Canadian Duo Complete 2,700KM Canoe Journey
Herman Perry (69) and Paul Snow (63) (both from St. John's) just wrapped up their 53 day canoe journey from La Loche, Saskatchewan, to Tsiigehtchic, North West Territories. They recounted moments from their journey…
“It was 30-plus degrees, a very hot summer. Beautiful. We swam a whole lot, but in the process I think we half-cooked our feet and blistered them badly. It’s not bad if you’re just carrying your own weight, but if you’re carrying 80 pounds on your feet, it’s just a little more of a challenge.”
“We actually saw the biggest black bears.… I’ve seen quite a number of bears in my life but nothing like this. A black bear, about 800 pounds, that came out of the woods
He started to circle and circle, about two-thirds of the way around us, and kept getting closer and closer and closer until it decided to squat on the ground and started digging the ground. It’s probably trying to tell us that that’s his turf, not ours.
It was obviously an old fella.… He just sat down and very casually looked at us like we were not a factor in his decisions, and began rooting around in an old campfire looking for any scraps of food that would have been there and he just kind of ignored us.… He did eventually go away.”
They mentioned the trip was a challenge but both were optimistic and were willing to attempt another trip again.
Evan Holt
