Since I built a Northwoods canoe paddle in a North House Folk School class, it has decorated the corner of my living room. Serving as decoration, I always thought that it needed a design painted onto it–if I’m only using it for decoration, why not. For awhile now, I’ve been following Murat’s Paddle Making (and other canoe stuff) blog, and I’ve been inspired by both his paddle building skill and his decorating skills. When he posted a picture of Steve Pyne’s Māori decorated paddle, I knew that I’d found a design I wanted to use on my Northwoods paddle.

Steve Pyne’s Māori paddle is a carved masterpiece far beyond my woodworking abilities, so I decided to try to wood-burn the pattern onto my paddle. I had never wood-burned before, and, although not as skillfully burned as Murat’s paddles, I found the process of wood-burning a simple pattern easy and fun–well within the skill level of most paddlers.

For this design, I went through a little trial and error as I worked through the following process (pictures below).

Required Tools

• Flexible curve drafting tool
• Wood-burning tool- I used this Dremel.

Steps:

1. I outlined the design I wanted on my paddle based on Steve Pyne’s design. Although I didn’t follow his design exactly, I followed it closely. For outlining I used a flexible curve drafting tool, which I formed into the shape of the curves and then outlined with a pencil. I tried to mirror the design on each side of the paddle.
2. I burned the outline using a wood-burning tool. I found keeping a constant slow but steady speed prevented deep burn marks that look like ink blots. Also, pulling the burning tool towards me worked easier than moving it other directions.
3. Filled the space between the outlines with a set of curved burnt lines. I wanted to capture the look of Pyne’s carving, but I thought the wood burnt curves didn’t look very good.
4. I burnt the area between the outlines into a solid black. This made the pattern stand out.
5. Finished the paddle with heated tung oil. I heated the oil to just below the boiling point and then wiped it onto the paddle. I watched over the paddle as it dried and reapplied oil to areas that were drying out quickly. After about two hours, I wiped off the excess oil. I applied a second unheated coat in the morning and wiped it off after a few minutes.

After finishing the paddle, I took it into the Boundary Waters on my Hunt for the Viking Dolmen. The paddle still performs great and now it looks great. The orderly design contrasts with the chaos of nature and really stands out. Using it seems to impart a greater meaning into what was a simple paddle; the paddle becomes both a way to propel the canoe and a means to injecting meaning into each stroke. I don’t know why many Native American tribes decorated their paddles, but after decorating one myself, I see the attraction.  I will decorate future paddles I build. I’ve been eyeing the Malecite design recorded in Adney and Chapelle’s The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America.

Additional Resources

• Canoe Paddles: A Complete Guide to Making Your Own – Fantastic book about paddle building.
• The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America – All canoeists should own this book.
• Wood Burning Starter Kit- A high-end alternative to the Dremel.

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Photo: NASA

I live near the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) and on the shore of Lake Superior. Both locations are among the most pristine locations in the world. When paddling on Lake Superior, I can see what seems like forever into its depths–it looks cleaner than a swimming pool. On the inland lakes, I can paddle for weeks without seeing any of the adverse effects of mankind. There is no pollution to be seen. The wildlife is abundant. Fishing is world-class. When camping in the BWCA, the only sounds heard are the natural sounds of a clean healthy wilderness: the howl of a wolf, the call of a loon, or the hoot of an owl.

That could change.

Two large international corporations, PolyMet Mining and Franconia Minerals Corporation want to try sulfide mining near the Boundary Waters and Lake Superior. Pollution from the mines could enter waterways that flow to both Lake Superior and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Any arrant pollution could kill off wildlife, destroy our world-class fishing, and the noise from the mining could enter the BWCA ruining the natural wilderness properties that are part of its mandate. These mines could ruin the pristine wilderness properties paddlers hold dear.

Since the glaciers retreated, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area remained relatively untouched by human fingers. Its pristine nature allowed it to be recognized as official wilderness by the U.S. Federal government. I feel lucky to live in a location and live in a time that recognizes the intrinsic value of wilderness. This value–or spirit–provides a location that over 250,000 people a year can come to. They come to experience what our world was like before mankind significantly changed it, they come to interact with something they don’t have during their daily lives, and they come to enjoy a pristine lake country. While here, our wilderness allows the visitors to experience the feeling of exploration that our forefathers felt when first exploring the land. To lose this history, to lose this area to pollution, to lose this spiritual natural retreat would be a travesty to all Americans and to everyone in the world.

From the U.S. Forest Service:

The Boundary Waters was recognized for recreational opportunities in 1926, named the Superior Roadless Area in 1938, the BWCA in 1958, and federally designated under The Wilderness Act in 1964. It wasn’t until October 21, 1978, The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act was established to provide specific guidance for managing the million plus acres of the Superior National Forest.

The BWCAW has changed little since the glaciers melted. With over 1,500 miles of canoe routes, nearly 2,200 designated campsites, and more than 1,000 lakes and streams waiting, the BWCAW draws over 250,000 visitors each year.

From the Wilderness Act in 1964:

DEFINITION OF WILDERNESS

(c) A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain. An area of wilderness is further defined to mean in this Act an area of undeveloped Federal land retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions and which (1) generally appears to have been affected primarily by the forces of nature, with the imprint of man’s work substantially unnoticeable; (2) has outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation; (3) has at least five thousand acres of land or is of sufficient size as to make practicable its preservation and use in an unimpaired condition; and (4) may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.

