Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Listening Point - General Discussion :: 2020 MN Border Route Challenges- starting soon
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mirth |
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JimmyJustice |
missmolly: "This question can be answered by any of you participants: How do you steel/steady/calm yourself for what's coming? " MM, I'm sidelined and home pouting this year but based on season's past, I think the answer to your question is pretty simple: Keep your fingers dry and calloused. Establish and maintain a stretching regiment . Stay hydrated. Don't stop to smell the roses. Mentally prepare yourself for how unbeautiful the BWCA is. Remember the ends never justify the means. When it's all said and done, it really comes down to preparation. Have fun this year challengers! Be safe my friends. JJ |
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Mocha |
Thank you, just, for your heartfelt and descriptive review. |
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Twins87 |
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Grandma L |
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Cricket67 |
Grandma L: "The 2 Stand Up Paddle Boarders are doing well! They worked pretty hard today crossing Big Sag. Their boards will deflate for the Grand Portage. The boards weigh 25+ pounds and will be strapped on top of their pack for the 9 mile Grand Portage trail." That's Awesome! I've been pulling for these guys! |
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paddlinjoe |
Grandma L: "The 2 Stand Up Paddle Boarders are doing well! They worked pretty hard today crossing Big Sag. I can't fathom doing a paddle board in windy wavy conditions. Hats off to them. Very impressive. |
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Grandma L |
paddlinjoe: "Grandma L: "The 2 Stand Up Paddle Boarders are doing well! They worked pretty hard today crossing Big Sag. Hey Joe, great to hear from you. You in for 2021? It would be great to have you with us again!! Once a Challenger always a Challenger! 2017 Start at Piragis-Mzee (David), BeaV, Muddy Feet (Kevin), Paddlin Joe! |
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Basspro69 |
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Grandma L |
This year has been the best. Pictures to come - after the award ceremony and shenanigans. the shenanigans went a little late - sorry I didn't get back to this sooner. |
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GoWhenYouCan |
Congrats to all the participants and thanks to everyone that posted updates, information and pictures. My daughter, son, brother and I did the route from Crane Lake in the fall of 2018. What a special and memorable trip it was. Joining this group in the next couple years is on my bucket list. |
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Conchistador |
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Grandma L |
Conchistador: "here is our video trip report. next year I'm going to drop a few pounds of gear and do a little more portage training - by a little more I mean do some portage training :-) All in all I'm real pleased with the performance of the boards and the tail winds were nice. 2 SUPs conquer the Kruger/Waddell Challenge Hey Scott, thanks for posting your video. I was just going to put it out for the BWCA.com folks to view! Great job!! |
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HighnDry |
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Grandma L |
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jfinn |
My kids are big soccer players and I hate missing anything. The timing of this just doesn't work for me so please keep it going for another 5 or 6 years!!!! Thanks for the perspective and history JJ. I did paddle the route from Crane Lake in June in 144.5 hours solo and it blows my mind that these guys and others on the board have pushed so much harder and farther. Hats off to them all, true wilderness waterman (and women) And the paddle boarders, seriously? Imagine being on Sag and the wind kicking up? Um no thanks. John |
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missmolly |
Grandma L: "missmolly: "Wonder Woman is make-believe. It would be an honor. Ask her if she's interested, please, and let me know. |
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rtallent |
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Grandma L |
Chiggins and Birch - This year's first crew to come across the finish line! Laughing Warrior and his paddle partner and son, Son of War. At 15 y.o., Son of War is the youngest paddler to ever join the Challenge. this is our first father/son team. Congratulations on completing your route! Team BeaVer Fever Magic Paddler at the Grand Portage Fort. Magic was our only night time finish arrival. here he is chatting with Nctry, Ben Voyager and his paddling partners. Mzee, Prospector Josh and Clewless. All seasoned travelers Conch and Nipper finished just in time for the awards ceremony. They can straight from the trail to the festivities. Packing and heading out this morning. Families together, shuttle back to Ely and road trips back to the East coast and Florida. Time to start looking forward to next year! |
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JimmyJustice |
