Our Stories

Mapping the Future in Minnesota

Mapping the Future in Minnesota Dedicated volunteers and partners have been establishing a route for the North Country Trail for more than 40 years, but notable gaps remain. One in particular is in Northern Minnesota, in the Arrowhead Region where the North Country Trail extends southwest from the Kekekabic Trail. A passionate group of volunteers […]

2025 NCTA Staff Introductions

Kenny Wawsczyk, Regional Trail Coordinator Kenny’s venture into “the trail world” began in 2007 when he packed up his backpack and went to work through an AmeriCorps program, spending the majority of the five months in the Emigrant Wilderness (Stanislaus National Forest, California). While it was the most mentally and physically difficult experience of his […]

After the Storm

After the Storm by Dan Dueweke Most hikers volunteer on familiar local trails, but occasionally, a chance arises to confront nature’s raw power in an extreme environment. That opportunity arrived on October 11, 2021, when an EF2 tornado devastated a mile of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, blocking the Border Route and North Country Trails. […]