The wildfires in Northern Minnesota have now burned more than 64,000 acres of land. But significant progress has been made, and more of the BWCA is expected to reopen soon.
Nearly 70% of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is open for visitors but there are some restrictions in place, according to Drew Stroburg, the acting supervisor of the Superior National Forest.
"So they can't have campfires, they can't use wood burning stove or stoves or charcoal stoves," says Stroburg. "They can use propane or gas stoves if they need to, when they need to cook."
He says now they are fighting a massive perception problem, with people not wanting to make the trip.
"They said they've even had people canceling into next year," Stroburg explains. "Now, I'm not sure how widespread that is. There's a conception that amongst some people that the entire Boundary Waters is on fire."
And while that is far from true, Stroburg says it's all been devastating to those who make 90% of their income in July and August.
Still, as the eastern side of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is opening up on Tuesday today for campers, the U.S Forest Service says anyone who plans to visit should be self-sufficient, have a travel plan in place, know weather forecasts and fire conditions, travel with multiple means of communication, and understand the potential risks.
In fact, Stroburg says they are asking people with fall permits to consider giving them up, but not because of a fire risk. He says fall permits were completely booked before the fires broke out, and giving up permits is a chance for those that lost opportunities in July and August to still get to the wilderness.
"There's a good number of people that had permits during that time that were unable to come up on trips that may be able to come up in the fall," Stroburg adds. "But there are no permits available."
There's a Ely Wildfire Recovery Fund for people wanting to help. You can find more information on that here.