Did you know that Mzee is Swahili for Elder? Makes sense since he is in his 70's, although I think he claims it means warrior or profound one or something like that. Go get em Mzee. As you may know, this all started in 1968 when Verlan and Clint traversed the border route "just for fun" from Sha Sha to Grand Portage MN in 80 hours 40 min. Their time was the gold standard for 50 years. Clint was kind enough to share some great pictures with us, showing what and how they packed. Obviously their definition of "packing light" is way different than today's version. Clint's recall of their adventure now more than 50 years ago is sharp and oh so entertaining. He has been great to talk to and learn from. Since then: BeaV did a solo fishing trip that took 15 days. I think he used that time to commit to memory every rock, tree and bend along the route. It was his "just for fun" trip. 2015 - BeaV, MeatPuppet and White Wolfe did the VC in 155+ hours. They brought fishing gear and maybe a camp chair. 2016 - BeaV, me and WW did the VC in 126 hours (who knew I'd be a near 20 hour upgrade from MP? :)) 2017 - BeaV did the KW solo from further west than Sha Sha in 91 hours. Yup, a longer trip that anyone does now, solo in 91 hours. Tip 'o the cap. 2018 - Our crew, now 6 strong (BeaV, Kendra, MeatPuppet, White Wolfe, Deke and myself) did the KW in 122 hours. 2019 (May) - Peter (Kelso) and Matt did the KW in 69.29 hours. Outstanding effort on their part! Happy for them but angry at the same time. Felt like the Packers won the NFC. :) Seriously, they did a great job and earned our respect for sure. 2019 - (August) BeaV and Kendra set the record at 63.16 hours. Not much sleep on that trip. We have a great picture of Kendra finishing with a smile on her face and nearly clean clothes. 63.16, wow. 2019 - (Sept) Our crew (now at 8 with the addition of McPIpes and Esteban) does the KW in 94.33 hours. We left a couple hours on the bone, in my opinion. A near perfect execution but a couple of small strategic errors (a small navigational misstep, racing across South Fowl and burning too much energy - swamping a canoe on the Pigeon etc) kept us, in my opinion from touching 90 hours. None the less we had fun (if you can call it that) and answered the only question we had...how long does it take 8 people to get across the BWCA? Now we know. 2019 - The three man rookie crew from Shakopee did the KW in roughly 88 hours. Nice job newbies. Nice job. 2019 - Muddyfeet did the KW solo in a very fast boat he made himself in 84 hours. Excellent work MF! 2020 - Kendra does the KW solo and then turns around and starts paddling from Prairie Portage to GP all over again. Fun. Everyone is roughly 97 hours into this year's adventure, with team BeaV leading the way by having Gunflint behind them. In prior years, folks would be done by now. WOW. Last year we hit Gunflint at roughly hour 65. We rested on Cove and did the last 30 hours from Cove to GP in one push. As you may have surmised, this year our crew is on a pleasure cruise. No night paddling, lots of time in camp, fishing gear...smelling the roses so to speak. Others, too numerous to mention here, have for a variety of reasons (some well known and some private) undertaken the challenge to go from Sha Sha, Crane, or Moose to GP. In any event, each took upon themselves the task of trying. Not everyone completed the route they set upon, nor have we all met the goals we set for ourselves. None-the-less all have tried, all have failed in some respect, all have triumphed, and now all have a story to tell. Stay safe and have fun! I for one am looking forward to multiple trip reports. JJ |
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jfinn |
The weather looks favorable and hope it helps. When your properly trained for any event - there is no worries, just unknowns. And that, imo, is fun. This is so true. I tell my kids that after many ultra endurance events (and life), I now just get excited, never nervous. Confidence and enjoyment are the rule of the day because I was true to the training plan. Lack of prep builds doubt. Do the work and enjoy-life. |
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HighnDry |
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WhiteWolf |
Any team sport shows this- (even Life?) you learn this pretty fast and can pretty much expect it- failure leads to success . In this case, you know your in pretty good company as far as canoeing/tripping ( with BeaV and his team) - which helps your confidence, and that goes a long way when situations become hairy. Trust and execute. Knowing you can from training and executing. When your properly trained for any event - there is no worries, just unknowns. And that, imo, is fun. |
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nctry |
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HighnDry |
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Kelso |
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DanCooke |
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Cricket67 |
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BeaV |
