdoor pursuits to his newly defined abilities, including off-road hand bikes. He traveled across the U.S. and Europe and tried scuba diving and adaptive wilderness canoe trips. He met Jill when she was a canoe guide, and the St. Cloud natives married in 2010.

Sean’s theory is that if you build it right, they can and will come — meaning anyone with accessibility issues.

Building it right for people with accessibility issues also makes access easier for others, Leary notes. He calls it "the curb-cut effect." Curb cuts on sidewalks allow people in wheelchairs to cross streets, but they also allow kids on bikes and trikes to cross, parents pushing strollers, senior citizens and people with other, less noticeable physical impairments.

Jill sees the resort as a destination for family reunions and group trips.

“We hope this becomes a place where families can bring grandma and grandpa back to the lake again,” Sean added. “But anyone can come here. ... Do you think disabled people only want to be around other disabled people?”

The Learys have had to correct some confusion about the resort. Since they have more than $1 million tied up in a mortgage with their name on it, the resort itself is for-profit and has to pay the bills and at least break even.

“We don’t expect to make money off this,” said Jill, 39. "It (the resort) has to make it on its own, but we're both going to keep our day jobs." Jill is a teacher in the Minneapolis school system; Sean is an environmental project consultant.

“We’ve put everything we have into this,” Sean said.

The 1,100-square-foot cabins are not inexpensive. At $550 per night, they are competitive with the region's nicer resorts and VRBO rentals.

And, they are first-class, including panoramic views of the forest and scenic Birch Lake; individual saunas (with lake views) for each unit; sleeping arrangements for up to eight people; screened-in porches; a deck with barbecue grill and campfire pit; a dishwasher, washer and dryer; televisions, high-speed internet and Wi-Fi.

Through the Learys' nonprofit, Adaptive Wilderness Within Reach, they hope to set up people with physical disabilities in the cabins while they participate in various wilderness experiences like kayaking, canoeing, fishing, cycling, dog sledding and more.

To that end, AWWR (say it fast to sound like a wolf howling) already has received $16,000 from the Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation - with additional state money expected soon - to buy accessible kayaks and build an accessible kayak launch at the end of their unusually long boardwalk/dock, which is also fully accessible. Canoes and kayaks can be rented, and Sean said he hopes to go into accessible BWCAW outfitting in the future.

Motorboats and other watercraft can be docked at the resort for free and can also be rented and delivered to the resort by Ely outfitters.

Making local connections

The Learys are working with local guides and businesses such as Ely-based Piragis Northwoods (kayaking and canoeing) and Cast Outdoor Adevntures (dog sledding) to provide instructional and guided opportunities for participants.

They’ve also arranged for a wild rice harvesting demonstration early this autumn by a member of the local Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe, noting their waterfront is packed with manoomin.

The Learys made an early choice to buy local as they built. Their general contractor, Reed Alan, has a place on Snowbank Lake nearby. Most of the contractors have been local. The Learys hired a local property manager from Ely to run the daily operations. Much of the wood was sourced from northern Minnesota sawmills.

When Jill needed an indoor place to stain wood paneling that would be going up in the cabins, their plumbing contractor offered his shop for free.

The effort has received financial backing from several sources, including Minnesota-based Sunrise Bank, the Northland Foundation, Lake Country Power and the Entrepreneur Fund.

“A lot of people are invested in this now. … We’ve had such great cooperation and buy-in from just about everyone in and around Ely,” Jill said. “I’m in the hardware store at least once every trip now. ... They know me by name.”

Sean said the new resort and nonprofit’s missions have been just as accepted by the local community as the money they spend in town.

“People with accessibility issues really haven’t been able to take full advantage of the natural resources we have up here, the Boundary Waters, the lakes,” Sean said. “And I think people here are really behind the fact we’re trying to open that up, bring in new people who haven't had the chance to experience all this.”

For more information on North of North Resort, or to make reservations, go to northofnorthresort.com. To find out more about the nonprofit Adaptive Wilderness Within Reach, go to awwr.org.

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Nathan Williams went fishing in 2004 then vanished. The lone clue: his pickup, found near the Boundary Waters

John Myers — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 11:31:00 GMT

Editor's note: This is an archival article, first published in May 4, 2022. There are no known updates on this case. Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Nathan Williams is asked to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 218-834-8385.

ISABELLA, Minn. — It’s not hard to see how someone could get lost in the million-acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, or in the 2 million-acre Superior National Forest that surrounds it.

With thick forests, myriad swamps, creeks, lakes and hills, it’s not a forgiving place for people without the right gear and experience.

It's harder to grasp how someone could never be found.

It's been 18 years since Nathan Williams disappeared while on an autumn fishing trip to the north country. Not a sign of him has been found since — not a stitch of clothing or fishing gear or any human remains.

