NorAm Odyssey

 

 

A summary up until January 2015... by Jeanne Laflamme

 

Pierre Pépin and Jennifer Gosselin left on June 6th 2014 with their Karelian Bear dog, Jasmine for an exciting journey on the North American waterways. They quit their jobs, sold all their belongings, including their house and their car, and left with only a canoe and a few vital supplies for what is planned to be a two-year-and-a-half trip around Canada and the United-States.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They started their journey on the Rideau Canal. They stopped in Poonamalie lock where they were lucky enough to see a turtle lay her eggs (you can see the video here). A few days later, despite the fact they were stopped by heavy rain for a while, the adventurous couple reached the Trent-Severn Waterway where they had to pass many locks, more than forty in total ! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On July 6th , they reached the Georgian Bay. Three days later, as they stopped in the  Moose Deere Point Marina, they faced an emotional challenge when they were sent away by the lady in charge of the secreteriat of the municipality. The marina being an indian reserve, they were blamed, because of their color, of the cuts made by the gouvernment and weren’t welcomed there. Fortunately, they found a camp site not that far away. Two days later, they faced another challenge as they were forced to take a trip to the hospital because Jennifer had some shoulder pain. They discovered she had an overused muscle injury and she was forced to take some time off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On July 27th, when they  started down the North Channel, Jasmine became sick. They went to the veterinarian who gave them antibiotics. The couple was very worried but fortunately,  the dog slowly got better and a few days later, she was back to normal. They paddled on Lake Huron and Lake Michigan during August without any major encounters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They continued their journey on the Illinois River, the Mississippi River and the Ohio River. But unfortunaltely, as they were navigating on the Kentucky Lake, they hit a metal peg and perforated their canoe. The hole was too big to repair so they were forced to find a new canoe. With some help from their friends, they managed to find a new one that they would get three weeks later. Meanwhile, they did a temporary repair on their old one so they were able to continue their trip towards the Tennessee river and the Tombigbee waterway.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Their next stops were Mobile, Alabama and Carrabelle, Florida. They received their new canoe on November 25th somewhere between those two places. On it, they reached Dunedin, Florida at the beginning of December. They continued their journey, paddling through Florida, visiting Charlotte Harbor, Fort Myers Beach, Chokoloskee and Key Largo.

 

We wish them the best of luck for the rest of their trip ! Follow them at www.wildravenadventure.com