It’s nice that we want the same things

The funny thing about the way we are going about getting up into the northern reaches of Minnesota is that to simply sell our home outside of the cities and purchase a home up north would be far too easy, and almost seems like cheating to us.

In fact, this cartoon hangs on our refrigerator and sums up our relationship to life (and to one another):

Our journey started with a search for a property that would tick all of the boxes: one where we could live, work, and play; with plenty of room to grow over the years. The original business idea was to start a sort of outfitter; to offer guests a place to stay and the equipment necessary to get out into nature in whatever capacity they desire. We found what we thought would be an ideal spot in western Ely, but, failing to strike a deal on that property, we were forced to reevaluate.

We quickly learned that purchasing an up-and-running resort or outfitter was out of the question. Finding a home that could double as the business we’d dreamed up was also cost-prohibitive. Building from scratch was daunting for every reason outside of cost.

After a long period of research and meditating on the few hundred questions we had regarding the ways in which we could pull this off, I found what I thought could be the perfect spot. I was hopeful that upon seeing it we would both be inspired by the blank canvas.

The land was 264 acres in the Finland State Forest, about 30 minutes inland from Lake Superior. (On Google maps, it is closest to the bustling metropolis known as Murphy City and for all we know, Murphy is the only resident of this impossibly small town.) Despite heavy logging some 60-70 years ago, this area of the state still very much exudes that pure natural beauty most of us only get to experience on screens.

The cover image from the original property listing.

One of the biggest draws for me to this particular piece of property was the river frontage on the Baptism River. While researching the area, I had discovered that this section of the river held a healthy population of naturally reproducing brook trout. Being an avid fly fisherman, it all seemed almost too good to be true. Kate, however supportive she may be of my fly fishing, would need quite a bit more proof.

Of interest to us both was the direct road access, the proximity to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (30 minutes to the nearest entry point), and most importantly: the very fair price tag. Kate also has several friends who’ve gone through the Wolf Ridge ELC’s Naturalist Program, all of whom were happy to vouch for the awesome community in and around Finland.

So with both of us excited about the prospect of leaving it all behind for this sparsely populated town named after a sparsely populated country, we found ourselves bouncing down a dusty dirt road on a warm September Saturday.

A view from the shore of one of the wider parts of our stretch of the Baptism River.

So how does one go about inspecting a small forest that you wish to purchase? The only answer we could come up with was to just dive on in!

We bushwhacked around the property for maybe thirty minutes, including Kate wearing our three-month-old infant. We established that yes, there was indeed plenty of high ground in the front twenty to build a cabin. So with that box ticked, I switched gears to focus on the river frontage.

I hoofed it to the dirt road and back to a bridge we had crossed to get there, following the river downstream for a bit. A “bit” quickly turned into a “bunch” and as I started down a somewhat well beaten path I started seeing moose tracks — quite a few moose tracks, and some were very fresh. The path was a game-trail for moose almost exclusively as there aren't any deer in the area, and, as far as I could ascertain, not heavily fished enough to warrant such a clear trail.

Coming to a bend in the river with a small muddy beach, and a decent view both ways, I stopped to take it all in. Looking down, I saw two big bear paw prints in the mud and immediately I got a tingle on the back of my neck telling me I wasn’t the biggest, baddest thing roaming these woods. There were definitely some giants in the neighborhood.

With that extra jolt of adrenaline, I hustled my way back to the road where Kate and the realtor were chatting, a big smile plastered on my face. I was prepared to make an offer on the spot, but luckily saner minds prevailed and we were able to negotiate a great price on our future.

And now, as I work nonstop on rehabbing a trailer — just one more step in what may seem to some as an unnecessarily difficult and drawn-out process to realize our dream — I fill my days thinking about all of the wonderful adventures our family will have in Minnesota’s north woods.