Williams left the University of Minnesota Morris on Sept. 28, 2004, telling his college roommates he was going up north to go fishing. His parents and roommates reported him missing about a week later, when the fishing trip seemed to be lasting longer than usual and he had made no effort to check in.

Days later, the 21-year-old's pickup truck was found by Hog Creek, a remote stream in Lake County, along the Kawishiwi Lake Forest Road and just outside the BWCAW boundary. When Morris police released an all-points bulletin, Lake County responded they had already found the vehicle, a restored 1966 Ford pickup, but found no person to go with it.

A multi-agency land, water and air search turned up no trace of Williams in a nearly 6-mile radius from the truck. Cadaver-tracking dogs trained to sniff out bodies found no scent. Underwater cameras were dangled from canoes to no avail. Another search was conducted in spring 2005, and still nothing was found. Two psychics, who were asked to help, failed to develop any leads.

To this day, nothing more is known of Williams' whereabouts.

“It's as if he was here one day and then dropped off the face of the Earth,” said Jim Beauregard, then-chief of the Morris Police Department, in a 2007 interview with the News Tribune at the site where Williams’ truck was found.

There’s still hope among those involved in the case, as the snow melts and spring returns again, that this might be the year that campers and anglers returning to the Hog Creek and Kawishiwi Lake area might find something that would help solve the mystery and bring closure to Williams’s family.

In October 2007, nearly three years to the day that Nathan Williams disappeared, Lake County Sheriff Carey Johnson and Nathan Williams father, Dave Williams, along with Morris Police Chief Jim Beauregard, drove with a newspaper reporter to the site where Nathan’s truck was found. An ensuing newspaper story was hoped to jog someone’s memory and spur some sort of information coming forward. But nothing happened. Another story ran in 2016 in the Morris Sun Tribune. Again, nothing happened.

Beauregard tried to keep the missing person case active until he retired. But in the nearly 18 years since Williams disappeared, there have been no new clues on what happened to Williams or why.

“We do not have any new information or leads on this case, and it is still considered open, but it’s obviously a cold case," Sheriff Johnson told the News Tribune recently.

Williams is still listed on the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension's missing persons page. There’s no active investigation now, Johnson said, but “we will not close a case unless we had some type of resolution to it.”

Loved to fish, adopted Minnesota as home state

All Nathan Williams is known to have had with him when he left on his trip are two fishing rods and a single shot Harrington & Richardson 12-gauge shotgun, in case he saw a grouse. He was wearing blue jeans and a black T-shirt. He didn't even have a sleeping bag — just a blue down comforter from his bed. There's no evidence that he stopped anywhere to buy any additional camping or fishing gear.

But if he fell into a lake or became lost and then perished, where are the fishing rods? Where is the gun or the comforter?

Dave and Sandra Williams, Nathan’s parents, lived in Silver Spring, Maryland, at the time of his disappearance, although Nathan spent time as a child with them in the Bolivian Amazon, Colombia, Mexico and New York. But when people asked him where he was from, Nathan invented a home state: Minnesota.

“That's why he went to college here. He adopted it as his home state because it was up north and had the 10,000 lakes and forests and the world's largest freshwater lake,” Dave Williams said in 2007.

Nathan Williams was the kind of guy who would take off on a whim and disappear for days, mostly to fish or knock around in the woods. He even told friends he dreamed of living off the land, disappearing into the wilds and living by his own means, like a special forces soldier.

Williams picked the University of Minnesota Morris because it was known for chemistry, his major, and because it was known as being a school friendly to helping students with dyslexia, which affected his ability to read. He played cello in the school orchestra.

Nathan's nickname in high school was “Fish” because he loved to be on the water so much. He hoped to land a job in wildlife management, or maybe as a game warden, after graduation.

There was no indication he was suicidal. There was no sign of trouble in school and no sign of criminal activity or foul play, police have noted. The college senior's photo and Social Security number have been sent across the country and around the world. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have helped look. There was no cellphone and no credit card involved to trace, and he didn't have much cash, Beauregard noted in 2007.

The many days between when Williams was last seen and when he was reported missing vexed the investigation. Officers have no idea which way he went from the truck, or how far, or by what means. Did someone stop to pick him up?

Sheriff Johnson has said that he believes someone driving the forest roads northeast of Isabella — maybe a moose hunter or leaf watcher, maybe a logger or a fisherman — may have seen something 18 years ago. Maybe someone found a fishing rod or the comforter or the shotgun and just kept it, never thinking much more about where it came from. Maybe that person might still come forward.

Johnson has said that trying to find signs of Williams is a needle-in-a-haystack kind of effort, and he reminds people that there are several other cases of lost people never being found in the forests and lakes of Lake County.

Nathan was the Williams' only son. He would have turned 39 in May.

