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  1. VA paddler

    Photo of the day

  2. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Saturday, July 18 (Day 6): It was another grey morning in Quebec, best beloved... As the cylinders slowly began to fire and burn off the fog of the previous night, we roused and munched and caffeinated and packed and changed into our wet-chilly-summer-weather gear (which had been standard issue...
  3. VA paddler

    Norm L'Italien's Last Season

    Norm gave us a ride to the top of the St John’s 20+ years ago. My buddy’s Virginia-plated truck had an anti-logging sticker on it and before we left Norm’s lot, he provided some good advice. Pretty safe here, eh? But everyone here makes their living cutting trees. Maybe peel that one off just to...
  4. VA paddler

    Royalex / T-Formex vs. Tough Composites

    I have a rx OT Tripper that I bought in 2005 or 06, that I figure saw over 1000 miles of river travel from Canada to the Carolinas in the ten years I used it hard. I wrapped it around a tree on the James River (VA), when it was in flood, on a bachelor party float trip. We got it un-pinned by...
  5. VA paddler

    Crossing into Canada with bear spray and knives?

    Crossing into CA has never been an issue for me. They ask, I say, no, no, no, no, no. They say, have a nice time. I drive away. On the way home I've had worse luck. Once they went through every drybag looking for the weed we didn't have. And left the contents sitting on the pavement for us to...
  6. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Thursday July 16 - Part 2 My new sleeping pad is very comfy and about 4" tall. So when my hand slipped off the side it made an actual splash. Even before coffee, I knew that wasn't right. Opening my eyes confirmed the suspicion. From about the waist down my sleeping pad was floating inside my...
  7. VA paddler

    First Aid Kit Container - Soft vs. Hard

    Maybe something like a CostCo-size canister/ container of pretzels? 8-10L seems like a lot of space, though. I’ve got one of those bigger adventure medical kits & have hardly ever needed even a kit that big. But better to have & not need…
  8. VA paddler

    How do you inflate your air mattress?

    I was going to include this in the Odyssey report but guess this works, too. I’ve been a thermarest guy forever, but recently got suckered into buying the new inflatable pad from North Peak Gear. Great ads… It is 4 or 5” thick, holds all 6’2” of me, and has a built in pillow and a built in foot...
  9. VA paddler

    Mégiscane River, Québec

    Erica, you may indeed have spotted our royalex tracks, but the culprit would have been Tom or I as Recped paddled a yellow canoe. Your photos reveal an entirely different river than the high water/ ice-out version we experienced.
  10. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Not sure how I managed to leave out one of the most riveting moments of the trip that occurred on the evening of the 14th… But between the rain drops, we managed to fit in our one and only round of croquet! Ben trounced me twice in a row.
  11. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    It was a BIG pie!
  12. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Tuesday, July 14 (day 2) - We had a midnight supper of sauteed gnocchi & sausage, likely followed by a piece of pie, a cigar, and another cocktail before turning in. I slept in my tent and Ben slept in the pod. Out like a light on my new air pad; awoke to the 8am alarm, hollered at Ben to get...
  13. VA paddler

    Tichegami / "Moon" route

    Yes, yes… we’ll keep it riveting! Was reviewing the video this evening - quite good stuff!
  14. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Sunday, July 12 With a hazy recollection that it was unlikely we would do all the driving and get on the river, it seemed less imperative to arise with alacrity. I think I snoozed through seven or eight alarms and it wasn't until Zeppelin was playing When the Levee Breaks that I finally crawled...
  15. VA paddler

    The Tichegami Odyssey

    Put-in minus 3 days: Friday, July 10, 2026: It became evident in the morning hours that there would be no pining goodbyes for me from my wife. So, with little fanfare, I departed South Bristol for points north in the vicinity of 1pm. First to Damariscotta for block ice and gas, and then, by...
  16. VA paddler

    Tichegami / "Moon" route

    We've decided that we should provide a sort of executive summary here, and then (inspired by Erica) create an episodic trip report that we can dole out a bit at a time. So... Tichegami - Eastmain - Moon - Rupert. July 13 - August 1, 2026. I started investigating this route after seeing Brad...
  17. VA paddler

    What do you use for an innie?

    Unfortunately Recped’s cat also likes his typar innie and he’s too “thrifty” to get a new piece. So when he unfurls it, the 3-week man-stink in the tent is quickly overpowered by cat-stink. I use the old-fashioned “space blanket” as an innie. Perfect size for a “2”man tent. I always deploy it...
  18. VA paddler

    Tichegami / "Moon" route

    Still in transit, but we’re (almost) back. Trip defied expectations in so many ways… More to follow.
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