Tumpline
Bowron bounty. PHOTO: TIM SHUFF
[ MEDIA ]
The Travel Journals of Tappan Adney
[ TRIPS ] Classic Alpine Adventures
TRADE TREKKING POLES FOR PADDLES AT THESE MOUNTAIN LAKES
Imagine watching the first warm rays of dawn blush the frozen summits above your camp, or floating spellbound beneath steep ranks of silent forest. Backpackers have long bartered for a taste of priceless moun- tain beauty with heavy packs, tiny tents and crummy food. But mountain lakes oblige canoeists with a leisurely, pampered route into sublime scenery. Don’t forget the Dutch oven for fresh brownies.
Yellowstone Lake • Wyoming
At 20 miles long and 14 miles across, and perched nearly 8,000 feet above sea level, Yellowstone Lake in the famous park of the same name is large and high enough to cre- ate its own weather, quickly transforming the lake from mirror-smooth to meringue- choppy. With a healthy respect for change- able conditions—figure on one day in every three as an onshore wind/hiking day—ca- noeists can escape the motorized main- stream and penetrate into the wild heart of the park. Te motorboat-restricted South- east Arm makes a fine weeklong, out-and- back trip from Sedge Bay. Watch for moose, elk, osprey, bald eagles, bear and even bison.
www.nps.gov/yell
Maligne Lake • Alberta
Ringed by snow-capped peaks and three ice fields, Jasper National Park’s Maligne Lake is the largest natural water body in the Ca- nadian Rockies. Solitude seekers should visit in September and head for two canoe access only campsites at Fisherman’s Bay and Coronet Creek. Fisherman’s Bay boasts nearby vistas of iconic Spirit Island floating on jade green waters, while Coronet Creek lies 22 kilometers from the parking area,
beyond the reach of most tour boats. Both are great places to dip a line for record-sized rainbow and brook trout.
www.pc.gc.ca/ eng/pn-np/ab/jasper/
visit.aspx
Bowron Lake Chain • British Columbia
Te Bowron Lake Canoe Circuit is a justifi- ably popular weeklong trip in central Brit- ish Columbia’s Cariboo Mountains. Trav- eling 116 kilometers through 10 lakes, circuit paddlers can expect back-to-back two-kilometer portages, swiftly flowing riv- ers and sudden squalls of thermal winds in the steep-walled valleys. Bowron Lake Pro- vincial Park’s excellent sandy beach swim- ming, waterfalls and plethora of alpine scenery are ample rewards. Wet your hull in late May, June or September for the choic- est campsites and fewest portage trail pile- ups.
www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/ parkpgs/bowron_lk
Henderson Lake • New York
Nestled in the mountainous embrace of the Adirondack Forest Preserve’s marquee High Peaks Wilderness lies little known Hender- son Lake. As the crow flies, Henderson is just 15 miles south of the crowded Saranac Lakes, but in between is a roadless tract of 3,500-foot summits and steep, shadowy river valleys. Privately owned for over 175 years, this deep, clear lake is now open to the public, allowing paddlers to explore its many secluded arms. For an adventurous weekend of solitude even in mid-summer, brave the two-mile carry from the lake’s northwest end to the Preston Ponds and Duck Hole—14 miles roundtrip.
www.vis-
itadirondacks.com—Virginia Marshall
1887–1890 TED BEHNE (ED.), GOOSE LANE EDITIONS (2010)
There’s something about the spirit of Tappan Adney that speaks to people who share a passion for the outdoors. Perhaps it’s that, at the age of 18, he passed up college in New York City to extend his summer vacation in the backwoods of Eastern Canada. To abandon a life of prosperity in the city for a voyageur’s life of explora- tion and adventure is every weekend warrior’s dream. Adney’s nineteenth century sum-
mer vacation turned into almost two years, transforming him into a profi- cient outdoorsman. More importantly, he became a link between the local Na- tive cultures of the regions he visited and the rest of the world. Adney recorded his every observa- tion. He learned the Native names for birds and animals, as well as snow- shoeing, hunting and trapping and survival skills. He learned how to build birchbark canoes, meticulously recreating the work of the Maliseet people. His book The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America is widely credited with saving the heritage art of birchbark canoe building from slip- ping into oblivion. In The Travel Journals of Tappan
Adney 1887–1890, readers are tak- en from New York to Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia along a journey through summers and win- ters in unforgettable wilderness. The book is sure to move readers to take up journal writing. The journal entries preserve the language of Adney’s day and are accompanied by sketches and early photos, adding feeling to the experiences of this artist, journal- ist, photographer and ethnologist. —Michael Mechan
www.canoerootsmag.com 17
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