An Ode to Delicious Coffee and Granola

At Wilderness Inquiry, we love using local products from Minnesota and Wisconsin so we can support businesses that are also our neighbors. We stock our trips with foods sourced and made in Minnesota. We frequent farms, breweries, and wineries in Wisconsin to provide the ultimate local and organic feasts for visitors to our Little Sand Bay Base Camp near Bayfield. And with all of the local foods we use, a couple of our favorites are consumed for breakfast.

Let’s admit it. Even when on the most exciting adventure, sometimes it’s only the coffee that gets us up and out of our tents early in the morning. There’s something about that rich, bitter aroma as it mingles with the smell of damp pine, smoke, and bacon. We prefer real coffee—freshly roasted, perfectly ground, and brewed in a press pot. Never mind that cowboy stuff.

Angie Banks

Up at our Apostle Islands base camp this season we’re featuring Dunn Brothers specialty coffee. It’s roasted from Uganda beans that are purchased in Fair Trade from small farmers. Some of these folks we were lucky enough to meet on our Wilderness Inquiry Africa Adventures in Uganda this year. (That trip leaves again January 21, 2018.) Uganda coffee is complex and rich in body with bold acidity and lots of sweet caramel flavor for balance. Spice and cedar aromas and a crisp tangerine-like finish make this the perfect blend for camping up in the north woods. On top of all that, it’s from our friends and neighbors at Dunn Brothers in Minneapolis, not far from Wilderness Inquiry headquarters.

Angie Banks

Coffee isn’t the only local breakfast item we are particular about. We also stock delicious cereal. Right now one of our favorites is Gustola Granola, which is created by vigorous athlete and outdoorswoman Angie Gustafson. She’s a busy mom and energetic local entrepreneur who pays attention to the details. Gustafson has created four varieties of granola that feature organic ingredients, including crisp oats, dried fruit, locally sourced maple syrup, and assorted nuts.

What’s best is that this granola is packed in big chunks that hold up in our kayaks and backpacks as we move around a lot. We munch the granola by the handful when canoeing the Mississippi, kayaking Lake Superior, or hiking the West Coast trails. So it’s terrific right out of the bag, but we also love it for breakfast with milk and yogurt, or tossed into pancake batter, or stirred into oatmeal. In all of those dishes, it pairs well with our Dunn Brothers coffee. Aside from the fantastic taste, you can feel good about enjoying both, since each delicious sip and spoonful helps to support local Minnesota businesses.