Tess's trip report was along time coming but worth the wait, the following images are just teasers.









Algonquin Treks & Images

[K2 to K50]

Tess's trip report was along time coming but worth the wait, the following images are just teasers.









Algonquin Treks & Images

Wow, Normhead!! Those are beautiful photos above.

But I followed your link to Tess' report, and "did the trip" - and I am .....what??

Stunned!

Amazed!

Exhausted! (And all I did was read through the trip!)

Totally jealous and envious!

Totally admiring of the endurance of the two of you (and, of course, of your beautiful dogs).

So, what are the two (four) of you doing NEXT weekend?

[RGlasel]

I also read the blogposts, very impressive. No way my wife and I would survive 19 days together in the bush! One of us would be doing life in prison for murder and be happy about it. I noticed a lot of wide angle photos, what UWA lens did you take with you?

[whammerhead]

Some stunning looking pics there

[bertwert]

Hey Norm, this is a bloody excellent write up! Please pass that on to Tess, if she isn't reading over your shoulder right now. (And great photos too, though not sure about that old guy who seemed to always be there... )

That's some decent portaging, that I would quite happily pass on... Do you ever use any tumplines? Kevlar boat, I presume? My canoe has very similar dimensions, but weighs at least a good 75lbs being Royalex (though it probably wouldn't be around anymore had it not been so, I had quite a deadly pin this summer, but that's another story...).

Also, the food planning was top class, I will be using that page there in the future for my own planning, if that is all ok. Only 50 lbs is darned good.

Anyway, lot's to comment on in there, but I'll just end up blabbering away if I do. Impressed and very jealous.

[eaglem]

A very good series of shots Norm and pass my regards on to Tess who I haven't seen on here for awhile

[PJ1]

Great shots and a great report. I read it all. I am impressed by the planning that went into the trip and the tremendous effort it took to complete it. Congratulations to you both!

[Bengan]

Very nice series

[normhead]

Wow, Normhead!! Those are beautiful photos above.

But I followed your link to Tess' report, and "did the trip" - and I am .....what??

Stunned!

Amazed!

Exhausted! (And all I did was read through the trip!)

Totally jealous and envious!

Totally admiring of the endurance of the two of you (and, of course, of your beautiful dogs).

So, what are the two (four) of you doing NEXT weekend?

Thanks for commenting, and it's a Costco day today...

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:06 AM ----------

I also read the blogposts, very impressive. No way my wife and I would survive 19 days together in the bush! One of us would be doing life in prison for murder and be happy about it. I noticed a lot of wide angle photos, what UWA lens did you take with you?

Tess took her K-5 and 21 Ltd, I took my K-1 and DFA 28-105, we also had the DA* 55 1.4 and DA 550300 PLM along.

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:06 AM ----------

Some stunning looking pics there

Thanks for commenting.

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:11 AM ----------

Hey Norm, this is a bloody excellent write up! Please pass that on to Tess, if she isn't reading over your shoulder right now. (And great photos too, though not sure about that old guy who seemed to always be there... )

That's some decent portaging, that I would quite happily pass on... Do you ever use any tumplines? Kevlar boat, I presume? My canoe has very similar dimensions, but weighs at least a good 75lbs being Royalex (though it probably wouldn't be around anymore had it not been so, I had quite a deadly pin this summer, but that's another story...).

Also, the food planning was top class, I will be using that page there in the future for my own planning, if that is all ok. Only 50 lbs is darned good.

Anyway, lot's to comment on in there, but I'll just end up blabbering away if I do. Impressed and very jealous.

Ya, Tess is the writer in the family.

Tess will sometimes use a tumpline, I never do, they just don't agree with me. I Used to have tump for the canoe but since we got our light weight canoe it's no longer necessary. Yes the boat is Kevlar, between 45 and 48 pounds. For years I carried a 75 pound Coleman. I still have a 65 pound Royalex Prospector but I don't carry it over 700 meters these days. Tess spent months preparing and de-hydrating the meals. As you get older you can carry less and the price of your canoe goes from $400 to $4k, for the lightweight layups. You have to save while you're young.

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:13 AM ----------

A very good series of shots Norm and pass my regards on to Tess who I haven't seen on here for awhile

She occasionally looks over my shoulder on the forum...she'll probably read this thread.

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:15 AM ----------

Great shots and a great report. I read it all. I am impressed by the planning that went into the trip and the tremendous effort it took to complete it. Congratulations to you both!

Tess spent ages putting this trip together. Of course, the fact that we take people out tripping all the time helps in terms of understanding what needs to be done. It keeps you sharp.

