Guided Day Eco-Tourism Canoe Trip in the BWCA

Going out on a Guided Day Eco-Tourism Canoe Trip with Moose Track Adventures Guide Service in the Boundary Waters is always an adventure. Canoe Country is the home to a vast array of mammals and birds and just spending one day out in the 'woods' can be awe-inspiring. Animals that are native to our northern region include moose, wolves, bears, beavers, bobcats, bald eagles and loons to name a few. Traveling by canoe in the BWCA lets you travel silently and allows you the best possibilities of seeing wildlife up close. Here are a few snapshots of what we saw on our trip today.

Beavers are active woodcutter and dam builders. They spend a lot of time in the water, using their tails as rudders and propellers when swimming. They can weigh from 28-75 lbs.

Bald Eagles can be seen perched in trees spying on their next prey or in flight catching food with it's sharp talons. Their length is usually 3 1/2 ft long.

The Great Blue Heron stands almost 4 feet tall. They choose the highest treetops for their nests. They feed mostly on small non-game fish, aquatic insects, crayfish, frogs and small mammals such as mice along with an occasional walleye, nothern pike or other game fish.

The Common Loon is Minnesota's state bird. Minnesota has roughly 12,000 loons (more than any other state except Alaska). The red in the loon's eye helps it to see under water for food.

The Painted Turtle is the most common turtle in the state of Minnesota. The legs and head of the painted turtle are black with yellow stripes. Females grow to 10" in lengths, while males only grow to 7" long.

Mammal/bird facts & information come from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources website.

Guided Eco-Tourism Trips in the BWCA & the fishing continues...

Happy Memorial Day to everyone. After a beautiful day yesterday in Ely, MN today is a bit cloudy and cool with t-storms in the forecast. Jim spent the day yesterday with customers on a Guided Eco-Tourism Day Trip to the Hegaman Lake Pictographs.

Here we are portaging our canoes from the parking lot to Hegman Lake.

Now that the vegetation is finally greening up they were able to sample some delicious 'cucumber like' Clintonia. Clintonia is an excellent substitute for cucumbers and add excellent flavor to salads...especially when you are in the Wilderness on a canoe trip.

Fishing was a bit more challenging this week which was primarily due to the constant change in weather patterns. Walleyes are still going pretty strong on jigs and minnows as well as Lindy Rigs and are being caught in 10-20 feet of water.


As always evening slip bobber fishing off the dock has made for some great entertainment and memories. We see that Claire is blossoming into quite the 'fishing chick' as she is always asking Jim to take her fishing (whether it be in a boat or just on the dock). She just loves playing with the minnows until her bobber goes down and then she dashes over to her rod that dad was holding onto and reels in her fish.

Customers have been catching some nice crappies as well as quality northern pike.