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bryanhansel.com
Photographer and photo workshop leader specializing in seascapes, landscapes & nightscapes. Fav place: Boundary Waters. A good Minnesotan. Grand Marais. Learn more at www.bryanhansel.com. I write at bryanhansel.substack.com and at paddlinglight.com.
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Sunset in the Boundary Waters from approximately 20 years ago. It plays a role in my latest essay, which will come out on Substack on Sunday.

So the people that Republicans deem worthy enough to keep their health insurance at all are now also going to be told by the government where they can and can’t go to get birth control and pap smears and cancer screenings? Got it. Gross.

The Republican public lands selloff is back, and just like the waking dead, it won't go away. This time it would require the sales of up to 1.2 million acres of BLM land near towns. That's where much of the outdoor recreation infrastructure exists. Call your senators and representatives.

In honor of Prince's Purple Rain album, which was released on this day in 1984, here's purple rain in the sky.

I took this photo back in 2009 at Blue Mound State Park. I wish I could retake it now knowing everything that I know.

The proof copy of my Northern Minnesota Gravel Ride Guide just showed up. It looks really good.

Ten years ago today we had this amazing northern lights display over Lake Superior in Northern Minnesota. That's Grand Marais in the distance. Over the last ten years, the town lights have gotten much bluer and brighter.

Secretary of State Rubio today on TV today: Forget about intelligence. America did that last November.

I messed around with a macro setup today. I think this is about 1.5x or so.

I'm trying to document the official canoe routes outside of the Boundary Waters before they disappear from federal websites. The maps for this one are already gone from the USFS website, so I've included it in my article. www.paddlinglight.com/articles/twi...

A long sea kayaking trip sounds good right about now. And, yes, I did camp here.

AMEN

Rainbow over Espresso shop Browning, Montana June 19, 2005 Nikon D70

Not the ideal roadblock between you and the trailhead

This spot just outside of Grand Teton National Park would be potentially sold off under the Republican's budget bill. This is on Shadow Mountain, which is a popular place for camping and viewing the Tetons.

Nodding trillium, wild strawberry, and Canadian mayflower

The Senate Budget Reconciliation bill was changed over the weekend to authorize the selling of 258 million acres of your federal land. The first selloff must be finalized within 30 days, then every 60 days the bill would require more.

The Superior Hiking Trail used of offer folded maps on 11x15" paper that folded up to 5.5x3.75". For fun, I wanted to duplicate the design but make it my style and make it printable on 11x14" paper. This has a lot of work to go, but this where I'm at with it.

My latest essay about photography is Photos of Just One Morning. bryanhansel.substack.com/p/photos-of-...

A Democratic legislator was assassinated; right-wing influencers coughed out disinformation minnesotareformer.com/2025/06/14/a...

We’re seeing a wave of disgusting rhetoric and false claims coming from the far-right about the Minnesota shooting. As real families grieve the loss of loved ones, rightwing accounts are working overtime to circulate disinformation on social media.

Minnesota. Stand strong!

Watch Tracy Stone-Manning And Me Talk About The Plan to Steal 120 Million Acres Of Public Land open.substack.com/pub/wessiler...

Same here.

here's an old haiku of mine: billboard Jesus gambling on the flip side

Senate Spending Package Proposes Selling Off 3.3 Million Acres of Public Land www.outdooralliance.org/blog/2025/6/...

I'm calling my gravel bike ride guide for Cook County, Minnesota done. There are probably a few spelling or grammar errors in there somewhere, but at some point I need to just do it. I ordered up a physical test copy, but I'm thinking about making this available as an ebook right now.

Two Harbor's lighthouse in infrared

The founding fathers did not live and die to see this moment. It’s time for all of us to stand up peacefully.

It's wild watching Fuji fans blame Fuji for the higher price of new cameras instead of the trump tariff taxes.

Buried in the Big Beautiful Bill was a provision that gave a foreign mining company permission to build a copper-nickel sulfide mine on the doorstep of the Boundary Waters. I’m relieved to announce that we were successful in forcing Republicans to drop this language from the bill.

Today's project was cleaning the bark off this pine tree log that I found at the community burn pile. It was about 65yo when it fell. I'm going to use it as a spoon carving and bowl carving block. The next step is adding legs made from diamond willow.

It's time for a general strike in the US.