Canoeist dies in the BWCA

On Friday at around 5 pm, canoeists in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area called 911 after finding a capsized canoe and a partially submerged, deceased human body. The canoe and body were found approximately 25 miles north of Ely on Lake Agnes.

When members of the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff’s Office Rescue Squad, and U.S. Forest Service arrived on scene, they recovered the body. The canoeist has been identified as 62-year-old Duluth resident Mark Ham.

According to the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office, a life jacket was located on scene but was not worn by the victim. It was later learned from family that Ham was on a solo camping trip in the BWCA.

With the opening of the Minnesota fishing season this weekend, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office and Rescue Squad would like to remind everyone to please wear their lifejackets while out on the water this summer.

This incident remains under investigation by the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office and Midwest Medical Examiner Office.