BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 3, 2024
Years ago, I purchased a used canoe for a few hundred dollars. I’ve paddled it around lakes and down streams. I tossed a tent into it once and camped on the edge of a remote pond, deep in Maine’s 100-Mile Wilderness. The trip involved minimal planning. I’ve a lot to learn about traveling by canoe, a watercraft that has such a rich history in Maine. Nowadays, canoes are usually constructed out of materials like fiberglass, Kevlar and heavier plastics. Yet some people stick to the old ways. Mahoosuc Guide Service out of western Maine leads multi-day canoe trips in wood and canvas canoes that co-founder Kevin Slater designed. I recently attended one of their trips — a women-only canoe expedition in the Grand Lake Stream area. The amount I learned in just five days blew me away. ~ Aislinn Sarnacki