North Woods Canoe Final Post

This summer, North Woods Canoe followed an unprecedented itinerary with an unparalleled group of participants. Rain, high water, and the high resilience of the participants made this summer's North Woods Canoe trip unlike any before it.


We began our trip on the West Branch of the Penobscot River. After a couple days on this river, we fought headwinds across Chesuncook Lake and spent a night on the beautiful Gero Island, watching storms roll in from the south. In order to get up to the renowned Allagash Wilderness Waterway, we dragged our boats for a day up Caucomogomoc Stream, pulling the boats through knee-deep water, and spent a day carrying all of our gear and our boats across a three mile portage into Allagash Lake. The hardiness with which the group tackled this portage assured us that we could weather any challenges this trip had in store.

We relaxed on Allagash Lake for a few days, hiking up Allagash Mtn. and visiting the famous ice caves. Thereafter, we got plenty of excitement on Allagash Stream, a narrow, curvy stream of constant Class I/II whitewater. Then we wound our way through Chamberlain, Eagle, and Churchill Lakes to Churchill Dam towards the beginning of Allagash River.

A deluge of rain followed by atypically high water on the River led us to depart from our intended itinerary. The rain we had seen thus far had brough the river levels to 25 times the normal level!!!! With the river unsafe at this level we opted to transfer our group to another river system. We finished on the lower reaches of the West Branch of the Penobscot and had a wonderful final few days.

As leaders we're confident that a trip such as this, with so much rain and so many unusual circumstances would have suffered a great deal more if it were not for our group. Their flexibility, high-spirited'ness, and overall optimism created a recipe for success regardless of the challenges.

It was a REMARKABLE trip by all accounts.

Me. Appalachian Trail Hike II Final Report

The second half of our trip was where the magic happened. Our group unified and finally got an understanding of how smoothly we can operate out in the woods when we all pitch in together. We pushed some longer mileage days on our way to Katahdin and didn’t let the rain slow us down one bit. We were treated to three nights of sleeping in shelters at the end of the trip, and even got to jump from a cool tree into the river for fun. We met lots of thru-hikers who gave us either great perspectives or great stories to tell, and most importantly – we summitted Mount Katahdin!!! The peak was fogged in but very calm and quiet. As we descended the spur, the clouds broke and the panoramic views were spectacular. It was a great ending to an already great trip, and we were sad to leave the woods and, eventually, each others’ company. Until next time…

Mariners 2008 Final Post

The Mariners 2008 wilderness trip was a blast! We began in Rockland with a fantastic tour of The Apprenticeshop where we learned about traditional wooden boatbuilding and gained an appreciation for Chewonki’s two double masted ketch sailboats that we would soon live on for three weeks. We sailed across Penobscot Bay to Vynalhaven, explored Green’s Island, with its sunset-facing driftwood house, granite pier and crystal clear waters. The Mariners began to learn how to handle the boats as we sailed through rocky off-shore bird-covered islands to Isle au Haut. We survived the wild night thunderstorms at Seal Trap, and discovered a mossy woods trail that lead us to an old 1929 Modle-A Ford on an island gravel road. We battled the white-capped seas and howling wind through Isle au Haut thoroughfare and spent a few foggy days at Harbor Island in Merchant’s Row (where we found many delicious blueberries!) We had our ups and downs: we had to cut our anchor loose after she was fetched up somethin’ wicked one morning, but while looking for a new one in Stonington we happened upon a New Orleans rag-time jazz parade, and we shared ice cream on the docks. We spent a night on the boats in a white-sand cove at Marshall Island, and we sailed into the only fjord in Maine at Mt. Desert Island, hiking in Acadia National Park the next morning. Passing giant old schooners and working lobster boats everywhere we went, we absorbed the culture and stunning beauty of the Maine coast.. At Woodenboat in Brooklyn we learned more about boatbuilding during a great shop tour and we sailed trough the middle of a hundred classic wooden sailboats in the Eggemoggin Reach Race. Navigating in the fog with a map and compass, and eating fresh mussels at Calderwood Island in Fox Island Thoroughfare, were also parts of our journey. Some days we sailed 30 miles through pristine sunny waters, other days we read books in our tents and waited for rain storms to pass. We sang many good improv sea chanties while under way and were welcomed home to Chewonki under full sail to a rousing cheer at the last Sunday Service of camp on the Point. In total we sailed 216 miles, and shared many good laughs with all the participating Mariner trippers.

