Mindful Paddling & Hiking Guide Services

Read and listen to a podcast about our Mindful Paddling trips with Exploring the North Shore:

What are “Mindful” Paddling and Hiking Trips? Not paddling hard or fast, or slinging the heaviest pack on your back, but being present to the experience; taking time in nature to see, hear, smell, taste and feel along the way. Slow things down; bring your camera, and be willing to be dazzled.

• Educational
• No experience or equipment needed
• Slow down, relax and enjoy the moment
• 4-6 hour Experiences
• Ask about customized Camping Trips

Just half an hour’s drive from Points Unknown, we’ll put into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness at Little John Lake, which is one of the most underutilized BWCA entry points, and paddle into John Lake. John is a lovely lake with steep cliffs (on top of which the Border Trail winds.)

We’ll paddle up a secluded inlet past beaver lodges and through an amazing sphagnum bog to a hidden lake. Additionally, moose have been seen along this route. Then, if folks feel like a hike–we’ll leave the canoe(s) and hike over the portage (2/3 mile each way) to East Pike Lake. After that, we’ll snack or picnic on a sunny rock, and swim in the lovely clear water of this wilderness lake. We’ll then make our way back. (If the hike sounds like too much, we can always pull up to a campsite on John and picnic and/or swim there.)

These trips will last between approximately four and six hours, door to door, depending upon your preferences while out. No paddling experience necessary. If it is very windy, we may alter our route and paddle on the Swamp River.

What to bring

• A lunch and snacks
• Bug repellent
• Sunscreen
• Small towel
• Swim suit (or wear it)
• Long sleeved light shirt or jacket
• Sun hat
• Waterproof shoes

Canoes, PFD’s and paddles are provided.

$359 for up to 2 people and $65 for each additional person up to 6.

General Trip Information

All of the tours and trips that Points Unknown offers are educational in nature. You do not need to know how to paddle to participate in the canoe trips and will learn what you need to know for a fun, safe and successful trip. Learning the flora and fauna in our unique area is just one of the highlights of any experience we provide. You may even spot some wildlife!

More Paddling Trips

There are numerous inland lakes near Points Unknown and we are happy to create a customized paddling experience on many of them with pricing similar to our BWCA John Lake Trip and based upon the experience desired.

Testimonial on Mindful Paddles Trip

“I’m still marveling at how time lost its sway over me when I participated in Points Unknown’s Mindful Paddling & Hiking Tour. I found the experience beautiful, profound, and a pure delight. I’ve lived in Minnesota for 30 years, kayaked on many lakes, rivers, and creeks, and played in snow-covered forests. But taking a guided trip into the Boundary Waters via canoe was brand new for me, and I loved every minute of it.

I learned the fine art of paddling as a team; saw whimsical tamarack trees and “starter-home” beaver lodges, floated quietly along a sphagnum moss bog teeming with flora I’d never seen before, and enjoyed moments of silence (my own) so I could truly listen to what life sounds like in an unspoiled wilderness area and what it means to me: peace. As with any of Points Unknown’s offerings (including dog-sledding adventures, which I’ve enjoyed there many times), this one was perfectly tuned to my skill level, ensured everyone’s comfort and safety, and cultivated reflection. The opportunity to spend the night in the pristine Guest Suite with its comfy beds and serene Northwoods decor extended the beauty of the trip. Kudos to Points Unknown for such a unique opportunity!”

Kathleen from Minneapolis, June 24, 2017

The Superior Hiking Trail is within a few short miles of Points Unknown. Grand Portage has a number of beautiful trail options. Other various hiking experiences can be found right out the front door of the Points Unknown Guest Suite. We are happy to point you in the direction of a self-guided hike or provide you with a full guide service trip for a fee based upon the number of people and the experience desired.

Base Hiking Guide Fee – $89/person

Canicross Hiking Trip

What is Canicross Hiking?

