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PADDLE FOR THE NORTH
AN EPIC JOURNEY THROUGH SOME OF THE MOST REMOTE RIVERS IN NORTH AMERICA
IN JULY OF 2013, Gabriel Rivest, Matt Holmes, Michah Raugath, Scott Sinton, Simon Lucas, Alexandre Dénommé-De- schênes (DD) and two dogs (Taiga and Zepher) departed on an epic journey through some of the most remote rivers in North America. The goals of the expedition were to raise awareness of environmental issues facing the North and capture the beauty and uniqueness of the region to share with the rest of the world. A full-length documentary of the trip will be released in fall 2014. The first river the crew hit was the
Hart River. The group flew into Elliot Lake, the headwaters of the Hart River in central Yukon. Crystal clear water cut its way through sharp mountains and green valleys full of wildlife. Next was the Peel River, one of the most technically difficult rivers of the trip. The steep ledges make it difficult to navigate and find the right line to paddle. DD and Simon smashed their bow after misreading one of the ledges.
The team also portaged five kilometers through knee-deep swamps around the notorious Aberdeen Canyon. After resupplying in Fort McPher-
son, the team approached the Rat River. Over the 130 kilometers of up- stream paddling and walking to reach the continental divide at Summit Lake, the team suffered a massive flood, a leg injury, an incomplete food drop and lost six paddles. The Bell and Porcupine Rivers led
to the remote First Nation commu- nity of Old Crow where the team rested for a few days. After Old Crow, the team entered a region known as the Ramparts where the Porcupine carves a dramatic canyon through the tundra for over 150 kilometers. With three days of tailwinds, the team constructed a sail and rigging to cover roughly 100 kilometers at a top speed of 15.6 kilometers per hour. The Porcupine flows into the Yukon
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River, which carried the team to their take-out on the Dalton Highway. The journey took 63 days spanning
over 1,500 kilometers and 50 campsites. The Paddle for the North documentary will bring to life some of the 40,000 photos and hundred of hours of footage taken on the trip. “I want people to get excited by this film. I’ve seen too many depressing documentaries that show what we have lost. This is a place that is still untouched and we have a chance to save it,” says Sinton. The expedition was self-funded. Check out paddleforthe-
north.org for more information.
PHOTOS THIS PAGE: PADDLE FOR THE NORTH
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