Re: [Paddlewise] Gregarious? Solo/Wilderness?

Claire wrote:

> after spending a month in Baja on my NOLS course (November 99)--

I also did one of my first big trips with NOLS, from Bella Bella to Port
Hardy (in July/August 1998 a much balmier time to do it than Doug Lloyd's
famous trip.) Great way to learn to be cautious and self-sufficient
(relatively speaking with all the petrochemical clothing we were wearing.)
Going in to the mall in Port Hardy after four weeks out was real culture
shock!

I like both solo tripping and going with others, they're just very different
experiences. I just finished a 12-day Baja trip (Loreto to La Paz in
February) with just one other guy and it was great, but with the wrong
person it could be tough with no one else to talk to or mediate. I wrote up
a trip report with photos for my club's web site - if anyone is interested
you can link to it from the trip reports page on www.nspn.org - a NE
Massachusetts based club. I'm in the process now of planning a two week trip
on Notre Dame Bay in Newfoundland for July.

I'm planning to spend several weeks on the Maine
> Island Trail this summer--anyone have stories to share
> or interested in talking about a trip?

I've been on a couple of parts of the Maine Island Trail - some solo, some
with others. Very beautiful, but for my taste a bit busy at times. My
favorite is to go mid-week in May or September/October before the crowds
(all kinds) come out. Just me and a few lobster boats. I hear that way "down
east" is where you get most away from most of the people, but haven't been
up that far yet. You should also know that MITA is beginning to be a
concerned about over use of many of the islands - some parts of the trail
have just gotten too popular.



>
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