Sarah Hooper's WCMT Travelling Fellowship 2010 Canadian Wilderness Adventures in a Canoe

Presentations

2011-04-11T10:33:00.002-06:00

So far I've done 2 presentations - the first to the Ulverston Townswomens Guild on 2nd March. There were over 50 members attending and the feedback was very positive. The second was last Thursday at the Hawkshead Brewery and about 60 attended. It was well supported by my family, friends, colleaugues and also members of the local canoeing community. We raised funds for the local Hospice St Mary's and I will let you know later how much was raised. Tomorrow I'm off to the Liverpool Marina to present to the Liverpool canoe club. The local club is up and running. All we need now is some young people to come and join ! Check out the temporary blog ( furnessoutdooradventureclub.blogspot.com ) - to be updated to a proper webpage at a later date. Bye for now and thanks for your continued support...

2011 - New Year Update

2011-01-11T09:28:00.004-07:00

As 2010 ended and the New Year stretches before me I have to wonder what adventures and challenges lay ahead. I never could have predicted all that I experienced last year and so it is with both excitement and trepidation that I look forward to the next 12 months. I feel fortunate for all the new friends I have made and also for my wonderful family and old friends that continue to love and support me.
In accepting the Winston Churchill Grant, I took on the responsibility of trying my hardest to make good the promises I made in my interview. Essentially these were to publisise my trip and the work of the WCMT and also to develop further opportunities for young people in the local area to pursue outdoor activities and especially canoe trips. This is obviously not something I can achieve all at once but so far I have made some progress.
I have so far had two articles published about my trip - in Decembers edition of 'Canoeist' Magazine and also February's issue of 'Canoe & Kayak' Magazine - links to these are in the side bar.
I have been invited to speak at the Ulverston Townswomans Guild AGM on March 2nd and I have arranged a presentation evening at the Hawkshead Brewery on April 7th, where all proceeds will be donated to St Marys Hosipice, Ulverston. I was looking forward to speaking at the Wilderness Canoe Symposium in Toronto this February but unfortunately personal circumstances have meant that sadly I have had to withdraw from this opportunity.
For the last few months I have been working with the Sports Development Officer and school teachers in the local area in order to establish a new Outdoor Adventure Club. We are hoping to have a schedule of events running throughout the Summer beginning in May. I am also planning a Canoe trip to Scotland with young people through the centre where I work later in the summer.
I thank you for reading my blog and wish you all many exciting times ahead in 2011.
Sarah x

There's no place like Home

2010-09-04T04:15:00.003-06:00

After 10 weeks in Canada, I arrived home safely yesterday and had a wonderful surprise when Adrian was there to meet me at Manchester airport. I thought I was getting the train and a taxi home as I was expecting him to be back at work ! I arrived home to another surprise when to my amazement the back garden which was a open space of mud and weeds when I left is now a beautiful lawn and patio area. And, on top of all that the house was clean and tidy - and he has still managed to find time to climb the Matterhorn while I've been away - What a terrific husband I've got !
I am still in a bit of a daze and I'm sure it will take weeks and months for everything I've experienced to sink in. I've been fortunate to meet a lot of amazing people on my travels and to them all I say a huge thank you, and I will be in touch soon.
For now I am enjoying - you've guessed it - a home made cup of proper tea, some lovely sunny weather, just being with Adrian and am looking forward to catching up with the rest of my family and friends in the next few days.
Thank you for all the support I've had from those who have been following my blog, I will keep updating - albeit not as frequently - with developments as they happen. I have promised to do a lot of things on the back of this fellowship and I still have a lot of fun & hard work to come.
Take care all, thanks again for all your help & watch this space...

A tribute to the Osprey Staff at WendigoLake

2010-08-31T07:57:00.006-06:00

The job these guys & girls do is physically demanding and emotionally draining. Yet they remain understanding, caring and patient throughout. It was easy for me as a volunteer with no responsibilities to be all of those things, yet I saw them uphold these virtues throughout the most tiring and stressful of situations. I was constantly impressed that they were able to maintain a level of professionalism whilst silently dealing with their own frustrations. Whatever incident was unfolding they held both the physical and emotional well being of the crew at the forefront at all times. I've learnt a huge amount from the amazing staff I've been privileged to volunteer alongside and would like to thank you all for allowing me to share these trips with you.

Project REACH @ Wendigolake - TRIP 2

2010-08-31T06:52:00.022-06:00

Here is an overview of TRIP 2 - there may be errors and there are definitely omissions, but this is as best I can remember it.
As before i will get around eventually to emailing Adi a more detailed account.

Day 1
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Incredibly, against the odds, we set of on trip with a full crew of 10 guys. Following usual shenanigans in the dorm prior to trip we managed to get away at about 11am and were on the water at 3.30pm. It had just about stopped raining at this point but was still looking ominous. Trip leader was Andrew again and was joined by two other instructors Caroline and Ian. With seven canoes we made an impressive entourage and a somewhat noisy one at that too.
Temagami is a huge area about 3 hours north of Algonquin and is a series of large lakes with hundreds of islands, inlets and bays. It really is beautiful and has quite a different feel to Algonquin. The downside is the motor boats and jet skis which I found can make the area seem busy and crowded at times.
By the time we arrive at camp it's raining again. Although we've not paddled too far it's been an eventful afternoon with several discussions on the water and an brief incident resulting in a smashed paddle and several unfortunate inukshuks. When the tents are set up it transpires that one of the ground sheets is missing.

Day 2
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Torrential rain in the night and the guys wake up around 5am, noisily complaining of being wet - especially in the tent without a ground sheet. Nothing like a wet sleeping bag & lack of sleep to cause grumpiness amongst the campers.
Our food barrels and one food bag which had been floated in the canoe last night ( bear float ) are retrieved from a canoe almost swamped with water. Our buns for the mornings sausage burgers have to be first wrung out but amazingly this causes very little issues. The guys get on with it, fry the buns in margarine and manage to serve a very acceptable breakfast.
We paddle into a headwind today but choose a camp quite early as we have lots of drying out to do. A couple of the guys get a fire going quickly and we set about drying out at least half the crews sleeping bags which are literally sopping wet through. The rain has eased to a slight drizzle but this does nothing to improve the mood. We have several discussions for swearing, peer disrespect and on more than one occasion a crew member throws water on the fire in a temper. But it gets re-lit without much problem and we carry on drying out the sleeping bags.
When it comes to sorting out tent groups there is a 'heated' debate. Guys are supposed to change tent groups each day but since one has no ground sheet they eventually decide to change tents but stay in the same groups as last night. I ask whether they have all double checked their bags for the missing ground sheet and get shot down in flames ! An hour later one of the guys finds the missing ground sheet in the bottom of his pack. By evening check-in all the sleeping bags are dried out, it has stopped raining and the mood has improved. Day 3
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After a much needed good nights sleep we all awake in - slightly - better spirits. Camp gets packed up eventually and by 10.30am we are on our way. My paddle partner has informed me that I'd better be strong because he has no intention of paddling today. True to his word he flatly refuses to paddle. The group stop a couple of times in order to let us catch up and the rest of the crew give him lots of encouragement to paddle - in their own special way. After about an hour we raft up for a discussion. He gets a lot of feedback but is stubborn and still refuses to paddle. Andrew informs him what many of the team already know - that if one of the crew refuses to paddle we wait until he changes his mind. So we wait, and wait and wait, pretty much in silence ...still rafted up - thankfully with no headwind but no real tail wind either. After about half an hour my partner decides he will paddle now after all and we are on our way again. Plenty more discussion on the water for the usual swearing, inappropriate sexual comments, peer and staff disrespect etc. After a brief stop for lunch we pull into camp. We plan to have a layover day tomorrow ie. to stay at same campsite and swim, hike fish etc. and the crew are very excited about this. The campsite isn't the greatest and needs a lot of work but the guys are up for it and set to work rebuilding the fire pit, finding benches etc. and generally doing a really good job of it all.
During the afternoon the crew are fairly stable and enjoy swimming, fishing and a bit of chilling out time.
Andrew confides to the staff that as well as the food bag, one of the barrels also leaked and we need to check all of our food to see if it is still all OK. Unfortunately the leak in the barrel was worse than suspected and a lot of our food has been ruined. We only have food left for 3 more nights and will have to arrange an extra pick up. Andrew studies the map and tells the staff that we will have to change our route ( which involves an unplanned 760m portage ) and that tomorrow's layover day will have to be cancelled.
He breaks the news to the crew at check-in - i think it's fair to say that it could definitely have gone better. Due to the fact I've not had any training in restraint, I watch from the sidelines.
At around 12.30am myself and Ian head to bed, Andrew and Caroline stay up for another hour or so.

Day 4
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The guys are somewhat fractious this morning and a few are anxious about the impending discussion about the events of last night. We get on the water about 11am and paddle into a bay in order to raft up and conduct the discussion. Accountability is taken, feedback given and consequences ( 72hr OP ) are allocated. There have been many OP's issued on the trip so far and I confess to having lost track of them all at this point.
We continue paddling but unfortunately one of the guys involved in last nights incident is now refusing to paddle. We raft up for a discussion due to not paddling but unfortunately the person in question is in no mood for this right now. The upshot is that we split the group and end up on opposite sides to a bay, remaining in radio contact. While Caroline and Ian remain with the guy who needs some space and also one other peer who is trying to talk him round, Andrew and I take the rest of the group away from the situation. We have lunch, swim, play games etc. and a couple of hours later the group is reunited and appropriate discussions are held.
We paddle until late afternoon and find a lovely campsite by which time the crew are all stable and set about on various camp chores. With the exception of a few discussions which came about due to inappropriate reactions to the nude swimming of our camp neighbours, the evening passed relatively uneventfully.
The weather has improved and several of the guys are choosing to sleep outside of tents. However they must be in staff site and initial reluctance to comply with this adds another hour onto our bedtime.

