I’m off to Algonquin for the first backcountry trip of the year (actually, I’ve done some winter hikes, so it’s the first canoe trip of the season). I’ve taken the canoe out for a quick spin already, but I find the first trip always to be the toughest… I spend all winter forgetting what it’s like. Invariably, I’ll have forgotten something, and I know I’ve taken too much with me again. This winter seems particularly bad, as I just spent it cocooning.

I’m going with someone new, and it’s his first time in the backcountry, so I’ve basically brought enough for three people… I’m sure I’ll pay for it in my aching back, hauling all of that stuff out.

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It’s becoming rare to find a bit of common sense when dealing with businesses, these days. For some reason, it seems as though doing things by-the-book trumps keeping customers happy and feeling respected.

A refreshing attitude is worth more to me than saving a few bucks…

In about a week and a half, I’ll be headed out to a bit of crown land with a friend of mine. It’s going to be an interesting experience, since I’m not used to letting someone else plan a route for me. I’ll be going in essentially blind, but that’s fine. I’m going with a standup guy, and we’ve both got good heads on our shoulders.

I like to make sure that every time I head out into the bush, I learn something. If I don’t, then all it means is that I wasn’t paying attention. For each trip, I also like to try and give myself some goals. They’re nothing crazy - sometimes they’re restrictions I place on myself, like not bringing a tent, or using a flint striker to start all my fires, sometimes they’re just an attempt to focus, like trying to keep my stuff together when portaging.

This time, navigation is key, so I’m going to set my sights on the orienteering skills I remember learning in junior high, about two decades ago.

Wish me luck. Read more…

Here’s a bit of an update to follow up on my previous post about Marathon’s “End of Lease” sale.

Everybody that knows me would have been proud. I stopped into the store and managed not to buy too much - just a few sets of batteries, and a rubber foot for my walking stick. I’ll probably be back for a knife when it gets closer to the end of their lease — I’m reasonably confident that they’re not going to be selling to impulse buyers, as it’s still a $100 purchase.

Find out what’s going on inside the store…

A friend of mine lent me his GPS handheld unit while he’s away, and I’m going to try it out for the next few days. I’ve been thinking about purchasing a GPS unit for a while, and I have an upcoming trip that would be a good testbed for it. It’s a cute little unit called the Garmin Geko, and looks nice and simple to use. Unfortunately, I’ve been in the subway and the office all day, so I can’t seem to get it to work yet. From what I’ve seen, it’s probably because I haven’t done something right yet. I’ll get around to reading the manual eventually.

I’ll take it for a spin around town, but I suspect that I’ll end up getting something with a map, perhaps something like the eTrex. Still simple, but with an 8MB memory. I may fall for an impulse buy if I find something on sale.

One of the things I don’t like is that these things still use serial connections. Nothing I have in the way of computers has a serial port any more, and that just means a proprietary cable - I can’t just hook it up to any old computer.

I’ll do a bit of a walk and try and figure out how it works, and let you know how things go… If I can get it to work.

It looks as though Marathon on King street is closing down. They have an “End of lease” sign up, and are offering savings to sell off their inventory. In the past few weeks, it’s gone from (up to) 40% off to 70% off as of today. I plan to stop by today or tomorrow, so I can take a look at what’s available.

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Most people who like the outdoors have invested in a good hiking pack at one point or another. The most technical and the simplest all have a few common traits that are horrible for use in a canoe. Is there any alternative? Yes, there is…

I’ve been working on another site that’s coming along nicely, GeeksInTraining. It’s been taking up a fair amount of my time, but I’ll get a good balance happening. I’m excited to share my experiences with my new canoe pack from Cooke Custom Sewing, as well as the buying experience. Expect to see it soon, with lots of pictures.

I have a saying, “I’d rather spend more time in the canoe than under it.”

We all love canoeing, but not many look forward to the portages. They can be stifling, sweaty, buggy and tiring affairs that feel like more work than they’re worth. They’re well worth it, but here’s some ways I make the necessary portages a bit more enjoyable.

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I live in a small apartment in downtown Toronto, Canada, so I had a few challenges to deal with when deciding which canoe to buy. I needed flexible storage and transportation options.

I ended up with a Pakcanoe, a skin-on-frame canoe that comes apart and stores or travels in a bag about the size of a hockey duffel. It’s sometimes known as a folding canoe or a collapsible canoe.

We were up at a friend’s cottage this past weekend, and he was nice enough to take some shots of us in action, getting most of the assembly process.

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