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Some people will go to absurd lengths to avoid a portage. :alien:

Knife, whistle, mylar blanket, small flashlight, fire starter. For a day paddle, also my car keys. I use an NRS Ninja which is low profile and not terribly well endowed with pockets. Sometimes I envy those "fishing" PFDs with copious pocket space, but I'm not sure I'd want to wear one all day in...

On my smallish group trips (2-6 souls in 1-3 canoes) we plan for everyone to feed themselves, which is my preference. We do socialize morning coffee, since that's easy to do and it serves as a mustering ritual. We also sometimes share alcohol and/or evening sweets ad hoc. I occasionally join...

I remember that, she wrote a great trip report / journal. Here it is https://cathyqmumford.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/hello-world/ Somebody apparently ratted her out about having a too-small boat (someone with a grudge against short yaks? go figure), but the ranger was cool about it and gave her...

The Mud Pond Carry is a religious experience! (Rather like flagellation ...) I seriously think it's worth doing for its own sake. It really feels like it hasn't changed much since Thoreau got lost there in 1857. The trail is mostly a ditch filled with water, and when you find yourself going with...

Proposed thumb rules by material: Polyethelene => rubbish (unless it's like a disco with no holes, but who'd throw that away?) ABS => hmmm, how bad? less than $75 worth of gflex? Chopper glass => rubbish Good glass => do I like this hull and/or am I under 40? Kevlar / carbon => of course (Even...

I just use the knucklehead method, boat on my head. If I'm running difficult whitewater I'm wearing a helmet anyway or if not I put a piece of foam in my hat.

Nice find! Not rare but deservedly popular. It really is a great all-arounder. It's my "if I could only have one canoe" canoe. (Fortunately I'm well past having that problem.) I use it as a tandem tripper when I'm with a lighter bow paddler and we're packing light (e.g., short bushwhack...

Definitely fiberglass, it's even the same inside paint color as my '89 FG Traveler (no after picture because it doesn't look as nice as Robin's Mohawk (;)). That's a good hull for someone who isn't isn't fussed about weight. I've been impressed with the durability of mine. Mad River Vermont...

With due respect to Mr. Callan, candy corn is the power of the portage! What about candy corn? 1. It's loaded with sugar, and portageurs need energy. 2. It's quite salty for a candy, and portageurs sweat like pigs and need to replace their salts. 3. What does candy corn make you think of...

I took up canoeing as an adult (late 30's). I quickly fell in with the local racers so hit and switch technique was perfectly respectable, but after a while I came to realize that I needed a good same-side cruising stroke. Searching around online I found the classic Bill Mason / National Film...

When a boat has a nice sharp bow entry and it makes clean and quiet wake lines (without any, gasp, bubbles) it just feels faster, but yes, it really is just seconds. (Is that a leaf on my bow?) Sometimes a noisy/rough skidplate can be quieted with a careful application of thickened epoxy (see...

A few years back this gal https://www.youtube.com/@3_Minutes_With_a_Maine_Guide did the St George River canoe race (~class II+ most years) using only a setting pole. We were pretty impressed, but speed was obviously not the objective and she came in last. The awards were done in a field right at...

@Alan Gage, I like everything you like about the traditional USCA type races in the northern states. My first race was the Kenduskeag here in Bangor, Maine, and it was largely the festival atmosphere that got me interested. Over time my objectives progressed from "I'd rather not dump" to "this...

Never any doubt! I mean I enjoy a gin & tonic float trip too, but these more difficult trips are much more satisfying. That'd be a great trip. Ron Canter mentions it as well. I know Munsungun is sometimes used as a starting point for an Allagash trip. With enough time one could do a grand...

The safari's on my bucket list, but it's a long way from Maine so the planets will have to align. Also, I don't think any of my current racing boats would survive it (vintage kevlar) so I'd have to rent a Spencer or something.

A bear swimming does look a lot like an unusually large beaver. I saw this one swimming when I was paddling on a local stream. I was just out for exercise, but by luck I had my camera handy and was able to get a couple photos at the limit of useful range. Once the bear got to the bank he made an...

Thanks. I read your TR then and that put the lake on my radar. Were you camped on the west side? There was a campsite where we put in, but I don't think it was yours, less open ground. I doubt many people get up there. I'll definitely be back. The road isn't great, with some oil pan rocks to...

Thanks, and thanks for keeping this site going. If I post something here I know I can look back on it years later. Maybe when I'm retired I'll head back up there with more time and a big saw. So says the authoritative source (my old cracked moto phone). I can't say my memory is of much use...

In an odd coincidence, I posted the above from an airplane, and a couple hours later the plane almost flew over Carry Brook. We passed within about 10 miles of Grand Lake Seboeis. Can they drop me at Umcolcus Lake instead of Boston Logan? JetBlue can call that EvenMoreMoose and charge me an...