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Paddling Pathways
“In an age of hedonistic adventure-seekers and unrestrained bushcrafters, we finally have an authoritative chronicle of the theoretical adventure, an abstract of exploration in a higher form. Paddling Pathways is a brilliant compendium of Canadian stories from real wilderness aficionados—a must-read for anyone who aspires to apprehend the juxtaposition of soul and nature. Bob Henderson and Sean Blenkinsop have brought together more than just an assemblage of the best outdoor writers; they have gathered wilderness purveyors whose stories hit the very core of the meaning of ‘the journey’ in gallant and self-effacing accounts.” --Hap Wilson, author, artist, photographer, map-maker, trail builder, wildlands conservationist, and lodge owner. In all things canoeing.
304 pages, Perfect Paperback
Published January 1, 2022
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March 18, 2023
Not long ago I read an article about a woman who summited a number of Himalayan Peaks in one season. Her achievement demanded a lot of helicopter help, and the point of the adventure was peak-bagging. I'm definitely not impugning what she achieved, but there seems to me to be more to an adventure in the wild world than counting summits. There are journeys taken by adventurers who see a place as an experience rather than a destination.
Paddling Pathways; Reflections from a Changing Landscape is an anthology of slow adventures in the waterways of Canada. The book introduces the reader to rivers, lakes, waterfalls and channels with which all the writers build personal relationships.
One is "The George and Magpie River: Journeys of the Fondation Sur la Pointe des Pieds with Adolescents and Young Adults Living with Cancer" by Mario Bilodeau. The kids -- most city kids from Montreal -- had to leave their phones and watches behind and learn to be in the natural world. One of them exclaimed along the way, "This is the best day of my LIFE!!" The young people were touched and awakened by the physical challenges of navigating a couple of tough rivers and being surrounded by nature's healing beauty.
Such journeys might be taken frequently over years, a kind of wandering that changes time and creates a sense of intimacy between the traveler and a place. This happens in Rio Dreidiger's chapter, "Lingering in the Churchill." He's canoed there many times, and his experiences wander through his memory as he paddles his canoe. There are places and people from his past and places he wants to know now. It's a very evocative chapter that lets the reader share Dreidiger's world through time via his eyes, his reflections and his imagination.
Another chapter, "A Place Called Cheepee asiniwaciy-waskahikanihk paskac kihci onikahpihk 1989" by Naomi McIlwraith opens with a poem "Four Ways to Remember" -- the essay begins with "This is a story about how a big canoe trip I took became an important event in my journey of discovering myself as an indigenous woman." She was a university student at the time she set forth on a school expedition with five other students as part of her training to become an outdoor educator. The goal was to "...find their place 'amongst the diversity of plant and animal creatures' community of being'." She describes the journey -- a dual journey through place and through self -- and her lessons. The whole chapter is a poem. And, based on my experience in the natural world, it's the truth.
Paddling Pathways is a beautifully and meaningfully compiled anthology.
Paddling Pathways; Reflections from a Changing Landscape is an anthology of slow adventures in the waterways of Canada. The book introduces the reader to rivers, lakes, waterfalls and channels with which all the writers build personal relationships.
One is "The George and Magpie River: Journeys of the Fondation Sur la Pointe des Pieds with Adolescents and Young Adults Living with Cancer" by Mario Bilodeau. The kids -- most city kids from Montreal -- had to leave their phones and watches behind and learn to be in the natural world. One of them exclaimed along the way, "This is the best day of my LIFE!!" The young people were touched and awakened by the physical challenges of navigating a couple of tough rivers and being surrounded by nature's healing beauty.
Such journeys might be taken frequently over years, a kind of wandering that changes time and creates a sense of intimacy between the traveler and a place. This happens in Rio Dreidiger's chapter, "Lingering in the Churchill." He's canoed there many times, and his experiences wander through his memory as he paddles his canoe. There are places and people from his past and places he wants to know now. It's a very evocative chapter that lets the reader share Dreidiger's world through time via his eyes, his reflections and his imagination.
Another chapter, "A Place Called Cheepee asiniwaciy-waskahikanihk paskac kihci onikahpihk 1989" by Naomi McIlwraith opens with a poem "Four Ways to Remember" -- the essay begins with "This is a story about how a big canoe trip I took became an important event in my journey of discovering myself as an indigenous woman." She was a university student at the time she set forth on a school expedition with five other students as part of her training to become an outdoor educator. The goal was to "...find their place 'amongst the diversity of plant and animal creatures' community of being'." She describes the journey -- a dual journey through place and through self -- and her lessons. The whole chapter is a poem. And, based on my experience in the natural world, it's the truth.
Paddling Pathways is a beautifully and meaningfully compiled anthology.
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