Day 5
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It rained overnight and one of the guys sleeping outside went into a tent in the middle of the night but for some reason left his sleeping bag outside. He is not a happy camper. There is a lot of arguing going on but eventually breakfast in cooked. Breakfast is oatmeal ( porridge ) which the guys hate so this could be contributing to the arguing. We are on the water eventually and by lunchtime the sun is out. We hope to have a quick lunch as we would like to make some distance up today but events during lunch mean it ends up being about 2 hours. We get going eventually when yet another crew member refuses to paddle. This is resolved relatively quickly and as the wind picks up we have a much needed tailwind. At 5.30pm after having done a short portage of 70m ( which was planned ) the guys are starting to get tired and hungry. We still have a few km to go and in addition the 760m portage. We raft up for a vote and it is decided 6:4 that we will camp tonight before the portage and aim for a slightly longer day tomorrow.
Of course we now have 4 unhappy crew members.
We find a camp and two of the crew start throwing and then eating unidentified berries. We circle up for a discussion and they are given a 48hr OP for a safety concern. This doesn't go down well and the rest of the crew are advised to 'disengage' from them whilst they throw rocks at the canoes, eat more berries and according to one unconfirmed ( and not particularly reliable source ) bite the heads off frogs.
By check-in we are all stable once again albeit in a somewhat subdued mood. The leader of the day starts check-in by a roaring rendition of the repeat after me song 'Toast' which raises everyone spirits and we all go to bed much much happier.

Day 6
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We woke up early today and thankfully it's good weather although the crew are in a fractious mood. One of the tents have to be taken down around them in order to encourage the guys to get up. We've the 740m portage to do and extra supplies to pick up today. My paddle partner refuses to wear his wet shoes and then becomes furious when his hiking boots get splashed - his response is to paddle with his boots fully in the water hanging over the gunnels of the boat. A similar incident in another boat results in one of the crew refusing to wear anything at all on his feet for the next two days.

We stop at a beautiful sandy beach for lunch whilst one canoe heads off to the pick up point. Once we have our supplies we start looking for a campsite. This causes much unhappiness since we end up paddling further than anticipated to find a suitable site that is not too close to any families. The crew take umbridge to the fact we don't want them close to other campers (@$?) and after much swearing and threatening and several refusals to paddle, we are once again on our way.

We head out further into the lake and with a fantastic tail wind raft up all 7 canoes and get the kitchen tarp flying ! It was awesome. We had three man overboards to deal with - one took 6 throwlines tied together in order to recover him we were going so fast !
We finally reach a really nice campsite where we are to spend our layover day tomorrow. Everyone is stable for a while and we have fun swimming and fishing. Late afternoon one of the guys goes to lie down and sleep in their tent - this is not allowed. They can bring carry mats out onto the rocks and in the sun but not in the tent during the day. We have already had a previous issue with this in the trip and if warnings from staff are ignored the consequence is that the tent is taken down around the person still in it.

After more than enough warnings and chances, the tent is taken down. The sleeping chap and another of his tent mates who had put the tent up are furious and rage towards the staff tent and start taking our tent down in retaliation. I watch on in amusement ( it takes 5 minutes to put the tents up it's really no big deal ) as the tent is dismantled. However, this does not seem to be giving one of the guys enough satisfaction as he then takes one of our tent poles and launches it javelin style into the lake. Oh dear. Not to worry though because we are fortunate in having the rest of the crew on side at the moment and trying - unsuccessfully - to calm these two fellas down. Almost immediately our pole has been retrieved by one of the crew, only to have it thrown straight back in, this time further !

Eventually everyone calms down, discussions are held and after dinner the crew play a game of 'hunt the tent pole' which was found just before sunset !

A short incident involving the fire and lots of wood being thrown in the lake followed later on, but by the time everyone went to bed all was calm.

Day 7
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I have definitely & totally lost track of all the OP's going on right now - the staff update the official log book ( a legal document ) every half hour and are obviously on top of it all ! I can say that out of the 10 there was only one young man who didn't get a single OP all trip - well done !

Today is our layover day and so we all have a lie in. We wake to blue skies but it's quite windy and chilly too.

I have a short time to lie in my hammock and relax before we wake the crew up. The Temagami region is really quite beautiful with hundreds of islands and lots of bays and inlets. We are surrounded by forest and small little hills. The highest point around is about 600m and the lake is at approx 300m. As lovely as it is, I find myself - not for the first time since I left - missing the Lake District fells and the Scottish mountains. The campsites here don't seem quite as well maintained as in Algonquin, for example, the crew have needed to rebuild fire pits in most of the sites, make benches round the campfire and we haven't always had thunder boxes. When we have, they've not always been the most pleasant. Talking of thunder boxes this site has two - very close together and in full view from the firepit/kitchen area. The guys absolutely love this and head off in pairs so they have a friend to chat with at the same time !

The layover day goes well until after dinner.

Unfortunately we have another physical altercation, a couple of awols ( technically not proper awols ie. actually trying to leave the group and go home - but just 'out of staff sight' if there is any serious concern of awol then staff must stay up all night !, an incident with a burning tree and a couple of hours with several of the crew going a little bit wild in the forest. There is a point when I seriously wonder if things will ever calm down and I ask Andrew - "it always calms down eventually" he said, "it's just a matter of time".

Sure enough, a couple of hours later the crew bring the discussion in themselves. We have check in and then all are settled in bed.

As I mention in the first trip report, check-in is an end of day review. Check in questions are decided by the leader of the day in conjunction with the trip leader Andrew. Sometimes it's a fairly quick affair and not much is said, the guys just want to get to bed. But sometimes the questions strike a nerve and answers really come from the heart. There has been more than one occasion when answers given by some of the guys have left me with a lump in my throat. For all their problems and issues, these guys have had a tough start in life and have been through a lot of things that children really shouldn't have to. During my time on trips I have warmed to all of them and have the utmost admiration for the fact they are working hard at this therapy program and trying to change their negative behaviours in order to ultimately improve their lives.

Day 8

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Not a great start to the day, we have a force 4 headwind, a 'non-compliant' member who is on breakfast duty and another minor altercation, this time involving a staff member being punched in the leg.

I should mention that in terms of the distances we paddled and even the strong headwinds, neither presents an actual real problem for the guys. For some this is their 7th or 8th canoe trip since about May and they are overall an excellent group of very strong paddlers. The weather is hot today and most folk have a lunchtime swim which is a rare treat.

From review of my journal, today is one of the least eventful of the trip. Our barefoot camper finally agrees to put his shoes on, the guys on one occasion circle up themselves and deal with some swearing issues, it's really hot and sunny and we have a gorgeous sunset and check-in on the beach. The guys have found a discarded afro wig somewhere along the route which is hilarious and we get some great photo's ( although I don't think I can share them here )

Day 9

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We only have 5km to our final campsite but Andrew decides we need to tire them out more and doesn't want to have a long afternoon at camp. We therefore paddle round an Island in order to make it a 10km journey. I only here one of the crew say in a slightly puzzled voice - " haven't we just paddled round in a circle " - we all ignore it and no more is said. We have an hour or so of calm and I get chance to chill out in my hammock again. Not for long though. Following a discussion which one member of the crew thinks is unfair he storms off round the corner and we hear a loud splash as he begins jumping off rocks into the water in an area which has not been checked. This takes a while to sort out but eventually we are all sitting round the campfire as Caroline runs the end of trip debrief. This is wonderful and leaves everyone feeling really good about themselves, it's definitely something I am going to use as a review tool in the future.

Day 10

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The van is only a short 1km paddle away and we plan to have a final morning swim to try and reduce the odour in the van for the 3 hour drive home. But you know what they say about the best laid plans...A stupid little incident gets out of control and one guy ends up with a head injury which has to be bandaged up. He later is taken to hospital where he has a couple of stitches (I think) and a mild concussion.It is an unfortunate end to the trip which, despite it's ups and downs has been a terrific 10 days. I don't view the fights, sulks, arguments, awols etc... as incidents which have spoilt the trip in anyway. I think of them as necessary and integral parts of the healing process. It's a long and hard journey for these young men and I wish them all the best of luck.

Osprey trip 2 - Back in camp

2010-08-30T17:24:00.004-06:00

We arrived back from Temagami today after an amazing 10 day canoe trip. The trip certainly had it's ups and downs and, with a full crew, was significantly more eventful than the last. But I've had an awesome trip and have now officially hung my paddle up as I reach the end of my Canadian Wilderness Adventures.
I will endeavour to post a fuller trip report in the next few days but for now I will leave you with a small selection of photos. Right now I need a cup of tea and an early night. Sweet dreams x

Osprey Trip 2 - Day1

2010-08-21T05:46:00.001-06:00

I've been at Wendigolake for the past couple of days and the crew are in really good spirits. there has been lots of swimming and canoe rescue practice prior to trip and I also hooked up with the Lobo's crew briefly to make a tie-dye t-shirt with them.
We are all packed up ready to go and I'm just about to head over for breakfast. All 10 of the crew ( including a new guy as one goes home today ) are packed and 'on side' at present but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. The weather has taken a turn for the worst and its raining hard so that may be an obstacle to over come for a few ! we are heading up to Temagami which I'm really excited about since I haven't managed to get up there so far this trip.
Will sign out for now and upate on the 30th or 31st, Love Sarah x

Paddler Co-Op : Kidactive

2010-08-19T08:01:00.003-06:00

I've just got back from Paddler CoOp at Palmer rapids where I've had a fantastic few days helping out on one of their kidactive programs. I am blown away by what I've seen the children achieve in only a few days. It was a bit weird getting in a kayak after so long but I had fun ( someone had to 'safety test' the seal launch and and I even practiced my roll !

They have been ferry gliding, doing 's' and 'c' turns and have been swimming down the whitewater as well as running a section of the lower part of Palmer Rapids. I've taken lots of videos of their kayaking but can't seem to downloaded it onto the blog at the moment. I've put a few photo's on for now but have loads more and am hoping to get the video's organised soon.

Dan,the instructor, was fantastic and Shawna and the & the team made me feel so welcome. I'm back at Wendigo Lake now and we'll be getting ready for the trip tomorrow. The crew seem in fairly good spirits but watch this space...