You can follow along as they progress by watching their Spot tracking maps here: Challenge Tracking Challengers will show on their respective challenge maps. Select either "MNVC2020" or the "MNKC2020" selection under the event tab, and then hit the "regenerate" button for the map to update. The default setting only shows the challenger's current position but if you select the individual Challenger and then select "show tracks, OK, help and current waypoints only" selection under the Display Detail tab then the whole tracking history shows up. Remember to always hit the "regenerate" button anytime you change a setting. |
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BeaV |
Kruger Waddell Participants: Group of six consisting of: BeaV MAKK (Kendra) Whitewolf MeatPuppet Deke McPipes Group of 2 Stand Up Paddle boarders (I think they plan to stay together): Conchistador Nipper Group of two: Chiggins Birch Solo Hiawashi Solo Mzee Solo Voyager Solo MagicPaddler, starting one day late (sept 13th) Voyageur Challenge Participants: Father-Son team of Laughing Warrior and Son of War starting at EP 12 Solo Clewless starting at EP 14 Solo JoshT starting at EP 14 |
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airmorse |
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Kelso |
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JimmyJustice |
Good questions about team BeaVer Fever. What is their plan...what will they do next? Well having their float plan in hand, I know. While I'd rather be there with my team, it is fun to play along here at home. Without disclosing their plan...I can safely say, ... they are, well...on pace. Great work by all the other challengers, from all walks of life, ages, and experience. Fun to see Mzee and Voyager back at it. They have grit. It will be interesting to see how the SUP's handle the portages. I can't be easy taking those 15+ foot boards on portages. |
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Kelso |
Meanwhile, the stand-up paddleboarders (Conchistador and Nipper) have reached Grassy Portage from Namakan to Sand Point Lake. This is one of their first portaging tests. I can't imagine carrying a paddleboard on the Grand Portage! The old guys, Mzee and Voyager in their solo canoes, are just a little ahead on the other side of the portage, starting their way down Sand Point Lake. They have been coming back for more Kruger challenge suffering year after year. Tough guys and a force to be reckoned with! Meanwhile, Voyager Challengers JoshT and Clewless, who started at 7am at Little Indian Sioux River, are both well on their way across huge Lac LaCroix. Looks like they are camped together on an island in Fish Stake Narrows. Must have been a beautiful day on the water. |
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scotttimm |
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HighnDry |
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nctry |
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BeaV |
nctry: "Pretty sure magic paddler is doing the full challenge. Just starting a day late cause of a permit issue." Hi Ben! Hope to see you around up there somewhere. I just reread what magicpaddler sent me...he said he got a permit for 14. I assumed he changed his Entry Point to 14, he must have meant the 14th of September. Glad you are keeping me straight;) I'll edit my post above as noted. |
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JimmyJustice |
If you and your son have an interest, then go for it! The" challenge" for all of us in doing any segment of the KW/VC is whatever we want to make it. It's a great opportunity to see an historical segment of the BWCA, challenge yourself and make new friends. Hope to see you there next year. Weather being what is, everyone made great progress today. In looking at the numbers on Spot, I noticed that last night BeaV's crew hit camp 26 minutes prior to the time we had identified on our float plan. Me thinks that after 12 hours of paddling and portaging, that is withing the margin of error. :) JJ |
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Kelso |
The Voyager Challengers Clewless and JoshT are still together, well ahead of the Kruger Challegers on Crooked Lake Friday Bay. BeaV's group would be hard pressed to overtake them, but we shall see. I don't see any track data for LaughingWarrior and his son. Maybe they are starting today? |
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scotttimm |
JimmyJustice: "Scottimm Thanks JJ - we’re actively planning, discussing training, and following along thinking about our pace. Our plan wouldn’t be to try and break records - but pace ourselves properly to finish the challenge safely. Sounds like the second half is the harder half, and that’s where I’m most interested in staging the finish correctly. If we save the Grand Portage for our last day, working backwards...seems like we’d need to do around 30 miles per day...hedge our bets in the first half for a potentially tough Granite River and then Pigeon River. Any advice is welcome. My brother lives in The same town as White Wolf, hoping to pick his brain over a beer sometime. |
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skier |
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nctry |
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nctry |
skier: "This looks like so much fun. I want to do it next year. Solo." Better do it in the winter if your doing it on skis... haha! Welcome to bwca.com. The people you meet doing this are very inspiring. I can’t do the thing I love most... paddle. But there is nothing I enjoy now then to watch people achieve things like this. Just do it if it’s your thing! |
