Paddle and Portage Podcast

After a week of questioning from members of the press, Congressional staff, business owners, and people who are feeling left in the dark, Canadian officials are still being vague when it comes to the future of the Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) Program.

Luke Reimer, a spokesperson for the Canada Border Services Agency, told Paddle and Portage Nov. 19 that the Canadian agency “regularly assesses its programs to respond to current service needs and evolving trends.”

Part of assessing the current status of RABC permits includes dynamics focused on “ensuring the safety, security, and prosperity of Canada.”

With nothing in the way of a public announcement, the Canadian government in late September “paused the processing of new and renewal applications” for the RABC program that allows travelers to cross into certain remote parts of the Boundary Waters region. The podcast duo analyze the latest on the situation in this episode of the podcast. 

Also discussed in the episode is Canoecopia 2025. Tickets should be booked now for the largest paddling expo in North America. 

In this update from the road, we hear about a tour Bear Paulsen and Joe Friedrichs took of the Bending Branches facility in Wisconsin, share audio from an event for Last Entry Point at Fitger's where Rick Slatten and members of Mark Ham's family spoke, and M Baxley brings us an update from Emily Ford. 

This episode of the podcast is sponsored by:

Bent Paddling Brewing Company

Solbakken on Superior 

Not everything about winter camping is pleasant. It can be cold, windy, and basically one giant bundle of brutal. Other parts can be, and often are, magic. Sunsets. Solitude. Adventure.

The Winter Camping Symposium is a gathering to celebrate the arrival of winter and the gear that allows us to embrace the cold months in places like the Boundary Waters. The annual event celebrated its 25th year in 2024. 

Some of the Paddle and Portage team were on site for the event this year. They share stories that show the event is very similar to winter camping: It's beautiful, and it's not immune from the complexities of human interactions and experiences.

This episode of the podcast is supported by:

Voyageur Canoe Outfitters 

Loons Nest Coffee

Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply 

The U.S. Forest Service is facing a budget cut for 2025. 

Looking ahead to the 2025 paddling season, if some of the seasonal backcountry staff are absent from the BWCA Wilderness it could dramatically impact the visitor experience, Forest Supervisor Tom Hall acknowledged during a recent public meeting in Grand Marais. 

“How do we make sure that we’re doing the right thing out on the land, in the Boundary Waters, with digging latrines and cleaning portages and any of those other sorts of services?” Hall said. “And so how do we meet those critical needs, knowing that we don’t want to close the Boundary Waters?”

Hall and the Forest Service on Superior National Forest hosted an open house at the Tofte Ranger Station Oct. 30 to discuss this and other topics relevant to the Boundary Waters and surrounding area. Paddle and Portage attended the event and shares this update on what the budget cuts for the Forest Service could mean for the next paddling season. 

This news update on the podcast is supported by Solbakken on Superior and Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness. 

Erin Walker and Jon Kelly are the duo behind the Lost Lakes YouTube channel. They live on an inland lake not far from the Canadian shores of Lake Superior.

This summer, Erin and Jon embarked on a three-week, 280-mile (450-kilometer) canoe trip into the subarctic barrens. It was a journey of many firsts: their first time in Nunavut, their first encounter with the subarctic taiga, and by far the most remote expedition they had ever undertaken.

Erin shares details about the experience in this episode of the podcast.

This episode is sponsored by:

Tuscarora Lodge and Canoe Outfitters

Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply

Bent Paddle Brewing Company

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness

Ely Outfitting Company

Solbakken Resort on Superior