If you would like to order a copy of Canoeing with the Cree Please click below.

Scott in bug suit.
[Click Image to Enlarge]

We are met with three days of beauty (Entry by Scott and Todd)
(Jul 3rd, 2005) By Matt and Scott

We just finished our most grueling afternoon. After making plans last night for back-to-back 40 mile days, we set off this morning to a glaring sun and a breezeout of the northwest.

As we ventured out of Fargo and our campsite at MB Johnson park at river mile 445, we hit our first portage. A bridge built too low for rising water levels forced the short but time consuming trip.

In addition to the abundant deer, great blue herons and a variety of ducks which live on the Red, we spied our first bald eagle. To our joy, we saw three throughout the afternoon, all soaring majestically in the hot air. We also encountered our first flock of geese, which we met just later in the afternoon. Upon approaching, the gaggle separated and half waddled up and over a hill into a farm field. It was a sight to see. We also passed our 2nd and 3rd major tributaries today; the Sheyenne coming in from N.D. and the Buffalo on the MN side. The river has gone from 100 feet across to closer to 200.

We passed through Fargo-Moorhead Saturday. The river flows about 10 miles through the heart of the two cities. We reached southern Fargo at 1 p.m. with 20 miles already on our paddles and landed at Tom and Mary Mobergs’ house, who met us behind their residence with a reporter affiliated with the local CBS and NBC affiliates (how that happens, we’re not sure). The Mobergs, from the kindness of their hearts, fed us an amazing meal filled with excellent bread, ham and cheese and the best of all, fresh fruit, in the form of cherries, strawberries and oranges. We ate until we were stuffed. Tom filled our various water containers, and sent us on our way into the heart of Fargo-Moorhead. Tom is a board member of the River Keepers, a non-profit organization that advocates for the Red.

Through the paired cities, three damns and multiple bridges crossed the waters. On Friday, we passed over two dams, the Christine and Hickson, without incident due to the high water levels, and as we guessed, the trio of Fargo dams were also washed out.

With rising water levels and logjams, water was compressed underneath the bridges into smaller channels. We met the fastest currents on the Red thus far under and after some bridges. It was good practice for the currents that lie ahead.

Jim Murphy paddled 32 miles with us on Friday, beginning at a bridge just north of Wolverton. He left us at the Oxbow Country Club. He paddled solo in a Kruger-designed Sea Wind, a partially decked solo canoe with a foot-operated rudder. Unburdened by expedition gear, he easily paddled ahead of us, sometimes a few hundred yards. During the many miles, he retold stories about his ventures into northern Canada. We passed by the swollen Wild Rice, our first major tributary.

Tomorrow we will aim for another 40 mile day, which puts us about 10 miles north of Halstad. We have covered 115 miles since our paddles hit the water in July, bringing our Red River total to 146 miles, approximately 38 miles per day. We plan to be camped at Frog Point near Climax on Tuesday night and hope to see some of our friends from Climax there (especially Jane the librarian and beekeeper!). On Wednesday we will aim to be in Grand Forks and look forward to laying over there on Thursday and doing a lot of cleaning (of ourselves and our gear!). It’s often been a choice between wearing a hot bug suit and sweating or getting bit by swarming hordes.

One sponsor we’d like to thank today is Iowa Thin Film for the solar panels. We’ve been using them to recharge our electronics and the past few days they’ve been soaking up a lot of sun. We’d never be able to communicate with the rest of the world without them.