Project REACH @ Wendigolake - TRIP 1

2010-08-17T17:56:00.005-06:00

Wendigo Lake was formerly known as Project DARE and until approx 10 years ago was a government run wilderness therapy centre for young men assigned to open custody. When the government proposed to close the centre it was bought out privately and now operates as Wendigo Lake Inc which encompasses 10 open custody young men (known as the LOBO crew) and 10 youth at risk ( known as the OSPREY crew). I have arranged to volunteer on the two canoe trips organised in August with the Osprey Crew. The Osprey Crew operate Project Reach, the principles of which are Responsibility, Effort, Attitude, Community & Honour. I've just returned from my first trip with them and have had a fantastic time. I've learnt so much from the staff I've been on trip with and have been pleasantly surprised by how quickly the Osprey crew accepted me as part of the team. The trip leader was Andrew and co-instructors were Gord[ and his dog Rebel ]& Nolan. Also on trip was Rob who is an instructor from also from England who has been over here for several months volunteering. Due to particularly bad behaviour on the previous trip this one stayed local in Algonquin Park. The original route changed several times due to various factors and although I haven't yet worked it out I would be willing to bet we portaged almost as much as we paddled. The young guys in Project Reach ranged from ages 14 to 17 and it goes without saying that they have all been in trouble with the police, drugs etc. Some have been in young offenders institutes and some in rehab centres. Many have been referred by CSA ( Child Services Agency ) and are in childrens homes or foster care. Some are private paying clients however and have been sent by parents, literally at their wits end. The guys enter the program at Grey Jay level and work their way up through Otter, Wolf & Bear. Each level being noted by a different coloured wrist band on which is inscribed 'try a different way'. The program is very much a group therapy and from what I have seen is very successful. There have also been a number of studies into various programs over the years which have shown it to be very effective - see webpage for more details. So anyway, our trip. Out of a crew of 10 we had 7 on the trip. One guy at Bear level was on a home visit ( from Wolf level they start to integrate home visits as part of the program ), and two flatly refused to come on trip. One of these was very new and had not been on a trip before, the other has been in the program a while but is obviously struggling with some issues at the moment. Of the seven that came on trip ( we started with 6 and one joined us on day3 ), for one it was the first trip and 2 of the others are at Wolf level. Here is a very brief day by day summary of the trip [ for a more detailed trip report ask Adi to forward you the email I sent him...] I haven't sorted all the photos out yet and for obvious reasons am not allowed to publish any which would allow the young people to be identified.
DAY 1
Breakfast at 8am and despite the fact it is only 30minutes to the put in we don't get on the water until 3.30pm. Multiple crew refuse to get out of bed, then refuse to come on trip. We leave Wendigo Lake with 6 out of the 8 who should be coming ( 2 are on home leave ). On arriving at the put in 2 guys refuse to get out of the van. After much to-ing and fro-ing we are all on the water eventually. Bad language is a huge problem for one particular young lad and we end up in several group discussions. Discussions can be called by staff or student for any number of reasons eg. bad language, staff or peer disrespect, horseplay, safety issues etc. This involves all the staff and crew standing (or sitting if in boats ). Sunglasses need to be removed and if anyone spits in the circle, the circle must be moved. The person who has called for the discussion explains why and the crew are invited to take accountability for their actions. If this is not done then other members may hold them accountable. The discussion is then open for peers and staff to give feedback and ultimately a consequence will be given. Consequences vary depending on the 'crime' and could be extra chores or a time OP ( Off Privileges - this means that they are not allowed to wear own clothes etc. listen to music or any other privileges that have been earned. On trip this means that they must spend time at their OP Tree reflecting on what they have done and miss out on swim or fish time etc.) Finally arrived at camp and we all set up tents - we have three tents, one for staff and two for the group. Tent groups for the crew change everyday and tent groups are not announced until they are all set up. We all go for a swim ( except those on OP trees ) have supper and it's off to bed. Based on past experience of camping with teenagers, sleep deprivation was my biggest fear on this trip but i needn't have worried. These guys love sleeping and since they trip twice a month and sleep in a dorm together there is no novelty factor. An hour after they are quiet we are allowed to go to bed.

Day2
Andrew the trip leader radios into base and is informed that we need to stay put for the day. Thunder storms are forecast and we need to wait for one of the crew to join us and also for base to get medication to us for one of the crew who has run out. Staff are concerned as to how a lay-over day this early in the trip will go. Turns out to be a great day with only a few discussions and relatively little problems. The guys fish, we all go swimming and play games in the woods. For all the issues these guys are dealing with, at heart they are a great bunch of guys and when they are on form are really fun to be with.

Day3
We are on the move today albeit on a different route from originally planned due to the fact we have lost so much time already. We have a 1.9km of portage today and this caused a few behaviour challenges which are overcome eventually. Some of these guys are really strong and portage a boat and a pack at the same time - when they put their minds to it they are an impressive team. It's hot and humid and tempers fray at times but overall it's really good. We have another lovely campsite for more swimming and fun. We are joined later in the day by an extra crew member who was on home leave and the ( by now much needed ) required medication. The midges are really bad tonight - these guys call them 'no-see-ums' ! Another good day and our trip leader sings for us when the crew are all in their tents. He has a great voice and we all enjoy his singing - their favourite is American Pie !

Day4
A very slow start to the day, mostly because there was too much water in the scrambled eggs which took a while to sort out and by then the crew were pretty lethargic and unwilling to do their various chores in order to get on the water. Chores are allocated each day and these are as follows ; breakfast, lunch, dinner, suncream, FRU ( friggin' remnants unclaimed ) patrol, water collection, bear float ( putting all food in barrels and floating at end of day ), tooth brushing ( ensuring all crew brush teeth and put toothpaste in barrel for bear float ), leader of the day and floater. Of course since there are only 7 on trip some jobs have to be picked up by others. Eventually we head off and are faced with 2 portages - 740m and 2.6km and due to the time of departure it looks like this will be happening in the hottest part of the day. Crew was ACE today. Everyone really pulled it out of the bag on the portages and despite the heat and humidity everyone did a great job and was very determined. Another couple of fun hours swimming at camp. Supper took a little longer than expected due to an unfortunate - yet predictable - incident with the macaroni which ended up with macaroni being picked up off the ground litter ally piece by piece and being 'cleaned - ish' before being cooked. Oh well. A little bit hard work to get the crew to tidy up camp before bed but it has been a long day.

Day5
3 portages today - 1.5km, 1.2km and 750m - separated by a couple of ponds that we could have swam across. I seriously feel like I'm on a hiking trip and have brought my canoe along by mistake. Portaging goes well but tempers are short today and we have quite a few discussions but nothing major. More fun swimming. Andrew tells the group that we have short day tomorrow and gives them some options ; either 1 ) get up early, get portaging over with and have more time to chill at camp site, 2) get up normal time or 3) have a lie in All except one vote for a lie in and head to bed. Andrew regrets giving them the option, we all set our watches forward an hour and agree to get up at normal time. ( They are not allowed watches or to see the map as this information would aid them in any AWOL efforts )

Day6
The crew wake up feeling refreshed after their 'lie-in'. We bang out the portages and short paddles and are at our next camp in good time. This is the best afternoon yet. Everyone has so much fun playing in the water and then later games in the woods. The sun is really hot and the guys get two upturned canoes and start playing submarines. They fill a canoe with water to try and create a 'hot tub' and bury each other in the sand. It's a really wonderful atmosphere with lots of laughter. One or two discussions but really it's been another great day.

Day7
Up early today in order to get to our rendevous point for 10am. We have no problems in motivating the crew as they are all eager to get back to camp for showers, phone calls, and are looking forward to having their meals cooked for them again. It's been a terrific experience for me and I've had a lot of fun on the trip and pleased that I'll get the chance to go on trip with them again before I leave Canada.

Bridget Jones does Vision Quest - Part 2

2010-08-15T10:10:00.006-06:00

Day 1 cont...
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5.15pm
Hurrah ! Matches have ignited and fire is roaring. Go in search of more firewood. Whilst looking for firewood discover 2 'thingys' off the side of match boxes just laying on the ground. Moral of this story - if you forget something have a good search around as chances are someone will have left just what you need for you.

7.30pm
After a mere 2 1/4 hours have boiled water and enjoying cup of tea. No vision yet, maybe it has to be dark.

8.00pm
Pasta supper ready, delicious ! Although cooking on open fire encourages feeling of Wilderness Canoe Goddess, think that will use stove in the morning to expediate process.

8.30pm
Headed out to secluded bay for after dinner swim and bath. Think that WCG would perform such a ritual naked. Part way through swim and bath with hair full of biodegradable camp suds am interrupted by couple seemingly out for romantic evening fish & paddle. They have run aground and romantic mood appears to have be somewhat replaced by domestic argument as to who needs to get out of canoe to push off. 'Evening' I venture, wondering who feels the most intruded upon. Just as well I had remembered at the last moment that I was a reserved English woman and therefore not predisposed to swimming naked.

9.00pm
Relieved not to have been swimming naked but feeling somewhat cheated by the interruption of arguing couple. Decide to have a dance topless round the campfire instead - surely this would induce wilderness vision.

9.15pm
Quite good fun but feel having Kevin Costner join in would have improved situation.

9.30pm
Hot water on the boil for hot chocolate and getting dark now. Eagerly anticipating vision. Pretty dark think will go and get headtorch so can find way back to tent later. Fire looking a bit low but can't see where pile of earlier collected firewood is. Ratch around and find good chunk of wood and head to look in barrel for torch.

9.45pm
Back at campfire, has picked up somewhat. S***t ! Who put the paddle on the fire ?

10pm
Paddle seems to have survived relatively unscathed, nothing that a bit of gaffer tape can't fix.

10.45pm
Boiling water for hot chocolate in record time.

11pm
Disappointed not to have yet received vision but head to bed hopeful that may occur during the night.

Day 2
------

8am
Slept so deeply that I fear vision unable to get through.

8.05am
Can't seem to find the stove although I have got the fuel bottle. Have vague memories of taking it out to repack but cant' seem to remember putting in back in.

8.30am
Have searched both barrel and my bag and definitely no stove. Have also made a thorough search of the camp area to see if any stoves have been left behind by previous groups, but alas in vain. Start collecting firewood. Seems a bit windier than yesterday.

10am
Tea and porridge in yet another record time, all packed up and ready to head back. Slightly disappointed have not yet had vision but nevertheless am feeling like a true Wilderness Canoe Goddess, vision or not.