“He sure picked a beautiful place to disappear,” Dave Williams said in 2007, walking at the exact site where his son's pickup was found. “This is the last place we know for sure that he was alive. … This is a terrible place. But it's also the last connection I have to my son.”

Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Nathan Williams is asked to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 218-834-8385.

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Minnesota DNR to honor pilot who rescued Curtain Falls survivors

John Myers — Tue, 16 Jul 2024 21:28:39 GMT

BRAINERD, Minn. — For 17 days during a gut-wrenching, gut-busting search-and-recovery mission, much of the attention on the Curtain Falls accident in May was focused on the effort to find and recover the bodies of two canoeists.

The search in roiling waters along the Minnesota-Ontario border deep in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness took dozens of search-and-rescue experts, underwater drones and cameras, aircraft searching with infrared cameras, cadaver dogs, divers, boats, canoes, support staff and more. It captivated the state into June.

But before that search-and-recovery effort even started, Grace Zeller had already flown her Minnesota Department of Natural Resources MD-500 Little Bird helicopter into the accident scene twice, at midnight, to evacuate two injured canoeists from the same group who washed over the same falls and survived.

Her story hasn’t been widely told before. But for her efforts above and beyond the call of duty, and which may have placed her in harm's way in the effort to save others, Zeller will receive the Minnesota DNR Division of Enforcement Lifesaving Award at an event later this month.

Small DNR choppers not made for rescues

Zeller, 35, a natural resources pilot for the DNR’s enforcement aviation division, is based in Brainerd and usually earns her paycheck by flying the helicopter to conduct aerial wildlife surveys; stock fish in remote lakes; shuttle biologists into remote areas to conduct research; and sometimes to locate and fight wildfires if needed.

“It’s a small helicopter, four people, and we really don’t do rescues because we’re not set up for it. There’s no hoist (to lift people into the aircraft) for one thing,” Zeller noted. “We do search, not usually rescue.”

But on the night of May 18, Zeller received a call on her day off from her boss, DNR enforcement aviation leader Jake Willis, to see if she was able and willing to fly. Information was still sketchy, but it was clear something bad had happened in a remote part of the BWCAW, and there were no other aircraft available in the region capable of getting to and landing at that location.

“I told her she didn’t have to do it if it looked wrong, but she didn’t hesitate a second,” Willis recalled. “I said that if at any time she felt uncomfortable trying to get into that spot to turn around and bring it home. We could at least say we tried.”

Zeller rushed to the Brainerd airport, readied her chopper and zoomed to the Ely airport at about 130 mph. There, she picked up two veteran helicopter trauma medics and a third person experienced in helicopter rescues.

“The North Memorial (air ambulance) helicopter was already in Ely with their crew, but they couldn't get into the accident," she recalled in an interview with the News Tribune. "It was just too big of a helicopter, and it’s on wheels, and their policy is not to go into that situation at night. So their (medical) crew flew in with me.”

Other possible rescue aircraft, including the U.S. Forest Service’s famous Beaver float planes usually stationed in Ely, were unavailable.

“Really, Gracie was all there was anywhere in the region who could get in there,” Willis said. “I wasn’t sure it was going to come together in time.”

Landing on a rock in the dark

Rescue crews were already on the way into the accident scene by water, but it would be well into the next day before they arrived. It took Zeller’s helicopter only 15 minutes to get from the Ely airport to Curtain Falls.

“It was already dark-dark by then. There was a little finger moon shining on the water. One of the guys I had on board had night vision goggles so that helped find a landing zone,” Zeller said.

Her first chosen landing spot was on a small rock island away from the island where the victims were waiting. But an even better spot was found closer to the victims and Zeller eventually landed the helicopter on a bald rock outcrop on the same small island where the injured canoeists were located. The Little Bird is equipped with fixed skids to land on.

“I could see it was safe," Zeller said. "It was a flat rock, no vegetation, the trees were far enough away. It was safe with the tail rotor out over the river, so I put it down. It was firm enough where I could even idle it down. I wasn’t half-hovering like I was at the first spot."

Rescuers had been called to the scene by two other paddlers who had summoned help by satellite telephone.

“I never found out who they were, their names. They just said they were concerned citizens,” Zeller said.

The injured canoeists, Kyle Sellers, 47, and Erik Grams, 43, both of Ham Lake, Minnesota, “were lucky those other guys were there," she said.

The good Samaritans had a bonfire going to help Zeller locate the spot.

The Little Bird has no space for a stretcher, so the original plan was to drop off the medics who would stay with the victims and render first aid until daylight when a larger float plane could be called in to bring them out. But that changed to an evacuation once Zeller’s helicopter arrived on the scene and the victims were found able to walk and sit upright.

Medics brought the first victim, Kyle Sellers, to Zeller’s helicopter and, with the two North Memorial medics also on board, Zeller flew them out.