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scotttimm |
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JimmyJustice |
nctry: "BTW: Congratulations Kendra!!!" Yes Ben, congrats to Kendra (MAKK). Yesterday she completed the route from Sha Sha to Grand Portage (solo). Her plan was to finish on Thursday/Friday and then hitch a ride back to Sha Sha to do it all over again with our crew (BeaV's). I will let her tell her story but the weather, especially the wind, was nasty last week in I-Falls. She was prohibited from advancing very far early on and as a result lost 2 full days. That said, she has a new plan... Congrats Kendra! JJ |
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HighnDry |
JimmyJustice: "nctry: "BTW: Congratulations Kendra!!!" Please forgive the novice question, but what or where is Sha Sha? I don't recall reading about it elsewhere and I was just curious. |
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JimmyJustice |
Sha Sha refers to Sha Sha resort in International Falls. That is the location where the challengers who do the Kruger-Waddell Challenge start as compared to those who do the Voyagers Challenge (Crane Lake/Indian River North) start. Sha Sha is where Clint Waddell and Verlan Kruger started when they did this trip decades ago "just for fun" while training for a much larger excursion. It is from those beginnings that this is derived. Kendra had wanted to do the full challenge solo and this year her scheduled allowed for her to do the Kruger-Waddell route on her own. She had planned to finish in time to join up with our crew back at Sha Sha before they started and had hoped to do the entire route back to back. She missed that window by a day but has "other plans" now... JJ |
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Kelso |
MagicPaddler is really flying. 26 hrs into his challenge this morning, he was already at mile 80 at the end of Lac LaCroix. Looks like he paddled all night without stopping. Maybe he's getting some rest now? |
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HighnDry |
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Grandma L |
The Kruger Waddell group The Challengers paddling the Voyageur Challenge were busy with their Launch at Little Indian Sioux North and were not in these photos. |
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Mocha |
Perhaps you could make some short video snippets at the grand portage reunion. It would be great to hear from all participants after this adventure. You are a pivotal participant, Lori, keeping everyone and things so organized. This is the thread I look at most often. |
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scotttimm |
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scotttimm |
HighnDry: "I don't have an answer to that question but I wondered if anyone notice where BeaV and his crew camped last night? The last time I checked, they were moving up-lake on Knife just north of Thunder Point. I see that they are tackling the Monument Portage right now (9AM) so they are moving along at a good clip." Last I checked - yesterday afternoon - they appeared to be camped (or resting) on Knife where I put the blue arrow. |
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Kelso |
HighnDry: "Doing the route twice, back-to-back is definitely hardcore." Second that! Congrats Kendra on completing the solo challenge! |
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Mocha |
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Grandma L |
Four of them are having trouble with their SPOT's not sending well. Makes it hard to track them. |
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Grandma L |
You wonder how she was able to finish the 250+ mile solo route and catch up with her Challenge team mates? Well, with some over-the-top great support from her family, and a couple of friends. They picked up her fresh gear and pre-packed food and clothing in northern MN, met her at the Lake Superior finish line, drove her the 3 hours back to Ely, and helped to facilitate her return to the paddle trail with her team who met her at Prairie Portage! Some people talk about doing this kind of Challenge. Some even contemplate a solo attempt. Others comment on what paddlers do or don't do but, Kendra did it!! A totally unsupported solo, not paddling a solo canoe with a group of other travelers. She paddled the 250+ mile route, including the 40 portages, totaling over 20 miles. Remember, the last portage of this route is the 9 mile Grand Portage from Fort Charlotte to Lake Superior. She was REALLY solo all the way! She is a determined, skilled and hardcore paddler with an unstoppable positive attitude. She is a great role model for other women and paddlers. I am very proud of my friend! |
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Kelso |
scotttimm: Kelso mentioned certain milestones achieved along the route earlier in this thread - anyone have a map of that route specifically showing distances along the way?" Yep, I'm looking at the Kruger-Waddell Challenge route map, available here: https://blog.canoemaps.com/p/more-canoe-maps.html Note that since everyone is starting at Sha-Sha this year, you have to subtract 9 miles from all the distances (which I forgot to do in my posts above - I've corrected them now). |
