Anacostia River, Washington D.C.

Welcome to Washington...

D.C. that is!

This week the Canoemobile is making its final stop at the beautiful Kenilworth Park on the Anancostia River in Washington D.C.. We will be partnering with many different amazing organizations, including the Army Corps. of Engineers, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service and the Earth Conservation Corps.

Signing a monumental memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Forestry Service.

U.S. Forestry Service Associate chief Mary Wagner and the Canoemobile Crew.

On the Anacostia!

An awesome raptor demonstration with the Earth Conservation Corps.

Nothing Like New York

It has been busy week so far here in New York City at Roberto Clemente State Park in the Bronx!

A view of the Hudson from the GWB.

Our first dinner with our gracious hosts at the Lasallian Community at Bedford Park

First day paddle talk with Dillon and Ranger Nick!

A boat crew by the spinning Fordham Bridge.

Our whole crew for the week including members from U.S. Geological Survey and Forest Service. 

Looking forward to an adventure on the Harlem River.

A view of Harlem and the Bronx from the bow of a Voyageur. 

Safe return to the dock after a successful paddle.

 Keep checking in for more updates on the goings on in NYC!

                               - Canoemobile Crew

Sweet Cincinnati!

 

The whole Canoemobile Crew has decided that this past week in Cincinnati can only be described as sweet. Sweet people, sweet city, sweet river and sweet Busken’s cookies. 

This week the Wilderness Inquiry Canoemobile Crew spent five days on the mighty Ohio River partnering with the Camping and Education Foundation and Camp Kooch-i-ching and Ogichi Daa Kwe, our Minnesota neighbors.  Our first contact in the city was Melynda, who was our main go-to-gal for the week. During our first meeting at the Schmidt Field Boat Ramp in Cincinnati, we talked all about our six mile route which stopped in Kentucky for lunch and ended just a stones throw away from the Red’s stadium in downtown Cinci. We decided on timing plans for the next day and made our way to Terrace Park where we were scheduled to camp out in the backyard of Hank and Linda Brightwell.  We owe a huge, HUGE, thank you to both Hank and Linda for being so wonderfully generous and welcoming and letting us not only stay at their home, but for including us in Hank’s birthday celebration, feeding us delicious (and gluten free!) food and for making us feel a part of their family. We are so grateful!

Hank, Linda and the crew.

All of our days were spent on the Ohio River with 7^th-11^th graders from Gamble Montessori Middle and High School in Cincinnati. We were fortunate enough to start off each day with a hands-on demonstration from several great people from the Army Corps of Engineers who taught the kids about the importance of always wearing your lifejacket and how to rescue someone who has fallen in the water without theirs. “Reach, throw, row, don’t go!"

After landing for lunch in Kentucky, we began our programming for the afternoon provided by the generous and high quality volunteers from both Kooch-i-ching and Ogichi daa kwe. They shared with us their knowledge, skills and traditions around fire building, cooking and campsite set-up.  Campbell Jolly was our fire guru for the week, wowing us with her ability to effortlessly start a fire with a bow-drill in front of over forty 7^th graders! We also learned about Kooch-i-ching’s Wannigan and how to bake a Bannock in a reflector oven.

Bow-drill lessons with Campbell Jolly

Making dream catchers.

The giant bow-drill!

Gamble Montessori on the Ohio River.

Waiting for our ride to the country club in beautiful Kentucky.

Our final day on the Ohio was an eventful one. We had been having trouble with our van, Scarlet, for a few weeks and we had decided to take her into the shop on Wednesday afternoon to get her looked at. Well, thank goodness that Jimmy, Melynda's husband and Koochi-ching alum drives a truck because it turns out that Scarlet was in need of some serious TLC and was kept at the repair shop till much later than expected on Thursday night. As it turns out, Thursday night was also that night that Hank and all of our friends from Kooch-i-ching and Ogichi daa kwe were throwing a big fundraiser and party at Hank’s country club. The Canoe Crew, unfortunately had to miss almost all of the fun because of some silly transportation issues and GPS malfunctions. We got off the water at three in the afternoon and didn’t make it to the party until almost eight thirty!  However, we didn’t loose our spirits and are so grateful to Hank and the gang for allowing us to be part of your benefit and celebration.

