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Shoulder High: A Georgian Bay Trip
Bryan Hansel and Steve Hauptli find adventure in the 30,000 Island area of Georgian Bay. On a four day trip, they're pounded by gale force winds in an attempt to make it to the Bustard Rock Lighthouses. This is the tale of their 50 mile trip.
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IN THE WILDS OF PATAGONIA
Eager to protect the dramatic landscapes of western Patagonia, Cristian Donoso will lead a 5-month expedition by kayak to this region, one of the most inhospitable places on earth, in 2007. With its labyrinth of rocky islands, serpentine channels and icy fjords, western Patagonia, in southern Chile, is one of the least-explored areas on earth, with annual rainfall reaching up to eight metres and winds frequently rising to hurricane force. Nestled among glaciers that hug the slopes of steep Andean peaks and drenched by storms that blow out of the southern Pacific, the harsh region deters all but the hardiest explorers. That has not stopped Cristian Donoso, a young Chilean…
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Last Day in Paradise: a Boundary Waters trip report by Richard “Doc” Gams
When the Ham Lake Fire of 2007 closed all the entry points on the eastern side of the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness, Richard Doc Gams and his crew were forced to change their plans. Some quick last minute planning and their trip to the BWCA turned out heavenly.
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Canoecopia 2007
A trip report for the 2007 Canoecopia. This is the world's largest paddlesports expo. It occurs each year in Madison, WI. Here are the highlights of the show.
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Lake Superior Day Trip – Grand Marais to Fall River and Beyond
The short paddle from Grand Marais to the Fall River (4.5 mile round trip) makes for a great short outing and the paddle from the harbor to Terrace Point (10 mile round trip) adds some distance to your trip.
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Adventures in the Hills: The 2006 Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup
The Custer State Park Buffalo Round was the destination of Bryan Hansel and Steve Hauptli in the Fall of 2006. This trip report has nothing to do with paddling, but sometimes a trip that doesn't include paddling can be a good thing. This travel story includes beautiful photography.
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Up a Lazy River: A solo canoe trip in the Boundary Waters
This is an account of Shipp Webb's solo six-day trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, a trip that covered 13 lakes, 4 rivers and 28 portages totaling about 72 miles. Thirty-one hours quickly passed paddling and portaging. It was a trip with varied weather and an abundance of wildlife sightings including eagles, moose, deer, and most importantly a wolf.
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An Electric Paddle On Buffalo Creek
I’m not worried about it,” remarked Chris Sickert about the electric fence that crossed the creek in front of the canoe. “Okay,” I said back. I imagined in terror that Chris would grab the electric wire as we drifted under it, and the current from the live wire would travel down the water in the bilge of the canoe and shock me. I rearranged my feet outside of the water, and wondered if the rubber bottoms on my Teva’s would block the current. “Did I every tell you about the time my father took a pee on an electric fence?” “No,” said Chris. “I doubt that they would have the…
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Day Trip: Top Falls in the BWCA
The 8.5 mile day trip from Bearskin Lake to the Stairway portage is a classic day trip in the Boundary Waters. The reward at the portage is a beautiful waterfall and one of the best views in the Wilderness Area.
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Vern River Loop
Route Name: Brule Vern River Loop Route: Brule, Juno, Vern, Vern River, Weird Lake, South Temperance Lake, and Brule Distance: 21 miles Total Days: 2 Description of Boundary Waters Route Five hours of bush whacking, route forging, and pulling your canoe up and over miles of blow downs await the brave canoeist that tackles this fine route. The route starts out on the picturesque and big Brule Lake, but quickly ducks into Jock Mock Bay and then does a quick loop through the Vern River, which if paddled once a year, it would be considered a good year. The Vern River if cleaned out and some portages added would be…
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Canoecopia 2006: Trip Report
As I write this, we’re getting pounded by snow blowing sideways in an almost complete whiteout, which is in contrast to the great weather we had over the weekend at this year’s Canoecopia. I have to think, yet another Canoecopia, the show that signals the start of spring for me. This year, I spent two days in Madison, Wisconsin at the show, and these are the following observations that I made. The Sales Floor The sales floor completely changed in arrangement this year. They created a large main isle down the center of the show and then had the booths branching off the center isle. All similar products where then…
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Along the Banks of the Saskatchewan: A Kayak Trip Down the Saskatchewan River
Robert N Pruden returns to the pages of Nessmuking with a tale of adventure. For this installment, he paddled his homemade kayak from from Edmonton to North Battleford on the North Saskatchewan River. Along the way, he discovered a connection with the wilderness as well as a corpse...
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Interview With a Solo Canoeist: Part Two
During a 9 day, 200-mile solo canoe trip, solo canoeist, Bryan Hansel, interviewed himself. His trip started in Voyager National park and ended on Lake Superior. Since Bryan didn't get enough out of himself, he decided to interview himself again. Here is the follow up interview.
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Interview With a Solo Canoeist
During a 9 day, 200-mile solo canoe trip, solo canoeist, Bryan Hansel, interviewed himself. His mid-September trip started in Voyager National park and ended on Lake Superior. The Interview BH: So, Bryan, I’m going to interview you on the forth night of your trip across the Boundary Waters. Sound good? ME: Sure why not. I’m game. After all, it’s just me on this sandy beach right now, and I have nothing better to do except drink spiked hot chocolate and watch the northern lights. BH: Good. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to rough you up. Anyway, why did you decide to do this trip? ME: Well, I should say,…
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Canoecopia 2005: Trip Report
“It’s a Star Trek Convention for canoeists.” – Kevin Callan, he was asked what Canoecopia was by a border guard when crossing from Canada into the US. This was the third year that I’ve attended the Canoecopia, the world’s largest paddle sport expo, and this year was the first that I could fully enjoy the show. The last two years, my old employer, a large retail chain, sent me to get ideas and spy on the competition, so this year, I went on my own. I drove 10 hours down to Madison, WI, camped out at Blue Mounds State Park, and attended two days of the show before driving back…
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