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Kelso |
HighnDry: "BeaV's group is on the Pigeon River, closing in on the long portage." Looks like Chiggins/Birch have joined BeaV's group, portaging around Partridge Falls right now. |
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Grandma L |
Isaac, Laughing Warrior and his son, Son of War finished the MN Voyager Challenge and Chiggins and Birch crossed the finish line for the Kruger-Waddell Challenge. Pictures coming tomorrow. |
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Mocha |
Looking forward to pics and stories. Did Ben make it to partridge falls to see anyone? |
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HighnDry |
Mocha: "So, do you think everyone will make it by Saturday? Is that the deadline? He did. I got a text from him. He's in the casino now gambling :) |
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paddlinjoe |
Son of War, 16? and still smiling. Wow that is great. Very Impressive. |
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dentondoc |
This pic was taken during a tow ride across LLC in 2018 at the beginning of a two-week southwestern Quetico trip. I might add that Magic was a well-established septuagenarian even then (we have birth dates not very far apart). dd |
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Grandma L |
It was fun to have some friendly banter at the award ceremony, between our youngest paddler and our oldest. Magic, at 73, heads the brigade in that department. As a note, Magic started from Sha Sha a day later than the pack, due to permit issues. He then proceeded to catch the pack and passed the other "senior" gentleman and finished well ahead of them. |
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Grandma L |
Marcie, Mrs. Voyager, helped with "dot watching" and being in Ely to help both Kendra and Judy with support, and shuttle to and from Moose Lake and Grand Portage! Nctry-Ben for his shuttle assistance for Magic Paddler at the Start for the Challenge. Ben also volunteered to shuttle Nipper, a SUP guy, from Grand Portage back to I. Falls to pick up his vehicle. And, if that wasn't enough, Ben met paddlers at partridge Falls to cheer them on as they maneuvered the last miles of the Pigeon River before the Fort Charlotte check point. A great support team to say the very least!! |
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Cricket67 |
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LindenTree |
GrandmaL, wish I could have helped out, this event catches me on my Fall camping trip every year but 2018 when I went down to the southwest in October. I'm in the UP of Michigan now. |
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BeaV |
Grandma L: "Kendra... is a determined, skilled and hardcore paddler with an unstoppable positive attitude. She is a great role model for other women and paddlers. I am very proud of my friend!" I wanted to highlight parts of Grandma L's post for emphasis. Just showing up for her solo attempt was difficult- juggling time between work, family, and the upcoming Kruger Waddell Challenge. When faced with a last-minute crappy weather outlook for her launch, she left home ahead of schedule arriving at Sha Sha at midnight ready to launch on no sleep and the dead of night. But, winds were already dangerous and a thunderstorm was nearing. She waited in her SUV until the thunder and lightning passed and winds seemed to dip a little before launching at 1:30 am knowing that strong winds gusting to 35 mph were coming. Holy smoly!- picture yourself standing on a shore of a huge lake, in the pitch blackness, thunderstorm just passed, no sleep, cold windy weather blowing the stiff lake reeds back and forth...the kind of conditions that would make most run for a motel room, and dangerous winds are coming. A tough way to start an adventure trip. Then it got tougher, quickly... |
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Marshamallow |
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skier |
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airmorse |
Some day I would love to participate in this. |
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BeaV |
It was the best year ever for good winds, either slight tailwind or calm. Nice cool temperatures, maybe a bit cool for our southern guests with one night dipping down in the 20's. Almost no rain. Portages dry. Pigeon River was low flow so this made for an obstacle. 17 of the 18 Challengers finished. 17 of the 18 Challengers told me they're coming back next year (and the one who said "no" or "probably not" always says that:) ) First year for stand up paddleboarders to attempt the Challenge. Made it! No one really planned on setting speed records but many probably set personal records. It would have been the perfect year for speed records minus the Canadian border crossing prohibition. My team's goal was to go our slowest ever >150 hours but this was hard for us. We took more rest breaks to stretch our legs, we had campfires almost every morning and night, we ate our food slowly (even chewing before swallowing), almost no night time paddling, and took a side field trip up to the Rose Lake cliff (pic attached). Still we finished under 150 hours....dang it! Looking forward to next year!!!! |
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BeaV |