2pm
Bl***y H*ll this is hard work. have travelled about a quarter of the way back against howling winds sometimes having to stop and line the boat along the lake shore. Have managed to get some shelter behind a large island on the lake and am currently in process of sneaking round to the front.

2.15pm
MY VISION APPEARS
I am standing on a sandy beach on the largest Island of West North Tea Lake in the Algonquin Park. I am looking west over to the portage sight which will take me back to base camp. But instead of seeing the lake I am faced with the Atlantic Ocean. Waves 5ft high raising towards me, reaching their crescendo and then crashing down in a blast of white spray. I am stunned. I am speechless ( although their is currently no-one to speak to ) I have but one single thought in my mind - Oh S**t
I hear a sound and look to my left 'hi there !' - I meet my fellow marooned camp mates Mike & Avon.

3.00pm
Mike and Avon are positively delighted to have company. They have been 'stuck on this friggin island' for 4 days and are immensely grateful to have someone else to talk to. They are both in their fifties, are annual trippers and have not been stuck like this ever. They have spent the last few days bored out of their minds with the monotony only broken by the occasional canoe capsize they have witnessed just off the end of the island. They make me a cup of tea ( they have two stoves ) and we ponder the situation.

4.00pm
I have convinced myself that the wind has died down and the waves are significantly reduced. I thank Avon & Mike for their hospitality and set off towards the portage.

5.15pm
That was a great work out. After paddling - literally on the spot - for a solid hour I am back on the beach much to the delight of my fellow windbound paddlers. Comments such as 'Brave effort' and 'You've got some guts' help cheer my mood. I concede defeat - at least for the moment.

6.pm
After musing through various options which admittedly were limited I decide to camp overnight and get up early when wind drops. My contacts back at base camp were expected me this evening and I hope they have the sense to realise am windbound and not send out helicopter search party - that would be most embarrassing for WCG. Thankfully my new campmates are happy to share stove again and we spend a pleasant few hours chatting.

9.30pm
Huddled in tent whilst outside vision continues - this time thunderstorm has been added to the equation.

Day 3
------

3am
Wake up to the sound of ...well, nothing. I peep out of tent to see sky full of stars with a new yet bright shining moon and a still lake. Pack up tent swiftly and head on water. Set course for Orions belt and paddle towards the portage.

3.30am
Half way across I stop for a while and take in the moment. The new moon is shining so brightly and reflecting on the water with a beautiful shimmer. The stars are so clear it is incredible. I see a shooting star and make a wish, then I see another and another until I loose count. I make the same wish. This must still be my vision because I can hardly imagine a scene so perfect.

4.30am
I am now carrying canoe, packs and barrel again. Vision is definitely over as portaging in the dark no more fun than in daylight.

6am
Portages and river journey over ( a few beavers kept me company along the way ) and can now see base camp in sight as the sun starts to rise behind me.

6.30am
Back at base camp. Alexis is up and preparing breakfast. 'Hey -I was just thinking about you - guess you got windbound yesterday. He asks me 'How was your trip ?' For the second time in the last 24 hours I have only one single thought -

'Awesome' I reply.

Bridget Jones does Vision Quest - Part 1

2010-08-13T13:35:00.011-06:00

Many cultures have some kind of traditional 'rites of passage' as it were. Time spent in the bush alone looking for answers, visions and trying to find themselves. The tradition from the local people here is known as a 'Vision Quest' and I found myself imagining Bridget Jones on an assignment to report on her personal vision quest. ( Dad, you may have to watch the movie to get the most out of this posting...) Anyway, I hope you enjoy my short story and as for the inspiration ? Well, lets just say its loosely based on a true experience, question is - how many of you know me well enough to separate fact from fiction ?

Bridget Jones Vision Quest
---------------------------
Day 1

11am.
At last, setting off on great adventure to search for Wilderness Canoe Goddess in me. ( WCG for short) Of course Vision Quests are supposed to be 4 days long and mine was planned for 2. Well actually originally 3 but the rain yesterday was so awful that would surely have blocked ability to connect with nature and self. So two days and one night it is. More like a 'Vis' Quest. Yes thats it, Vision Quest for the modern woman - after all who really can spare 4 days out of a busy life to sit in the woods thinking. Of course Vision Questers are supposed to fast. However, health&safety procedures ruled this out due to risk of passing out alone in wilderness. Anyway, surely WCG would have blazing campfire thus creating right setting for vision to appear.

2pm.
Finally have arrive at chosen lake after paddling down creek & lugging canoe and gear { all by myself ! } over 3 portages. Wind is at my back ( glad I'm not having to paddle against it ), sun is shining. Yes, yes, I can feel the WCG in me starting to stir as I leave the hustle and bustle of daily life & all its inconveniences far behind.

2.10pm
Checked mobile phone again. Definitely no signal.

3pm
Positively flew down the lake with the wind blowing in my hair to arrive at beautiful campsite on Island. No-one else on the island but rather noisy neighbours on opposite shore. Hope they won't interfere with vision ability.

3.30pm
Tent up and ready to go, wood collected for raging fire and ready for the grand lighting. Will have boiling water and a cup of tea on the go in no time.

4.30pm
Despite dryness of rocks seem unable to light any of my matches. Didn't think I'd need one of those thingys that you get on the box of matches to light them and to save weight had transferred out of box into waterproof bag. First thought was 'what a pain, i'll have to use the stove' ( brought stove just in case was unable to start fire ) followed closely by 2nd thought 'oh s***t. Considering options ;
1. Sit tight, eat chocolate, raw peppers & cereal bars for supper & tell no-on of slight glitch in vision quest.
2. Take most treasured possession and paddled to nearest campsite in order to trade for matches which work.

4.35pm
On way to nearest campsite ( with earlier mentioned noisy occupants ) armed with bar of dairy milk chocolate. On approaching campsite am alarmed to see all occupants run from beach and hide behind trees near tents. Surely a single female in canoe couldn't cause such alarm. 'Coo-ee ! Hello there, terribly sorry to bother you, wondering if you could help me out ? ' [ Best English accent obviously as to not alarm natives any further - the more you sound like the queen the more they trust you ] A pow wow took place between the - seemingly all female occupants - and the bravest girl was sent down to deal with the impostor. 'Hi, this is awfully embarrassing but I seem to have brought safety matches with me and am unable to light them - could I interested you in a trade for a bar of chocolate ?''Errr' came the reply ' we weren't given many and our lighter is supposed to be for emergencies only'. Oh God, the embarrassment grows, I am seeking help from an outward bound group of teenage girls on their first solo trip. 'Have you tried striking them on a rock ?' the chief asks me and 'are they wet ?' Yes and No I replied to both - she clearly thinks I am an idiot and doesn't yet recognise me as WCG. The chief retreated to camp for another pow wow and returned with 8 matches which I traded for my most treasured dairy milk.

4.45pm
Paddling back to camp wondering if my situation has improved or not. Have more matches, with still no actual 'thingy' to light them on if rocks don't work and have given away chocolate. I could have made things worse...
( being kicked out of library so will have to wait for part 2 ! )

Wolf Howls in Algonquin Park

2010-08-13T13:03:00.021-06:00

This trip was run through the Northern Edge Algonquin which is a beautiful family run retreat just outside the Park. As well as canoe trips the Edge runs many other retreats such as Yoga, Sea kayaking, 'Seeking Solitude' and 'Finding Balance' courses. It is an incredibly calm & peaceful place to be and the overwhelming feeling I got from all the people I met there was a complete acceptance of everyone whatever their background or beliefs happened to be.

Our guide for the trip was Alexis Burnett who is a wilderness guide for Northern Edge and also runs his own company Earth Tracks. ( For more info on both see the links in the sidebar )

We had a small group of only 6 including Alexis and we had a mix of canoeing & camping experience in the group from quite a lot to none at all. We set off on a small creek which is actually a high up part of the south river and over three short portages into Craig Lake. As we were only out for two nights this became our base camp. The journey to Craig Lake was a short one and we set up camp in good time to enjoy an afternoon of swimming and relaxing.

On the first night we cooked over a camp fire which Alexis started using a bow drill, Ray Mears style ! The food was great and as we sat around the campfire chatting quietly, the lake was very still, I started to get excited about the eagerly anticipated Wolf Howl !

Now, I had assumed, that Alexis as a wilderness guide, had spent many years perfecting a wolf howl, pitch perfect in order to make the wolves believe he was a lost member of the pack etc. in order to encourage them into returning his call. You know what I mean - in the same way that some people can mimic exactly various different bird calls.

No. That's not how it works. Alexis explains that 'someone' [ usually him ] does the first howl and then the rest of the 'pack' join in on the second howl and we just keep going til in fades out. 'Just let it all out' Alexis encourages - on hearing this I got the attack of the giggles. We took positions on the edge of the campsite facing the lake, hands cupped ready for the howl. By this point Alexis was struggling not to giggle too and I was almost doubled up in laughter. [ I apologise if my fellow canoeists were taking this rather more seriously ! ] Anyway, after a couple of deep breaths and a lot of self control, Alexis started the first howl while I giggled in silence and then we all let go - it was so much fun !!! Unfortunately we never got a reply ( apparently its about 65% success rate ) but I tell you I couldn't wait for the next night to howl away again, it was such a laugh. I wonder what the residents of Yewbarrow Road would think if I took up frequent howling ... ?

We had gorgeous weather and I slept in my hammock both nights which was great. I got some lovely photos of sunrise without even having to get out of bed. We got up early and went for a paddle before breakfast, practicing our 'indian strokes' to try and silently sneak up on any moose that may be down at the waters edge, it was just beautiful.

I had a wonderful time on this trip and owe a huge thanks to Alexis for making the trip so great and also for lending me some gear and setting me up for my 'vision quest'...more on that later...

A brief update - Moose, Wolves and Howling !

