trip posting

In typical Camp Pathfinder tradition here is our trip posting outlining our route. Huge thanks to Zach Arem. As Pathfinder's former Director of Tripping he is an absolute pro at organizing canoe trips. His hard work and research ensures we are heading in the right direction. Thanks Zach.



The George - Thurs. 7/12 - Mon. 8/6 6 Men 26 Days
Route: Truck from Lakefield to Montreal (pick up Henry) (6 hours), truck from Montreal to Baie-Saint Paul (4 hours), truck from Baie-Saint Paul to Lac Manicouagan (10 hours), truck from Lac Manicouagan to Wabush (5 hours), shuttle from Wabush to Ossokmanuan Reservoir (2 hours), Smallwood Reservoir, Michikamau Lake, Michikamats Lake, Adelaide Lake, portage over the height of land from Labrador to Quebec, Lac Hubbard, Lac Elson, Lac Cabot, Riviere George, Lac Lacasse, Riviere George, Lac Resolution, Riviere George, Lac Advance, Riviere George, Lac De La Hutte Sauvage (Indian House Lake), Riviere George, Lac Nekuashu Kapikashimut, Riviere George, Lac Slanting, Riviere George, Ungava Bay (Arctic Ocean), fly from Kangiqsualujjuaq to Kuujjuaq, fly from Kuujjuaq to Wabush, truck from Wabush to Baie Comeau (9 hours), truck from Baie Comeau to Lakefield (16 hours), PM Arrival.

Staff: Zach Arem, Ryan Arthurs, Brian Brunsing, Brent Hurley, Charlie Katrycz, Henry Shepley

Stay at:
1st Baie Saint Paul (Hotel)
2nd Route 389 (Lac Manicouagan)
3rd Ossokmanuan Reservoir (760)
4th Smallwood Reservoir (710) (Gabbro Lodge)
5th Smallwood Reservoir (670)
6th Smallwood Reservoir (610)
7th Lake Adelaide (570)
8th Riviere George (525) (Zeni River)
9th Lac Resolution (485) (Montagnais Point)
10th Riviere George (445)
11th Riviere George (410)
12th Lac De La Hutte Sauvage (Indian House Lake) (375) (Bald Head Brook)
13th Lac De La Hutte Sauvage (Indian House Lake) (335) (Wedge Point/Ashini)
14th Riviere George (290) (Kamistiuetinast Creek)
15th Riviere George (255) (Norpaq Hades Hills Camp)
16th Riviere George (230) (Kaskapuatshitik Lake)
17th Riviere George (195) (Kaaitushekast Gorge)
18th Riviere George (165) (Helik Rapid)
19th Riviere George (145) (Nitilillik River)
20th Riviere George (105) (Ile Qijualuit)
21st Riviere George (70) (Helen Falls)
22nd Riviere George (15) (Ford Island)
23rd Kangiqsualujjuaq (0) (Jean-Guy St. Aubin’s Garage, Airport)
24th Kuujjuaq (Bob or Peter May’s, Sammy Cantafio’s, Airport)
25th Somewhere in Quebec (Hotel)

Points of Interest

765: Put in on Ossokmanuan Reservoir
710: Gabro Control Structure (Caution big dam)
680: Lobstick Control Structure (Caution big dam)
560: Height of Land
485: Montagnais Point (Mina Hubbard’s first sighting of the Innu)
470: R3 where Dillon Wallace dumped
465: Three Gorges
445: Waterfall
420: Three separate waterfalls stretching 5K
410: R4
395: De Pas River Junction, Teepee Camp, Twin River Lodge
390: Start of Lac De La Hutte Sauvage (Indian House Lake)
355: Abandoned US Army Weather Station
335: Wedge Point, Ashini Adventures Camp (Mina Hubbard’s second encounter with the Innu)
315: La Haute Falaise (High Cliff) (Hike)
305: Norpaq High Cliff Camp, Kaupatshuant Gorge
285: Paquet Rapids (R2, R3)
280: Lac Nekuashu Kapikashimut, Norpaq Main Lodge
270: Norpaq Shico Camp, Lac Slanting, Riviere Falcoz (crystal clear), Norpaq Falcoz Camp
265: Collines Hades (Hades Hills) (Hike)
255: Norpaq Hades Hills Camp, Wolf Hills (Hike)
230: Lac Kashapuatshitik, Hanging Ponds (Must Hike)
225: Collines Wedge (Wedge Hills) (Hike)
220: Wedge Hills Lodge
195: Kaaitushekast Gorge
185: R4
180: Pyramid Hills (Hike)
175: Pyramid Hills Lodge
165: Helik Rapid
145: Nitilillik Waterfall (Must hike)
135: R4
95: Elson Rapid (R4, R5)
75: Helen Falls
65: Ungava Adventures (Sarvakallak Camp), Sarvakallak Rapid (R4)
45: Tide starts to come into affect
40: Ulittaniup Killinga (Savallak Rapid) (R4) (Set size fluctuates depending on the tide)
15: Old Hudson Bay Post, Ford Island
0: Kangiqsualujjuaq

