CO Anthony Bermel (Babbitt) reports spending the early part of the week on a BWCAW patrol with CO Lawler. Great weather was experienced, with plenty of people out enjoying the wilderness. Enforcement action included no PFDs, cans and glass in the BWCAW, and no license in possession.

Try being a BWCA ranger for a day or two and you see it all. My favorite was four dudes going from Seagull to Alpine with a plywood cabinet, took four of them to portage it. Full of canned veggies and bottles of Ragu.

I once wrote a warning to a guy with a bottle of Tabasco sauce. It's only
three inches tall, he said. I almost, almost wrote him up over that comment,
glass is glass. Then he said, I have glass glasses. Guess who got a ticket?

Yes, I agree.

What was the fine for cans or bottles?

This was back in the '80s, pretty much every fine was $100, have no idea
what they charge nowadays, maybe some violator will weigh in on their fines?

Point being don't give lip service to a ranger. I then moved on to the
department of corrections, for sure you don't lip off, otherwise you might
be digging latrines in the BWCA.

Savage Voyageur: "What was the fine for cans or bottles?"

Not sure, but had a friend throw a cigarette butt out his car window decades ago and the Highway patrol made him pick trash up for over a mile of highway. Maybe they should have to spend so many hours picking and cleaning campsites or double the fine.

They had multiple violations so I think they got hit in the pocketbook well.
Actually, some fines you pay the fine and like a $200 handling fee to process the fine. That is the way of highway fines now, anyhow.

1lookout: "This was back in the '80's, pretty much every fine was $100, have no idea
what they charge nowadays, maybe some violator will weigh in on their fines?


Point being don't give lip-service to a ranger. I then moved on to the
department of corrections, for sure you don't lip off, otherwise you might
be digging latrines in the BWCA?"

This was actually MN DNR Conservation officers.

1lookout: "I once wrote a warning to a guy with a bottle of Tabasco sauce. It's only
three inches tall, he said. I almost, almost wrote him up over that comment,
glass is glass. Then he said, I have glass glasses. Guess who got a ticket?"

On my drive up for a Q trip years back, I felt a cold coming on so I picked up a glass bottle of cough medicine. Glass was all the gas station had. I wasn't going to bring it in until I specifically asked about it when I picked up my permit. She said medicine in glass was allowed.

I looked up the BW rules just to see what was current. Fuel, insect repellent, medicines, personal toilet articles, and items other than food and beverages may be kept in their original containers.

Is a metal can of bug spray is still legal too?