12/22/24 – One more inch of ice has been added since the last measurement, but otherwise things seem about the same out there. The total in front of the landing now clocks in at 5″ clear ice, with another 5″ of compact frozen slush on top of that.

After drilling a couple test holes Chile and I went for a short walk up the eastern shore. The thermometer read 18°F before we headed out for the walk, but it sure didn’t feel that warm. Just enough of a breeze and some sort of mist in the air prompted an about face by the time we reached the half way point of the campground. -Jessica

12/19/24 – Earlier this winter we received the following customer inquiry and it had some of us a bit stumped…

Found your interesting trip planning info online when I was searching for evidence of old CCC camps. About 40 years ago my husband and I were on a trip from Malberg Lake going east and happened upon an old camp with huge picnic tables. I believe it was right before Dent Lake. Obviously built by the CCC in the 30s. Do you happen to know what I’m talking about? I’d love to figure out which lake that was. Didn’t write it down!

Luckily, our very own Bill Hansen had some insight.

Thanks for your question.

During the CCC era, visionaries like Aldo Leopold and Bob Marshall in the U.S. Forest Service were pushing for wilderness designation of wild areas all across the country, recognizing that a constituency of wilderness recreation enthusiasts would help their cause. A huge amount of CCC effort was dedicated to the BWCA Wilderness, known then as the “Roadless Area.” Ancient canoe routes were mapped and improved with extensive “improvements” to portages and campsites, including portage grading, bridges and canoe rests. As a part of the effort, beautiful and massive log tables were built on campsites, along with log docks at the ends of portages. Signs were installed, not only on portage landings, but along lakeshores to guide travelers along established routes.

The log tables rotted out fairly quickly, so in the 1960s the Forest Service started replacing them with stained tables made from dimension lumber. They concentrated their efforts on the most popular lakes and larger lakes that allowed them to fly in the disassembled tables with their Beaver aircraft. The more remote routes, like the Louse River where you traveled, retained their log tables and docks into the late 1970s and even the early 1980s in some obscure locations. One of the last log tables that I’m aware of (probably the one you saw) was on Zenith Lake which is on the Louse River route east of Dent Lake. It may also have been Frederick Lake or even Mesaba, depending on how long ago you were there.

The treadwork that the CCC did is still plainly visible on many portages–if you really look for it–a testament to an era when people were remarkably skilled with stone and wood. Remnants of the docks are still visible too, especially along the Louse River route, with rusting spikes in preserved logs under water. After the 1964 Wilderness Act made the BWCAW a formal part of the wilderness system, the Forest Service gradually abandoned all the CCC amenities for users’ convenience and emphasized work that protects the resource itself–things like the fire grates, privies and  erosion control. The signs, canoe rests and picnic tables are all just memories now. Although some old-timers grumble, I believe this policy is much more in line with the intent of the Wilderness Act, which eloquently says, “A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his 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.”

I hope this was helpful.

Sincerely,

Bill Hansen
Former owner of Sawbill Canoe Outfitters

12/13/24 – We’ve been receiving a few emails recently asking how thick the ice is on Sawbill Lake. Up until now the conditions have either been too cold, too windy, or I’ve been too chicken to venture out onto the early season ice. This afternoon I finally worked up the gumption to go see what’s what.

After gathering the necessary tools I gingerly made my way out onto the lake, probably only 20 paces or so. With what felt like a few rotations of the auger the hole was quickly drilled. Upon consulting the official ice measuring stick I found no more than 4″ of ice with about 5-1/2″ of somewhat compact slush on top of it. For reference the DNR recommends a minimum of 4″ of new clear ice for travel on foot, but I couldn’t tell how clear this ice was since it was under a bunch of slush. Personally I prefer more like 6″ or more of solid ice so after taking proper documentation I retraced my steps back to shore. -Jessica

12/10/24 – This past weekend winter arrived in earnest. The festivities started off with a round of snow, followed by freezing rain, then more snow. All of that resulting in just over a foot of the white stuff now blanketing the woods.

Today fluffy flakes continue to fall, but at a much slower rate than the past few days. To highlight the vibe of the day I’ve included a few videos I took this early afternoon. -Jessica

12/4/24 – Ever wonder what Sawbill’s own Bill Hansen is up to following retirement from the outfitting business? WTIP North Shore Community Radio recently released this short film highlighting just that.  -Jessica

11/25/24 – Today marks the first snow accumulation of the season along with some notable skim ice and slush along the shore.

The past few days the skim ice has all but disappeared by midday. Today, however, that has not been the case and this weeks forecast is predicting highs in the 20s and lows in the teens. It seems as though permanent freeze up is near… We shall see. -Jessica

11/18/24 – The season of shortening daylight hours is upon us, and the snow buntings on the road are our signal to start up the snowmobile and set shovels by doors on the porches. While we’ve continued to have a warmer than usual fall, the nights are reliably dipping below freezing and there’s skim ice along the bays in Sawbill most mornings now. We are in the quietest month for Sawbill, with very few phone calls and no visitors. We use this time to reflect on the whirlwind of the past paddling season, take a little time off, and keep making progress on some of our longer term projects. Some of our best thinking happens on long walks with Sawbill dogs Huckleberry and Chile. We prioritize getting out into the woods onto trails that become impassable once the snow is deep. Dry conditions with a rapidly freezing ground and no leaves (and no bugs!) makes for great forest exploration.

If you’re in the market for a refurbished used canoe, Dan has been plugging away at them in the workshop slowly but shirley 😉 We have a few available currently with more coming in the next couple of weeks. Keep checking the used canoe page for updates and feel free to reach out with any questions. Our canoe sale always takes a little longer since Dan goes over each one individually, getting it professionally refurbished and prepped for a lifetime of use.

-Clare

11/8/24 – Quiet in the Northwoods as of late, so figured I’d share some pictures of lichen I took a couple days ago while out on a sunny midday walk.

Lichen are actually two organisms, fungus and algae, working together. The fungi provide the shelter, while the algae provide the sustenance. For more information I highly recommend checking out this article from the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer. -Jessica

10/19/24 – We are big fans of a good theme party here at Sawbill. As per tradition, October calls for a spooky dinner followed by pumpkin carving. The fall crew has been hard at work putting away canoes, shoveling out fire grates, and counting inventory in the store. After a few nights of good old fashioned cold temps, the weather has returned to be unseasonable warm. There’s a little rain in the forecast which we could sure use! Despite the ongoing gorgeous fall, we’re still closing up shop tomorrow. We’ll of course be around all winter, available by phone or email to help you plan for the 2025 paddling season 🙂

-Clare

10/15/24 – Wrap up mode is upon us. The parking lot has one lonely car, the campground is mostly empty, yesterday we had two customers walk through the door, we’ve begun winterizing the store, and the Forest Service is currently moving the canoe landing dock to it’s ice up home away from home.

Due to freezing temps overnight all of the outside water has now been turned off. This includes throughout the campgrounds, in front of the store, inside the shower house, and the dump station. There will be limited services available (cleaning/stocking of outhouses and garbage pick up) at the campgrounds through October 20th, but if staying at Sawbill, Temperance, or Crescent Lake be sure to bring your own water or have a plan for water gathering. Standard campground fees apply.

In the next couple days we’ll also start putting the canoes away for the winter, so if you’re trying to get in one last paddle we’ll be sending out aluminum or plastic canoes depending on what is accessible through the 20th. We’ll be available from 9am-ish to 4pm-ish up until that point, but after that see you in the spring! -Jessica