Grandma L: Paddlers are from all across the country. Four are from Florida, 1 Oklahoma, 1 West Virginia and the rest are Minnesota." Grandma L - oops, you better get a spreadsheet going... I can think of 1 from Michigan, 2 from Wisconsin, 3 from Illinois, 1 from Connecticut, and 1 from Iowa. But all seemed to be MN nice. |
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BeaV |
Kelso: "HighnDry: "BeaV's group is on the Pigeon River, closing in on the long portage." Hi Kelso! I think early on, team BeaVer Fever pulled out in front of them because they were eating fancy table fare such as steak and hamburger for supper. Much later on, they passed us while we setup an early camp on Mountain Lake at the site with the giant white pine tree. I recognized them as they paddled on, hard and fast, using the tailwind to their advantage. I thought "that's the last we'll see of them, they are on a mission to finish strong" and they went on paddling long into the night, camping on one of the Fowl Lakes. However, as I understand it, they ignored their alarm the next morning choosing the warmth of their sleeping bags over that of progress. We did catch up to them at Partridge Falls and then at Fort Charlotte. They chose to continue down the Grand Portage while my team took our turn at having fun. It's fun to see other challengers along the way. |
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LindenTree |
BeaV: " Grandma L - oops, you better get a spreadsheet going... I actually caught myself laughing out loud with that one BeaV. |
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Grandma L |
BeaV: "Grandma L: Paddlers are from all across the country. Four are from Florida, 1 Oklahoma, 1 West Virginia and the rest are Minnesota." Are you publicly teasing me??? It never stops - you boys! Sure are a fun bunch! AND, I have more spread sheets than you do! I was working on your stats this afternoon. |
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Grandma L |
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missmolly |
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timatkn |
2020 Challenge starting 9/12/20 |
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BeaV |
timatkn: "Why does it say cancelled when I go to the website? WaterTribe officially pulled their involvement from the events this year because of covid stuff, I guess. But the fun goes on anyhow. And WaterTribe is allowing use of their tracking map for people to follow along. So, yes the events are cancelled. But paddlers are still doing their trips. |
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BeaV |
missmolly: "This question can be answered by any of you participants: How do you steel/steady/calm yourself for what's coming? " Good question...I won't directly answer. But I will say the challenge/adventure/camaraderie is real and I think is the reason so many people return to do it again. When things are hard we say "why am I doing this"? When things are done we say "when can I do it again"? This year 11 of the 18 are returnees. |
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HighnDry |
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missmolly |
Kendra is real! |
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scotttimm |
Kelso: "scotttimm: Kelso mentioned certain milestones achieved along the route earlier in this thread - anyone have a map of that route specifically showing distances along the way?" Perfect - this is exactly what I was looking for, thanks Kelso!! |
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Kelso |
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HighnDry |
scotttimm: "HighnDry: "I don't have an answer to that question but I wondered if anyone notice where BeaV and his crew camped last night? The last time I checked, they were moving up-lake on Knife just north of Thunder Point. I see that they are tackling the Monument Portage right now (9AM) so they are moving along at a good clip." Thanks scottimm. That was where I thought they might have at least paused. I was curious if they pushed on over the short portage into Ottertrack and maybe made it up towards Benny A's old cabin site. There's a good, spacious campsite there near the portage into Ester. |
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nctry |
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scotttimm |
HighnDry: "scotttimm: "HighnDry: "I don't have an answer to that question but I wondered if anyone notice where BeaV and his crew camped last night? The last time I checked, they were moving up-lake on Knife just north of Thunder Point. I see that they are tackling the Monument Portage right now (9AM) so they are moving along at a good clip." I've been switching between the VC and KC folks - but I THINK I remember seeing BeaV and crew moving through Ottertrack this morning - so I believe they stayed there. |
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Mocha |
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Grandma L |
missmolly: "Wonder Woman is make-believe. You said it Molly! You should do some writing about her? |
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HighnDry |
