17 August, Toronto
At home. Beautiful things happened to us. People we met and things we did. But safe and fun. "Necemo se kurciti" was our motto! Nevertheless, we lined/run Helen falls. Stranded on the mudflats beyond the last rapid. So much fish. And mushrooms, to die for. Hanging ponds. Sleeping at the Indian camp. Sweat lodge experience. But people above all. People and history. I feel so rich. I am.
23 July, Toronto
Follow us during the trip on the SPOT tracker here!
22 July, Toronto
Food. That endless topic of discussion. Here's the part that I'm responsible for: 3 breakfasts plus dumplings for 3 more. Also 3 pasta dinners. The countdown is on, as is the counting of the weight. Magic number is 908kg, including our own weight. That should be interesting. The departure time is set: Saturday 24th July 9pm ET. Our trusted friend Ivana is our main media sponsor, as always. She filed the following story in today's edition of "Novine":
http://www.novine.ca/arhiva/2010/1253/zajednica.asp
19 July, Bell's RapidsToday, it's all about packing! We're taking 8 barrels and 5 personal packs, plus, of course, raft and all accompanying safety gear. Here are few links that will give you an idea about what we're taking with us.All of our gear, plus our own weight, must come under 2,000 pounds in order to fit into the Single Otter bush plane. We're close but not in the clear yet!
14 July, 2010 Bell's Rapids
Trip to De Pas/George Rivers is our third big trip in the past five years. We seemed to have adopted big-trip-every-other-year schedule, at least while our kids are still at the university. Personally, I find this rhythm allows for a nice balance between more physically and mentally demanding Northern trips, and more relaxing exploration of southern parts of the world.
We are 5 friends that regularly paddle, ski and goof around together: Konstantin (Hari), Milijan (Kiki), Predrag (Pedja), Radmilo (Rade) and Aleks (Sale).
With little more than a week to go, we're in full packing mode and counting the days.
Unlike previous trips to the Hood and Nahanni rivers, which we canoed, we will raft De Pas and George rivers. Somewhere along the way I've fallen in love with the expedition rafting, perhaps seeing them on the Nahanni in '08. Or, it could've been a lure of the stories told by Neil Hartling and Dirk VanWijk about the inevitably beautiful places and fun raft trips. One thing led to another, culminating in the purchase of Maravia Typhoon self-baling rig with NRS frame.
I rafted the Ottawa river many times at different water levels, but always as a "passenger" on a commercial trip. However, I knew on whose door I needed to knock for advice - Dirk's at OWL Rafting. Dirk graciously arranged the first training session for our crew last September, followed by another this June. In the meantime, we rafted the Hudson and Petawawa rivers on our own. To top it off, I was "orphaned" by OWL as their instructor-in-training and spent four intense days on the Ottawa with the rest of OWL instructors this spring.
The basic logistics of our trip are as follows: Departing Toronto on 25th July and driving to Sept. Iles, Quebec. Board the Tshiuetin train next morning for the twelve hour ride due north to Shefferville. Depart for the De pas river on Tuesday morning, 27th July aboard a single Otter. Arrive Kangiqsualujjuaq on the Ungava Bay on 15th August. Fly home on commercial flights 16th August.
For description of the De Pas and George rivers, read Lynette and Lester's excellent trip report. They were valuable resources and helped us with advice and maps. Another inspiring read was Stewart Coffin's 1967 trip to George, described in his book "Black Spruce Journals". But I enjoyed none more so then Elliot Merrick's "True North", a truly memorable book that transports me back to Labrador trail with words so special that I utter them here with the utmost reverence. In one of my favourite passages, Elliot sums up what I feel but am unable to express in my own words: "I've never been happier than that morning on the hill. I thought to myself, "This is the place in the world where I would like most to be, and I am here." People say it is no use poking off to far corners, that you are still you and you see but yourself through your own eye. Well, they lie, poor things. I am a thousand different persons, and today I am the forest, strongest, happiest of them all. I can feel the charm of a city park, that oasis of green amid the stone, but it is not like this and why pretend it is. Why be satisfied with half a loaf, with half-beauty, with half-life. This moment is worth months of pain and fatigue and hunger mixed with the tight cramp of cold. I should like to die in the place like this."
I plan to read again the books on the Hubbard and Wallace exploits of 1903 and 1905, as well as Mina Hubbard's "A Women's way through Unknown Labrador". At this spring's paddler's gathering at Hulbert Centre in Vermont I met Larry Coady, the author of book "Lost Canoe". His is another Labrador story with the George river connection, featuring Hesketh Prichard, one of the lesser known adventurers that was determined to cross Labrador in the early 1900s.
