I am back

Okay, I screwed up again. I have not followed through with my blog nor kept my web page up to date. My excuse? 2012 was a huge paddling year for me. The Big Thicket in Texas, Caddoo Lake in Texas, Jacks Fork and the Current River in Missouri, the Buffalo River in Arkansas. Five trips in the BWCA, A week on Lake of the Woods. the Wisconsin  Freestyle Symposium, kayaking Vancouver Island. Plus, hiking in the North Cascades and SCUBA diving in the Cayman Islands. And, my daughter Mari is getting married, and Zoe is still in University, and Greta is living in our basement. AND my “real” job is still helping build leadership in schools, corporations and organizations. The blog was always on the “to do” list and always pushed down on the list by something more urgent or more fun. I pledge to do better in 2013.

As a starter, check out my guided trips this year. We are going to the Rio Grande, the high Arctic and some great places in between. My trips are more fun, more worthwhile and more affordable than anything else out there. Proof? Next month on the Rio Grande every registered paddler has been on a trip with me before. Old clients are like ticks I can’t shake them. So register quick while there is space. Join me on a trip. I cannot guarantee comfort, but I do promise adventure.

Zoe put a cool little video clip together that runs about three minutes, and I believe it is worth a look even if your summer is already planned. If not on the website as you read this, it will be soon. I am using a Brandi Carlile tune as the background and I want to get her permission before I post it.

Here is my philosophy about the wilderness in a nutshell: You’ve got to know it and you’ve got to live it.

When I am not out there in wild nature, I am reading about it, researching it and talking to experienced people to learn as much as I can. Travel with me and I will share what I know, I will listen to the experiences and wisdom you bring and, most importantly, we will learn together from nature as the journey unfolds.

Secondly, to appreciate the wilderness you have to live it. I bring quality gear to keep us sheltered, well fed and safe. What I don’t bring is stuff to make us comfortable. We travel light, make a minimal impact and integrate our journey with nature. We don’t barricade ourselves against it. My earliest wanderings were with the First Nation people of the sub-arctic. They are masters of wilderness travel. Here’s the irony. Traveling unencumbered by chairs, sun showers, forks, and boom boxes is not depravation, quite the contrary it makes things easier and it enhances the trip.

Enough talk. Come with me on a trip. Or go on your own. Just go.

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