A Black Bear Swimming Across Knife Lake in the BWCAW

Seeing wildlife in its natural setting is one of the great treats of a Boundary Waters canoe trip.  Our guide, LynnAnne Vesper, snapped this photo of a young black bear swimming across Knife Lake this week.  Seeing a black bear on trail is particularly nice when it's not sniffing around for your food pack.

Cow and Calf Moose on the Moose River

It's an aptly named river.  Our guide, Max Pittman, took this photo recently while paddling down the Moose River.  Our guests, John and his boys, got mighty lucky to see this cow and calf moose (in the background in the river) up-close!  We've had more moose sitings on the Moose River north from BWCAW entry point 16 this summer than any place else.

Why we do what we do

This photo of Boundary Waters Guide Service is courtesy of TripAdvisor


Sharing the Wilderness with people is a real privilege.  When guests share a Boundary Waters experience with us, and then provide feedback, it really matters.  Thanks to our recent guest, Rick, for sharing the following feedback:

I contacted Jason, the owner of the service and booked a two night, three day guided trip for myself, a friend and my two kids ages 8 and 11. My kids have never been camping before, so I was a little worried that they would not have a good time in the wilderness. Jason was a pleasure to deal with and after asking me several questions about what we wanted to get out of the trip, he suggested a route for us, and arranged for us to get our entry permit.

We met Jason and our guide Max the day before the trip started at Jason's shop. Both Jason and Max immediatley put us at ease and did a great job making the kids excited about the adventure the next day. It was obvious they truly wanted us to have a great time. From the moment we hit the water until we left, it was a blast. Max was awesome: great cook, great guide, funny and smart. The kids loved him. We found a terrific campsite on an island that even had a great rock cliff to jump off of. The food was top-notch, as was all the equipment. It is clear that Jason takes pride in providing the best of everthing for his clients. This was no cattle call operation as is the case with other outfitters. We will be back. My kids are already asking when we can go again. Thank you Jason and Max for a wonderful experience that we will not forget.