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Memories Of Summer Adventures Chase Winter's Chill Away

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Memories Of Summer Adventures Chase Winter’s Chill Away

By Nancy K. Crevier

It is hard to remember that not so many months ago it was hot and sunny, but adventures undertaken last summer are still providing warm memories to some Newtown residents. Thomas Cruson, Joe and Steven Farrell, and Tim Miller’s family recall adventures from the summer of 2009. Forget about the single digit temperatures for now, and find some inspiration for new adventures in 2010.

Right after school let out last June, Tim Miller decided it was time to introduce his sons, Alex, 17, and Doug, 13, to a summer sport he has enjoyed for a number of years — whitewater rafting.

“I’ve been going down to the New River Gorge National River in West Virginia with friends for years,” said Mr Miller, even traveling there when the family lived in Michigan. “It’s the best white water on the East Coast,” he said.

Because it was the boys’ first river trip, the first two days included lessons on kayaking the river. “We have our own kayaks for the lakes and rivers around here. The river kayaks are shorter and a little different than what we have, though. Probably one of the highlights was when Alex mastered an ‘Eskimo’ roll with his kayak,” said Mr Miller, a move in which an overturned kayaker uprights him or herself with a quick hip movement aided by the paddle. “You do have to be a bit strong to do this. It’s a trick,” he said. Practice under the direction of a guide was also provided in how a buddy can use his/her canoe to assist an overturned kayaker.

During the first two days of kayaking they encountered only Class 2 rapids, said Mr Miller, which are gentle enough that they can easily be swum if need be.

The final two days of the trip consisted of whitewater rafting on rapids that ranged from the Class 2 to Class 5, just about the toughest rapids through which one can paddle. “The guides were great. They prepare you before any big rapids in case of an emergency. They tell you what you may encounter, and what to do, which way to swim if you tip over and end up in the river, so you feel pretty confident going in,” Mr Miller said.

Mother Nature graced them with beautiful weather this year, said Mr Miller, which only added to the enjoyment. And despite the rough rapids they traversed, they managed to spend more time in the raft than in the water. “I think I actually went in more than Alex or Doug,” laughed Mr Miller. “You do get wet. It’s a little bit of a thrill and an adventure,” he said.

The whitewater rafting trip is just one of several outdoor activities Mr Miller enjoys with his sons. “I’ve coached both of my boys in soccer, and we do a lot of hiking, some camping, and try to get out as many weekends as we can for skiing in the winter,” he said. “The best part is getting to spend time with the boys and friends.”

Me And My Shadow

“My shadow’s the only one that walks beside me. My shallow heart’s the only thing that’s beating. Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me. ‘Til then I walk alone….” The words from rock band Greenday’s “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” could be Thomas Cruson’s theme song, for the 23-year-old 2005 Newtown High School graduated has walked alone — more than 1,500 miles this past summer.

Following the International Appalachian Trail from Mount Katahdin in northern Maine, across New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and ending at Crow Head, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, Thomas set out May 23 to complete the less-traveled branch of the Appalachian Trail.

“I really enjoyed the Appalachian Trail,” said Thomas, of the 2,000-plus mile eastern US footpath he had hiked over a five-month period in 2006, “and I had heard about the International Appalachian and seen slide shows of it. It looked like a nice area and I thought it would be interesting to continue on from where I had left off [at Mount Katahdin].”

The biggest preparation for long-distance hiking, Thomas learned through earlier treks in national parks and the Appalachian Trail, is mental preparation. Particularly early on in the walk, it is important to stay focused on the idea of how long the hike is, he said. “It’s a mental game to keep hiking,” said Thomas. The weather can have a big impact on motivation, too. This past summer’s cool and rainy weather definitely made it difficult some days to get up and get going, Thomas said.

Physically, some preparation is involved, as well. “I hike year around, every few weekends,” said the Rennsalear Polytechnical Institute physics major, “but that’s not great practice for a long trip like the International. With long distances, I start out slowly and ease into it.” By the end of the three months it took to do the International Appalachian Trail, he was averaging about 18 miles a day.

The terrain of the International Appalachian Trail was actually less demanding than that of the Appalachian Trail between Georgia and Maine, said Thomas. Fewer and smaller mountains and a long stretch paralleling the highway through Newfoundland made walking easier than the rugged Appalachian Trail that winds through 14 states.

“I enjoyed the Appalachian for all of the people I met from all over, but I would have to say that the International had better scenery. It was very remote, though,” he said.

