BWCA – A Minneapolis man died after his canoe capsized on a lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) Tuesday afternoon.
Cook County Sheriff’s officials say they responded to a water emergency involving a capsized canoe on Sawbill Lake near the portage to Kelso Lake, which is 25 miles north of Tofte, Minn. in the BWCA.
Authorities say 75-year-old Niles Schulz of Minneapolis was paddling his canoe when a group he was with heard a splash and saw him standing up in an attempt to right his tipped over canoe. Schulz then went under the water. Members of the group attempted to locate him in the water, while another member of the party paddled out to call 911 from the Sawbill Canoe Outfitters.
Responders recovered Schulz’s body around 5:30 p.m. An autopsy will be completed to determine his exact cause of death.
Officials say Schulz was not wearing a life jacket. He was camping with two other adults and two children.
