On a summer afternoon towards the end of the Gunflint Trail, dozens of aluminum canoes line the shoreline of Gunflint Lake. Paddlers stretch, swap stories, and size up the competition. Some have raced for decades while others are climbing into a canoe for the first time.
For many participants and community members, the annual Gunflint Trail Canoe Races are a beloved summer tradition.
“It’s all about community members coming together to have an enjoyment of what this wilderness is built on—canoeing,” said Dan Baumann, a longtime participant of the canoe races and assistant fire chief with the Gunflint Trail Fire Department. “And having a friendly competition with it.”
Behind the laughter, competition, and community gathering lies a deeper story—one that stretches back nearly five decades and has helped sustain emergency services in one of Minnesota’s most remote areas.
The roots of the Gunflint Trail Canoe Races date back to 1978, when resort owners and community members along the Gunflint Trail sought a way to bring people together.
Gunflint Trail families and lodge owners, such as the Tuttles and the Kerfoots, were among those involved in organizing the earliest races, Baumann said. At the time, resorts along the Gunflint Trail were growing, employing more seasonal staff, and seeking opportunities to build camaraderie among neighboring businesses.
A few years later, in the early 1980s, conversations began about establishing a formal emergency response organization for the Gunflint Trail.
Lodge owners and residents recognized the unique challenges of providing medical assistance in such a remote area. In 1981, those discussions led to the incorporation of an all-volunteer Gunflint Trail Fire and Rescue Squad.
Following the organization’s formation, the canoe races soon took on a new purpose.
Rather than serving solely as a community gathering, they became a fundraiser for the newly formed Gunflint Trail Fire and Rescue Squad.
“During that time period, we survived solely on donations,” Baumann said, who has been involved since 1982 as an EMT. “That was the only way we made it.”
As participation increased, so did the races themselves.
By the mid-1980s, the event expanded drastically. Rather than hosting a single race each summer, organizers scheduled as many as six canoe races throughout the season at lakes along the Gunflint Trail.
Races were held at locations including Seagull Lake, Gunflint Lake, Bearskin Lake, Clearwater Lake, and Flour Lake.
Funds raised through the canoe races helped purchase medical supplies, training equipment, and other emergency or educational needs.
“The canoe races were a huge part of making it survive,” Baumann said.
Volunteer members of the fire and rescue squad organized the races and handled logistics, while competitors and lodge staff spent the summer traveling from lake to lake to compete against one another.
“It was all volunteer people planning it,” Baumann said.
The expanded schedule generated additional fundraising opportunities and strengthened relationships among resorts, residents, and seasonal staff. And it also intensified the competition.
Lodge staff often spent evenings practicing on the water, sharpening their paddling skills for the next race.
Over the years, the Gunflint Trail Canoe Races have included several distance-based races, such as long-distance and sprint races, as well as a crowd-favorite competition known as gunnel-pumping. Participants stand on a canoe and perform a series of squat-like movements to propel it across the water, with success measured by both speed and whether the individual remains in the canoe.
Over the nearly five decades of canoe races, friendly rivalries developed among lodges, with teams eager to see how they stacked up against their neighbors.
“There was always competition to beat Gunflint and Seagull,” Baumann said with a laugh. “They were always the tougher ones to beat, but if you beat them, you did good.”
By the late 1980s, however, the demands of organizing six separate races began taking a toll on volunteers. Gradually, the number of races was reduced.
The organization itself also evolved during that period. In 1991, the Gunflint Trail Fire and Rescue Squad officially became the Gunflint Trail Volunteer Fire Department, reflecting the growing number of residents, lodge owners, and staff who had stepped forward to serve as volunteer firefighters and emergency responders.
Today, the tradition continues as a single annual event hosted at Gunflint Lodge. While there have been slight changes to the races since the mid-1980s, community support remains as strong as ever.
The race is organized by volunteers throughout the Gunflint Trail community, including members of the Gunflint Lake Property Owners Association, who spend countless hours planning and coordinating the event each year.
Baumann also credits Gunflint Lodge owners John and Mindy Fredrikson for their ongoing support of the event and for continuing to host the annual race after purchasing the lodge from the Kerfoot family over a decade ago. John Fredrikson also serves as a volunteer firefighter with the Gunflint Trail Fire Department, giving him a firsthand connection to the cause the races continue to support.
“We’re very grateful for Gunflint Lodge and for John and Mindy’s support,” Baumann said.
Hosting hundreds of participants and spectators is no small undertaking, but the lodge continues to provide a home for the races year after year.
“It has such a great history for the place, and it’s such a good community thing,” said John Fredrikson. “It’s the one time in the summer that most of the neighbors get together, have fun and catch up, and do a little canoe racing, and it’s just a good time.”
Beyond the canoe races, the annual event includes food and refreshments, with proceeds helping support the Gunflint Trail Fire Department.
In more recent years, Fredrikson said the Gunflint Lodge kitchen staff have taken on much of the food preparation, helping ease the workload for volunteer organizers.
“It’s a long day for all of us, but it’s definitely worthwhile, and it’s great for the community,” Fredrikson said.
The 2026 Canoe Races
This year’s Gunflint Trail Canoe Races are scheduled for July 15 at 4 p.m. at Gunflint Lodge.
Another one of the event’s most recognizable traditions also returns in 2026: the annual raffle featuring a handcrafted canoe. Race-themed merchandise, including popular commemorative T-shirts, will also be available during the event, with proceeds benefiting the Gunflint Trail Fire Department.
For first-time visitors, Baumann said, the atmosphere is what makes the event special.
“It really is community,” Baumann said. “You see people enjoying one another, having conversations, telling canoe trip stories, and supporting a good cause.”
And while competition remains part of the appeal, victory is not always the most memorable part of the day. The stories are found in the near-collisions, unexpected upsets, and occasional capsized canoe.
“It’s a wet sport,” Baumann said. “If you make it to the finish line without getting bumped or flipped, that’s a great race.”
This year, there will be one new addition to the event following the races. Gunflint Lodge will be hosting The Sprigs, a local Gunflint Trail band who will be playing following the canoe races in the Northern Lights Lounge until 10 p.m.
“Just something to keep the festivities going and someplace for the racers to have some fun after the races,” Fredrikson said.
Nearly 50 years after the first paddlers gathered on a Gunflint Trail shoreline, the canoe races continue to embody the spirit that inspired their creation. Volunteers, residents, and visitors come together each year to strengthen community ties, support local emergency services, and celebrate life along the Gunflint Trail.