Ireland

Taking the next week off to travel around Ireland. Blog posts will resume next week. Cheers.

Master of Photography

I guess I can say that I am a Master of Photography. Yay!

Outside Adventure Grant

Just submitted our application for Outside Magazine's $10,000 Adventure Grant! Charlie wrote an amazing 500 word essay that I am including below. Enjoy and wish us luck!

The age-old adage that the only thing more fleeting than summers is youth – is true. If however, like Pablo Picasso, you believe that youth has no age then you are probably an outdoor enthusiast like us, continually rediscovering the wondrous aesthetic of the natural world that surrounds as you set forth on your summer odyssey to a place devoid of urban abstraction. A childhood curiosity and sense of adventure carry many of us each summer beyond the wispy pine bluffs and wandering white rivers to a land far, far away. We travel back in time, both on the inside and out. We rekindle the wonderful and creative imagination that was left slumbering from our age of innocence in a summer long ago, and revisit a world unmanned. This summer, a group of intrepid adventurers embark on a journey down Canada’s mighty George River to Ungava Bay to do just that.

The George River is iconic to those who venture there. It was not long ago the George and indeed all of Labrador and Northern Quebec were unknown to cartographers. It wasn’t until 1903 that a gung-ho Leonidas Hubbard, a sports writer from New York City with a hummingbird’s heart for the outdoors but little practical experience set forth to travel from North West River to Ungava Bay. His route was misguided and he died tragically of starvation, alone in the wilderness. Motivated by love and anguish for her brave lost husband, Mina Hubbard completed the journey in 1905.

On July 12, six friends who have grown up camping and guiding canoe trips in Canada’s frontier wildernesses—Algonquin, Temagami, and the Hudson Bay lowlands—set forth to explore and photograph the same lonesome land as it was and has largely remained, since the Hubbards first embarked on their perilous journey. We plan to travel down the river for 25 days, navigating braided rapids and thunderous waterfalls. The George is home to the largest caribou herd in the world, accompanied by white wolves and black bear, even beluga and seals on Ungava Bay. Our trip is in good company indeed; not only have all the members guided large river trips to Hudson’s Bay before, but one member, Ryan Arthurs, has recently graduated from Massachusetts College of Art and Design with his Masters in photography. Ryan’s steady hand will masterfully capture the priceless moments as we travel back in time to a land we once knew, and he will publish those photos in a book funded via Kickstarter. We are hoping to use this grant to cover the costs of our travel, food and gear.

May we never forget just what we learned as children when days were so long and nights set our visions wild; there is no hill too far, no puddle too deep, no tree too high for us to find, splash, and climb. For us, our floating hearts will always head up north, and down stream.

UPDATED: Unfortunately we were not selected as finalists. Bit disappointing but life goes on. I will submit photos to Outside Magazine after the trip and hopefully they will see the error of their decision, lol. Kidding. Hoping to maybe get a story out of it still... more to come this fall.

Nichols News

Eureka!

Wahoo! The good news continues. Just heard back from Eureka! and we've just received our first expedition sponsor. We've been given 3 Eureka Timberline Sequoia A-frame tents. Compact, lightweight, three season tents ideal for backpacking and camping in wilderness conditions. Having grown up camping with Eureka tents I'm thrilled to have their support. And with new updated materials, increased internal volume and an updated style I am ready for a good night sleep in the Timberline Eureka! Thank you.

Rewards

I just sent out Kickstarter's survey emails requesting specific information to fulfill rewards (address, email, print preferences, name acknowledgements, etc). Please let me know if you have any questions about the information I've requested or if the survey isn't clear.

