In pursuit of the Minnesota Water Trails, initially Erik and I planned to canoe the Red Lake River to the Red River to the Canadian Border with my mom providing a shuttle. Mother Nature had other plans with the flooded Red River creating what looked like a giant lake between Grand Forks north to theContinue reading “Canoeing the Big Fork Plus a Little”
Tag Archives: canoe camping
Ultra-light Backcountry Camping Gear: The Small Stuff
In this final of four gear posts, I’ll discuss all the small stuff. Although the list is long, we bring small quantities and so all these things don’t take up much space. Camping Essentials Extra Supplies (weight w/ First Aid Kit) map in waterproof container 108 g rope (thin spectra or dyneema) compass/GPS/phone/camera 179 gContinue reading “Ultra-light Backcountry Camping Gear: The Small Stuff”
Ultra-light Backcountry Camping Gear: Food
This post is all about geeking out on calorie to weight ratios. The goal is to pack as many calories into as light and dense an area as possible. I’ll start with food accessories and then go to the actual food we bring backpacking- both intended for two people out for seven days without re-supply.Continue reading “Ultra-light Backcountry Camping Gear: Food”
Ultra-light Backcountry Gear: Clothing
Unlike my first gear post, this one will follow a different format. Given we practice ultra-light backpacking, this requires justification for every clothing item because every ounce counts. Also, unlike a tent and sleeping pad, most of my backpacking clothes include race swag and even school clothes! Keep in mind the goal of ultra-light backpackingContinue reading “Ultra-light Backcountry Gear: Clothing”
Ultra-light Backcountry Gear: The Basics
My next four posts are going to focus on the backcountry gear we use for our adventures. “The Basics” include tent, sleeping pad, sleeping quilt, and backpack. In general, I’m of the belief that ultra-light backcountry gear shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg. “The Basics” gear is the one caveat to this. So ifContinue reading “Ultra-light Backcountry Gear: The Basics”
Boundary Waters: The Fernberg Road Loop
A few years ago, someone was telling me about how they were a guide in the Boundary Waters. I almost said “oh, yeah, I go there all the time.” I stopped myself and realized “Elspeth, you hardly ever go to the Boundary Waters.” Somehow, because most people I know frequently go to the Boundary WatersContinue reading “Boundary Waters: The Fernberg Road Loop”
The Great Northeast Minnesota River Loop
This loop begins near the town of Floodwood. From here, we paddled up the Whiteface River to the Whiteface Reservoir and then portaged into the Saint Louis River and paddled back to Floodwood. Erik, my husband, found this route on the map. It can be difficult to combine loops when paddling rivers, but this lookedContinue reading “The Great Northeast Minnesota River Loop”
Canoeing Minnesota’s Rum River
Over the long Memorial Day weekend of 2016, (taking Friday off from work) my husband, Erik, and I paddled the 154 mile Rum River. Erik’s parents, Barb and Steve, helped us with a shuttle. The Rum has a special meaning to me because when I was a kid, we had a cabin on the riverContinue reading “Canoeing Minnesota’s Rum River”
Elspeth Ronnander 