Alumni to Hit the Trail

Just in case you missed it, the second Camp Chippewa Alumni Canoe trip heads out this summer in late July.  CJ and Mike Endres will lead these intrepid explorers as they relive some old memories and certainly have a few laughs along the way.  It's going to be a blast!  I only wish I could join everyone this time around.

More details can be found on our Alumni Canoe Trip page.  Space is very limited!

New Canoes A'Comin'

Last summer, we sent Nova Craft canoes on a test-run to the Arctic. What came back were resounding positive remarks about the canoes. The result : we have ordered three more Nova Craft Prospector canoes.

Chippewa voyageurs have even more to be excited about! Check them out here!

Reflections from the Arctic

In the last issue of our CHIPS newsletter, I published an excerpt from the journal kept by the crew on last summer's Arctic canoe exploratory, the Coppermine. The excerpt was written by one our the campers, Wil Gehl, who shared some wonderful thoughts, not only on the journey to the Arctic Ocean, but on his journey as a camper during his many years as a camper.

You can find the journal entry on our website. Take a look!

Thanks Wil! (pictured shooting some rapids on the Coppermine)

Canoe Class?

Parts of a Canoe

There will be a test at camp. Or maybe not, but it sure is handy!

Duluth Pack Anyone?

I suppose if this duluth pack has endured the canoe trails since the 1800s, we made a great choice in trip packs. Of course, if we could sell all of ours for $46,000 a piece (see ebay listing), I might be tempted to let them go.

Coppermine Guys Pack Out

On Tuesday, the guys from Chippewa's first Arctic Circle exploratory departed from camp at 6:00am. We'll see them back in August after five weeks on the Coppermine River. Here are a few shots as they prepared to leave for the longest trip that camp has ever taken and the furthest north and west camp has ever voyaged. A memorable trip for our landmark 75th summer.

Check back soon to check their progress on google maps as they "Spot" in along the way.

Schoolcraft Expedition

The guys from Sooner at Douglas Lodge at Lake Itasca, the headwaters of the Mississippi. Sooner and Eagle's Nest are retracing the Schoolcraft expedition down the Mississippi to camp.

What's up with the red umbrella? It's in honor of the eccentric Giacomo Beltrami, one of the early explorers who tried to unsuccessfully to find the headwaters of the Mississippi River. He traveled everywhere with his red parasol.

New Canoes A-Comin'

Just ordered! Three new Old Town Tripper and two new Old Town Penobscot canoes. We've been paddling Old Town canoes from the very beginning and I'm excited to replace a few of our older boats. Voyageurs: start your paddles!

Holiday Gift for Your Own Handyman

Have a handy and adventurous family member who loves canoeing. I thought this might be a cool project for a patient and skillful woodworker.

Northwest Canoe has free downloadable plans for cedar strip canoes. They typically charge quite a bit for these, but it looks like they want more cedar strip canoes paddling around next year. Thus, they have temporarily made the plans free to download. Check out the plans....kind of cool. Maybe you could bring your own canoe to camp next summer!

Quetico Turns 100

This is the Centennial Year for the Quetico Provincial Park, the prime paddling destination for our first year Canadian canoe trippers. Congratulations Quetico!

The Quetico has set up a stewardship program in honor of this landmark year. Check out their website for more info. The Quetico is a remarkable resource for us and for all paddlers.

A Journey To Remember

Last summer, Charlie returned from the Little Churchill River trip completing a 19 day descent to Hudson Bay. This fall, in preparing college applications, Charlie wrote a wonderful essay about his trip and his many years at Chippewa. You can find the entire essay on the camp website. Here is a small excerpt.

"This past summer, a group of nine experienced trippers and I embarked on an adventurous and challenging 19-day voyage to the Hudson Bay. Canoeing 300 miles across pristine lakes and dense forests, we would paddle down roaring whitewater rapids and tell jokes around the campfire.....

Reaching the Hudson Bay after 17 days of paddling brought on a feeling of accomplishment I can’t explain. I had prepared for this moment for ten years of my life. Every year I went on progressively more challenging trips, starting with an overnight when I was nine years old, to a three-week trip in northern Manitoba when I was 17 years old. It was the culmination of my canoeing and tripping career at Camp Chippewa......

The most beautiful sunset I have ever seen lit the forest on fire, dyed the lake a dark orange and yellow, and stained the clouds a deep purple. I was completely at peace with myself for the first time in years. I had time to pause my stressful life and reflect on the natural beauty of my surroundings. I had the pleasure of looking at one of the most beautiful sights I will ever see with some of my best friends by my side....."