In regards to the limited edition photographs, backers can choose from the 4 images currently featured on the Kickstarter website or wait for new images from the George River this summer. I will post a selection of images to my blog this fall 2012 and give people the option to choose at that time. I hope to have the book designed, printed and published by late fall 2012 (Thanksgiving-Xmas season). Thank you again for all your support!

Fuji 6x7

It's been an incredibly exciting and busy week for me. Kickstarter campaign has successfully ended, my final photography review has passed and my graduate thesis show just opened at MassArt's Bakalar Gallery. Also applying for jobs, group exhibitions and a major grant... plus that final 10 page paper I keep putting off. I just wanted to write quickly and share an image of the Fuji 6x7 camera that I will be shooting with this summer. Love it and really excited to photograph the George River using this wonderful camera.

Thank you!

Wow! Kickstarter campaign has ended and we've successfully reached our funding goal! We actually exceeded our goal all thanks to our generous backers. Thank you. I can't wait for this adventure and making a body of work to share with you all.

The Labradorian Article

Here is the Labradorian article published Monday, May 7th. We made the front page! I've tried to format the article to my blog template, but have included a direct link to article below. Enjoy! And thanks Alicia Elson & the Labradorian newspaper for writing about our trip! Labradorian website: http://thelabradorian.newspaperdirect.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

Final Countdown

So I just installed my graduate thesis show at MassArt's Bakalar Gallery this morning. My final review is Wednesday and the show's opening reception is Thursday night from 5:30-8pm! It just so happens that my Kickstarter project closes out at the same time. I am ready to celebrate the successful funding of this project and my conclusion of my graduate experience. Cheers! Almost there, but still 43 hours left to order a book.

new york city book tour

This past Friday I went to New York City with my good friend and classmate Dan Boardman & photo professor and book guru Matthew Monteith. We had an amazing day looking at photo books at Dashwood, St. Marks, Strand and the International Center of Photography. We also had the great opportunity to meet with Deirdre Donohue & Matthew Carson, ICP's talented and amazing librarians/archivists. They pulled some amazing photo book treasures including a first edition of Robert Frank's The Americans. Afterwards we headed over to the Bryant Park Grill for cocktails on the terrance. It was an absolutely perfect day and I am really excited to start planning my book, especially with these new resources and friends.

SOME LINKS TO SHARE:
Dan Boardman's website: http://cocowalters.com/danboardman/
Matthew Monteith's website: http://www.matthewmonteith.com/projects.html
Dashwood Books: http://www.dashwoodbooks.com/
St. Marks Bookshop: http://www.stmarksbookshop.com/
ICP Library: http://www.icp.org/research-center/library

Jump for joy

I'm about to hop on the Bolt Bus for NYC but I wanted to post quickly and say WE DID IT!!! Thanks to your generous support we just exceeded our goal! Thank you everyone for your generous support. We still have 5 days left before the Kickstarter closes so there is still time to order a book or pledge your support if you are interested. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

That being said I am unable to post tomorrow as I will be looking at amazing art books in New York City. I will take some photos of my favorite titles and designs and share those this weekend. I'm really excited to start planning the book and exploring the possibilities of what it will look like.

Good neighbor!

A misty morning on Cache Lake. Camera in hand as the fog slowly rolls back. I can't hear the call of the tent line at Northway Lodge but I imagine it is starting across the lake. "Wake up Good Neighbor!"

This photo and post is dedicated to the wonderful ladies at Northway- my mom, sister and cousins included. Past, present and future. I've traded several emails today with our good neighbors across Hwy 60 and I want to thank them for their generous support. When the book is published this fall I'm more than happy to donate several copies to your reading library. Cheers Northway!

Laughing Loon

As I'm sitting at my desk here in Boston writing this blog post I'm thinking about a solo paddle around Source Lake in Algonquin Park, ONT. Searching Google for loons calls is a poor substitute for the real thing but it at least allows me to temporarily imagine I'm in the north. Take the time to listen to the audio files below and just imagine yourself sitting on a dock, watching the last rays of sun disappear behind the trees. Enjoy.



Calls of the loon:
http://www.wildernessbay.com/loon/tremolo.au
http://www.wildernessbay.com/loon/loonwail.wav
http://www.wildernessbay.com/loon/loonwail.wav