Geography
The BWCAW is located on the U.S.-Canadian border in the Arrowhead Region of Minnesota. Along with Voyageurs National Park to the west and the Canadian Quetico and La Verendrye Provincial Parks to the north, they make up a large area of contiguous wilderness lakes and forests called the "Quetico-Superior country", or simply the Boundary Waters. Lake Superior lies to the east of the Boundary Waters.
The continental divide between the Great Lakes and Hudson Bay watersheds runs northeast–southwest through the east side of the BWCAW, following the crest of the Superior Upland and Gunflint Range. The crossing of the divide at Height of Land Portage was the occasion for ceremony and initiation rites for the fur-trading Voyageurs of the 18th and early 19th centuries. The wilderness also includes the highest peak in Minnesota, Eagle Mountain (2,301 feet / 701 m), part of the Misquah Hills.
The two main communities with visitor services near the BWCAW are Ely and Grand Marais, Minnesota. The smaller town of Tofte is another gateway community. Several historic roads, such as the Gunflint Trail, the Echo Trail, and Fernberg Road allow access to the many wilderness entry points.
Read more about this topic: Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
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“Yet America is a poem in our eyes; its ample geography dazzles the imagination, and it will not wait long for metres.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)