April of 2008
For some time I have felt this urge, more of a massive itch caused by a few years of canoe expedition absence; I paddled on day trips and overnighters, nothing more than a few days, but something was missing. An expedition to me is of a particular length (more than a few days more like a minimum of a few weeks) of time and for a specific goal. When the urge came back, it came back big time. My first choice for voyageurs did not work out as Tyler and James had their schedule and summer filled with completing their education and practical experience to become guides - something that would be necessary to the future growth of the Canoe Guys.
At a local pub in Edmonton, ‘Sherlock Holmes’, I sat down with an acquaintance named Anthony and we discussed our experiences on the river and I proposed an adventure far into the Canadian wild. From a young age I always dreamed of taking the fur trade route out of Edmonton and heading toward the massive arctic bay of Hudson Bay. As we sat we shared a discussion on our experiences, Anthony claimed to have roughed in the bush for a few months with little human contact, in the outdoors and on the river. I was more than prepared to work with that.
I suggested a canoe and going even further going where so few from Edmonton have gone: a canoe expedition to Hudson Bay.
A canoe trip is a ‘vacation’ of sorts, but it is not a vacation where you can put your feet up. It is a vacation that will require you to put in your best effort, an effort that is both mentally and physically demanding. It should be thought of as a vacation of escape to the natural world with a self-propelled adventure that will be trying and will challenge your person.
It’s a vacation from what has become known as the human world.
Credit for all images:
Canada’s National History Society, THE BEAVER: Exploring Canada’s History, Winnipeg: Canada’s National History Society, 1920. Periodical. An illustrated Canadian history magazine published by the HBC 1920 – 1994. by CNHS since 1994