Anyone who has paddled the north country in a Chippewa canoe can relate to your sentiments, Charlie. Thanks for sharing.

Spot on the Churchill

This summer, we are experimenting with a new device called a Spot. It is essentially a satellite tracking device that allows us to watch the progress of our Canadian trippers while they are on the trail. We sent our first Spot along with the guys on the Little Churchill, our Hudson Bay trip. Below is a map that marks points at which they "checked in." If you click on the map, you can look back to their route and even see Hudson Bay looming ahead of them today. It is neat technology and we hope to expand its use in the coming years.


View Larger Map

To Build a Canoe

Simon's activity schedule will have a new activity this summer: Canoe building! One of our alumni, Dick Sattler, has arranged for an Ojibwa-style replica birch bark canoe to be constructed at camp. John Lindman of the Bark Canoe Store will be spending a couple of weeks with us, enlisting the help of campers and staff to help him build the 13-foot long canoe. It will be an exciting new project and a wonderful new addition to the Chippewa canoe fleet. John has a few other surprises for us as well. We look forward to welcoming him to Chippewa.

Kopka River's Legacy

Check out the latest camp movie! It's a two-minute peek into the whitewater, portages and fishing on the Kopka River last summer. It's awesome!

Check out the Kopka!

New Canoes on Order

Just as the sailors will be enjoying new equipment for their fleet, so will the canoeists. Just ordered from Wenonah canoe works are three Spirit II canoes. The Spirit II is a light-weight Royalex, has three ash thwarts and is an all-around canoes like the Penobscot, great for flat water or white water. No doubt these beautiful new boats will find their way to the Canadian trails this year.

Chippewa Team to Compete on May 6th

A year ago, two campers and two counselors from Chicago competed in the Tri-City Challenge triathlon near Sandwich, Illinois as Team Chippewa. Once again, Chippewa faithful will be canoeing, biking and running at the Challenge just southwest of Chicago.

Sam Campbell, Adam Jeffers and Matt Hudson will join returning triathletes Thomas Beadle, Grant Campbell, and Jonah Mueller at the 2007 event Sunday, May 6th. The first segment of the race is canoeing for 5 miles, the second is biking for 13 miles, and the final segment is running a 5K. If you are interested in joining the competition, be sure to contact Grant Campbell soon. If you need his information, please feel free to email or call me.

I'll be headed up to cheer everyone on and for a traditional stop at Sandwich for new t-shirts. Word on the street indicates that a few bets may have been made on the top finisher. My money is secretly on Thomas Beadle.

Coolest Places I've Been With Camp. Part 2: York Factory, Manitoba.

About 350 miles northeast of Norway House, Manitoba (as the canoe paddles, not as the crow flies) is York Factory. Located at the mouth of the Hayes River, York Factory was the long time North American headquarters of the Hudson Bay Company. Yes, the same Hudson Bay Company that Natalie and Cammy work for. As it sits on its banks over-looking the Hudson Bay and the Hayes River, York Factory is now a National Historic Site of Canada as well as an archaeological site. York Factory also plays host to literally dozens of tourist each year.

I went to York Factory in 2003 on the Hayes River trip with Sam Thiessen and 4 or 5 campers (their names elude me). As you approach York Factory, it sits 50 to 70 feet above the river on the bank, giving it that regal "don't mess with this fort" look. What is so great about the trading post now is it is a museum, so you can walk the grounds, learn the history of the area, the fort, the people, and touch everything. That's right, a museum where you can touch whatever you want. Items on display are essentially the items that were traded here at the post, not including pelts. We also climbed up into the lookout tower where people have been signing their names on the wall since as far back as at least 1929.

The highlight of York Factory was using one of the original branding irons used to mark goods. After deciding not to brand our biceps, the park staff was kind enough to brand the lid of one of our wanagans. The lid looks so cool now with its big YF emblazoned on it. Miraculously, the lid survived the trip house fire the following winter and will soon be on display in the new trip house.

One final note: On the flight out of York Factory, you fly over the Nelson River and a hydroelectric dam that is freakin' huge. As it turns out, this dam is the main supplier of electricity for the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. How they get that electricity from Northern-nowhere Canada to the Twin Cities is beyond me. I just don't understand electricity at all.

Bloodvein 2006 Photos

In case you hadn't seen them, the Bloodvein 2006 photos were posted a while back on the camp website. Thanks to Thomas Beadle who took most of the pictures. You can see them by going to the Chippewa Photo Albums page.

Thomas Beadle took this great photo last summer on the 'Vein!