Northern Forest Canoe Trail - "Backwards"

[Fitz]

The Norumbega Chapter of the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association ran into Peter MacFarlane at Big Island on the West Branch of the Penobscot last week. He is paddling the NFCT East to West.

There is more on his trip here: I can't get the second link to work properly, but it takes you to a different site if you paste it into your browser.

https://www.northernforestcanoetrail...t-thru-paddle/



http://users.gmavt.net/petermac/peterNFCT.html

 

[dougd]

I was in touch with him last year and he said he was going to do it again in reverse. I have a link somewhere on a work computer and will post it from the first trip when I get back to the heck hole that's called work. Pretty interesting guy! He's got a shop in VT, Verginnes I think. May have to go visit him sometime.

 

[sweeper]

From NFCT website

The trail follows traditional travel routes used by Native American, settlers and guides.

That means two way traffic not just the easy way!

 

[dougd]

Here's a link to his journal. He must be adding to it a bit at time. Good read so far!

http://users.gmavt.net/petermac/peterNFCT2018/journal2018/day00.html

 

[dougd]

Peter is up to day 15 in his journal. A good read and a heck of a journey. Thanks Peter!

 

[Otter Creek]

Hello one and all. Just found this reference, and, yes, I'm the guilty party that went the "wrong" way. Fitz - it was good to meet your and your crowd on Big Island. I was glad of the break. Sweeper's comment about two-way traffic is well taken - I agree, evidently, that waterways can be navigated both ways. Since the inception of the NFCT, though, the traffic has been remarkably one-way, as far as through-paddlers are concerned. And yes, dougd, it was a "heck of a journey", not one that I would recommend unless you're really trying to challenge yourself. There are better ways to paddle magnificent rivers than skulking up the edge trying to find almost-non-existent eddies!

As for the broken links to my journal, when posting my original 2013 through-paddle journal, I was not planning ahead to another trip at that time, so had to re-organise when last year's (2018) came to be added. I now find that my ISP is taking away the webspace that these sites occupy, so, to cut a long story short, all of my NFCT stuff can now be accessed (and will be for the foreseeable future) via the landing page of www.OtterCreekSmallcraft.com. Hope this helps.

 

[Guest]

My canoe is trimmed poorly when I paddle it backwards-so I could never do this

 

[yknpdlr]

My canoe is trimmed poorly when I paddle it backwards-so I could never do this

Not only that, but you look like one of those dufus newbys when you hold your bent shaft paddle backwards, using it like a scoop.

 

[sweeper]

I guess If one wanted to do it backwards one could use oars and do it either way, backwards.

 

[yknpdlr]

has a guideboat ever done the trail? That would be backwards. But only for the rower, not for the sport using a sneak paddle.

 

[alsg]

has a guideboat ever done the trail? That would be backwards. But only for the rower, not for the sport using a sneak paddle.

I'm not an expert on guideboats, but I find it difficult to imagine running whitewater while facing upstream. I suppose one could portage.

 

[yknpdlr]

I'm not an expert on guideboats, but I find it difficult to imagine running whitewater while facing upstream. I suppose one could portage.

Thats why the sport seated in the stern is facing forward with a single blade paddle. You might be surprised at what they can do. I am not a regular guideboat racer, but I once had my daughter in the sport seat guide me though tight turns during a race on a very narrow twisty winding rocky stream, although it was mostly all calm water. They regularly race the same way (and solo) on the Adirondack 90 miler where the Raquette River is winding with obstructions, though not white. Some solo guideboaters use mirrors, some do not.

On the other hand no one says you have to always face upstream. Check out this drift boat (essentially a beefy guideboat) video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_Qr...&frags=pl%2Cwn

 

[yellowcanoe]

If you are even thinking about doing the NFCT backwards you might consider that ice out on Moosehead and the northern Maine lakes may well be the beginning of June