2010-08-03T11:57:00.003-06:00

Hi everyone,
this is just a quick update to give you a flavour of what I've been up since I left Yellowknife. I'm in the publlic library at South River and unable at the moment to update any new photos.
From leaving Yellowknife I spent a lovely couple of days with Sarah Hurst and family ( Jim, Keiran, Ethan & Cameron ) who have looked after me during my stopover days in Mississauga. Thanks so much to all of you guys, I had a lovely time and especially enjoyed watching Keirans baseball game - well done he played really well and got a massive hit any cricketer would be proud of ;-)
From there is was up to Huntsville where I met George & Barbara Drought who are extremely experienced canoeists and very well known in Canada. George has written several whitewater guide books and I am now the proud owner of signed copies ! They kindly picked me up in Hunstville, cooked a wonderful BBQ and then gave me a lift out to the Wolf Den. While at the Wolf Den I did some hiking in the Algonquin Park where I saw a deer swimming, a moose and a couple of playful otters.
Since Friday I have been at the Northern Edge Algonquin and spent two nights camping in the Park with our guide Alexis and 4 other people who were on the Wolf Howl experience. There is lots more to tell but in summary had a fantastic couple of days, saw moose and lots of loons. Although we didn't hear any wolves we had great fun howling ! Alexis is a wilderness guide & a great guy who works with the Northern Edge and also his own company Earth Tracks. I will update more when I get the chance but in the meantime check out the links...
Alexis has kindly lent me his truck so I could get to the library but I'm back off to The Edge now until Friday when I'll be hooking up with Wendigolake. I won't be online again until the 14th August probably so take care all and thanks for following,
Sarah x

The Rae River - Chapter 7 "Just The Rae"

2010-07-27T08:14:00.004-06:00

I'm going to finish my stories of the Rae with a song that I wrote ( honestly ! ) during the trip. Dave is hopefully going to put it to music for me, but in the meantime you can make up your own tune ! The song was inspired by Gene following the unfortunate swim on Smell a Whisky Falls. Gene was wearing 'normal' clothes in the canoe and was obviously pretty cold quite quickly. Later on that evening we were chatting about the day and questioning Gene about his choice of apparel. ( Sorry Gene for picking on you here but its such a good quote ) Gene replied 'well I didn't bring my front line clothes because I thought - it's just the Rae"...anyways...here it is...

An English girl got a Churchill Grant, signed up for a river with David Plante
She was looking for a wild adventure
Flew up to Yellowknife one day, then on they went to the River Rae
Little did she know what held in store

Chorus
Just the Rae, Just the Rae, Just the Rae, Just the Rae
You know it's just the little ole River Rae
Artic Circle here we come, un-chartered rivers to be run
But what the hell, it's only the River Rae

Now Dave he is the coolest guy, with a beaming smile & a twinkle in his eye
He's a gourmet cook and a crackin' paddler too
Mark - he is the king of faff, but he's really strong and he's a darn good laugh
And Gene is such a charming sweet old guy

Chorus

Hooper Creek was push and pull, down The LaPlante, it was real good fun
We portaged Damiens' Falls along the way
At Merganser rapids we got some luck, then were put to shame by a paddling duck
With Dave & Sarah singing all the way

Chorus

Now the Polish boat didn't think it was risky, until they swam the Smell a Whisky
And Gene didn't have his front line clothes today
The Anglo- French team nailed it, but with some small confusion
And what does left or right mean anyway ?

Chorus

Dave, Mark & Sarah took a hike - Gene stayed at camp, they went out of sight
Pepper spray and bangers in their bags
Big old grizzly was taking a nap, Dave saw him first said 'guys get back'
'Get your bear bangers out lets chase this fella away !

Chorus

Fresh artic char and muskox steak, creme caramel and apple crisp bake
And Gene said he was here to lose some weight
Eggs Benedict and strawberry crepes, pancakes too, now don't be late
For the finest keylime pie in the Artic North

Chorus

Kugluktuk came into sight, it was here we'd spend our final night
Looking over the Coronation Gulf
The sea was calm, the sky was blue, our dreams of the River Rae came true
And now we say farewell to the midnight sun

Chorus

Posting Comments on BLOG

2010-07-25T13:17:00.006-06:00

Apparently a few folk have had difficulties posting comments - my Dad has sent the following information...
To post comments on the blog you must first set up a profile. To do this go to the block named "Followers"

Click on "Follow "

this will open up a new window. in that window

click on " create a new google account"

fill in all of the requested details i.e. email address; password; age etc then

Complete the "word verification" then accept the google terms to create an account.

This will open up another window which allows you to either sign in and become a follower with a picture (or just a profile) or sign in private (this just means that you do not post your name in the Followers list. But when you leave a post it will automatically register your email name)

To leave a Comment

Click on "Comments" This will open up the window in which you can write the comment.

When complete select the "Google account " in the "Comment as" drop down window then follow the prompts to sign in.

Click "Post Comment" then complete the "word verification" and that should be it.

To leave future comments you only need to carry out the instructions from where I have written To leave a Comment

PS.
I forgot to mention - to post a comment you must first sign in in the Followers window. Your name will then appear where the word FOLLOWER was.

Also it is sometimes necessary to click on Post Comment twice in order to get the Verification box. Don't for get to sign out (by clicking the drop down arrow next to your name).

The Rae River - Chapter 6 ( John Rae, The Coronation Gulf & Kugluktuk )

2010-07-23T14:19:00.032-06:00

John Rae

If you visit Westminster Abbey you will find a a marble bust of Sir John Franklin on which is inscribed "the discoverer of the North West Passage", and not far away at Waterloo Place you will find a statue which proclaims the same. Also inscribed on the bust is the addition that " here also is commemorated Admiral Sir Leopold McClintock (discoverer of the fate of Franklin in 1859 "

I have learnt a lot in the past few weeks about the quest for the North West passage, the search for Franklin and the Artic journeys that took place in the early- mid 19th century, both from my paddling companions and also the book 'Fatal Passage' by Ken McGoogan - a gripping read. Incidentally, Sir John Barrow ( the Hoad in Ulverston is a monument to him ) was a leading figure in the 1840's who were obsessive in pushing the drive for the NW Passage.

The book is definitely worth a read but the short version is that John Rae, born in the rugged Orkney Islands of northern Scotland, in 1854, actually discovered both. He is considered by many to be the greatest Artic explorer of them all. He was the first to afford the local Inuit and Native Americans the respect which they deserved and in contrast to ( I think I can say ) every other explorer before him ( and many that went after ) adopted their ways of living in order to adapt to the harsh conditions in which they lived. When he returned to England after discovering what had happened to Franklin (and the missing link in the NWP) he told the truth. His investigations ( later proved correct by science ) led him to report that the last remaining survivors had resorted to Cannibalism in order to survive. However, Franklin's wife, one of the most influential people in this era was not about to have her husbands name tainted and with the help of Charles Dickins set about a campaign of denial and vilification against John Rae.

The book tells the story much better than I can and definitely worth a read.

The Coronation Gulf

You may recognise the above figure - an 'Inukshuk' - since it was the symbol of the Olympic Games in Vancouver. The original Inukshuk are figures of stone erected by Inuit and are unique to the Canadian Artic. In some places the traditional meaning was to act as compass or guide for safe passage. Today they have been adopted as symbols for such things as leadership, friendship, safety & nourishment, trust & reassurance.
The Inukshuk historically guided people over frozen tundra and gave them hope in barren places to handle the difficulties they encountered.
"May the Inukshuk be your guide for a safe journey throughout life's travels
May it always guide you home"

Kugluktuk

Kugluktuk is the small Inuit hamlet on the Coronation Gulf and where we finished our trip. Formerly known as Coppermine, it was renamed Kugluktuk when the area of the North West Territories - now Nunuvat - was handed back to the Inuit people. Kugluktuk means 'place of the falls' - after Bloody Falls on the Coppermine River.

Now Kugluktuk has got its fair share of problems, but what it can't be faulted for is the incredible friendliness of the locals who live there. Everyone who passed our campsite came to say hello - word of our arrival had gotten around because canoeists don't generally come in from the West. [ The Coppermine River east of Kugluktuk is a very popular river though ] The two older boys on the left were avid fishermen and were out hoping to catch Artic Char. There was a local fishing Derby coming up at the weekend with a prize of $1500 - when Dave asked what they would spend the money on they replied without hesitation 'fishing hooks !'
The three cheeky looking chaps on the right - Tyson, Danzel & Kevin - came down to the beach to investigate our campsite. After answering a few hundred of their questions we skimmed stones for a while ( kyak, kyak ) and I taught them to play giants, wizards an dwarfs - they loved this game and we tried to come up with a Inuit version involving Grizzly bears, Caribou , Muskox etc. but since the Grizzly clearly wasn't defeated by anything we gave up.

The Rae River - Chapter 5 ( Portages & Flowers )

2010-07-23T14:19:00.021-06:00

Portages -

Portages spoil a good canoe journey. There is no fun to be had in lugging heaving gear in the rain or heat with mosquitoes bugging you along the way. No sooner have you begun to enjoy the river then you had to unload everything again and carry your stuff for 100s ( sometimes 1000s) of meters across rocky boggy ground. They are a pain in the proverbial and not to be planned into any canoe trip or encouraged in any way.

OR

Portages are an exciting part of a journey across a land full of lakes and rivers. They make exploring remote areas possible. They are an opportunity to stretch your legs and work some different muscles. They open your eyes to the beautiful wildflowers which cover the barren lands. They are sometimes hard & challenging but when it's over you look back and feel good.

Like most things, your attitude determines which it is...I hope you enjoy a few of the flowers I saw along the way...

At some point I'll get around to looking all of these up and finding out what they are called

The Rae River - Chapter 4 ( The Wildlife )

2010-07-23T14:18:00.042-06:00

The Wildlife

The wildlife we saw was incredible and at times I felt as though I was at home watching a wildlife documentary. There are a few reasons why we may have been so lucky - traveling in a small group meant that we could stop and investigate where we wanted without having to push on to a schedule, it may have been the remoteness of the area and lack of people who travel this way meant that we saw the things we did, or we could have just been lucky. Whatever the reason, it was wonderful... ( Daves' wildlife photos are far better than mine but these will have to do for now ! )
Little mountain squirrels ( or siksiks ) are cute little creatures that pop up out of their holes to
watch us paddle by. They are also known as 'bear snacks' and we found lots of evidence of grizzlies having dug up their colonies.

