The Good Ship's Log

May 15 We made it!

Arrived in Louisville at 3 pm on Friday. We really had to push hard the last few days. It was a trip of a lifetime. The people we met were beyond our expectations of goodness and generosity. Our good ship,
Old Town canoe was strong and stable . With all of our gear packed ,to canoe was solid in handling the waves of the barges. We felt more secure and safe in the canoe than in any land vehicle. The beauty of the Ohio
Valley, with the mountains and river towns, and even the industry along the way, had it's own statement, that the Ohio River is a major transportation link into our country. There are sections of the river that are as pure and pristine as it was in 1790. We saw plenty of wildlife. Deer, turkey, beaver, fox, bald eagles and even a fisher cat that was out for a swim. The river was full of fish and we saw people haul out catfish in the 50 lb. range. We spoke at 6 Rotary Clubs along the way. The support from the Rotary was fantastic. They gave us lodging from storms, tours of their towns and of course a good meal. They now know were Vergennes is
located. We have many hours of video and tons of pictures to go through and hope to have up dates to put on our website. People have asked, "Are you still friends?" My response is , Why shouldn't we be? This has been a
dream that we had 40 yrs. ago and if anything it has cemented our friendship that will last forever. I feel that we planned the trip well, all of the gear preformed perfectly, We could function on 2 gallons of water per day. Half of the volume went into Green Mt. Coffee. That was the best part of the day. After canoeing till 5, and we hauled the gear up and set up camp, the first thing to do was to make a pot of strong coffee and
relax. Our Eureka Timberline tent withstood 70mph winds one night with only a slightly bent pole. The tent kept us safe and sound. It is one great tent. We were interviewed by the media in Louisville on WLKY as we
arrived yesterday as well in Brownsville PA, Huntington WV, Boomer Alley TV and Radio out of Los Angles. Today is unpack day and tomorrow I will head back to my Vermont home. I am most appreciated of Colette, who has supported our adventure from the very beginning.A special thanks goes out to Jim Cunningham who managed our website. There are others along the way that we send our sincere thanks. A detailed story will follow at a later date. I would also like to thank the many people who have followed our trip. You don't know how exciting it was to read your comments. We plan to offer T-shirts and hats that our journey. Part of the proceeds will go to the Polio Plus Program. If any of you would like to make a contribution to the cause, go to www.1790ohioriverrun.com Thanks again for following our journey and I hope that we have inspired you to follow your dreams.

March 29th 12 days till launch
Things are beginning to build like a tsunami. We are hearing from people and Rotary clubs on a daily basis. We are trying to keep up with names and addresses so we can contact them along the way. Jim,our web guru,will be handling our updates and videos as well as posting to the website our location. I think it would be easier for people to find us, than the latter. . .
Boomeralley will be posting a story about our trip this week. Be sure to check out the web site. See our sponsor page for a link. Thanks Marc Sotkin and the BoomerAlley group for your support .
I also was informed that donations are beginning to trickle in. Hopefully we will be able to raise a substantial amount for the Polio Plus program. If you care to pledge a donation, please send it through the Vergennes Rotary Club. We would appreciate anything you can afford. Raising money and awareness for the Polio Program is our main goal. Along with this effort, Stewart and I will be fulfilling a dream we had many years ago. How many times have we said , “I wish I did that” or “I should have called”. Only afterward to regret the opportunity that was at hand. Well I don’t recall the exact moment that we both came to the conclusion to go on this trip. I am sure it will come to us as we travel along the river. I do know however that , as we get older, we will be able to say, I’m so glad we did it.
Next posting from me will be on the river. Launch date is April 10th at Brownsville, PA

