Essential Packing Guide for a Boundary Waters Canoe Trip
There are few places in North America that offer the same combination of wilderness, solitude, and adventure as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. With
Northern Minnesota has always been canoe country.
The lakes, rivers, and wilderness ro utes of the North have shaped generations of paddlers, outfitters, and adventurers. They have also shaped the canoes we build today.
Many of the canoe designs found in the Redfeather lineup trace their heritage to Bell Canoe Works, a respected name that helped define modern composite canoe design. Known for lightweight construction, efficient hulls, and wilderness-ready performance, Bell earned a loyal following among paddlers throughout North America.
Today, Redfeather Outdoors continues that tradition. We build canoes for people who care about craftsmanship, performance, and spending time on the water. From first-time paddlers to seasoned Boundary Waters veterans, our goal remains straightforward: build great canoes and help people enjoy them for years to come.
The canoe world is full of brands that have come and gone. Very few leave a lasting impact.
Bell Canoe Works was one of those companies.
For years, Bell produced some of the most respected composite canoes on the market. Their designs became favorites among wilderness travelers, outfitters, racers, and recreational paddlers alike. Lightweight, efficient, and enjoyable to paddle, many of those hulls earned a reputation that continues today.
Redfeather Canoes proudly carries that history forward.
While materials and manufacturing continue to evolve, the principles remain unchanged: build lightweight canoes that paddle well, carry efficiently, and perform when it matters most.
For many paddlers, a canoe is an investment that lasts decades. We believe it should be built that way.
“I have been using one of Redfeathers’s canoes for a year or two now… they take care of their people.”
Lightweight built for paddlers who value efficiency and performance.
Designed for wilderness travel,
gear hauling, and long portages.
Efficient hulls built for covering miles on lakes and rivers.
Versatile canoes for families,
cabins, and everyday paddling.
Some products are designed in conference rooms.
Our canoes are shaped by places like the Boundary Waters, Quetico, Voyageurs National Park, and thousands of lakes across the Upper Midwest.
Long portages, changing weather, loaded gear packs, and countless miles on the water have a way of revealing what works and what doesn’t.
That’s why every Redfeather canoe is designed with practical performance in mind. We focus on lightweight construction, efficient paddling characteristics, dependable durability, and designs that make sense for real-world use.
Whether you’re planning a weekend at the cabin or a week-long wilderness route, your canoe should feel dependable from the first launch to the final portage.
For over 30 years, we’ve combined heritage design with modern materials to build canoes that last for generations.
From quiet lakes to rugged portages, our canoes are made to handle the realities of the Northland.
Lighter canoes means less struggle and more time enjoying the thing you love to do, being outside in nature.
Ask any paddler what they remember most about a long portage and the answer usually isn’t the scenery.
Weight matters.
A lighter canoe is easier to load, easier to unload, easier to carry, and more enjoyable to own. It allows paddlers to spend less energy moving their boat and more energy enjoying the experience.
That philosophy has guided many of the canoe designs associated with Bell Canoe Works and continues to guide Redfeather today.
The result is a lineup of canoes built for people who spend serious time on the water.
Redfeather Outdoors is one of the last remaining canoe and snowshoe manufacturers that still handcrafts every pair in the USA.
At Redfeather Outdoors, we build our canoes and snowshoes by hand in La Crosse and bring them north to our retail store in Ely, right on the doorstep of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Every canoe we make is proudly built in the USA, designed to handle real conditions and last for years of trips ahead. In Ely, we pair those boats with dependable gear, rentals, and straightforward advice, helping you get exactly what you need to head out with confidence, no matter your experience level.
Long before Redfeather entered the canoe industry, the Redfeather name was helping people explore winter trails across North America.
Today, our snowshoe lineup continues that tradition with models built for recreation, fitness, hunting, and backcountry travel. Whether you’re walking local trails or heading deep into the woods after a fresh snowfall, Redfeather snowshoes are built to keep you moving.
Inspired by life outdoors, our apparel collection features comfortable clothing designed for the trail, the campsite, the canoe landing, and everywhere in between.
Some of our favorite stories don’t come from us.
They come from paddlers crossing their first portage, families introducing children to canoe camping, and adventurers returning home with memories they’ll carry for a lifetime.
A canoe is more than a product. It’s a vehicle for experiences that stay with you long after the trip is over.
At Redfeather Outdoors, we’re proud to play a small part in those journeys.
There are few places in North America that offer the same combination of wilderness, solitude, and adventure as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. With
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This article is dedicated to the daytrips taken by our canoe expert, Tyler Suter, who also manages our Redfeather Outdoors store in Ely, MN. He