We saw lots of birds - bald eagles ( above )and gyr falcons ( above ) as well as golden eagles and peregrine falcons. One day we saw nature in action, straight out of national geographic - we were so mesmorised that we don't have photos unfortunately. We were watching a golden eagle soaring and circling high above and stopped paddling, quite close to shore to see what happened next. Before long the eagle made a vertical dive down towards a family of geese with several goslings. Much flapping of wings and squawks of distress ensued and we were left with the eagle landed on the banking - looking quite pleased with himself and a ( seemingly ) dead gosling which had not quite made it to the river. Within seconds a raven came from no-where, almost dive bombed the eagle and led him high up into the clouds. We watched these two for 5 or 10 minutes while the raven tormented the eagle in a display that the snowbirds would have been proud of. Meanwhile, the little gosling ( who we now realised had only been playing dead ) toddled off to catch up with the rest of his family. We were totally stunned. Was the raven a buddy of the geese? Was the raven angry with the eagle for a previous mis-demeanour ? Or did he go after the eagle just because he could ? Perhaps we'll never know...

The ptarmigans allowed us to get really close, I was only a few feet away from the one on the left (above )

We saw dozens of caribou on our trip and when we started meeting local Inuits it was one of the first things they asked us about. The caribou in our area is know as the Bluenose East herd. They have been the subject of much research and controversy lately as the numbers have dropped dramatically in the north and in some areas a hunting ban has been put in place. There are many theories as to why the numbers have dropped but feeling I got from folk I chatted to was that at the moment no-one is really sure as to the reason ( or reasons ) why and more research is needed.

We saw several wolves but only one pair and a small herd of muskoxen. We were able to stop and watch the creatures for as long as we wanted. They were as curious of us as we were of them - after all they had probably not seen people before !

And now let me introduce, Mr G R Izzly...

OK, so we saw a great looking grizzly early on in the trip whilst we were paddling. It was really cool, I got an OK photo and with a bit of exageration I could have made a good story, it was at a safe distance and I was happy.
Then we had a day off and decided to go for a hike. Gene stayed at camp and despite his protests of 'I don't think there will be any bother with bears today' we insisted he kept one of the pepper sprays. We had the other one ( which I slept with ) and bangers in our bags. Not more than 500m from camp we sat on the top of a rock outcrop and chatted away, looking through our binoculars and enjoying the sunshine. After 10 minutes or so we continued on our walk and after no more than a minutes walking Dave said ' guys back up there's a bear'. There was no doubt in my mind from his tone that he wasn't joking. 'Where ? where ? I said as backing up 'I can't see it' - 'you nearly frickin stood on him' was his reply. [ I should point out that this does not need any amount of exageration to make a good story ] Oh my goodness, then I saw him - asleep on the rocks ! We spied our escape route, loaded our bangers, all in hushed tones and then I have no shame in telling you that I retreated to a distance which put two good meals ( see photo above ) between me and the bear. At this point I assumed that we would be leaving the 'sleeping bear to lie' and retreating without waking him but his proximity to our camp ( 500m ) and the fact we were staying their that night meant that Dave & Marks theory ( they are vets ) was to scare him away. So Dave set off a 'screamer' - sounds like a firework. That only succeeded in waking him up - Oh my goodness, I am thinking, now we have a grumpy bear ! There followed a short discussion between my two companions ( something about throwing a rock versus setting another banger off ) before Dave set off another banger - which sounded like a gunshot and scared the bear away.
But it wasn't over yet !
As we watched the bear run away we notice two other animals - and one of them was Gene ! A wolf was running away from Gene { who had set off for a hike by himself ! ) and the bear was running towards him ! Thankfully Gene came to some large boulders and decided to turn back whilst the bear ran round the back of the boulders - phew !
When we eventually made it back to camp Gene was blissfully unaware of his near miss and was feeling clean and refreshed after having just enjoyed a rather nice bath in the river !

Remember - Take bears seriously and always have protection at hand !

The Rae River - Chapter 3 ( The Rivers )

2010-07-23T14:17:00.027-06:00

( This is just my rough memory of the river at the moment and am sure will get more detailed info from Dave when he has reviewed the map and notes we made on the trip )

Hooper Creek

As I mentioned previously we didn't land quite where we had planned. In order to get to the south branch of the Rae ( thus far unnamed and now known as The LaPlante ) we had to travel approximately 3 miles along a very fine little tributary which my good friend Dave named 'Hooper Creek'. Gene was later to describe this as a 'problematic navigation'.

This involved about 600m of portage (more on portages later...) and then a tricky combination of pushing, pulling and paddling when the width and depth of the creek allowed ! It was a creek of tricks since we would no sooner arrive at a widening and opening of the river then round the next bend it would narrow to an impassibility once again. I must confess it was not a grand or distinguished beginning to our trip but it was certainly fun ! - and that's what happens when you get dropped off by a floatplane in the middle of no-where !

I can say however with a reasonable amount of certainty that Dave & I made the first descent of Hooper Creek ! ( Quite possible the last for some time also...)

The LaPlante

This is a great little river and it was only a shame we didn't get to paddle as much of the upper section as originally planned. We camped at the confluence of The LaPlante and Hooper Creek which was a beautiful campsite.

The whitewater on this river was great. Some fun little grade 1 rapids, several long technical boulder gardens of grade 2's, some with grade 3 drops at the end. Also on this river was the stunning Damiens' Falls ( named after the biologist and friend of Dave & Mark in Yellowknife who is also a huge fan of John Rae and incidentally Winston Churchill too ). Damiens' Falls ( see below ) was probably a grade 5 on river right and grade 4 on river left, both very technical routes. In a kayak, I dare say that they are perfectly runnable and perhaps even to a skilled canoeist. But 100s of miles from anywhere and where a damaged canoe would cost you a $10,000 float plane home, the only line we were talking was the one on the banking !

'Smell a whisky' falls was the only place on the river where unfortunately Mark & Gene took a swim. A long and very technical boulder garden ended with a grade 3 drop with a large boulder at the bottom...oooops... The name is what Dave & I came up with by merging their two surnames - Scmealawitz ( spelling ? ) and Choresteki ( spelling ) and incidentally was the original inspiration for the song I've written about the trip - 'Just the Rae '- more about that later...

I spotted the unfortunate fate of our paddling companions just as we were approaching the aforementioned rock. I have to admit that my concentration was broken for a moment and when my brain finally connected with the 'left ! left ! the other left !' instructions that Dave was frantically yelling to me I eventually made the cross deck draw that was so badly needed and we managed to skirt the right side of the rock to make a successful descent !

It's fair to say that Gene & Mark took a little longer to hit their 'paddling stride' than Dave & I but when they did, they were looking great.

The Rae

Reaching the River Rae was a special moment. This was the actually river named after the great explorer and for Dave one of the big inspirations for this trip. The river widened considerable here and we still had lots more white water in store. Many long stretches ( maybe 1-2km long ) of grade 1 and 2 technical boulder gardens with tricky boulder fans at the end to navigate our way through. No portages were necessary ( except for Un-named Falls where we camped ) on this stretch but we did end up lining some of the more trickier boulder fans.

Hodgkins Canyon ( named after Shaun Hodgkins, guide and owner of Wanapitei Canoe - see links ) was stunning as was the Un-named (see below) Falls further towards the end of the river where we camped for two days.

Hopefully this has given you a little taste of what the rivers were like, once I've hooked up with Dave and got his report too I'll be able to give a more accurate report. Stand by the for the next chapter which includes the GRIZZLY BEAR story !

The Rae River - Chapter 2 ( Pre-trip Planning, Gear & Food )

2010-07-23T14:14:00.026-06:00

Pre-trip Planning

As you may know from previous posts, much of the river we paddled was relatively unknown. Much of Dave's interest in this river was about John Rae himself, the Artic explorer [ more about him later ] Whilst not quite bold enough to say we were the first to paddle some of this, we can say that the only account of this area we were able to find was a couple of years ago by the Borealis Team, and they paddled the stretch of the Rae River from Cox lake to the mouth. We paddled approximately 100k ( thats a guess - I have not confirmed this yet...) above this and have not been able to find any reports of this being done previously.

Dave spent a lot of time trying to gain as much information as possible about the unknown area but without much success - other than being able to study the maps ( on which significant falls and some rapids are marked but obviously without grading ) None of the pilots we asked or any of Dave's friends from Yellowknife knew anything about the upper section of the Rae or its south branch ( now named La Plante ). Water levels were unknown and we couldn't be sure even if there would be any ice in this area.
Mark registered our trip with the RCMP in Kugluktuk and Air Tindi were also aware of our trip schedule with emergency contact details for us all.

Dave & Mark were definites on the trip from the start and Dave posted on the MYCCR webpage advertising for other paddlers to join them. Originally he had intended an ideal number of 6 paddlers, in 3 boats, but found that only Gene & I 'applied'.

Gear

Yep, we had a lot of it... two barrels and one (approx 80 litre ) dry bag full of food, a 'wanagan' ( box full of cooking utensils and some food ), a tundra tarp ( communal tent for cooking and getting away from bugs - a life saver ! ), appox 100 litre dry bag each for personal kit and a day bag each + fishing gear, a table, 2 fuel cans & pelican box with emergency gear in.

Canoes

Dave and Mark both own 'Pakboats' ( Canoe in a bag - yep thats an entire canoe in there ! )and were very generous in allowing Gene and I to use these without any 'hire' charge to ourselves. I found that this added to the excitement and after our first night in the 'bog', after a stunning breakfast of eggs Benedict, putting the canoes together was our first job. I believe that a skilled and practiced canoeist should be able to put these together in about 1/2 hour ! We took a little longer, perhaps due to my frequent breaks of running around batting away mosquitoes...

Pak boats loaded and covered with spray skirts, ready to go.

Emergency

In addition to the SPOT device we also had hired a satellite phone and Dave had brought is PLD, along with a plentiful supply of spare batteries for all of them.

SPOT

A spot device is a relatively new device, readily available now for ( when I last looked - $100 plus a yearly registration fee ) It allows you to send GPS co-ordinates along with a standard 'I'm OK' message to pre-determined email addresses or mobile phone numbers. It also has one option for a personal message - ours in this case was ' OK but wind bound ' and finally a SOS message. If you wish it also has a tracking facility which you can activate but this requires the GPS to be on all the time. For more information check out the link i n my 'relevant links' section of the blog.

