Why I trip alone

[Srobocop]

I rarely can find anyone to go paddling where I want, as far away as I want, when I want.

If I confined myself to organized group trips, I would paddle the same things, mostly close by, over and over and over again.

I like to play things by ear, extemporize, change my mind and direction. For any reason or no reason.

So I mostly paddle alone.

Nailed it.

 

[Guest]

I often hear this said and wonder if it's truly the case. No argument that more people die driving than hiking/canoe tripping in the back country but I wonder what the stats are if you look at the percentages?

The statistics, depending on the parameters of the data, may not support my feeling of risk management in those situations.

It is the management part that weighs more heavily for me. Most of the risky incidents in the field were due to my own unwise decisions or actions, and for the most part I’ve learned better.

All of the road accidents were due to someone else’s poor behavior. I’ve been rear ended several times when stopped at a sign or light. I’ve been broadsided by a drunk that ran a red light. I hit a long black ice bridge on I-10 in Texas and did multiple 360’s; each time I got back around to 180 I could see a couple of tractor trailer rigs sliding ominously my way.

Add the crazy stuff I’ve seen and avoided; an east bound in the west bound lanes suicide on I-70, wrecks and crashes from dumb arse speeders that flung car parts across a debris field, a vehicle flipping over the guardrail into the oncoming hammer lane. More of that craziness than I care to remember.

I’ve seen death on the road more than once.

There is only so much I can do to manage those risks and still travel. If I’m travelling with a co-driver I want someone utterly dependable. I try to avoid large metro areas, congestion and rush hour and, if unavoidable, time them for off peak hours.

I don’t speed, I don’t tailgate (hate that) and try to drive gently and read the road, paying attention to what is happening both in front of me and behind me. Done right I am rarely on the brakes and I look for similar behavior in a co-pilot who has my life in their hands.

My ideal condition for eating up miles is to be well rested and drive all night on some open inter-State west of the Mississippi. Even on more congested highways I naturally fall into the “void” between packs of vehicles without thinking about it, so I have multiple escape routes if something bizarre happens.

Bizarre things do happen. I was driving on I-95, comfortably between packs of cars, in a rural-ish area without any side roads or crossings for miles, when a car suddenly flew over the guardrail, cleared the breakdown lane on the right and tee boned the granny lane. WTF!

That was one of those 20 miles from home things. I’ve gone back and looked and there is no road of any kind in that area. Where the hell did that come from?

There is a similar risk avoidance analogy for tripping, but I haven’t yet been broadsided by a speeding drunk in a canoe.

 

[smallworks]

I feel blessed that I have someone who shares my wavelength. We're in it together and share our strengths and weaknesses, lazy or dreamily inclined or A type insanely employed- setting up camp really fast on a bright sunny day; just in case - he's been through his own bout with a rare form of cancer. The first we we did was to strap the canoe on top of the car before tests. We then headed up to a small river we'd always been curious about, and had a sweet excursion. It's been @ 9 years. knock on wood and he still shares the water with me.
Love to all/

 

[southcove]

We tend now to base camp and after b'fast everyone splits up typically for the day and then all expect to get back together around dinner...this pretty much holds for our winter camping too. I have spent some great days alone but eager to share pics, stories or the campfire at day's end. With two boys in tow, I always had to be looking at the 'danger zone'. Now, they tell me I look 'too tired' to drive on the drive in...

 

[ppine]

Phil,
If you are having some health issues plan on going with a crew for safety.

 

[Philtrum]

ppine, that's great advice. If I could find a reliable and experienced partner who's available when I am, I'd go tandem for sure. My heart issues should all be settled before my next planned BWCA trip in September.