Spice Lake wildfire prompts closure of a portion of Boundary Waters Canoe Area wilderness
NORTHERN MINNESOTA - The Spice Lake Wildfire continues to burn in Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in the Superior National Forest. The fire is located about east of Knife and Kekebabic Lakes and southwest of Seagull Lake and about 10 miles west of the Gunflint Trail. This area is about 55 miles north-northeast of Silver Bay, Minnesota, and about 100 miles northeast of Duluth, Minnesota You can see a rough map of the location of the fire below.
According to the latest update from the U.S. Forest Service, the fire is estimated to be around 22-30 acres in size. The fire was first detected on Tuesday, June 13th. Fire managers reportedly flew over the fire and noted that it was slowly burning in what they called a mixed Boreal forest made up of aspen, pine, and balsam fire trees and with the fire working toward an area of dead and alive Spruce and Budworm trees. The cause of the fire is still undetermined. The fire crews continue to battle the fire from the air through the use of aerial water drops from float planes as a 19-person hotshot crew is expected to be brought in to fight the fire from the ground. The video at the top of this article is from Bridger Aerospace and shows their Scoopers in action as they actively fight the Spice Lake Fire from above.
As of midnight on Friday, June 16, 2023, the fire prompted the closure of a portion of the BWCAW within the Superior National Forest by Forest Supervisor Tom Hall. The full closure from the Forest Service news release can be found here. A map of the areas that were closed can be found below.
Cover photo provided by Bridger Aerospace through the USDA Forecast Service