---------- Post added 02-29-20 at 08:16 AM ----------

Very nice series

Thanks for commenting.

[Kerrowdown]

link to Tess's trip report

Thank you both, your words and images allowed me to be there with you on your trip in a most beautiful part of the world.

[normhead]

Thank you both, your words and images allowed me to be there with you on your trip in a most beautiful part of the world.

Thanks for commenting. Doing this now, we go through the notes, it's amazing how much we've already forgotten. So it's also already helping us remember.

[bertwert]

Ya, Tess is the writer in the family.

Tess will sometimes use a tumpline, I never do, they just don't agree with me. I Used to have tump for the canoe but since we got our light weight canoe it's no longer necessary. Yes the boat is Kevlar, between 45 and 48 pounds. For years I carried a 75 pound Coleman. I still have a 65 pound Royalex Prospector but I don't carry it over 700 meters these days. Tess spent months preparing and de-hydrating the meals. As you get older you can carry less and the price of your canoe goes from $400 to $4k, for the lightweight layups. You have to save while you're young.

The Prospector name is interesting. Nowadays it can mean anything, a catch phrase for a canoe. I believe very few are similar shapes to the Chestnut Prospector that Bill Mason loved so much.

Royalex durability is damned good, I pinned mine bad, but only a bit of heat gun use got it back to shape, my parents have wrapped one, and kicked it back into shape, again using a heat gun to smooth it out. But nowadays it's only used boats that have that, and they're heavy! I've heard good things about the Duralite Hellman canoes (though I suppose they are more common here, being a fairly local company), and picking them up they're pretty light... but that's a good ways off for me, who knows what sort of materials will be used when I get there?

[normhead]

The Prospector name is interesting. Nowadays it can mean anything, a catch phrase for a canoe. I believe very few are similar shapes to the Chestnut Prospector that Bill Mason loved so much.

Royalex durability is damned good, I pinned mine bad, but only a bit of heat gun use got it back to shape, my parents have wrapped one, and kicked it back into shape, again using a heat gun to smooth it out. But nowadays it's only used boats that have that, and they're heavy! I've heard good things about the Duralite Hellman canoes (though I suppose they are more common here, being a fairly local company), and picking them up they're pretty light... but that's a good ways off for me, who knows what sort of materials will be used when I get there?

The Royalex PRosepcter I own made by the now extinct Evergreen Canoe company, used one of the old Chestnut prospectors as a mold, so I doubt there's a whole lot of difference. That plus, it's such a good solo and white water boat and a joy to paddle. I did my whole Ontario Recreational Canoes Certification Trip Leader as well as my Tandem and solo flat water and white water courses in it.

Given that the company is now out of business, I'll never sell that boat.

The red light weighth canoe (that we took out last summer) made by Langford is sold as a prospector, but I've paddled 18 foot prospectors and our canoe is nothing like them. It has one of the best efficiency co-efficients out there, where as prosecutors were optimized to carry heavy loads and for maneuverability. It's called a Propector, but definitely not made by using old Chestnuts as molds. It's been optimized for the modern tripper, not for Prospectors heading off into the wilderness for the summer.

[bertwert]

The Royalex PRosepcter I own made by the now extinct Evergreen Canoe company, used one of the old Chestnut prospectors as a mold, so I doubt there's a whole lot of difference. That plus, it's such a good solo and white water boat and a joy to paddle. I did my whole Ontario Recreational Canoes Certification Trip Leader as well as my Tandem and solo flat water and white water courses in it.

I said very few, not none

But seriously it looks like a nice boat, and I don't blame you for never wanting to sell it.


My Penobscot 17 is a fairly decent "do it all" boat, though the lack of much rocker leaves a bit to be desired, such that I wouldn't solo it on whitewater.

[normhead]

I said very few, not none

But seriously it looks like a nice boat, and I don't blame you for never wanting to sell it.


My Penobscot 17 is a fairly decent "do it all" boat, though the lack of much rocker leaves a bit to be desired, such that I wouldn't solo it on whitewater.

My old Coleman was the same. We used to cal it "the Pig." But a number times I just threw it off the side of a hill to avoid carrying down steep embankment covered with boulders. A couple of times even loaded. I also used to drag it through shallow creek beds scrapping small rocks all the way along. I'd don't own any boats I would do that with anymore.

I made up for being slow to portage by being faster when i didn't have to unload it and could just drag it full of gear. On some times I actually came out ahead of the game with it.

My daughter still hasn't forgiven me for the time she had to use it on a trip with her boyfriend. "We're paddling harder than anyone else to be a half hour behind at each portage."