Northern Minnesota Businesses Reminding The World ‘We’re Still Open’ During Wildfires

Over the last week, far northeastern Minnesota has been in the headlines as wildfires in and around the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness exploded, quickly growing in size and closing down the BWCAW.

Smoke from these fires and many more further north in Canada created a thick plume of smoke that impacted Minnesota, Wisconsin, and places as far as the East Coast last week and into the weekend.

While the fire situation has indeed closed the Boundary Waters and forced the cancellation of the 2026 Ely Blueberry Arts Festival, a big event in the region, businesses in communities in this part of Minnesota are now trying to break through the headlines and images seen on the news to remind tourists these towns are still open.

Ely is one of those communities being hit hard by this issue. With the BWCAW currently closed, anyone who might be traveling into town to embark on a trip into the wilderness has stopped coming. The US Forest Service is exploring ways to reopen parts of the Boundary Waters, which would help. But even beyond outfitters and the BWCAW, there is still plenty to enjoy in the area.

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Tanner Spicer, the president of the Ely Chamber of Commerce and owner of Voyageur North Outfitters, spoke during a wildfire update event on Sunday night. He explained that summertime is peak season for the Ely area, when businesses make the money that helps them get through the winter.

He addressed the cancellation of the Blueberry Arts Festival and closure of the Boundary Waters, and how both of these things have significant economic impacts on the community.

While there are efforts to seek relief funding from state and other resources, Spicer explained that the chamber is trying to get the word out that "Ely is not completely closed". While there are some impacts from the nearby fires, local shops, restaurants, lodging, and other businesses are still open and ready to welcome visitors.

While the Blueberry Arts Festival was cancelled for this weekend, one of the key reasons for that was to avoid an influx of 40,000 people into the region while emergency response teams also deal with wildfire-related concerns. Seeing a normal flow of summertime tourism traffic is much more manageable for the local infrastructure.

Spicer explained, "Ely itself is not on fire" at the end of his comments. That is the obstacle Northern Minnesota resorts, shops, and other tourism businesses are trying to get out as people from farther away might just be seeing the smoke and flames from a distance, thinking the whole region is shut down.

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Businesses in Grand Marais have been heading to social media to share a similar message that they are indeed open and ready to welcome visitors.

While thick smoke has blanketed the North Shore at times, local business owners have been sharing videos showing there have still been plenty of days without any significant smoke. Some have also pointed out that the wildfires are more than 40 miles away from Grand Marais.

While some of the evacuation zones may extend closer to town, the immediate fire threat still remains quite a distance away from places like Grand Marais, Grand Portage, and other North Shore communities.

With all of that said, a lot of people around the region feel compelled to ask what they can do. One of the most impactful things would be to support these local businesses during this challenging time.

If you plan a trip to visit, support those local businesses in the area. Even if you don't, something as simple as making an online purchase from a business in that area that offers online retail can be helpful.