And just like that, preparation has begun! It was a productive weekend with a lot packed into it. With everyone's busy schedules this summer, we were happy to have the full crew together for our first meeting!
Saturday-
When everyone showed up on Saturday evening, we gave a quick tour of basecamp, provided a rundown of expectations, and then got right to work. The guys were given a big stack of maps, and with very little instruction, they connected all of them together to show every possible area we could choose to explore this summer. Next, we wrote down ideas of what we might want to incorporate into our route this summer including named portages, cliff jumping, a night paddle and lots of fishing. I definitely won’t be upset if fish is a frequent menu item this summer.
The crew then went outside and learned how to flip the canoes onto their shoulders (each canoe weighs about 75 lbs!). We explained different parts of the canoe and also emphasized the importance of handling them gently. We concluded the meeting by planning our menu which was no simple task. When you’re gone for a month, there are a lot of decisions to be made, like what kinds of desserts to bring.
Sunday-
Sunday morning we got right back to work, and before long, they had learned four different knots: bowline, double half hitch, taut-line, and square knot. The crew then headed back outside, completing their first portages, learned some paddle strokes and got to see their knots put to use by setting up a tarp. With the tarp, they learned how to set up a ridgeline using the trucker’s hitch and got a brief tutorial on how to coil up the p-cord before wrapping up the meeting (no pun intended).
It was great to finally be at basecamp and we’re excited to continue with preparations!