 Camp people always make you feel right at home with them and our situation was no exception. From Melynda, to Libby, Hank, Steve and Campbell, we feel like we have a second family in all of you. The energy and heart you put into this event and the effort you put into recruiting kids into your program is inspiring. We are all moved by your commitment to your cause and how much spirit you all have.

A big thank you and salute to all the teachers and volunteers and students from Gamble Montessori, it was a joy to paddle your river with you.

A view of Cincinnati from Kentucky.

A paddle was given to each class from Gamble as a gift from the Camping and Education Foundation.

Thanks to Beth and Bob for an amazing chili dinner!

“Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do no inherit the Earth from out ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
                                          –Ancient Indian Proverb

More than just Michigan City, IN

  Michigan City, Indiana

Long time no see! It has been a busy, busy week in Michigan City. So busy in fact, that we have had no time to update you all on our adventures. We had an exciting week, serving over four hundred and fifty people at the beautiful and incredibly friendly Michigan City marina in Washington Park.

At first glance, the marina with its numerous high docks and budget busting yachts, did not seem like the ideal location for our big canoes, but after a quick walk around and test paddle down Trail Creek with Dan Plath and Nicole Messacar, we began to notice the beauty and learned a lot about the area.    

 We spent the better part of a day learning about Michigan City’s rich history of the area and came to really appreciate the uniqueness of Trail Creek and all of its winged inhabitants.

Over the next three days, we were able to show each of our participants the beauty andshare some history of the area during our tours of Trail Creek. Our route began in the marina where we loaded each of the kids.

 After exiting the marina, we headed into Trail Creek, paddling away from Lake Michigan.  During the paddle, the students enjoyed looking at the birds, jumping fish, lighthouses, the railroad and draw bridge, and even the old World War II lookout tower that now sits in the middle of the Michigan City Zoo grounds.

     The first day provided excellent paddling conditions with sunny weather, however, we did experience first hand the power of Lake Michigan as the wind picked up during the day bringing with it large gusts and white caps on the great lake. (maybe the awesome pic of the boat in front of the light house) Earlier in our trip, Dan Plath had mentioned something about two local women that had recently completed an amazing feat. We later found, and were fortunate enough to meet, Amy Lukas and Mary Catterlin, both Beverly Shores natives, who had just finished a ninety-three day circumnavigation of Lake Michigan in an eleven foot dugout canoe that Mary herself spent four years digging out. They were kind enough to share their homecoming and take a few pictures with us for the Wilderness Inquiry history books. These are two of the coolest chicks you will ever meet. Check out more of what they dealt with and discovered on their journey here on their blog.

After a beautiful, windy evening with Amy and Mary, we unfortunately woke up to a little rain and overcast skies on our second day in Michigan City.  However, the rain did provide very calm waters, which were appreciated by the all the Boat Captains. The gray weather continued throughout the day but the students didn’t seem to mind at all.  One of the groups was lucky enough to see both the railroad bridge and the drawbridge open up! (picture)  We also had our public paddling event on Wednesday evening and were happy to have some paddling enthusiasts and first timers join us in a pleasant evening paddle.  (picture) We were all super excited when both Mary and Amy joined us for a short, but sweet, paddle around the marina and Trail Creek.    

Our last day in Michigan City was full of gorgeous weather, enthused participants and heartfelt goodbyes. The whole Canoe Mobile Crew is grateful for and humbled by how wonderfully friendly and helpful everyone was during our time in Michigan City. Everywhere we turned there was someone ready to give directions, lend a hand with gear or recommend their favorite local restaurant for dinner. It is places like this, full of people like Dan, Nicole and Gene, and all the dedicated teachers and volunteers from the schools and programs that we worked with that make this whole crazy Canoe Mobile work. So cheers, Michigan City! We look forward to seeing you next year!

A special shout out and special thanks to the following people:

Nicole Messacar and the LaPorte County Soil and Water Conservation District

 Dan Plath,  Gene Plath and the Northwest Indiana Paddling Association

Don

Kenneth

Amy and Mary for talking pictures with us and answering all of our wide-eyed questions. 

and everyone else who I forgot to mention who helped us during our time in MI City. Your generosity and hospitality did not go unnoticed!