SAT PHONE

Sat phones are easy to hire and is a standard piece of emergency equipment for such remote northern trips.

PLD ( Personal Locator Device ? )

I'm still not too sure about this and how it differs from SPOT...more research needed.

Bear protection

Here I am, enjoying a 'down day' at the 'Un-named Falls'. Bear protection from left to right - pepper spray, horn ( to alert my camp mates of the presence of a bear ) and loaded bear banger. After the 'curious incident of the sleeping bear on the hike time' - see chapters to follow, I took them everywhere with me. I've got to admit that whilst I enjoyed every minute of the trip, there has been a certain relief in the last 24hours at being able to go to the toilet without first digging a hole, whilst remaining vigilant for bears and being eaten alive by mosquitoes during the whole procedure!

Food

There was a lot of that too !

Now, for any of you who think that camping food is pasta'n'sauce, macaroni cheese and stag chilli - guess again. Thanks to Dave & Marks shopping and preparation this was gourmet at its best ! Dave spent about 3 weeks of his spare time ( and some of his not so spare time ) preparing the meals for our trip.

To give you some idea of the cuisine...muskox steak, seafood chowder, thanksgiving pie ( sheperds pie with turkey ), fresh baked quiche, beef strogonof, eggs Benedict, pancakes and maple syrup, bacon & eggs, strawberry crepes, apple crisp bake, creme caramel, key lime pie and on I could go. Honestly it was all delicious and down to Dave's hard work, so thanks again !

Now, the star of the show has to be freshly caught artic char, cooked on a bed of fresh vegetables ( on day 14 of the trip that was pretty good going ) with a mango sauce on top. It was delicious and I have photos of the three stages of preparation below...

1. Displaying the artic char caught by Mark & Dave ( it's only fair to say that Marks was the bigger one...) [ I did go fishing once and caught a large northern pike - evidence to follow ! ]

2. Having lessons from Mark in how to fillet the fish

3. The master chef at work.

The wonderful quality of the food on this trip added to the whole experience for me and although Gene confessed that he would have preferred the consistency of the key lime pie to be a little thicker ( much to my utter disgruntlement since that was the part I prepared ! ) I think I can speak for Gene, Mark & myself by saying a huge heartfelt thank you to Dave for all of his hard work !

The Rae River - Chapter 1 ( The Team & Getting to the River )

2010-07-23T12:07:00.044-06:00

The Team
First of all, let me introduce my paddling companions...

Dave was my paddling partner and right from the start we got along like a house on fire! A vet from NY state and a guitar player in a band in his spare time - ours was the singing canoe ! Dave has many years experience kayaking and canoeing and has also worked as a guide for Wanapitei Canoe. Although this was not a guided trip, Dave did the bulk of the planning for this trip, which included, organising the floatplane, all the food, first aid, repair kits, safety kit etc. ( more on all the kit we took later ) Although we helped out with camp chores it is only fair to say that he did the bulk of the work and organisation and was incredibly generous with his time and experience. Dave - you're a super cool guy, thanks a million for having me along, I certainly couldn't have done it without you !

Mark is also a vet from NY state and has 5 or 6 years of remote northern canoe tripping with Dave. He was also instrumental in helping Dave plan the trip, brought along his canoe and I am very grateful to him also. Mark is a really strong guy, easy going and very fun to be around. Mark was our weather man and wildlife specialist! He gave us weather forecasts every morning and had an ability to 'sense' animals well before we saw them. He was in charge of 'bear patrol' each evening and would give us updates regarding the safety - or otherwise - of our current camp perimeter. Mark - I've really enjoyed your company, you've been super fun, thanks !

Gene is one of the most courteous & charming gentlemen I've ever met. I'm sure he won't mind me telling you that he is 77 years old ! He is a retired urologist, originally from Canada and he now lives in Santa Fe. He has completed somewhere in the region of 15-20 canoe trips in the Canadian North. He has an incredible passion for canoe travel and has a story for just about every river. He is a shining example of how to grow old gracefully and without any loss of enthusiasm. Gene, if I live to your age and have half your energy I'll be a very happy woman. I'm very grateful to have been able to share this journey with you, thanks !

Getting to the River

Now what you have to understand is that my paddling companions, although looking forward to our river journey, were pretty old hands when it came to flying out to rivers and landing in the middle of no-where. I, on the other hand, was like a small child on Christmas Eve, I was so so excited ! I couldn't sit still for a moment in the Air Tindi waiting room, checking on every plane arriving (- is this one ours ? )and bouncing around the place. When our plane finally arrived and Trevor the pilot came into the waiting room I was beside myself.

The controller of Air Tindi pointed out on the map to Trevor where we were heading to which the pilot replied ' that's not on my map ! '- I just about squeeled with excitement, oh my goodness, we're off his map !!!!

On account of it being my first trip in a float plane - I was allowed to sit in the co-pilots seat, yipee !

The flight was incredible. We flew for about 3 hours, above the Artic Circle and saw nothing but thousands of small lakes and rivers. It was unbelievable.

We weren't able to land on the lake we had originally planned, as it was too shallow. We spotted a couple of other possibilities but they were too 'glassy' [ if the water is glassy then it is difficult for the pilot to judge where the top of the water is, apparently they sometimes throw apples out the window to create ripples ]

We finally found a suitable lake and Trevor was able to land safely although it was somewhat of a boggy landing zone !

Then came the moment when the plane flew off and we were left totally on our own. I had been anticipating this moment for months, wondering how I would feel - Scared ? Nervous ? Excited ? Apprehensive ? Lonely ?

Actually I felt none of those things. The truth is that I felt completely at home and totally contented - I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

Safe & Sound in Yellowknife

2010-07-22T18:01:00.002-06:00

Hi everyone !

Well we made it and what an adventure its been!

The journey has been everything I had hoped for and more - from the excitement of being dropped off by floatplane in the Artic Circle, the 'problematic navigation' of Hoopers Creek, the fun of paddling down the Reinhardt, Smell a Whiskey & Merganser rapids, to the wildlife displays of eagles, wolves, muskox and caribou (& more), the awe of reaching the Artic sea, learning about the history of John Rae and the explorers of his time and the friendliness of the Kugluktuk Inuits it has been an amazing experience - every second of it.

Dad, thanks so much for updating the blog you've done a great job & Adi well done on making it up the Matterhorn, I'm so proud of you!

Have not even had a shower yet ( the bath in the artic sea this morning doesn't count ) so I had better go and get clean. Will post photos and give you more details of the trip tomorrow,

Love to you all
Sarah xxxxxx

PS - did I mention the grizzly bears ? watch this space...

21st July 2010 - Arrived at Kugluktuk

2010-07-21T19:20:00.004-06:00

They finished their journey early afternoon today and are camped up the road from the airport waiting for their flight tomorrow. Its a bit like flying BA during the strikes !!! They are scheduled to leave for Yellowknife at 2-30 pm local time on Thursday 22nd July.

Their final SPOT location is:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.82853,-115.11363&ll=67.82853,-115.11363&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Its been fun posting the updates but I am only a hired hand - tomorrow you can expect the real deal and lots of stories and photographs.

take care Y'all, Joe

"If you've done it, it ain't braggin"

Progress for Tuesday 20th July

2010-07-20T20:13:00.004-06:00

They are on the move again, paddling from the Rae River into Coronation Bay. Distance travelled today was about 9 miles leaving them about 5 more miles to reach their destination.
Their SPOT location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.86773,-115.2257&ll=67.86773,-115.2257&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

I am sure they are looking forward to their flight back to Yellowknife on Thursday.

Joe

Never ask a man if he's from Texas. If he is, he'll tell you on his own. If he ain't, well, there's no need to embarass him.

Have a good day y'all.

Progress for Monday 19th July

2010-07-19T20:08:00.005-06:00

They have remained at Sunday night's campsite for a second night. The SPOT location is again

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.89354,-115.46154&ll=67.89354,-115.46154&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

I am looking forward to hearing Sarah's tales and seeing the photographs when she eventually gets back online. I am also looking forward to seeing Adrian's photographs from Sunday. Great effort Adrian - congratulations.

Joe

Progress for Sunday 18th July

2010-07-18T20:41:00.004-06:00

They are almost there. They have paddled about 12 mile today and by my estimates they have another 12 miles left to reach Kugluktuk. They are camping almost at the mouth of the River at the following location:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.89354,-115.46154&ll=67.89354,-115.46154&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Joe

Progress for Saturday 17th July

2010-07-17T21:28:00.002-06:00

Their latest update shows that they are staying at the same campsite for a second night.
The SPOT location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.90598,-115.88267&ll=67.90598,-115.88267&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1
Everything is OK.

My calculations show that they have about 24 miles left to reach Kugluktuk and about 4 days in which to do it - not much of a challenge to such experienced canoeists !!

Joe

Progress for Friday 16th July

2010-07-16T19:57:00.004-06:00

Distance travelled today was just under 10 miles. The SPOT location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.90575,-115.8831&ll=67.90575,-115.8831&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

The next stage will take them into the River mouth and the Google Earth image starts to get a bit fuzzy. It will be interesting to see where they camp next.

have a good weekend Y'all

Joe

Progress for Thursday 15th July

2010-07-15T20:15:00.006-06:00

They are on the move again. Progress today was approximately 8 miles. SPOT location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.92365,-116.23441&ll=67.92365,-116.23441&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

By my calculations they still have 34 miles to go to reach Kugluktuk.

Joe

Wednesday 14th July

2010-07-14T21:20:00.004-06:00

The SPOT location for today is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.9471,-116.50301&ll=67.9471,-116.50301&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

which is almost identical to their location for yesterday. From that I assume that they have taken a rest day (or at least a rest from canoeing). This makes sense since they are ahead of schedule. They need to be at Kugkuktuk to catch their return flight on 22nd July.

Watch this space for tomorrow's update.

Joe

Where They Are

2010-07-14T08:27:00.005-06:00

The float plane dropped them off about 100 miles north of the Arctic Circle. What a place to choose for your summer holiday!!!

Click on the photos above to see their location and progress for the past week.

