During stage 1 we will kayak 1,400 miles from Seattle, Washington to Skagway, Alaska. The Pacific Northwest is home to a wide range of aquatic and terrestrial animals. We will be studying whales and other marine mammals, kelp forests, salmon, and many other species.
The Pacific Northwest is home to a variety of large land mammals including Grizzly Bears, and Black Bears. Above and below the surface we are sure to find plenty of things to learn about. Many of these large mammals need large undeveloped spaces to thrive and the roadless sections of British Columbia and Alaska provide the perfect habitat.
From Skagway, Alaska we will hike over the Chilkoot Pass in the footsteps of thousands of gold seekers who struggled across the pass to reach the Klondike. Many of artifacts remain from those early days, and we will follow their path all the way to Dawson City along the mighty Yukon River.
From Bennet Lake on the eastern side of the Chilkoot Pass we will canoe through a chain of lakes that form the headwaters of the Yukon River past White Horse and down the swift flowing Yukon River to Dawson City. 
From Dawson we will hike 100 miles through the mountains to the headwaters of the Blackstone River. The Blackstone flows into the Peel River, which flows in the McKenzie River, which will lead us to the Arctic Ocean. The rivers flowing through these rugged mountains as some of the most pristine wild rivers in North America, with hundreds of miles of flowing waterways between towns or roads.
After over 2,600 miles of paddling and hiking we hope to reach the Arctic Ocean before freeze up. We will spend the month of October,2010 training our dogs, and learning about native life in the Arctic. In November we will head south along the McKenzie River by dog team, crossing 1,800 miles of frozen wilderness. There are many remote native communities along our way and we are sure to learn a lot from the people we encounter.
When the ice melts in the Spring of 2011 we will transition from dogsled to canoe and paddle 2,300 miles along the historic travel and trade route pioneered by Alexander McKenzie, Samuel Hearne, and other Canadian Explorers in the 1700's. We will finish this stage of our journey in the fall of 2011 by completing the 8 1/2 mile Grand Portage which will lead us to the rock shore of Lake Superior.
After spending the winter giving presentations and making final preparations we will begin 4,800 mile kayak journey from Grand Portage, Minnesota to Key West, Florida. The first 2,200 miles will take us through the Great Lakes and out the Saint Lawrence Seaway. 
During the final stage of our journey we will kayak the length of the Atlantic Coast from the Saint Lawrence Seaway to Key West, Florida. We will be following the seasonal whale migration from the Bay of Fundy in Maine to the warm clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way we will visit cities large and small, and study a variety of ecosystems and environmental topics. We also plan to take side trips into the cyprus swamps and Everglades National Park looking for Alligators, birds, and other critters.
Expedition Blog
Pacific Northwest
Exploring the boreal forest by dogsled.
Sunday, 08 January 2012 16:36
Download a one page student response worksheet and answer the questions as you read this Notes from the Trail!
Student Response Worksheet Upper
Student Response Worksheet LowerThis winter Amy, Fennel, and I are living on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness near Ely, Minnesota. Can you find Ely, Minnesota and the Boundary Waters on a map? The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, or BWCAW, is a very special place. There are no roads or houses in the wilderness. Cars and other motorized vehicles are not allowed there. Over 1 million acres of pristine lakes, rivers, and boreal forest are protected in this wilderness area. In fact, the water is so clean that in the summer Amy and I often dip our cups right in the lakes when we are thirsty. There are very few places in the world where you can safely drink right out of the lake and it is something you should not try near your home.
Since there are no roads in the wilderness and motors are not allowed, the best way to explore the wilderness is by canoe in the summer and snowshoes, skis, and dogsleds in the winter. The lakes in the Boundary Waters are frozen from December through March and the forest is covered in a blanket o f snow.
This is our favorite time to explore the wilderness because we can use our dogsleds to visit places that few people ever see. Plus, the 65 Canadian Inuit Sled Dogs that we will be working with all winter are really strong and lots of fun to work with. For the next few months Amy and I will be leading people on dogsled trips in the Boundary Waters for Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge. Wintergreen has the largest kennel of working Canadian Inuit Dogs in the world! The Inuit Dogs originated in the Arctic. They have been used for thousands of years by the Inuit to hunt and travel. Many of the dogs at Wintergreen were born in Greenland and other places in the Arctic. Can you find Greenland on a map?
Each week, we will post new photos, videos, daily data, and Notes from the Trail as we explore the Boundary Waters with the help of our sled dogs. It will be up to you to help us decide where we go and what we do each week using Caste YOUR Vote, and Dave’s Dilemma.
The Boundary Waters is located on the southern edge of the boreal forest. The boreal forest is the world’s largest biome. It represents 29% of the world's forests. The boreal forest is also called the taiga. Most of Canada and Russia are covered in boreal forest and it forms a giant ring around the Northern Hemisphere. The boreal forest stores enormous amounts of carbon and helps control the world’s climate. It is also home to lots of different animals, including: moose, black bear, wolves, ravens, snowshoe hare, lynx, marten, and gray jays. You can learn about these and many other animals from the boreal forest in our Wilderness Library.
Download a one page student response worksheet and answer the questions as you read this Notes from the Trail!
Student Response Worksheet Upper
Student Response Worksheet Lower
Food for thought:
A Biome is a major regional or global biotic community, such as a grassland or desert, characterized chiefly by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate.
Amy, Fennel and I are exploring the boreal forest biome. What biomes are near your house? Can you identify any animals that live in the biome near your house and also live in the boreal forest? Discribe how the climate is different where you live compared to the boreal forest. Is it hotter or colder where you live?
Use the link below to find the biome you live in.
http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/world_biomes.htm
Email us and let us know what biomes are found near your house and let us know what types of animals live there.
Fennel's Field Notes
Well hello again. I have taken a little break from writing and it is good to be back. After we finished canoeing, Dave and Amy drove around and gave all sorts of presentations at schools. I sure liked going to these presentations. It seemed like I was more popular than they were. (Don't tell them – it might hurt their feelings to know that I was the real star of the show.)
Anyway, we are in Ely, Minnesota now. It is winter. There is white stuff on the ground. I think it is called snow. I like to eat snow. It is kind of like taking a drink of really cold water. Dave and Amy put their canoe away. I think they can't really use it now. The lakes are hard. Dave told me that the water turned into ice. We can just run on the lakes – on this ice stuff. I have learned that the ice can be kind of slippery. I use my claws to keep from slipping.
I like running. Sometimes Dave and Amy strap on skis and I run with them while they ski. There are lots of other dogs here. I try to make friends with the dogs. Most of them like me, but some of them growl at me. These dogs get harnessed and hooked up to sleds. They take all sorts of people out on the lakes and in the woods. Sometimes I get harnessed and get to pull the sleds with them.
I like pulling sleds. Once Amy puts my harness on and attaches my tug line, I start barking. I don't stop barking until the sled starts moving. We run and pull. We go all sorts of interesting places. There is so much to smell and explore! At the end of the day I am tired and a little sore, but it is so much fun, I don't want to stop. It is hard to keep up with all these young dogs, I guess at 13 years old I am starting to slow down a little bit.
Fennel
Fennel is a sled dog through and through. Even though he is really old, he still likes to run and pull a dogsled. We are trying to figure out how to tell when he is too old to dogsled. He may be old, but he is in very good shape. What do you think we should do? Should we let him pull dogsleds this winter? He seems to enjoy running along even if he isn't hooked up to the dogsled. Should we let him run along instead of pulling the dogsled? Fennel can't talk, but he lets us know what makes him happy in other ways. For example, he will bark and wag his tail when he is excited. How can we tell what would be best for our furry friend?
