A Year in the Wilderness ― Four Seasons in the Boundary Waters

From adventurers and educators Dave and Amy Freeman, a passionate and beautifully illustrated account of a year in the Boundary Waters.

The Boundary Waters—with over twelve hundred miles of canoe routes—are one of our national treasures, yet their existence has been consistently threatened. When the Freemans learned of copper nickel mining in the area’s watershed, they decided to take action. They would speak on behalf of the Boundary Waters. And they would do it by spending a year in the wilderness.

This book tells the story of that year in northern Minnesota. In visceral, immediate language and gorgeous photos, the Freemans show us the value of wilderness and why we must protect it. We hear loons whistling softly under a moonrise. We taste lobster mushrooms cooked over a fire. We watch a pine marten stalking a hare through winter’s first snowfall. We linger, reverently, at the edges of a silent lake after other campers have gone home.

With the magic—and urgent message behind it—that have brought an international audience to the Freemans’ cause, A Year in the Wilderness is a rousing cry of witness activism and a stunning tribute to this special region.

Dave and Amy Freeman’s expeditions have taken them over thirty thousand miles by canoe, kayak, and dogsled through some of the world’s wildest places, from the Amazon to the Arctic. National Geographic named the Dave and Amy Adventurers of the Year in 2014 and their images, videos, and articles have been published by a wide range of media sources from the CBC, NBC, and FOX to the Chicago Tribune, National Geographic, Outside, Backpacker, Canoe and Kayak, and Minnesota Public Radio.