Some BWCAW paddlers will need to find a new place to pick up permits this season

Some Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness paddlers will have to change where they pick up permits for their trips this summer.

Two U.S. Forest Service ranger district stations — the Kawishiwi office in Ely and the Gunflint office in Grand Marais — will not issue permits, the agency told permit holders in an email.

Paddlers can change their permit issue station online at recreation.gov.

Some of the dozens of outfitters allowed by the Forest Service to issue permits for the May-September quota season said they are prepared to process more permits in place of the ranger stations. In 2023, commercial partners outside the agency issued more than 19,000 quota season permits while the Forest Service issued 7,015.

Updated ranger office hours are online at fs.usda.gov/r09/superior/offices. The Tofte office is the only one of five, including the headquarters in Duluth, that will be open on weekends from May through September.

The staffing shortage and reduced office hours at ranger stations aren’t new. The Forest Service, which manages the 3 million-acre Superior National Forest and the BWCAW, last year froze hiring for this summer. The Tofte and Gunflint office hours were reduced in in August because of a staffing shortage.

Workforce cuts by the Trump administration this winter also have hampered the agency. One employee who requested anonymity after probationary workers were fired and others felt compelled to retire early said that the Superior National Forest staff was “in crisis mode” and already down 100 workers to 250.

Clare Shirley, owner of Sawbill Outfitters near Tofte, tried to tamp down concern online about the availability of permits after news of the ranger office changes circulated Thursday.

She said Sawbill will continue to issue permits as it and dozens of other outfitters and guides have done for decades.

“It is a well-established system,” Shirley said. “Of course, we want [paddlers] to be able to pick up permits at ranger stations, but this is not wholly unprecedented change.”

She said Sawbill is happy to step up and do more processing of permits.

Ginny Nelson, owner of Spirit of the Wilderness Outfitters in Ely, agreed.

Nelson said she and her staff are ready to give any new permit holders “some good education” as always. She also planned to notify customers on her mailing list Monday, knowing most will be unaffected but still might have questions.

Paddlers can expedite the permit pickup process by updating their information online ahead of time, Nelson said, including group members and even vehicle information. They also can watch the mandatory “Leave No Trace” videos online.

While acknowledging the Forest Service is going through a tough time, Nelson and Shirley didn’t give too much weight to the potential impact on their summer routine.

“[Permit issuing] already is something we do. You have to physically pick up your permit before your trip anyway,” Nelson said. “This just means where you pick up your permit is going to change.”

As many as 150,000 people visit the Boundary Waters each year.