UpNorthica

Here’s a pretty cool ‘backwoods hack’ to try next time you go camping. Or if nothing else, a fun game to play with the kids at night. The equation is based on Dolbear’s Law; more on that here. But here’s how it works:
1. Count the number of cricket chirps heard in 13 seconds.
2. To that [...]

Well, maybe not quite. But Doug over at MNBicycleCommuter has posted a trip report unlike anything you’ve seen in a while. Entertaining as the notion of cycling to the Boundary Waters may be, it should come as no surprise that people’s longing to get out in the northwoods, is still unabated by the fuel crisis. [...]

If you’re camping, say, in the Quetico, where are no latrines, you now have yourself an alternative to digging a ‘cat hole’ (and can I just say right now, I’ve always been totally grossed out by that term).
Shit Box is a collapsible and re-usable cardboard porta-potty, in the truest sense. It comes with 10 biodegradable [...]

I just got debriefed on “Stealth Gear” (that is, gear that promotes minimal-impact camping.) The podcast is the latest in a ‘leave no trace’ themed series at the Wildebeat.
Makes me thankful that there are people not only striving, but innovating, to preserve our wilderness areas. And even more thankful for a network of halfway [...]

Ironic that Minnesota’s oldest state park, should be the first in our state to adopt that 21st-century amenity known as wireless internet access. But Itasca State Park is making the woods safe for persons entirely dependent upon their laptops and Blackberries. Or at least through year’s end, as part of an experiment of sorts to [...]

This Saturday, over 20,000 people will be celebrating The Great American Backyard Campout to discover and share the joys of the outdoors – even here in our own backyards. Whether you’re a self-described ‘indoorsy-type’ or a seasoned Boundary Waters canoeist, we at UpNorthica want to do our part to get you outside. So let us [...]

Blame it on high gas prices, or on low motivation to unplug the Xbox, but nobody disagrees that Americans have migrated indoors in the past few years. That’s no small tragedy, as it means a whole generation is literally missing out on a world of discovery.
Guarantee yourself a great weekend while you help reverse the [...]

We recently spent a camping weekend, under siege by wave after merciless wave of invading mosquitos. Our best defense? A kid-friendly bug spray that was so safe on skin, the bugs were misting themselves with it as a moisturizer. I would rather have smoked them out by lighting my own hair on fire, if I [...]

Two things I learned this weekend. If you find yourself in, or near Superior:
DO… Visit Amnicon Falls State Park, where the Amnicon River thunders through serpentine chasms of glacial basalt, like a… like an ancient Thunder Serpent. The spray-veiled river views are wonderful; the staff conscientious; and as far as car camping goes, the [...]

It’s hard to go wrong when cooking Cajun jambalaya –  at home. “If it’s in the kitchen, it can go in the pot,” is about as close a dictionary definition of the word, as you’ll find. But how to make a trail-friendly jambalaya with minimum prep and dishes, without resulting in just a heavily-peppered Rice-A-Roni? [...]

In Part 1, we laid out some guidelines on how to tweak your BWCA trip planning, to allow for your kids. Today, let’s talk about what best solidifies a trip as a good memory for your kids: Co-owning it.

So, did your Boundary Waters camping experiences become limited at best after having kids? Do you feel like you need everyone potty-trained before you set your sights on a jack pine again? If you have borderline feelings about hefting the canoe while chasing the two year old for 160 rods, let us assure you: [...]

No packing list will ever be complete now, without one of these S’more 101 t-shirts. Gotta get me one o’ them…

As Minnesota commemorates its Sesquicentennial, it’s great to see a number of the celebrations are in the best places our state has: the Outdoors.
On June 1st, for example, day admission to all state parks will be free, as they host the “Great Minnesota Picnic.” The aim is to encourage folks to bring their picnic lunch, [...]

Seeing this photo reminds me of about a hundred perfect moments I’ve had in the BWCA.