Outfitters welcome return of campers, canoers to Boundary Waters after wildfire closure
Campers and canoers are starting to return to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
The BWCAW has been closed for more than two weeks due to wildfires.
The largest fires were in the Bear Trap area of the Boundary Waters. About 35,000 acres burned in the Bear Trap Fire.
But Thursday morning, 41 BWCA entry points reopened for day and overnight use.
"We haven't had a group go in since July 12, so yes, it's good news," said Grant Hopke.
Hopke has only owned Seagull Outfitters in Grand Marais for two years. Canoes that should be in the water during the busiest time of year are sitting on racks thanks to more than 25 wildfires in the BWCA.
"We are talking in the ballpark of $8,000 to $10,000 a day that we are losing out on, on revenue," said Hopke.
But with the fires now nearly 60% contained, entry points near Seagull are opening up. Hopke said they have a group of campers scheduled to go into the BWCAW on Saturday.
"We have seen a little bit of some traffic pick up today in relation to that. But it's still nowhere near the kind of traffic and the number of people we should be having up here at this time of year," said Hopke.
He's hoping August and September will bring a return to normal. Blayne Hall is hoping for the same.
"You work 30 years building up a business and within a second, it's gone," said Hall.
Hall is the owner of Williams and Hall Outfitters in Ely. They were forced to evacuate for more than a week — a first for his company.
"We had somebody in the air from Switzerland who was flying over the day before to go on a once-in-a-lifetime sort of trip, and that's a microcosm of the issues," said Hall.
Because they were under evacuation watch, Hall said the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service has yet to reopen the entry points near him. But he's cautiously optimistic that will happen soon.
"They are a lot wiser than I am and I'm sure they are trying to make that decision in a very conservative way. We have to just wait until they come through with a decision," said Hall.
Businesses said that recent rains in the area, including Thursday morning, have greatly reduced the threat of fires in parts of the BWCAW.
