The lottery for 2011 permits for entry into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is open until January 15, 2011 for BWCAW visitors who hope to assure themselves permits for specific entry points on specific dates.
The online lottery for BWCAW visits between May 1, 2011 and September 30, 2011 precedes the first-come-first-serve permit reservation system which open on January 20, 2011.
BWCAW visitors who wish to participate in the permit lottery can do so, HERE, at the recreation.com web site. Faxed or mailed applications, and payments made by check and money order are no longer accepted. Only successful lottery applicants will be charged the $12 registration fee and any applicable overnight user fees.
Lottery results can be viewed online between January 16 and January 20.
On January 20, BWCAW visitors seeking permits can reserve them online at recreation.gov or by phone at 1-877-444-6777.
The BWCAW lottery was established to fairly distribute available quotas for entry dates and entry points where demand exceeds availability. The lottery process awards permits via computer-generated, random selection.