Joe

Progress for Tuesday 13th July

2010-07-13T20:04:00.003-06:00

Another 14 miles today. Sarah must have arms like Popeye by now.

Their SPOT GPS location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.94701,-116.50276&ll=67.94701,-116.50276&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

I think that they have just over 40 miles to go to reach Kugluktuk.

I will try to post an overall picture of their route and campsites when I can get someone to help me cut and paste the picture off Google Earth.

The next couple of days will present a challenge to their navigation skills when the river crosses a couple of lakes.
Keep on paddlin y'all.
Joe

Progress for Monday 12th July

2010-07-13T00:12:00.004-06:00

They still appear to be going a a good pace. Estimated distance covered on Monday was 15 miles. The spot location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.96533,-117.01087&ll=67.96533,-117.01087&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

I guess that they are almost at the half way point.

Joe

Progress for Sunday 11th July

2010-07-12T00:27:00.002-06:00

They are still going well. On Sunday they managed to paddle approximately 14 miles. Spot location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=68.00292,-117.49404&ll=68.00292,-117.49404&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Joe

Progress for Saturday 10th July

2010-07-11T01:00:00.005-06:00

Better progress today. Distance travelled was about 8 and a quarter miles.The Spot location is

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=68.06837,-117.92484&ll=68.06837,-117.92484&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Joe (Sarah's Dad)

Day 3 map

2010-07-10T11:33:00.001-06:00

Click the link below to see their latest postion.

Adrian

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=68.01964,-118.08464&ll=68.01964,-118.08464&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

They're on the move!

2010-07-09T10:23:00.000-06:00

Here's their latest location courtesy of the GPS SPOT device. Looks as if they've made it to the Rae River at last having followed the smaller tributary from the lake where they were dropped off.

Adrian

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.99967,-118.11841&ll=67.99967,-118.11841&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

First SPOT location and map

2010-07-08T10:53:00.000-06:00

So it looks like the float plane must have dropped them off on the lake next to the river. Click on this link to see where they are! You have to zoom out quite a lot to see it in relation to Canada. I think they'll be heading NE up the main river but we'll see when their next SPOT GPS co-ordinates are sent through. Exciting stuff!

Adrian (Sarah's husband)

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.97752,-118.08565&ll=67.97752,-118.08565&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

The Rae River - Daily SPOT Updates

2010-07-06T18:09:00.001-06:00

These are SPOT GPS co-ordinates sent to Adrian and my Dad on a daily basis. You should be able to click on the link and be directed to a Google map of our location...

Yellowknife - Land of The Midnight Sun

2010-07-06T17:28:00.000-06:00

Arrived in Yellowknife at 11pm last night. I am staying at the Aurora House B&B run by Cherie Metcalfe and her family and was pleasantly surprised when she and her two daughters turned up at the airport to meet me. Although its a B&B, to be honest it feels more like staying with family, they are absolutely lovely. ( As you can see I'm using their computer and have just got off playing on the trampoline with the girls ! )

Met Dave and Mark, two of my co-paddlers from New York state this morning at the Air Tindi base. They have done all the planning and preparation for the trip for which I am very grateful. I felt at ease with both of them straight a way, they are going to be fun companions I'm sure. They are both vets and hence used to dealing with bears - albeit ones under sedation...
Our fourth paddler Gene is not here yet, his flight was cancelled and is due to land tomorrow morning. Given that the float plane is booked for 1pm we are hoping he has no further delays and that his luggage arrives with him !

Spent a few hours sorting kit, checking maps and talking with the pilots. We don't seem to be able to get any more information about the river than what we already have which is limited. We really are heading into the unknown & my excitement is building by the minute ! Spent the afternoon mooching around Yellowknife and have planned to meet up with them at the Wild Cat restaurant for dinner later. Only thing I have left to get is my 'bear bangers' which I'm picking up in the morning.
Oh my goodness, it's really happening !

The Rae River

2010-07-05T04:35:00.001-06:00

This is probably the last chance I will get to update my blog until 24th or 25th July but Adrian or my Dad should be able to upload our daily co-ordinates from the emergency SPOT device we'll be taking with us.

I am heading off to Yellowknife today in order to meet up with my team mates [ Dave, Mark & Gene ] for my first big northern river trip. The Rae is a river in the far north of the North West Territories and runs into the Coronation Gulf of the Artic Sea. It flows into the gulf about 20km west of a small Inuit village called Kugluktuk ( fromerly Coppermine ) which is where we catch a flight back to Yellowknife from. Named after the explorer John Rae, it is a lesser paddled river having only been paddled by one previous team that we know of - the Borealis team. We are hoping to put on the river 50km or so upstream of where they started but that is water level dependent so it will be a case of looking out the plane window to see where we shall stop ! This is an exploratory trip with the plan of being run as a commercial venture by Wanapitei Canoe next year.

Over the past few days the challenges ahead of me are starting to seem more real as I chat to Lynette and Aleks for their advice. I fell asleep last night with a a hundred thoughts in my head - have I got all the kit I need, will it all hold up to artic conditions, what will the weather be like - (it could be anything I have been told from warm & sunny to wet, cold and windy ) and on and on...

I have started to feel slightly anxious as well as excited and can summarise my 3 major concerns as follows ;

1. The quality of the tea,

2. The quantity of the bugs and

3. The proximity of the bears ( in that order !)

Of course, if major concern #1 can be overcome then all others won't seem to bad. 'As long as one can have a decent cup of tea then all other concerns can be pondered & dealt with in a rational and civilised manor' - at least that's what the rest of the world seem to think about us Brits ! In all seriousness though the toughest thing really is that it will be about 3 weeks before I'll be able to speak to Adrian or my Mum & Dad again and that's going to be really, really hard. I'll be thinking of you and sending you all my love and big hugs xxxx

Weekend in the Madawaska Valley

2010-07-05T04:11:00.000-06:00

I am shortly to leave Aleks cottage and head back to Ottawa to catch my flight to Yellowknife in order to begin the next chapter of my adventure. I have had a wonderful weekend with Aleks and his friends [ Lana, Liko, Sasha, Gaga, Heather, Bo, Italia and Peter ] and am very grateful to them for allowing me to share the bank holiday weekend with them - and also the great photography ! As well as paddling the whitewater of the Madwaska we have been hiking in the close by hills and swimming & paddling in the local Palmer Rapids Lake. The weather has been absolutely glorious and Aleks gave me a lesson in his solo whitewater canoe which was new skills to me and also harder than it looks.
I can't thank Aleks enough for all the help he has given me over the last few months in planning this trip and making me feel so welcome here in Palmer Rapids. Getting to know Aleks has had a major impact on what I've been able to achieve in organising this trip and finally meeting him & paddling with him has had a huge impact on me personally. I am thinking too that I've perhaps had a small influence on him...as last night when he phoned Lynette she asked why he was speaking with a British accent !

Paddling With Aleks !

2010-07-03T06:22:00.000-06:00

Arrived at Aleks cottage in Combermere ( near palmer Rapids - about 3-4 hours North of Toronto) last night. It was great to finally meet him. Aleks is the chairman of the Wilderness Canoe Association and has been an invaluable friend in helping me to plan this trip. He and a group of friends are celebrating the Canada Day weekend paddling and have very kindly asked me to join them. Am looking forward to getting on a river for the first time in Canada and will update more later...

First Canoe Trip In Canada - Ottawa West End Community Chaplaincy Trip

2010-07-01T14:52:00.001-06:00

Hi all,
I've just returned to Ottawa after a 4 day trip in southern Quebec with a group of 9 young people and 2 other instructors, Lynette and Andrew. We've had an amazing time, based on Lac du Poisson Blanc with an awesome day trip into Lac Vert. Getting there involved 2.3km of portaging ( that's carrying your canoe for those of you who are not canoeists ) - I've managed to upload a few photos - see above . Lac Vert is a beautiful lake and as the name implies - a gorgeous green colour. We've been swimming, teaching canoe skills ( and all the young people have achieved their 1st certificate ), enjoying camp fires and battling the wind on some occasions as well. Unfortunately I don't have time to write more as Lynette & Laco are taking me out on a bike ride to see all the Canada Day celebrations downtown. Apparently the Queen is in town so obviously the Canadians think I am heading over to meet her for 'Tea'.
Lynette and her partner Laco met me at the airport when I arrived in Ottawa and I am staying with them again this evening - they have been very kind and made me feel very welcome. I felt at home straight away with my co instructors Andrew and Lynette on the trip and left the lake today wishing I could spend longer with them. Thanks guys so much for making my first trip so great x
Missing you all back at home and thanks for the birthday cards and text messages which I got today. I had the cards hanging in my tent !

Outline Itinerary

2010-06-17T12:43:00.000-06:00

June 26th : Fly to Toronto
June 28th - July 1st : Canoe trip in Quebec with West End Ottawa Community Chaplaincy
July 2nd - 5th : Paddling with Aleks, chairman of the Wilderness Canoe Association
July 5th : Fly to Yellowknife
July 6th - July 23rd : Rae River Expedition to Kugluktuk
July 24th : Fly to Toronto
July 25th - Aug 2nd : Hiking in Algonquin National Park and Wolf Howls at the Northern Edge
Aug 3rd - 10th : Canoe trip with Wendigo Lake - Location TBC
Aug 11th - 19th : Paddler Co-Op Palmer Rapids
Aug 20th - 30th : Canoe trip with Wendigo Lake - Location TBC
Sept 2nd : Fly Home x

About my Fellowship

2010-02-27T06:53:00.000-07:00

I have been awarded an eight week fellowship to travel to Canada in order to pursue wilderness canoeing. It is my intention to spend approximately half of this time volunteering at centres with groups of young people on canoe expeditions. The centres I am in contact with are about 3 hours north of Toronto near to the Algonquin National Park area. The remaining time will be spent on a river trip in the remote north of the country.

After the initial shock of finding out that I had been successful, next came the incredible excitement and then finally the overwhelming realisation that I actually had to start organising to do all the things I had planned to do. With a planned departure of 30th June and a deadline for filing my itinerary of two months prior to departure, that gives me about 9 weeks.

I have so far made some great contacts in Canada who have been very kind in helping me with my research and plans and to whom I am already immensely grateful.