Our Two Legged Team

Summer months, I work in the Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana as a horse packer and with trail crews, but even after spending six months in the wild mountains of the west I still look forward to coming home and working in the great northwoods and boundary waters of Minnesota. Seasonal work in the summer and winter allows me to travel in the shoulder seasons, so when I'm not in Minnesota or Montana I like to visit friends, family, and explore the world.

Favorite dog:

Joplin is one of my favorite dogs! She is one of the hardest workers, and best leaders that we have. Putting her on a sled can change the whole pace as she keeps all the other dogs in line and sets a good pace.

Favorite trail meal:

Pizza bagels over the campfire

Favorite thing about winter camping:

Simply being outside and being warm even when it is cold out.

I grew up in the lush forests of the Pacific Northwest and learned to ski on Mt. Hood as a kid. In the spring through fall I work as a wildland firefighter. Before that, I taught primitive and nature connection skills, outdoor leadership courses, and led teen expeditions in Washington, Oregon and in Germany. I love adventuring outside, surfing, backpacking, rock climbing. I've solo travelled extensively in Mexico in search of waves and to the jungles of Costa Rica to see one of the most biodiverse places in the world. I'm excited to explore the northwoods and to build a relationship with a new place that is pristine, beautiful and unique.

The BWCA brought me to Ely and kept me coming back. Camping with college buddies in the summer made me seek out a way I could spend more time in the Northwoods. After graduating college I landed a summer job as a Soil Technician with the Forest Service in Ely and when summer came to an end I had to find a way to stick around, which started my time at Wintergreen! Now for the past 2-3 years I've split my time between Dogsledding in the winter and Charting Fishing in Alaska over the summer. There is nothing quite like the Northwoods. Whether its drinking straight out of the lake, the sweet scent of pine in the air, or the chance to encounter amazing wildlife or the northern lights. Im excited to be your guide in this special place!

Favorite dogs:

Willow and Ole. These two show that sled dogs can be either be all business or all belly rubs.

Favorite trail meal:

Back Country Casserole

Favorite thing about winter camping:

Winter camping is always a learning experience. Whether its improving your clothing system or testing your campsite building ability, it is a humbling teacher.

Ian grew up in the Driftless area of Southeastern Minnesota but now spends most of their time in Western Montana, where they’ve been working on organic vegetable farms for three seasons. Ian spent several summers working at North Country Canoe Outfitters in Ely during college and took every opportunity to go solo excursions into the wilderness. Ian has experience assisting with guided backpacking trips and teaching wildcrafting skills in the beautiful coastal landscape of Big Sur, California. Ian has a deep love for winter and the landscapes of Northern Minnesota.

Favorite trail meal:

Mushroom risotto with parmesan!

Best part of winter camping:

The deep quiet of a snowy landscape

The wilderness surrounding Ely is what brought me up here. In my free time I seek out any excuse to get out in the woods or on the water. The wilderness is a place that I like to explore and learn especially about beavers.

Favorite dog:

One of my favorite dogs is Zephyr, because he's got the juice and he bounces off the walls with excitement.

Favorite trail meal:

Favorite meal is wild rice brats.

Favorite thing about winter camping:

Splitting kindling and making ice holes.

Growing up I went on a handful of canoeing trips in the BWCA. I then went to the local college in town for a couple years and thats how I got connected with Wintergreen. When I'm not skiing/dog sledding I enjoying walking long distances and backpacking.

Favorite dogs:

Growing up I went on a handful of canoeing trips in the BWCA. I then went to the local college in town for a couple years and thats how I got connected with Wintergreen. When I'm not skiing/dog sledding I enjoying walking long distances and backpacking.

Favorite Trail Meal:

My favorite trail breakfast has to be rice pudding with tapioca pearls and dried fruit. My favorite trail dinner would definitely be Polenta w/sun dried tomatoes, cashews and parmesan cheese.

Favorite part of winter camping:

Sleeping under the stars- winter is a great opportunity to try "cowboy camping"

Growing up, Bryan's favorite family vacations were to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. Later, during college, he got his first taste of working as a wilderness guide in Canoe Country with Camp Voyageur. Bryan would go on to earn his Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) from the University of Minnesota. He worked in a variety of practice settings all across the state, but the Northwoods kept calling to him. Since 2020, Bryan has been applying his medical background to his new career as a full-time wilderness guide; canoeing in the summer, and skiing and dogsledding in the winter. He also enjoys outdoor adventure in his time off. Last may, Bryan and fellow Wintergreen guide Kyle Emmans had the opportunity to paddle a canoe from Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge up in Ely, all the way to the Stone Arch Bridge in downtown Minneapolis. This is his third season at Wintergreen.

Favorite dogs:

Bob. He is simply an incredibly "nice" dog. Wears his heart on the sleeve of his harness. Not necessarily the hardest worker (as a lead dog, he has been known to turn the whole team back home after early if he's feeling lazy that day), but that just makes him all the more charming.

Favorite Trail Meal:

I take a lot of pride in my trail cooking, but the truth is everything tastes amazing when you are outdoors and the food is seasoned with hunger. A simple cheese quesadilla on a fire is hard to beat for me.