March 2
As Sandy Denny of Fairport Convention pens in her song, Who knows where the time goes?,time just passes a wee bit faster the older we get. Lakes we visited in our youth, became much smaller. Vacation trips to our favorite haunts that took days now take hours . Interstates made our life just go a little faster as we can now can zip from one major city to the next.But the tress got much larger. The pines that I planted for a windbreak are now a towering forest , 40 feet tall.
All I know is that launch date is thirty some odd days from now and I really don’t know how we went from six months to six weeks. Who knows were the time went?
Anyway, things are progressing along. Jim got the TV interview up on the site. Thanks Jim for all your hard work fixing up after Stewart and I screw things up.
Sponsors we have are great. We got some rejections but we were not basing this journey on their approval. We have our basic needs. 1. Transportation… Old Town Canoe, 16 ft. Charles River Model red fiberglass. 2. Housing……..Eureka’s Timberline Outfitter 6 with 2 Cabela Summit mummy sleeping bags that are rated to zero degrees. 3. Nutrition.5 days ration at a time.4. Communication. We will have an I-Phone and a notebook computer,Sony Webbie HD video cam,Canon D20 SLR digital camera.
All of this will be powerd by two late 1940's Babyboomers. They have a lot of miles on them but they have a lot more to go. So, gotta go and work out. Don't want to be the poster child for BenGay.

Feb. 11. Finally arrived in Florida down that route they call EYE 75. Leaving Soddy Daisy I thought for sure that we would miss the Atlanta Rush Hour. My sister warned me… “It starts at 3:30”. Well is was not to be and we couldn’t have planned it better to hit it head on during peak turmoil . I knew I should change the voice of that English woman, Sophie, who made all the decisions. Fly into the eye of the storm, forget the belt line, go for it. And so I did and so we sat, in traffic, 6 lanes wide for our scenic ride through down town.
Keep on the fleece. By Florida standards, it’s freezing. 37 this am. High of 52. Hell, that’s a pretty good spring day on the Ohio. I took a walk,run,walk, run trip this morning and went past a house that housed 2 mean ass dogs that almost ate my dog 6 yrs. Ago. Well there they both were. Laying in the sun, all hound like, stone deaf and probably part blind. It’s good to know that they are getting older 7 times faster then me.
While making their journey in 1790, the people had to watch out for danger and brutal violence. In a second, an event could occur that would put your live in peril. Driving down the interstate, the same possibilities exist. At any moment of any time, some car or truck could change your life in seconds.
It feels good to be off the road.

Feb 2. Captain's mobile log.
I am trying to get out of NYC today and head into a snowstorm in VA. Can't wait. This was the first time in 30 yrs. that I have been in Manhatten. Things have changed. 42nd St is not as seedy. I felt I was in anohter country.
On to TN and into the watershed of the Ohio River. Quoting George Washington, he spoke the not so famous words to his soldiers crossing the Deleware on Christmas eve....". Men, get in the boat."

February 1
Mac is in NYC and headed to spring training in Florida. I counting on him to get in shape so he can do the majority of paddling. But just incase, I'm headed to the gym later this afternoon.
I've been playing with a Garmin etrex GPS to get proficient on tracking our progress on the river. This little bugger is more complex to operate than I expected. The menus and moving between them require learning the Garmin meaning of specific terms. That's going to take a little practice.
The news story about our trip and interview with Mac aired on ABC-22 in Burlington this morning. We're hoping they post it online so we can link this site to it. We'll keep you posted. Rumor has it that the story is going to run again tonight. I hope Mac's briches don't make his butt look fat. (If you want to know about Mac's britches, check out "My Side of the River".)

January 27
Mac received the donation of some Muck Boots to auction off as a fund raiser for the End Polio Now cause. We both have bought a pair to use on the trip. I've worn my this winter and love them...we think they will serve us well on the river.
Mac was interviewed yesterday by Julia Dunn with the ABC News affilate in Burlington and by Cookie Steponaitis, a local reporter for a county newspaper in Vermont.
I am still awaiting the Timberline 6 Outfitter Tent that Johnson Outdoors is donating. The minute it arrives I'll have it up in my backyard to see if I think I can live in it with Mac for a month and a half. To be honest, that's a scary thought to me.