• Multiple options based upon experience level
• Instruction with your own dog or one of ours

Canicross Hiking (that includes one of the Points Unknown Sled Pets and all instruction learning the art of Canicross hiking) – $165/Person

Canicross Hiking instruction with your own dog! – $199 per person/dog team

Testimonial On Canicross Hiking Trip

“What an amazing day! Two days really. Linda and her crew took me out to the Boundary Waters, then today I went on a canicross hike with a few of her huskies. It’s a summer gig for the dos who I know would prefer the snow. I had a fabulous time!!! If you’re looking for a peaceful, contemplative time on the lakes, with good easy company and support, Point Unknown is your answer. I plan to return in the winter to have a dog-sledding adventure. I can’t wait.

Linda, the owner, is amazing. She’s knowledgeable about the natural setting, patient with city folks such as I am, generous of spirit and lovely with her dogs. Her dogs are well-trained and I always felt like they had my back. And I’m burning one of her beeswax candles softly fragrant and a nice way to remember the glorious day I had. I’m not the best at writing reviews. Just go there! Take a tour! Don’t leave the Northern Woods without visiting Points Unknown.“

@711margueriteg, Trip Advisor, Aug. 2020

We are so fortunate to have a wilderness area like the Boundary Waters on our doorstep. Its scale and beauty and wildness are known all over the country and even the world. And yet, it can be hard for people to go into the Boundary Waters: that’s why Points Unknown has started offering “Mindful Paddles.” Some people feel they are too old or they don’t have the equipment or they’re maybe not fit enough or their knee bothers them. And given the fact that those of us who live (or spend lots of time) in Cook County, see young (usually) men heading into or coming out of the Boundary Waters—that makes sense. If you overhear their tales, there are snippets—“yeah that portage with the knee deep mud for quarter of a mile…” “and when that wind came up and we were out in the middle of that lake” “that pack musta weighed sixty pounds”—you might think the Boundary Waters is just for the young, fit and macho.

By definition, wilderness is wild. In some ways it is the opposite of so much in our society that is about control, acquisition, being connected. Maybe that’s why some people feel the need to be macho, to ‘conquer,’ to beat the conditions.

I know the Boundary Waters as a transformative place—a place of peace, beauty, and life changing experience. I have come to believe that Sigurd Olsen was right when he wrote of this area as “the singing wilderness” and why The Wilderness Act (that set aside the Boundary Waters area as wilderness) speaks about the importance of a place where people are visitors, not permanent inhabitants.

That’s why I’ve taken groups into the Boundary Waters for years—to help all kinds of people feel safe enough that they can begin to realize that they are strong enough and able enough to be there. For almost twenty five years I’ve taken groups—mainly of women, sometimes youth, occasionally men—for multi-day BWCAW experiences.

Last summer, I joined forces with Linda Newman at Points Unknown to take people into the BWCAW for shorter four-six–hour trips we call “Mindful Paddles.” I know—the word ‘mindful’ is overused. But the idea at its best is about being present where you are, when you are, to what is there. I believe that’s what the Boundary Waters offers those willing to enter on its own terms.

A few hours looking carefully at a sphagnum bog with its pitcher plants, sundews, tamaracks and mosses; plants, fifteen minutes simply listening to breeze in trees, a Winter Wren, toads. A swim (or at least a foot dip) in a pristine lake. The feel of paddle in hand. Different kinds of ferns. All of these—seen, smelled and felt.

My hope is that those who experience this taste of wilderness on its own terms will want to come back. A few hours is too short, but it can be transformative. And sure, people can just rent a canoe and go in for a day, but it’s crucial, I believe, to feel safe enough to be able to deeply BE there. And this is our wilderness: we have this ‘glimpse of heaven’ here. 

Trip Cancellation Policy

We hope you’ll understand that we likely had to turn down others that wanted to paddle or hike with us at the very same time you have scheduled your experience.  If you do need to cancel, please do so as soon as you possibly can so that we can open this experience up to others that might be waiting. If cancellation does not take place prior to 30 days of your scheduled experience, we will retain the entire fee for your total experience, unless we are able to book your reservation date, then you will not be charged.