trips2

Canoeing the Allagash Waterway, Maine, 2005

Annapolis Scouts Canoe the North Woods of Maine

Eight members of Venturing Crew 396 of Annapolis took their summer adventure in an unusual place —the North Woods of Maine—3.5 million acres of forest, lake, and river. The three women and five men of Crew 396 canoed the rivers and lakes for seven days, experiencing the land, animals, history (and oh yeah, the bugs) of Maine.

Dan Averill, age17 of Annapolis, was impressed with how far back into the woods they went. It took four and one half hours to drive from the base camp to their canoe put in. At one point crossing one of the larger lakes, we rigged a tarp up on poles and sailed for 13 miles, HE SAID. We ran the Chase Rapids, which were much tamer than the rapids we ran last spring on upper Antietam Creek in Maryland, but they were so long—almost nine miles of on again, off-again rapids. The hardest part was a long portage—about a mile total —where he had to carry the canoes and our gear up and over a hill. My favorite part though was the Ice Caves. They are found behind one of the camp sites on the Allagash Waterway. They don’t actually have ice in them, but they are really cool on a hot summer day.

Amy Clark, age 15 of Annapolis with only a year in the Crew, was on her first high adventure trip. Amy said she did feel some pressure to keep up with the guys, but she found her stride and had a great time. The Boy Scouts (Venturing is a coed part of the Boy Scouts for ages 14-21) have a special award for those completing fifty miles in a single trip—either on foot or paddling, which Amy really wanted to earn. When the group returned to Annapolis, Amy said to those waiting “we didn’t do fifty miles...we did eighty five!”

Trip Advisor Nancy Ewald of Edgewater commented on the amazing scenery. The group saw eagles, loons, eight moose, and three bears. But as impressive as the sights were, the youth were more impressive. They all chipped in and ran the week, following the lead of Crew President Dan Averill. Venturing's purpose is to provide positive experiences (like this trip to Maine) to help young people mature and to prepare them to become responsible and caring adults. You work hard as an advisor and a parent during the year, but you get paid back when you see it all come together for the kids on a trip like this.

Other Crew members included Tom Averril, Jack Karau, Lynn Clark, and Dan Averrill Senior.

The North Woods in many ways defines the State of Maine, with a large percentage of Mainers vacationing in the woods each year. Though the areas in view of the waterways are left fully wooded, this is timber country. Every bridge the Crew passed under had logging trucks thundering over, and this history of the area is centered on logging, as the Crew found when they visited a abandoned logging railroad, complete with rusting steam locomotives, sitting in the middle of the woods.

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