Seagull Outfitters crew relies on endurance, community to complete Ely Challenge

Three staff members from Seagull Outfitters braved the darkness of Lake Saganaga, relied on the generosity of the Ely community and pushed through aching muscles to complete the Ely Challenge last month.

The challenge is a 24-hour journey across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, running east to west from Gunflint Trail entry points to Moose Lake Landing. Participants must then hitchhike into Ely, mail themselves a postcard and hitchhike back to their canoe before paddling to their starting point.

Dwight Griffith was one of the Seagull Outfitters staffers who completed the challenge. Griffith first heard about the event from former schoolmates and was inspired after following a group from Voyageur Outfitters that completed the trip.

“Just to actually do that much paddling in one day would certainly be something I’ve never done, and something I think I would find rewarding,” Griffith told WTIP. “So we just kind of decided to go for it, and it was all of those things, and more, and grueling, and beautiful, and fantastic.”

Griffith is an experienced paddler who has spent most of their life on the water. They began working in canoe outfitting while in high school and are in their second season at Seagull Outfitters. The other two staffers also brought extensive paddling and navigation experience to the challenge.

Contributed photo of the Seagull Outfitters crew partaking in the Ely Challenge 

“I’ve been paddling most of my life, started out river paddling, the majority of it, but have started to explore the Boundary Waters over the last five years or so, and I’m trying to see it all,” Griffith said.

Completing the challenge within 24 hours meant navigating Lake Saganaga in the dark. One of the largest lakes in the BWCAW, Saganaga can be difficult to navigate even in daylight.

“There’s lots of islands to follow,” Griffith said. “I think what ultimately really helped is all three of us regularly will drive tow boats out on Sag, so the route from the landing to like the American Point area or Cache Bay, there is a common one that I can navigate with my eyes closed at this point.”

While paddling made up the bulk of the challenge, the group also had to rely on the BWCAW community to complete the Ely portion of the journey.

“It’s almost 30 miles from Moose Lake Landing into downtown Ely, so to walk it would definitely mean you cannot complete it in the 24 hours, so we were a little nervous about that at the beginning,” Griffith said.

A group of camp counselors gave the crew a ride into Ely, and another outfitter drove them back to Moose Lake Landing.

“It was really fun to work with another outfit like that, and think if someone pulled up on our dock and needed this service, I would absolutely help them out with that,” Griffith said. “We have a great community up here in the Boundary Waters.”

WTIP spoke with Griffith about maintaining morale during the grueling journey, the gear required for the challenge and what aspiring participants should know before attempting it. Audio of the conversation can be found below.

Josh Hinke July 10, 2026