Mocha: "What’s up with coffee monkey?" He was on Vera earlier this evening. i thought he was going to do that long portage into Knife. I've only walked it once with no gear and there are a few spots on that stroll that head down some rock faces, plus it's long :). Anyway, he seems to have turned around and is now on Newfound heading south? There are a lot of folks still on the water and not in camp. They're really pushing. |
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Grandma L |
Kelso: "scotttimm: Kelso mentioned certain milestones achieved along the route earlier in this thread - anyone have a map of that route specifically showing distances along the way?" Peter, I use you maps all day every day - while tracking timing the paddlers. I have made them into loose leaf books. Oh, and we have 4 paddlers doing the voyageur Challenge. For that route subtract 50 miles from the printed numbers. Thanks for the great tool for tracking! |
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skier |
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Grandma L |
Humm along, "I'm a dot watcher, I'm a dot watcher, here comes one now....." |
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Grandma L |
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Grandma L |
Tomorrow I start baking the pans of brownies to take to the Casino for munching on around the campfire that overlooks Lake Superior. This afternoon, we put the finishing touches on the Bear Claw necklace awards to be given to the paddlers who complete their entire Challenge. Busy behind the scene and closely watching the dots on the computer screen. Start planning now for Challenge 2021. I am! |
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MNGreene |
Grandma L: "Dang it! We still have 2 paddlers (Mzee and Voyager) out on big Sag! It is getting late (now 10:30 pm). Hope they are making good time with the wind being down! And by the way these two guys are both in their early 70's and going strong. a. Hi Grandma L! b. No worries. Looks like they may have located a campsite. Got across the worst of Sag! c. Yum! d. Nice e. We are too! |
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Grandma L |
MNGreene: "Grandma L: Hey there MN Greene, so good to hear from you!! Looking forward to having your "super trio" back in the Challenge. We will have to keep in touch over the winter. |
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Kelso |
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Kelso |
We haven't had an update from Chiggins and Birch for 9 hours, so it's safe to say that they are probably not far behind BeaV and company. BeaV and Kendra's group was on Mountain Lake (mile 193) a couple hours ago. Looks like they've been taking the time to enjoy the sights today - they even pulled out of the water for a couple hours this afternoon and hiked the Border Route Trail to the top of the spectacular cliff on Watap Lake. Good for them! Keep going strong. |
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Cricket67 |
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Grandma L |
Cricket67: "Fascinating to see Jimmy's synopsis of the history of the challenge. Really thinking hard to taking part one way or another next year. " We would love to have you join the group. They are a great group of folks. Friendly and dedicated to the event. |
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MNGreene |
Cricket67: "Fascinating to see Jimmy's synopsis of the history of the challenge. Really thinking hard to taking part one way or another next year. " Go for it, Cricket! MNKC gets in your blood like other adventure races, long bike treks (e.g. RAGBRAI or MS150) or other endurance events you do with a group (even if you do it solo). You think about the Challenge fondly, even though you hurt at the time, and you have a special bond with the other challengers. Hope to see you in 2021. Agree, JJ's summary was fun! |
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paddlinjoe |
Grandma L: "paddlinjoe: "Grandma L: "The 2 Stand Up Paddle Boarders are doing well! They worked pretty hard today crossing Big Sag. Hi Lori, You have me thinking about it :-) Thanks for all you do to promote the event and support the paddlers and their families. I think the growing numbers of paddlers is a testament to your hospitality. Joe |
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Mocha |
Beautiful puppy!! |
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nctry |
Here’s Kira at Partridge Falls... She’s wondering when everyone is coming! |
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Mocha |
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Mocha |
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BeaV |
Grandma L: "BeaV: "Grandma L: Paddlers are from all across the country. Four are from Florida, 1 Oklahoma, 1 West Virginia and the rest are Minnesota." Sure am! Yes, I know my team spent a lot of time in camp this year. That was the plan- move fast and efficient while traveling and have time for some camping when not moving. Quite the opposite of last year's trip. 2019 trip report |
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nctry |
A few of the paddlers I saw at Partridge Falls... sorry Kendra, I didn’t realize how dark you’d be... |
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TomT |
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GoWhenYouCan |
Congratulations to both of you for completing the challenge. That's quite an accomplishment! |