With Its Legality In Limbo, Harvest Camp Begins Planning For Winter Occupation

The legality of the Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Harvest Camp remains in question, but the people there are making plans to be there all winter.

Just off a gravel road in the woods southwest of Hurley, LCO member and camp manager Mel Gaspar welcomes a group of visitors. Gaspar helped set up the camp earlier this year on property that was long ago occupied by Native Americans, but is now Iron County forestland.

Gaspar says people who stay at the camp are documenting many other edible and medicinal plants that will be useful to society for years to come.

The tribes say they’d like to stay on the property, which will pose a problem for Gogebic Taconite (GTAC) if it moves ahead with the large iron ore mine it wants to open just a few miles away. For now, Iron County officials have also raised the issue of the campers possibly breaking the law by violating a two-week limit on staying on county land.

But Steve Fowler, one of the Saint Croix tribal members who have joined the camp, says tribal campers have the legal right to stay thanks to treaties guaranteeing hunting, fishing and gathering rights.

“The government always has some finger in it somewhere trying to put a little scratch in [those rights],” says Fowler. “We don’t need that.”

But some in Iron County who are proud of the history of now-closed mines in the area question the scope of the treaty rights. Leslie Kolesar chairs the Iron County Committee looking at the impact of the proposed mine. She says the rights question is one for lawyers to decide, but that the campers’ extended stay makes some people uncomfortable.

“As Iron County residents, we’re only allowed to camp on land for two weeks at a time,” says Kolesar. “When you have different sets of rules for different groups, I think it creates some acrimony.”

Chris Jaekels is a Milwaukee attorney advising Iron County. He says a state law pertaining to county forests may force the county to take a firm line. “One of the big issues that Iron County is trying to understand right now is, is Iron County required to take some action to stop this use – because they could be decertified as a county forest.”

LCO tribal officials say they’re continuing to negotiate with the county over a longer-term permit for the camp. A decision could come next month.

Meanwhile, Saint Croix tribal member Wayne Swett prepares to cut firewood used for cooking and for heat on cooler nights at the Harvest Camp. Swett is also helping build a winter wigwam, as several of the campers say they don’t plan to leave anytime soon. Swett says he knows what nights in the Northwoods can be like.

“The first night we stayed out here, we froze butt,” says Swett. “It was cold. But you get used to it after a while.”

Swett and other campers say the thought of what the iron ore mine might do to the nearby woods and waters gives them energy. Camp organizers say they hope a Native American fundraising event on Madeline Island this weekend will provide some money to help cover costs at the Harvest Camp.