I’m an official voyageur and I can prove it. Here’s my certificate, awarded in the summer of 1963 while on my first Girl Scout canoe trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Quetico Provincial Park. I recall the trip fondly (tho’ I’ve forgotten the actual ceremony). The certificate is in pretty good shape. How did I manage to keep it?
Our 12-day expedition drew 20 mostly-rookie paddlers (plus proficient adults). We came from troops in northern Minnesota, with a few from Cannon Falls, Minnesota, and others from Minot, North Dakota. The first shock was to get our feet wet while loading the canoes. My paddle partner, Merrie, had to learn to steer. (Or maybe she already knew.)
Here’s my list of our route: Starting from Moose Lake out of Ely, we camped at Bayley Bay, Meadow Lake, two nights at Julie’s Island and four at a base camp at Lake Agnes. Then we reversed the order to return home and spent our last night at New Found Lake to get to the landing point earlier in the day.
I remember visiting Louisa Falls, watching moose and bear at a distance, and one day to the north end of Lake Agnes — if Boy Scouts could get that far, we could too. (Apparently we took a side trip to see the Painted Rocks — but I don’t recall it.)
Amazing what memories arise from a box of papers. Even more amazing that my ancestors, real voyageurs, had canoed those same places centuries earlier.
