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Final arguments were heard on April 28 in the legal case that could determine the future of towboats in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Judge Nancy Brasel did not make a ruling following the arguments.
At stake are how many motorized boats the U.S. Forest Service should allow certain businesses to operate in the BWCA Wilderness.
Motorized boats and commercial tows inside the wilderness line are a significant issue as the Forest Service revisits the plan it uses to manage the BWCA Wilderness. In 2023, a court ruling denied a request from the environmental group Wilderness Watch to immediately stop motorized towboat usage in the BWCA Wilderness.
Monday’s hearing lasted for approximately 90 minutes. The hearing started two hours earlier than scheduled due to the potential for severe weather in the Twin Cities area. The hearing took place in Minneapolis.
During the hearing, the legal team representing Wilderness Watch shared a summary of their final briefs that were recently submitted to the court, while frequently referencing the number of tows that occur on Moose Lake near Ely each year.
David Fuller, an attorney representing the U.S. Forest Service, said in his final remarks that the federal agency is already doing a review of its forest plan for the BWCA Wilderness and that the lawsuit should be dismissed.
There is not a timeline for when Brasel will make a ruling in the case.
Motorized boats and commercial tows inside the wilderness line are a significant issue as the Forest Service revisits the plan it uses to manage the BWCA Wilderness.
In 2023, a court ruling denied a request from the environmental group Wilderness Watch to immediately stop motorized towboat usage in the BWCA.
The June 2023 ruling came about two months after the news of a court case that put in jeopardy the longstanding practice of using motorized towboats to help Boundary Waters visitors get started on their wilderness trips.
The idea behind tows, in part, is that the Forest Service allows the use of towboats to assist canoeists starting their journey, dispersing visitors deeper into the million-acre BWCA Wilderness. It also helps paddlers get a jump start to travel faster across Moose Lake near Ely, and other lakes including Newfound and Sucker, as they approach the Prairie Portage Ranger Station into Quetico. Some outfitters at the end of the Gunflint also use the towboat service on Saganaga Lake to help paddlers reach Quetico Provincial Park via the Cache Bay Ranger Station.
On the west side of the wilderness, shutting down tows or reducing the tow capacity would impact Williams and Hall, LaTourell’s, and Spirit of the Wilderness, among other outfitters. On the eastern side of the wilderness, altering how many or shutting down commercial tows would impact Tuscarora Lodge and Outfitters, Seagull Outfitters, and Voyageur Canoe Outfitters most prominently. The ruling would have a much larger impact on the Ely area, where many canoeists receive a tow across Moose Lake each season, as well as other lakes in the Ely area.
In 2023, Judge Nancy Brasel said that halting the tow services would impact the ability for “older visitors and visitors with limited mobility” to experience the BWCA.