Maine Coast Kayak Final Report

Maine Coast Kayak- A few notes from the leaders
Even through we had some rain to end the trip, overall the weather was more than manageable. We paddled through everything from glassy calm waters to rolling waves and thick fog. The sun shone bright the day we rounded Pemiquid Point, just one of the many beautiful lighthouses we passed along the coast. The beauty of nature didn't stop there as many of us saw our first double rainbow on Whitehead Island. On our biggest day we logged 18 miles past Rockland, Camden and Rockport harbors. While paddling from island to island we gained a unique perspective and appreciation for Maine's coast. We shared the water with working lobster boats, sailing schooners, large yachts, a Navy destroyer and jet skis. Our students all became excellent paddlers and gained a great deal from our adventure up the coast.

Trips Check in

All of our trips have now checked in and had their last resupplies. Things have been going phenomenally well and all reports are positive from the field. Here are some highlights:

Umbagog: Garth(camp director) was able to do that resupply and make an overnight of it. He was blown away at how much community the group managed to create in such a short amount of time. They were quite obviously enjoying themselves and were all taking on wonderful roles within the group. Lots of leaders and lots of teachers - the students took the opportunity of having Garth's young boys their to give them their first kayaking experience. Garth expressed how great it was to see these teenagers so excited to teach a couple of toddlers to have fun in boats! With all the rain you can rest assured that the river has been up, and wonderful for paddling!

Maine Coast Kayak: I got to resupply them on Monday on one of the few sunny days we've had lately. Amidst the fog and rain they all had smiles that would burn away the thickest fog. Smiles and good humor were the rule, and according to the leaders they had turned into a group of excellent paddlers. They had quickly learned the fine line between work and play, and how to appropriately incorporate both to create a wonderful expedition dynamic. They were ecstatic for their last few days of paddling and to enjoy the beauty of Penobscot bay and Mount Desert Island.

Maine Appalachian Trail Backpack: Dick Thomas took care of the resupply for this group and came back with once again fantastic reports. The group was strong, cohesive, and enjoying the increasing challenges of the latter part of their itinerary. They were looking forward to entering Baxter State Park and climbing Katahdin in their final days. Cross your fingers that they get a few days respite from the New England rains.

North Woods Canoe: Our Packout Manager ran into these canoers last week at their itinerary and came back with great things to say. They'd had a mixed array of weather and were taking the good with the bad all the way through. They particularly enjoyed the high water on Allagash stream, which made for a fast and fun paddle down into Chamberlain Lake. The lengthy portage from Round Pond to Allagash lake was a wonderfully challenging experience for the group that really brought the best out of everyone. It demanded a great deal of teamwork and tenacity, and brought the group together. As of today the group was dealing with extra high water on the river sections of the Allagash. We made a decision to pull them off the river and move them over to the St. John river. They will spend their final days paddling from Moody Bridge to Allagash village on an equally famous stretch of river.

Mariners: The Mariners sailing programs started with a stretch of fantastic weather and winds. They managed to sail all over Penobscot Bay, visiting some of the most classic stretches of coast. There daily stops are often high on the lists of sailors far and wide. As of their resupply they were doing well and looking forward to steadily making their way back to Chewonki.

West Branch Explorers: Another group that is finding their way thru the North woods and excelling amidst the challenges of wet weather. The hiking section was great to them, and a wonderful intro to hiking for the whole group. As of now they are finishing the West Branch, and enjoying a few days on Chesuncook Lake before they head to Big Eddy Campground for a service project and some day trips to the local hot spots.

West Branch Whitewater: I was fortunate enough to talk to one of the leaders of the kayaking group yesterday. She was glowing with reports of the last couple weeks and saying that "it has been SOOO much fun!" The spent the first two weeks learning all the basics on the waters surrounding their campsite and built slowly to more and more challenging whitewater. A big part of their teaching curriculum involves a culminating experience on the Seboomook section off the West Branch. The had a great few days on this stretch of river and each paddler made huge strides with their skills. Today they are taking advantage of the break in the weather and are hiking Katahdin.

My apologies that we don't have photos of the trips, but we'll be sure to share them with you after the trips return to us on Sunday.

Thanks to all of our parents for your support!!