Outdoor Writer & Consultant – Wilderness Guide – Custom Canoe Expeditions into the far north
Outdoor Writer & Consultant – Wilderness Guide – Custom Canoe Expeditions into the far north
A properly equipped family canoe. EVERYONE is wearing a life jacket! Hardly a year goes by when there isn’t a drowning on some lake or river, U.S.A. In nearly every case the victims were not wearing life jackets. Boats capsize and people die. Why? Because they don’t know what they don’t know! Those who have […]
Renee and Ken Sebranek on a wild Wisconsin river. Reneee is totally blind! Their heart-warming story is in my book, CANOEING WILD RIVERS, 5th Edition. Question: Should you tie everything into your canoe when you run rapids and big lake waves? Or, should gear be allowed to float free in a capsize? If you’ve ever […]
North Knife River, Manitoba. A narrow slot on river left (right of the canoe) allows safe passage. *SCENARIO Grand Rapids on the Mattagami River (northern Ontario) is more than a mile long and one-fourth as wide. When the water is high, the rapid is quite lively and produces a hollow drone which can be heard […]
Steel River, Ontario. Wrapped Mad River Explorer Kevlar canoe.Yes! It survived the wrap and was later repaired to functional (not cosmetic) perfection. My dad was a quality control engineer. A sign in his office read, “Accidents don’t just happen; they are caused!” The villains are speed (doing a task too fast), inattention and not following […]
Muskox: Hood River, Nunavut, Canada. Yes, these guys can be dangerous! In 1974, I made my first big river trip in Canada. Five friends and I canoed 200 miles down a network of connecting Ontario rivers—Groundhog, Mattagami, Moose—to James Bay. It rained every day for 10 days; the river was flooded—very flooded (!); the bugs […]
Broken trailer tongue–near LaRonge, Saskatchewan. Destroyed my wood-trimmed Old Town Tripper canoe. My dad was a quality control engineer. A sign in his office read, “Accidents don’t just happen; they are caused!” The villains are speed (doing a task too fast), impatience and not following safety rules. In 35 years of guiding canoe trips on […]
Boundary Waters Canoe Area. These canoes were on land but not tied up. A big wind blew them into the water and over a falls. They were all rentals. PART ONE We’ve all observed unskilled campers and paddlers do dumb and/or dangerous things. Admittedly, what is dumb and/or dangerous, is largely a matter of perspective. […]
Grizzly. Camp along the Fond du Lac River, Saskatchewan. 13. NOT FOLLOWING THE TRIP LEADER’S EQUIPMENT LIST.Good trip leaders provide a detailed equipment list which should be rigorously followed. The leader will review personal equipment and clothing before the trip and approve safe alternatives. But some people are stubborn and “after inspection” delete or sneak […]
Typical late March scenery along the Buffalo River The national wild and scenic Buffalo River in Arkansas is one of the finest canoeing rivers in America. I’ve done it three times and will canoe it again this March. We’ll begin at Ponca and run to the White River–a distance of around 130 miles. Administered by […]
I turned 80 in September. No matter, I continue to think—and largely feel—like I’m 29…well, maybe 39. The heart attack I had in 2013 hasn’t slowed me down. Early in life I became a fan of Calvin Rutstrum’s books. I read them all, over and over again. In one of his titles (I believe it […]