Following Winchell Expedition Trailer

In the spring of 2021, I followed the 1879 canoe route of Minnesota State Geologist Newton Horace Winchell.

Winchell was surveying the north shore of Lake Superior and inland waterways near Grand Marais and Lutsen, MN. He started in Grand Marais and followed the Iron Trail Canoe Route from the harbor to the border with Canada. Then he followed the Voyager Route along the border and eventually descended to Lake Superior following the Knife Lake to the Poplar River Mouth Ojibwe canoe route.

My route followed his as closely as I could. Where there were missing portages, I either used modern infrastructure, such as roads or the Superior Hiking Trail, or I bushwhacked. Some of the bushwhacks were brutal affairs. In all, I travelled approximately 160 miles with 30 miles of portages over a little less than two weeks.

During my trip, I filmed a lot of footage hoping to eventually make a personal, noncommercial documentary to share. I’m not sure if I have enough footage to complete the project, but I did have enough to make this trailer. Consider this a trailer for a potential documentary and a trailer for the presentation and talk I plan on giving about the trip.

I’m still trying to figure out where to give the talk. Canoecopia is doing a virtual and in-person show next year, so that’s one potential. I’ve often talked during the Wooden Boat Show and Summer Solstice Celebration at the North House Folk School. I could also just do it live on Zoom or via Live Facebook or something. I’d be curious if anyone would be interested in listening to my presentation during a paid webinar.