Wilderness is Fragile

We face many choices in our lifetimes, and we all try to make the correct choices. Some of the choices that we’ve made stemming from our way of life involves the use of the metals that PolyMet and Franconia Minerals Corporation want to extract from my backyard. I try to do my best to recycle. I try to live my life with limited electronics. I try to live a minimalistic lifestyle. This website site is even about lightweight–minimalistic–canoe and kayak travel. But I also like our modern lifestyle. I like gadgets. I like the products stemming from the metals these mega-corporations want to mine. For me, it becomes a debate between the spirituality of wilderness and the mind driven process of our modern lifestyle. In that debate, wilderness always wins because its so fragile.

Wilderness is fragile, because once the wilderness is gone, it rarely comes back. It disappears when polluted, and it takes a massive amount of work and time for it to return–if it can ever return. When I hiked the Appalachian Trail, I hiked through the Lehigh Gap Superfund site. On a mountain that once was beautiful all that remained was a devastated landscape that looked like the world had died. The devastation at Lehigh Gap occurred because as the Lehigh Gap Nature Center says “decades of air pollution resulting from 20th century industrial zinc smelting in Palmerton through the 1970’s, much of the mountain at the Lehigh Gap Refuge and in surrounding areas was deforested, eroded, and left with high levels of zinc and other heavy metals.” Lehigh Gap serves as an example of how fragile wilderness is and how hard it is to gain back. Despite all the time volunteers toiled away trying to restore the massive devastation at Lehigh Gap–and I very much appreciate their time–they’ve only been able to reintroduce 11 species of native grasses, which they are enhancing with native forbs. Their efforts and successes give us reason to celebrate, but even with all their hard work, the result is a far cry from the species diversity of true wilderness and the original Lehigh Gap mature hardwood forest. Lehigh’s fate is one that the Boundary Waters must avoid.

Losing Wilderness to Pollution

Imagine losing the wilderness and the spirit of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness due to pollution from mine–from a mine using a technique never attempted before in Minnesota’s lake country. Imagine losing the spirit of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness due to a mining technique with a poor track record of being able to stop pollution. Imagine paddling into a lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness to find your pristine lake changed in color to the muddy red of pollution from acid leeching iron from the rocks. Imagine a lifeless Boundary Waters lake. Imagine no fish to catch. Imagine no howl of the wolf. Imagine no call of a loon. Imagine no hoot of an owl. Imagine the only sounds you can hear at night are the constant pounding of drilling, the blasting of mining, and the massive sounds of motorized mining equipment.

It could happen.

U.S. abolitionist, Wendell Phillips (1811 – 1884) once said, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty–power is ever stealing from the many to the few.” I think conservationists could safely rewrite this quote to read, “Eternal vigilance is the price of wilderness–power is ever stealing from the many to the few.” The American people own the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. We hold the wilderness in trust for the enjoyment of everyone in the world, and we are charged by U.S. Federal law to maintain its wilderness character. It is yours and mine to enjoy, and it’s yours and my responsibility to preserve. If we allow PolyMet Mining and Franconia Minerals Corporation to attempt these sulfide mines, and if or when pollution occurs–the damage occurs–we will have let the powerful few steal our pristine lake country and our precious Lake Superior away from us.

Don’t allow this to happen.

• Please, watch the following film.
• Please, take action against sulfide mining in Minnesota.
• Learn more about sulfide mining in Minnesota.

Experts believe fifth-century Vikings placed a dolmen—a large stone perched upon three small rocks—somewhere in the Boundary Waters.

Join us while we hunt for the Viking dolmen.

Kelso River Boundary Waters Route

Lakes Used: Sawbill Lake, Kelso River, Kelso Lake, Kelso River, Kelso Lake, Alton Lake, Sawbill Lake
Length: 1 to 2 days
Distance: 9 to 10 miles
Elevator Pitch: A short scenic day trip, that works as an overnight. Paddle along varied terrain including birch forests, bogs, small and large lakes. The highlights include many large beaver lodges and the mysterious Viking dolmen.
Description: Start at the campground on Sawbill Lake. If you need a canoe, rent one from Sawbill Outfitters. Head north, passing the narrows into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA). Follow the western shore until the bay half-way up Sawbill Lake. Portage into the Kelso River.

The Kelso River is a narrow passage through a bog. Watch for beaver. Along the south and western shoreline look at the edges of the bog to find pitcher plants. Follow the river to Kelso Lake. Near the end of the lake are two campsites–both offer good tent pads and nice scenery. The furtherest north site offers more privacy.

To find the dolmen, continue paddling north along the Kelso River. Before you reach Lajenida Lake, you’ll see the dolmen on the eastern shoreline. It’s easy to miss, so keep your eyes peeled. Many people attached different legends to the dolmen–some of them are: it’s a Viking marker; it marks an ancient copper mine; it was built by bored U.S. Forest Service workers; or it is a glacier erratic. Some say the dolmen had runes–now gone–carved into it. Please, respect the dolmen. Opposite the dolmen is a trail that leads to the old Kelso Mountain fire tower.

After investigating and wondering about the dolmen, paddle south. Kelso Lake forks and you’ll want to take the western fork to a short portage into Alton Lake. Hug the eastern shore until you find the portage back into Sawbill Lake. Then paddle back to the campground.

Boundary Waters Route Map

View Kelso River Loop: Viking Dolmen in a larger map

If you’re into mysterious places in the Boundary Waters, check out Magic on the Rocks. It’s a good read about pictographs in the BWCA.