Prologue

It had been two years since the Burrito Bag Bandits had gotten together for a high adventure trip. The previous trip to BWCA kept us in our home state, but still gave us the freedom of being out in the wilderness with just our planning and skills to keep us alive and safe. For our next trip, it was suggested we do something a bit more exotic to take us further into the BWCA, deeper into the wilderness than a couple of portages provided. Our trip leader, Gary, knew of a handful of resorts on the west end of the BWCA that would jet boat a group, their gear and canoes along the Canadian border (where boats are allowed, not on the U.S. side), and drop off at locations that give a group flexibility to enter BWCA (or the adjoining Quetico Provincial Park on the Canadian side) from a few different spots. These locations would take days to portage to from various entry points in the U.S. and Canada, so these boat shuttles get you deep in to "the shit" where humans are scarce, fish are abundant, and paddling and exploring are at a premium. In addition, a bonus was dangled in front of the unsuspecting Bandits - no portaging! From the boat shuttle drop-off point, we simply canoe a few yards across the border into the lakes of western BWCA!

Well, call it the ol' "Bait and Switch" (Joe does). In the early stages of planning, Gary decided to up the "wow" factor and take the Bandits into Quetico Provincial Park, which is even more remote and exotic than the BWCA. Need proof? Ask a Minnesotan about the BWCA, and you will get 100% acknowledgement. Ask them about Quetico Provincial Park, and most will look puzzled: "Quetico?  Must be a cross between Quaaludes and Costco." Even if they know what it is, most people have no idea where it is. That included me and the other Bandits, complaining that we refused to ingest mind-altering drugs administered by a warehouse chain.

So, over the winter of 2014-2015 the planning conversation changed from "no portaging" to "a few portages", but still included the boat shuttle. The Bandits were still on board, knowing that our aging bodies were, well, only getting older, and if Gary could pull it off in his condition (recent cancer remission), we were too ashamed to back down. Except Joe, who jokingly laments to this day, "Where was I when these plans changed???" Must have been on one of his frequent visits to the beer frig.

All 6 of the 2013 BWCA Bandits were in, but there were some scheduling conflicts. Just like 2013, the best time was the week after Memorial Day, when visitors and bugs would be scarce, and fish would hopefully be biting. Weather? That's always a crap shoot in MN/Canada. In the end, Steve-O had to back out, leaving the remaining 5 Bandits to fend for ourselves. Steve is an animal when it comes to portaging - and fishing. We may not miss his fishing as much, but we would surely miss his portaging prowess.

That left Gary, Joe, Jeff, Chuck and Kevin to plan and execute the trip from May 30 - June 6, 2015.

After pouring over maps of Quetico, we decided on a circular route that would have the boat shuttle drop us off at one Quetico entrance point, we camp and portage through 8-10 incredible Quetico lakes over the course of a week, and have the shuttle pick us up at a different exit location.

Listen......there, did you hear it? Way off in the distance, a faint cry still echoing through the universe: "WHERE WAS I WHEN THESE PLANS CHAAAAAaaaaaaa........"