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 Updates Planning and Logistics Visiting Mitchell Paddles
Visiting Mitchell Paddles
Sunday, 22 November 2009 21:27
During our time out East, we had the opportunity to swing by the Mitchell Paddle headquarters in Canaan, New Hampshire. There we met up with Peter Mitchell, who gave us a glimpse into the world of high-end canoe and kayak paddle construction.
Dave and I were astounded by the craftsmanship involved in the creation of each paddle! We watched Peter set up two carbon fiber kayak blades into molds that he made.
Peter went on to show us the wood room. Starting from stacks of various kinds of wood, pieces would be layered together, then cut, then shaped, then hand-sanded, and finally varnished. The varnish room was probably my favorite spot. A rack glistened with hardened amber drops, above the dipping tank. An assortment of paddles lined the walls. Everything from all wood ottertail canoe paddles to Peter’s own Black Magic kayak paddle with the words “El Presidente” engraved on the shaft.
We saw paddles in all stages of this process. We saw table saws, jig saws, and tools I don’t remember the names of. He showed us everything that is involved in making their hybrid carbon fiber and wood paddles. I was struck by the fact that a few years back, they tried to use a different type of mold—one that was machined, one that would theoretically speed up the process. In the end, it actually didn’t speed up the process and they returned to the way they had been making paddles for years—with molds that were made by Peter or David Mitchell. It just goes to show, in order to make a quality product, attention to detail is essential—and an automated process can never equal the quality of something a master craftsman has created by hand.
By the end of the tour, we were discussing the paddles that Peter would make for us. We determined the length for our kayak paddles, the angle of feather to the blades, and the fact that we want crankshafts. We also determined the length to make some specially modified bent-shaft canoe paddles for us to use in our kayaks. Go ahead, say it! You probably think we’re nuts. I know it sounds like a crazy experiment, but while planning to spend over 6,000 miles in a kayak, I like the idea of stroke variation. On fair weather days, we’ll pull out those mini canoe paddles and propel our kayaks like canoes. And with a little luck, this variation will prevent overuse injuries—specifically tendonitis.
After all the discussions of measurement, size, type, etc. were done, Dave and I got to hold on to our very own Premier whitewater canoe paddles. With their wood shafts and carbon fiber blades with reinforced tips, they were works of art to behold. Before seeing them I knew they would be good paddles. After all, our bent-shaft Leaders had taken us the length of the Amazon and I’m sure they have thousands of miles left in them. But there was something special about witnessing the process involved in their creation. Now I know they are good paddles. Dave and I are confident that these paddles are up for the task of propelling our kayaks and canoe thousands of miles of coastal waterways, rivers, and lakes. Thank you Mitchell Paddles!!