Stoked about Skokie

Teamwork to take down the Buck-thorn

 Today’s trip was a partnership between Wilderness Inquiry and the Shed Aquarium Stewards program. A group of 31 high school students from the urban and suburban Chicago area came out for a day of paddling and restorative buckthorn removal.  The combination of beautiful weather and the delicious s’mores cooked over the remains of our raging buckthorn fire resulted in a fantastic day at Skokie Lagoon.  

Buckthorn fire

S'more s'mores please.

 Although the Duckweeds smelled a bit unpleasant, we over came the aroma and succeed in a successful paddle around the lagoons. Adam shared fun Duckweeds or Lemnoideae facts before the paddle.  

 Introducing a segment we like to call:  “Have you heard? -with Adam Hoffman.”        

“First off, Duckweeds it is not a sure sign of poor water quality, but it can be in some nasty stuff sometimes.  Anyway, it is a very small plant that has no roots.  It is about the size of the circle on your “6” key on your keyboard.  It either floats on top of the water or just below the surface.  It likes to eat nitrogen and phosphorus that is present in the water, and that is good because too much of that stuff can cause lots of algae to grow.   It can cover large amounts of the waters surface and it even helps to prevent evaporation of water, so some people like to because it can conserve water.  It is eaten by ducks, go figure! And some Southeast Asian cultures of humans eat it too.  It is actually higher in protein than soybean!!! “

This has been “Have you heard?” with Adam Hoffman.

 Adam is always full of awesome facts—you can learn a lot from paddling in his boat. That being said, has anyone ever heard the story of Excalibur? It's one of Adams favorite! In fact he wanted to share this famous tale of the Lady of the Lake with the participants on our trip at Skokie Lagoons.  Adam slowed his boat to a stop on the water, and once he had the other boats' attention he asked them if they wanted to "see a cool paddling trick."  Adam attempted to throw his paddle into the water like a spear.  Usually, the paddle drops below the surface for a few seconds and returns to the surface at the same angle it entered.  This nifty trick is fun to watch because the paddle pops far out of the water with more height than you would expect.  Well before he threw the paddle he thought to himself, “I really need to throw this thing in hard!” So he did… and after it sunk below the surface 1, 3, 5 seconds went by and it did not return.  With panic rising, Adam quickly grabbed another paddle and fished for it frantically!  But it was never found… the Lady of the Lake is keeping this blade forever… so sad.  Guess we will have to save our Excalibur skills for another day. 

Everyone fishing in the lake for Adam's lost paddle.

 We ended our lunch break by playing a few rounds of one of our favorite big group games: Captain's Coming

A demonstration of "crows nest" during our rousing game of Captain's Coming.

Walk the plank! Somebody is going to get out...

Man overboard!

 After our paddle, we loaded back up into the van and made our way south towards Michigan City, Indiana, passing through the great city of Chicago on our way. We got a few shots of the former Sears tower (now called Willis tower) and a good glimpse of Chicago Saturday night traffic.

Saturday night Chicago traffic.

Friends on the road with a 10-stack!

6-stack shadow speeding down the Chicago highway.

                    "My mind moves from its capacity toward a freedom I've yet to understand"
                                                                            -David Burton

Lift Off

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The van and trailer are packed, piled high with life jackets, safety gear, sleeping bags and duffels and a wind-up dancing robot hastily adhered to the center console.  All the food has been stowed away and all the mandatory pre-trip “smiling in front of the car” pictures have been taken.  As we pass over the St. Croix River, heading southeast though Wisconsin on our way to Skokki Lagoon in Chicago, the van is fairly quiet.  We have been preparing for this trip for a long time, although most of the leaders on the trip wish we would have had at least another two days to pack.  We had our pre-trip meeting and have been talking about logistics for months but it still seems like we are unprepared for the challenge we are about to take on.  We are setting out towards uncharted territory.  As that feeling of uncertainty and apprehension buzzes around the van there is another feeling as well: excitement. Our van, affectionately named Scarlet, will be traveling over 3200 miles to 7 different cities and will be serving over 2500 participants. This is an incredible opportunity, for us as leaders and for the people we will be serving. Over the course of one month we will be traveling across the country with six, 24-foot Voyageur canoes in tow, stopping in different lagoons and rivers and taking all different types of people out for boat rides. It is going to be a lot of hard work, cramped hotel rooms and long car rides, but it's all going to be worth it for the experience we are bringing to our participants.  

“No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit.”

-Helen Keller