COLUMNIST BRAD DOKKEN: Adventure of a lifetime

After more than a year of planning, Minnesota canoeing enthusiasts Scott Miller and Todd Foster are almost ready to mark the 75th anniversary of Eric Sevareid and Walter Port's historic trek from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay

Sometime in mid-June, two Minnesota canoeing enthusiasts will paddle through Grand Forks and East Grand Forks on the adventure of their lives.

Scott Miller, 29, of St. Paul, and Todd Foster, 28, of St. Cloud, Minn., are planning to canoe from St. Cloud to Hudson Bay to mark the 75th anniversary of the historic journey that Eric Sevareid and Walter Port made in 1930. For Sevareid, a Velva, N.D., native, that trek set the stage for "Canoeing with the Cree," his 1935 tale of adventure that has become a classic in the world of outdoor literature.

Sevareid was 17, and Port was 19 when they set out from Minneapolis on the 2,250-mile journey. Sevareid later would go on to fame as a journalist for CBS while Port settled in Bemidji; Sevareid died in 1992, Port in 1994.

Birth of an idea

Foster planted the seed for the expedition about a year and a half ago, when he read Sevareid's book for the first time. He suggested to Miller, a longtime canoeing buddy and co-worker at a boy scout camp, that they recreate the trip, and the paddles were in motion. They're scheduled to begin May 1 and arrive at Hudson Bay in early September.

Featured in a Herald story in January 2004 shortly after announcing their plans, the pair has spent the last year organizing the expedition, juggling the fund-raising work around their jobs with the Boy Scouts of America and other demands. They've secured nearly 20 sponsors who are supplying everything from dehydrated food, to camping gear and a canoe, and they are selling commemorative T-shirts to raise money for the trip. They've also spent time training, both for distance and navigating the fast water they'll encounter once they hit the rugged rivers of northern Manitoba.

"We've both been busy, and so expedition planning has been between everything else," Miller said. "I think just in the last month or so, we've been like, 'wow, we've got three, four months to go' and had a surge of excitement, and we're doing a lot of logistical planning."

That includes everything from planning menus to figuring out where to camp along the way.

Excitement builds

Miller and Foster also have given presentations on their trip to schools and communities around the state, most recently in Climax, Minn.

"It's been nice as we get closer," Foster said. "People were excited for us a year ago, but they're even that much more excited for us now and want to know how they can help. So that's pretty cool to see, the interest level from the public going up."

A Web site they set up shortly after announcing the trip documents every step of the journey. And while they're rolling now with the trip so close, Miller says maintaining the momentum hasn't always been easy.

"For me, it was really exciting for the first three or four months after the idea," he said. "And then, I couldn't keep the same level of excitement and got kind of worried about it. Just in the past month, the excitement has really gone up, and I keep dreaming of paddling."

Anniversary angle

Others have canoed the same route as Sevareid and Port, but none had the hook of a 75th anniversary, a milestone Miller and Foster say definitely has drawn attention to the expedition. They've also received letters of support from the Sevareid and Port families.

"Most people, if they've paddled at all and read the book, wish us well and have a little bit of envy for us," Foster said. "We really haven't had too many detractors at all. Most people are excited for us, and sponsors feel the same way."

Says Miller: "A year and a half ago, when Todd approached me with this idea, I certainly never imagined we would have the level of support. We would have done the trip no matter what. It's really become a more public deal than I originally envisioned, but it's been nice."

With the details nearly complete, Miller and Foster say they're ready for spring. The big trip is scheduled to start May 1 and conclude in early September at York Factory on Hudson Bay. And where Sevareid and Port started their journey at Fort Snelling on the Minnesota River, Miller and Foster will add 65 miles by paddling from Foster's St. Cloud home and down the Sauk and Mississippi rivers.

Travel goals

Miller and Foster will be paddling an 18-foot Wenonah Champlain canoe on their journey. Constructed of Kevlar, a sturdy, lightweight material, the canoe is designed for big waves and big water, Foster says. They're hoping to average 15 to 20 miles a day while paddling the Minnesota River, an upstream run, and 30 miles a day once they hit the Red. If all goes according to plan, they'll be in Grand Forks in early to mid-June and enter Lake Winnipeg by month's end.

That's where their Wenonah Champlain will really shine.

"To me, Lake Winnipeg is the scariest part," Foster said. "On the Minnesota River, you just plug away; the Red River is the mud. But the lake, it's big water. It's going to be scary."

As with Sevareid and Port, the pair will paddle up the east side of Lake Winnipeg, a distance of about 300 miles, before entering the Hayes River system and, eventually, Hudson Bay.

"I'm going to be excited," Miller said of Lake Winnipeg. "We have a nice sail, and if the wind is out of the southwest, we can sail up the lake a little bit. If the waves come out of the north, it can be pretty tough going."

Documenting the journey

Miller and Foster say they plan to write a book about their trip, and a Texas documentary producer has expressed interest in covering the expedition. They've secured a satellite telephone to use during the trip and plan to update their Web site with photos and journal entries every few days so people can follow along.

Meantime, the waiting is the hardest part.

"For me, it's just excitement," Foster says. "I guess there'd be a little apprehension - are we going to finish or not? I'm counting the days. It's hard to even think straight some days, wanting the snow to melt and the rivers to thaw."

• On the Web:

www.hudsonbayexpedition.com.