Favorite part of winter camping:

The adventure. While winter camping you get to do and see things that so few people ever get to experience.

Peter is Paul Schurke's son. He was born and raised at Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge. After college he worked as an EMT before teaching English in Ecuador. Peter then went on to complete the Arctic Guide program in Svalbard and has been a a ship captain in the high arctic for the past five summers. Check out an interview about his adventures here. 

Favorite dog:

Frazer forever

Favorite trail meal:

Chicken fajitas

Favorite thing about winter camping:

The peace and quiet of simply being in the wilderness.

After finishing an individualized major in journalism and natural science at St. John's University, Paul Schurke did graduate studies in environmental journalism at the University of Minnesota and worked as a science writer for many years. The year he graduated from SJU he and fellow SJU alum Greg Lais founded Wilderness Inquiry, a nonprofit adventure agency for disabled persons that has achieved international acclaim. His polar expeditions career began in 1986 when he co-led with Will Steger the historic International Polar Expedition. That resulted in a television special, a best-selling book, a cover story in the National Geographic, commendations from Pres. Ronald Reagan, and the Merit Award from the World Center for Exploration. In 1989 Paul built a Soviet-American expedition team that trekked from Siberia to Alaska in a mission of "adventure diplomacy" that led to opening of the U.S.-Soviet border in the Bering Strait. That resulted in personal commendations from Pres. George Bush and Pres. Mikhail Gorbachev, a National Geographic television special and a second award-winning book. In 1995 Paul worked with the Chinese Academy of Sciences to help China establish research programs in the Polar Regions and led the first Chinese team ever to reach the North Pole, a project hailed by Chinese leaders as a "milestone in China's efforts to become a global partner in scientific and environmental issues affecting remote parts of the world. In 1987 he co-founded with his wife Susan Hendrickson, Wintergreen Northwoods Apparel in Ely, MN, and Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge on White Iron Lake near the Boundary Waters.

Paul continues to lead major arctic expeditions and is often the lead instructor on advanced camping trips. 

I have guided dogsled trips on and off for Wintergreen since 1993. I like living in Ely because my circle of friends includes people from every decade of adult life. Even “ordinary” Ely people are extraordinarily adventuresome, and I have gone on ski, bike, and canoe-based adventures with them. As a guide, I think my “special sauce” is my penchant for helping people push themselves just a little farther than they thought they were capable of, and then serving up amazing hot meals to celebrate. I like working with the Inuit sled dogs that are directly descended from dogs that came from the Arctic, canine partners of the Inuit people. Every time we go for a run, we are touching a piece of history that largely no longer exists, the sustainable subsistence life that the Inuit people had, living off the land and hunting seals and polar bears with their dogs. That’s amazing!

Favorite trail meal:

Shrimp stir-fry!

Favorite thing about winter camping:

It doesn’t seem like you should be able to do it, but you can! After you learn a few strategies, you find you can even be comfortable. It lets us make adventures that we couldn’t do at other times of the year.

Northern Minnesota is great. I loved it up here ever since I first laid eyes on it. I got my start as a backcountry guide at Wintergreen in 2005. I started BWCA canoe trips a few years later. After coming and going from Ely for many years, my husband and I finally settled down in Embarrass Minnesota where we are developing a small homestead focused on sustainable living practices. The wilderness in this place is both beautiful and wonderfully complex. Even after nearly 18 years I love showing people such a delightfully unique place.

Favorite dog:

Tulu and Sam (-=.... Also Bugsy because she is old, bossy, and hilarious.

Favorite trail meal:

Minnesota quesidillas forever.

Favorite thing about winter camping:

The way nights in the wilderness feel. The extreme quiet and the stars.

Logan started guiding on Basswood lake while working at a resort at the age of 19 and has since moved to Ely to guide full time. These days he guides year round in Ely running sled dog trips in the winter and fishing trips in the summer. Logan is an Eagle Scout as well as a certified Wilderness First Responder. Fishing is his passion, so when having a day off in the summer or winter you can find him in his favorite secluded boundary waters fishing spots. His love for fishing all boils down to the desire to understand fish behavior, predict them, and reap the benefits of a good catch to make a fine meal. Logan loves to hear stories of travel and adventure and is always willing to share some northwoods tales of his own. This is his third season at Wintergreen.

Favorite dogs:

Brewster, he’s so fluffy

Favorite trail meal:

Wild rice brats

I was a student at Ely’s Vermilion Community College from 2019 to 2021 where I completed my A.A.S. In wilderness and park management. During the Summers I was a guide at Northern Tier boy scout canoe base where I learned the basics of guiding in the BWCA. After graduating I started guiding at Wintergreen in the Winters and leading canoe trips for a local boys camp in the Summers. I enjoy paddling, hiking, cross country skiing, and many other activities. I went on a memorable paddle in May 2023 with Bryan Halverson from Ely to Minneapolis, and I plan to make several more extended canoe trips.

Favorite dogs:

Alatna and Uno are some of my favorite characters in the kennel. They are among the most energetic and eager sled dogs.

Favorite part of winter camping:

Traveling over the frozen lakes and snow covered bogs on a clear day.