MIDDLEBURY — Peter Macfarlane will be on hand at Ilsley Public Library on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m., to present his talk “Northern Forest Canoe Trail: the ‘Wrong’ Way.”
In the spring of 2013, Macfarlane through-paddled the Northern Forest Canoe Trail from the Adirondacks to northern Maine, a distance of some 750 miles, in 28 days in a cedar-strip canoe that he designed and built.
This spring he ventured out on the Trail for another through-paddle, but this time took on more of a challenge by paddling from Maine to the Adirondacks. He faced nine major upstream rivers and only four downstream, not to mention prevailing headwinds, which were to be a significant player in this trek. On the 10th of June he paddled into Old Forge to become the first recorded person to through-paddle the Trail from east to west.
In this presentation he takes the audience on a trip through his planning, and then the roller coaster ride of overcoming challenges, joyful paddling, loss, exhaustion, despair, and some sublime moments, all illustrated with photos and snippets of video. The talk is free and open to the public.