Minnesota man nears Lake Superior after 250-mile journey with a cause

Ty Olson is a 32-year-old filmmaker who lives in Minnesota.

As of March 5, Olson is in Cook County nearing the completion of a 250-mile expedition that is taking him from Rainy Lake to Lake Superior at Grand Portage. Olson is pulling his gear on sleds as he travels on skis through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and  across other border lakes. The purpose of his journey, which he is calling ‘Ski for Fire,’ is to raise money to buy firewood for people living on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

Olson teamed with the nonprofit organization One Spirit, a group of volunteers and tribal members who provide aid and assistance to the Lakota people.

Olson stayed near Gunflint Lake on the night of March 4 and is expecting to reach Grand Portage sometime Tuesday, March 9. WTIP is closely following Olson’s journey through the BWCA this weekend and plans to meet him next week in Grand Portage. Stay tuned next week for a full report.

Ahead of the journey’s conclusion, WTIP News Director Joe Friedrichs spoke with Jeri Baker, the director of One Spirit. The audio below is their full conversation that originally aired live during the March 5 Daybreak program on WTIP.