June 13th Meeting

Lunch with Bob O’Hara

On Saturday we had the opportunity to meet with Bob O’Hara. Bob has paddled many arctic rivers including the Coppermine. When we met with him he was in the process of packing for his 68th consecutive summer going to the Boundary Waters.

He had many stories to share as well as plenty of advice. We also were given a tour of his house which is basically a museum, filled with artifacts from his various adventures.

He shared that Les Voyageurs is the best program he’s seen and offered for us to visit again after we return to share stories. After meeting with him he told me “There certainly a real age gap between me and them [your crew]. Canoeing on the other hand covers a common interest for all ages.”

June 10th - June 11th Meetings

Whitewater Training

On Wednesday and Thursday, we split up the crew into two different groups and took them to run a section of the St. Louis River. Both days went very well! Owen and I went through different aspects of shooting larger whitewater, and the river gave us plenty of opportunities to scout rapids, catch eddies, and ferry across rapids.

After Wednesday's group finished, we decided to make the extra drive to Duluth so Raul could see Lake Superior and the lift bridge for the first time. Unfortunately, it was a little foggy, but it was still fun crew bonding with the guys!

June 8th Meeting

Crew Date, Kettle, Spices, and Orienteering

Today’s meeting was quick as we finished off a couple of miscellaneous tasks.

The morning started off with our crew-date breakfast. There was a lot of good food, and it was fun to spend one last time with the Girls' Far North crew before they depart tomorrow. Once breakfast wrapped up, we were also able to give them a hand loading their trailer.

Next, we moved on to knots and orienteering. This part of the meeting was mainly a refresher; we reviewed setting a bearing using a compass and how to read UTMs. Everyone pretty much had this down, so we transitioned to the knot portion.

We had already covered knots a couple of times throughout preparation, so we put our skills to the test. We did a team relay as a warm-up before moving into the final competition. Each person was timed on how quickly they could tie and untie the four main knots that we use on trail (square knot, double half-hitch, taut-line, and bowline). Congratulations to Quinn for winning with a time of 48 seconds!

The last part of the meeting was putting together the Kettle pack and filling all the spice jars. We were able to split up the crew to save time for this portion, and the only conflict that came out of this part of the meeting was deciding how much and which types of salt to bring. It is safe to say that we will have well-seasoned food on trail.

June 5th - June 6th Meetings

06/05/2026 - Food Packing Day

Friday was Food Packing Day, the second time that all the crews were together in one place. For this day, each crew dressed up according to a theme. The guys chose the theme of a “Zoom meeting”: professional on top, pajamas on the bottom.

This day was pretty self-explanatory, so there is not much to write about, but I’m happy to share that, unlike some of the guys’ first-year Food Packing Day, we were super efficient this year with our packing and were the first crew done.

06/06/2026 - Baking Day

On Saturday, we went right back to working with food, checking another long day off our preparation list. Baking took longer than expected, but the hard work will be worth it once we get on trail.

We browned about 100 pounds of ground beef, made almost 120 pounds of hot chocolate, and put together 38 meals' worth of Hudson Bay Bread and bannock. We also listened to a lot of music and got through three movies (we had to make up for the lack of technology this summer, obviously).

It was nice to wrap up the long week of meetings, and we are slowly closing in on the final days of preparation.

June 1st - June 4th Meetings

06/01/2026 - Pak Boats

Prep has officially started!

On Monday, it was great to have most of the crew together to begin preparation for the trip! We started with a review of knots before we worked on the Pak Boats, which is a different type of canoe than used on a first-year trip. Pak Boats pack down into a bag about the size of a large suitcase. They are much lighter than Royalex canoes, but are assembled with aluminum tubing. This is necessary to transport them back from Kugluktuk. We put all six boats together to make sure no parts were missing, broken, or needed to be repaired.

Assembling and repairing the Pak Boats took a little bit longer than anticipated, but it was exciting to be working with our equipment and watch this trip come to life.

06/02/2026 - Beef Jerky Day

Beef Jerky Day is the first of two days during preparation when all of the crews are together in the same spot. This day consists of cutting lots and lots of beef jerky strips. The jerky is then marinated for a day or two and placed into the dehydrators to be used as our main protein source every day for lunch.

In classic voyageur tradition, our crew used this day as an opportunity to ask the girls of the Far North Crew on a crew date. We will be having a potluck-style breakfast with their crew on Monday, just one day before sending them off on their trip.

06/03/2026 - Maps, Tents and Tarp

On Wednesday, we started our meeting by talking about our goals and what we are looking forward to on this trip. Brainstorming before mapping out our route and getting on the trail is helpful to see where everyone’s mind is at, so we know what to prioritize during the trip. While we were inside, we also went over different river features and what to think about when shooting whitewater to help prepare for paddling the Sauk River and the St. Louis River.

Next, we got outside and refreshed our memories on setting up a tarp before practicing setting up tents. The tents we will use this summer are different than last year. We are bringing four Hilleberg tents, which are easier to set up (which is always a plus), but more importantly, a lot warmer for the cold nights that could happen this summer.

Last, we ended the meeting by setting up all the maps and planning out our days for the trip.

06/04/2026 - Sauk River

Thursday, we were back on the water!

Last week, we met with the crew in groups to brush up on paddling skills. Paddling the Sauk River was a great way to put some of those skills to use. The water levels were a little low, but it was still great practice for some of the technical sections on the Coppermine.

Hello!

Hello! I’m Blake Fleege, one of the guides for the crew this summer. Currently, I am finishing up my sophomore year at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, where I am studying Finance and Marketing. Outside of school, I enjoy staying active with sports and spending time on the water doing various activities.

This year will be my second summer guiding for Les Voyageurs, but I have been involved with the program since my first-year trip in 2022. Since then, Owen and I have been on three LVI trips together, and we’re excited to be working together again this summer.

This is where you will be able to check in to see what the crew has been up to as we begin our preparation! Also, if you ever have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to Owen or me.

Hello

Hey everyone, I am Owen Kluempke, one of your co-guides for the summer. I went on my first trip in the summer of 2022 after my sophomore year at Tech High School. and far north on the Coppermine River in 2023. I am currently a sophomore at MNSU in Mankato, studying to be a history teacher. Outside of school, I like to play rugby, work out, play video games, and generally do anything active and outside. I am very excited for our trip this summer and can’t wait to get started.