“He said he didn’t feel that bad, but it turned out that was probably the shock," she said. "He had quite a few lacerations, and he ended up having a fractured pelvis, I think. And he was hypothermic. The medical staff on board really knew their stuff. They were keeping him calm. It was fairly windy that night and it was a pretty bumpy ride and, when I found out he had injuries, I’m thinking, man he must have been hurting.”

She dropped her passengers off at the Ely airport and the North Memorial helicopter flew Sellers to Duluth for treatment.

Back in for the second victim

Meanwhile, Zeller topped off her fuel and then flew back to Curtain Falls to pick up the second victim, Erik Grams. (A fifth member of the canoe party, Jared Lohse, 33, of Cambridge, Minnesota, did not require any assistance.)

“He (Erik Grams) was in a little better shape than the first guy. But he was also hypothermic and ended up having some injury issues as well, so they took him to the Ely hospital,” Zeller said.

The canoeists, all experienced and all familiar with the area, had been fishing above the falls, where Crooked Lake tumbles down 30 feet into Iron Lake, before the accident occurred around 4 p.m. Amid the rain-swollen river, the paddlers got too close and were unable to fight the power of the water, capsized and were pulled underwater.

While Erik Grams and Kyle Sellers were lucky to have survived their near-downing, and while both ended up recovering completely, they are still marked by the loss of their two canoeing partners — a friend and a brother — who did not survive.

The St. Louis County Rescue Squad, with help from numerous agencies, including a Chinook helicopter from the Air National Guard, eventually found the body of missing canoeist Jesse Haugen, 41, of Cambridge, Minnesota, on May 31. The second victim, Reis Grams, 40, of Lino Lakes, Minnesota, was found June 3. It took a combined 6,000 hours of work by the all-volunteer squad.

Erik Grams told Minnesota Public Radio that the survivors are now working to move on with their lives. That includes going back to the Boundary Waters, where they plan to return to Curtain Falls next year on the anniversary of his brother’s death.

“This isn’t going to stop the love and passion for nature and the outdoors,” Grams told MPR. “That’s the way that Reis and Jesse would want it.”

From the mountains to Minnesota

For her part, Zeller said the into-the-dark rescue in the rugged, remote stretch of northern Minnesota “was definitely the most rewarding flight I've ever done.”

Zeller, who grew up in Cody, Wyoming, just outside Yellowstone National Park, cut her helicopter teeth flying in Oregon, California, and giving tourists rides over the Grand Canyon. She came to Minnesota in January 2022 to take the DNR job that offered fun flying opportunities with a natural resource focus, two of her passions.

She’s been a pilot for a decade and has more than 1,000 hours flying turbine helicopters like the Little Bird.

“I knew Minnesota was going to be flatter,” Zeller said with a laugh. “But it still has a lot of outdoor opportunities. It’s been a great job so far.”

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Boundary Waters dog rule clarified: On leash in campsites, not in canoes or while hunting

John Myers — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 15:16:28 GMT

DULUTH — Superior National Forest officials are trying to clarify regulations for dogs within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness after releasing official Forest Service regulations earlier this year.

The regulations — which apply across all parts of U.S. national forests — require all dogs to be on a six-foot or shorter leash at all times while in a developed area — including campgrounds, campsites, boat landings, hiking trails, portages, fishing piers, trails, etc. Dogs also can be kept in a crate or cage.

The rule has always applied to the BWCAW, officials note, although regular visitors have said it hadn’t been enforced much before this year.

On Wednesday, officials clarified that dogs do not have to be on a leash while in a canoe on the water, and that hunting dogs actively hunting — in water or on land — do not have to be on a leash in the woods or lakes, even if on a trail.

“Dogs endanger wildlife and barking intrudes on the experience,” the Forest Service in clarifying the regulations for dogs in the BWCAW. “Annually, visitors lose dogs within the BWCAW due to a run-away or wildlife encounter, please follow the law to protect your dog and wildlife.”

Forest officials also added that all dog poop should be disposed of “200 feet from water, campsites, portages, or put it in a latrine.”

“With respect to hunting, if you are participating in an active hunt, you can have your dog off-leash,” said Cathy Quinn, assistant manager of wilderness for the Superior National Forest. “If you are engaged in an active hunt and you’re out with a hunting dog that’s going to retrieve birds or point birds, you can have your dog off-leash.”

Officials said the minimum possible fine if an unleashed dog citation is issued is $50.

“In recent years, we have received feedback from the public, recreation managers, and wilderness rangers regarding dogs misbehaving on trails, portages, and campsites not just in the BWCAW, but in other areas of the Superior National Forest,” forest officials said in their statement Wednesday. “In sharing the official language from the code of federal regulations, we hope to raise awareness and educate visitors regarding responsible dog handling while visiting a National Forest.”

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