Journalist and writer Joe Friedrichs lives near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northeastern Minnesota. His books, Last Entry Point: Stories of Danger and Death in the Boundary Waters and Her Island: The Story of Quetico’s Longest Serving Interior Ranger, focus on in-depth storytelling from the canoe-country wilderness. An environmental and outdoor writer, he was recognized with an honorable mention for Journalist of the Year by the Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists in 2023. His writing has appeared in Backpacker, the Star Tribune, and Minnesota Outdoor News. In 2024, Friedrichs founded Paddle and Portage, a digital media company focused on the Boundary Waters.