Location

In your quest for the wilderness we become friends…

Spirit of the Wilderness Outfitting and Outdoor Store is located on the east end of Ely, Minnesota.  We are centrally located to service all the Ely area Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness permit entry points. Our guests find us an easy one-stop shop before they head into the BWCAW or Canada’s Quetico Park to the north.

• We offer complete and partial canoe or kayak trip outfitting, canoe and kayak rental as well as transportation to and from entry points.
• We also offer our own towboat service on the Moose Lake Chain into Basswood, Snowbank Lake and Burntside Lake to Crab Lake portage.
• Our outdoor store includes live bait and fishing tackle, retail sportswear and camping gear.  
• Need your kevlar canoe repaired or reconditioned? We are noted for doing repairs correctly at a competitive rate.

Steve Nelson, owner and guide of Spirit of the Wilderness, started canoeing the Boundary Waters when he was in Boy Scouts.  He has a passion for traveling and introducing others to the BWCAW.  Steve started out as a high school science teacher in Mankato, MN.  After budget cuts left Steve out in the cold, he moved on to sales and marketing in the animal health field. As a self proclaimed “Corporate Dropout” Steve and Kathy decided to purchase Spirit of the Wilderness, formerly Hill’s Wilderness Trips in 1999.

Kathy Nelson, owner of Spirit of the Wilderness, the brains behind the scene, has been traveling the BWCAW since her first trip with Girl Scouts in the 1960's.  Having grown up in near by Chisholm she found many opportunities to canoe and fish northern Minnesota.  Kathy enjoys holding hands, long walks on the beach and a fine bottle of wine. Kathy is also the master-mind behind her US Bancorp district manager.  She keeps the reports in order and keeps the branch managers in line.

Ginny Nelson, owner and manager of Spirit of the Wilderness, grew up camping and canoeing during family vacations.  It just took one trip to the BWCAW to get her hooked on wilderness adventures.  She paid her tuition and dues at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and decided to go into business with her parents.  Before heading to Ely, Ginny worked for Eastern Mountain Sports for half a decade and learned about retail and the finer side of selling and merchandising outdoor equipment.  Married to Rob Nelson, Ely area fishing guide extraordinaire, she can talk fishing with the best of ‘em!

Luke (or Lucas) is the one that really keeps us all in line. He is the lovable Labrador-Chesapeake mix that greets our guests. His curly black coat is really a “bad hair day for a Lab”. We try not to feel too hurt when our guests stop in to first visit with Luke before talking to us. He has a following from New York to California. He loves walks in the woods, jumping off docks and swimming until Steve thinks he’s going to drowned. Luke thinks he’s the one hired to sample minnows before the fish do, to make sure they are of the finest quality.  Luke is nuts about Frisbees and would be happy to show you his keep-away and tugging abilities, but don't be surprised with his laid-back attitude.  He is known for sleeping in the retail store and people literally step over him and he does not move.