Trip Planning Highlights (Check out our journals for the latest updates):

• 10/7/04-10/13/04 - We took a training trip to try out our new gear in the waters of Quetico Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada. Over 5 beautiful days we found out how wonderful our gear is, saw a beautiful wilderness waterfall and heard the heart-stopping sound of a pack of wolves howling and barking throughout the night. See pictures here.
  
• 10/1/04 - Katadyn agrees to sponsor the Expedition by providing a Pocket water filter-their highest-quality filter that will purify water for us to drink on the Expedition.
• 9/29/04 - Taking advantage of high autumn water levels, we traveled to Jordan, MN to try paddling upstream on the Minnesota River. It was tough, but we were encouraged that we could travel about two miles an hour. This information is very useful in planning our daily mileage for the trip.
• 8/3/04 - Hilleberg the Tentmaker agrees to supply the Expedition with their Saivo tent--a superb tent for wilderness canoeing.
• 6/26/04 - We traveled to the town of Climax, MN on the Red River to give a presentation at their Small Town Saturday celebration. The Climax Community Club and the Sand Hill Historical Settlement Society agree to be sponsors for the expedition.
• 6/7/04 - We took delivery of our first batch of official expedition T-shirts.
• 6/4/04- Chota agrees to sponsor the Expedition with Gore-Tex mukluks that will keep our feet warm, dry and clean in and out of the water.
• 5/28-6/3/04 - We took a trip to practice our whitewater skills on the Flambeau River in northern Wisconsin. The Flambeau flows through a beautiful state park and when the water levels are high (as they were on this trip) features some exhilarating rapids. See pictures here.
• 5/21/04 - The Expedition traveled to Monticello, MN to give a presentation to two 5th grade classes about the expedition. The presentation went very well with the students listing it as one of their highlights from the year. See pictures here.
• 5/21/04 - A beautiful dog named Monty joins the expedition and gets his own spot catering to young people on our website. Play with Monty here.
• May/June '04 - We took a class on whitewater canoeing from the Minnesota Canoeing Association. The class was one of the best classes either of us has ever taken. Encompassing a total of seven days, we paddled first in a swimming pool and finally through class 3 rapids on the swollen Snake River in central MN. We finished the course with a huge increase not just in our knowledge of whitewater paddling but paddling skills in general. See pictures here.
• 4/14/04 - The Minnesota Historical Society agrees to be an Educational/Research partner to the Expedition and allows us to sell copies of the book 'Canoeing with the Cree' as a trip fundraiser.
• 4/12/04 - The paddlesports clothing and gear company Kokatat agrees to sponsor the Expedtion. They will provide us with a full range of outstanding paddling clothing, Personal Floatation Devices (PFD's), and rain gear.
• 4/9/04 - We received a letter of support from renowned Arctic Explorer Ann Bancroft.
• 4/7-4/8/04 - We traveled to Northfield, MN for a series of presentations on the Expedition at St. Olaf College. We spoke to a general audience and then to two Environmental Studies classes. We spoke about environmental issues facing the waterways on which we will travel, the history of the people along those waterways, the Sevareid/Port trip and about following your dreams. We had a fantastic Powerpoint presentation. The students were very interested in what we had to say and had lots of questions. They found it very hopeful to think that they could have lives filled with fun and adventure too!
• 3/27/04 - We attended the Far North Symposium. The Symposium is held every year and is put on by the Minnesota Canoe Association (MCA). Bob O'Hara was the MC and arranged it so we could have a table with information on our Expedition. We talked to a lot of great people and watched every one of the nine fantastic presentations people gave about their trips into the far north.
• 4/24/04 - An article entitled "A Trip to Pay Tribute, Teach Others", about the Expedition, appears in the St. Cloud Times.
• 3/18/04 - Vasque footwear agrees to sponsor the Expedition with Sundowner boots and cross-trainer shoes.
• 3/12/04 -We attended Canoecopia, the world's largest paddlesports expo, in Madison, WI. We assisted Dan Cooke of Cooke Custom Sewing in his booth at the expo. The Expedition canoe was displayed in Dan's booth with the custom canoe cover he made for us, our paddles and canoe accessories. We listened to presentations on paddling, solicited new gear sponsors and met Bob O'Hara--the guru of paddling in sub-Arctic and Arctic Canada. Bob has probably paddled more rivers in that region than anyone else in the world. He has taken us under his wing, and we are glad to be there.
• 3/4/04 - The Star Tribune agrees to cover the Expedition, including featuring our journals on their website.
• 2/28/04 --The Original Bug Shirt Company agrees to supply the Expedition with bug shirts and pants.
• 2/22/04 - We received a letter of support from Peter Sevareid, Eric's eldest son.
• March '04- St. Olaf College, Scott's alma mater, publishes an article on the Expedition in the St. Olaf Magazine, a quarterly magazine published by the school.
• 2/14/04 - Cooke Custom Sewing agrees to supply the Expedition with a custom spray skirt for the canoe, canoe packs and a 'dry-fly'.
• 2/8/04 - Jan Sevareid Olson, Eric Sevareid's niece, meets with us to hear our story.
• 2/8/04 - The Duluth News Tribune runs an article on the Expedition.
• 1/29/04 - Wenonah agrees to supply the official Expedition Canoe--an 18-foot 'Champlain' model in Kevlar.
• 1/28/04 - Bending Branches agrees to supply the Expedition with their excellent wooden canoe paddles.
• 1/27/04 - The Associated Press picks up the expedition story. Minnesota Public Radio and WJON Radio in St. Cloud both include a segment on the expedition in their Minnesota news for the day.
• 1/23/04 - Chris Niskanen, outdoors editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press interviews Scott and Todd and features them in an article about the enduring legacy of the book "Canoeing with the Cree". The article appears in the Sunday, January 25th edition of the newspaper.
• 1/22/04 - We received a letter of support from Lonnie Dupre, a Minnesota-based Arctic Explorer.
• 1/19/04 - Brad Dokken, Outdoors Editor of the Grand Forks Herald, interviews Scott and Todd and publishes an article on the expedition in the Sunday, January 25th edition of the newspaper.
• 1/19/04 - We had an hour-long radio interview on Northland Morning Magazine on WNMT Radio, broadcast from Hibbing, MN.
• 1/19/04 - Cache Lake Foods agrees to supply the expedition with their high quality camping food.
• 1/15/04 - Chosen Valley Canoe Accessories agrees to supply the expedition with a portage yoke, pads and other accessories.
• 1/11/04 - The Expedition website is unveiled.
• 1/9/04 - We received a letter of support from Walter Port's son Michael.
• Nov. '03 - Todd reads 'Canoeing with the Cree' and proposes to Scott that they retrace the historic canoe trip taken by Eric Sevareid and Walter Port in 1930. Scott takes a while to agree, but he finally does. A week or so later, we realize 2005 will be the 75th anniversary of the 1930 trip.