Just east of Ely Minnesota the Pagami Creek fire was first noticed August 26th. 2011. After month’s of fire fighting the crews finally got it contained. This was the largest recorded fire in the State of Minnesota’s history. The summer/fall of 2011 was its driest in 140 years. If you were to put Minneapolis, St. Paul and another city the size of Minneapolis all together, it would be the size of the Pagami Creek Fire. This was very unfortunate that all this devastation happened in the pristine wilderness of the BWCAW. Due to the Pagami Creek fire many entry points and campsites have been shut down in the area. With these closures people are making reservations at different entry points.
This will make it difficult to obtain a permit through the summer of 2012. The USFS will reopen these areas once they know its safe for the public to travel. The Western entries of the BWCAW are 50 to 60 miles away from the Pagami Creek
Fire zone. To get more information on the western entries please give us a call or email to Anderson Canoe Outfitters.