The International Appalachian Trail has hosted fewer than 100 hikers who have gone as far as Quebec, said Thomas, with only about 15 having hiked through Newfoundland and Labrador. And even a decade after the trail was opened, not all parts of the trail are well marked. Through Nova Scotia, he relied mainly on a trail pamphlet to find his way and in Newfoundland, maps he had gotten from the International Appalachian Trail foundation were his only guides.

Weather also colluded with poor trail markings to create challenges. When fog socked him in one day in Newfoundland and Labrador, following the few landmarks that existed became next to impossible.

The remote regions provided ample chance to view wildlife. Moose were abundant, he said, with spottings of caribou and black bear also periodic. Only one bear encounter was close-up, and luckily, that bear felt obliged to take off at a run in the opposite direction. More intimidating than any wildlife, however, was his encounter with the border patrol.

The International Appalachian Trail straddles the US/Canadian border on the way to the border checkpoint. About three miles from the official border crossing, a helicopter suddenly began to follow and circle Thomas. “I guess they didn’t like that I was on the border, walking, alone,” he said. Shortly thereafter, officers from the US Border Patrol approached him on foot and interrogated him. “They needed my passport and driver’s license and asked all kinds of questions,” recalled Thomas. It was quickly determined that he was merely a hiker, and he was allowed to pass on to the checkpoint.

Hiking solo offers the benefit of being able to set his own pace on the road, said Thomas, and the solitude of the International Appalachian provided huge periods of time to simply let his mind go free and think. Mostly, he admitted, what he often thought about on the trail was what he would do when he got to the next small town. The tiny towns, far and few between, provided a place for socializing, a chance to do laundry, and an opportunity to restock his supplies. “I did look forward to a good restaurant meal, too,” said Thomas. Consuming between 5,000 and 6,000 calories a day of mainly peanut butter and pasta can quickly become old, and any change of cuisine was a welcome change.

On August 23, he arrived at his final destination in Crow Head, tired and hungry, but pleased that he had finished the long trail. “The International Appalachian Trial has a different appeal than other trails,” he said. His next conquest, he hopes, will be the Pacific Crest Trail that runs from Mexico to Canada, through California, Oregon, and Washington. Ultimately, he would like to complete the “triple crown” of hiking — The Appalachian Trail, The Pacific Crest Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail.

The 90-Miler

As chief of the Hawleyville Fire Company in Newtown, Joe Farrell finds himself directing water plenty of times. But for the past three summers, he has joined his son, Stephen, in a summer adventure that finds the water directing him — the Adirondack Canoe Classic called “The 90-Miler.”

As a student at Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondacks, Stephen Farrell entered the nonpurse canoe race for the first time in 1998, and has participated nearly every year since then, placing first two times in a one-man standard canoe. For several years, his father served as a pit-crew member for the young paddler. Then, three autumns ago, Joe Farrell decided to find out what the race was all about from the other side — as a participant.

“We’ve always been outdoor-oriented as a family,” said Joe, “and have spent our vacation times in the Adirondacks. Stephen wanted to try doing a guide boat in the race in a different class three years ago, with one man rowing and one man in back paddling and steering, so I thought I’d try it.”

“Guide boats are a challenge,” said Stephen. “We finished, but didn’t place. I told my dad it’s more enjoyable to do the race in a canoe, so we went back to a two-man canoe for the past two years,” he said.

The 90-Miler follows a chain of lakes and rivers from Old Forge on the western side of the Adirondacks for a three-day trip that ends at Lake Saranac, N.Y. It is mostly flat water, said Stephen, but at 50 to 60 strokes per minute for nearly five hours a day, it is a demanding race. Each day includes one to four portages, as well, in which the canoeists must carry the boat on land for anywhere between one-half and three-and-a-half miles.

“Some of the carries can be tough,” said Joe. “And Stephen can be hard to keep up with. The carry on the second day is a mile-plus, up and down hill, on a narrow, rocky trail.” They are thankful that the carbon fiber canoe that they rent for the event weighs a mere 20 pounds, compared to the 75-pound aluminum canoe they have at home.

The men train during the summer, both working out at gyms and doing one or two long-distance canoe trips to prepare. They have traveled from Lake Lillinonah in Brookfield to the Long Island Sound in one day to ready themselves for the 90-Miler. “It helps, but you are still exhausted at the end of the first day, no matter how much we try to train,” said Joe.

For Stephen, it is the five hours a day in the boat that is tough. “It does get long. By the end of the day, it’s mental just to finish it. But you want to finish it; you want to make the cut-offs each day,” he said.

Making it to the cut-off point, so as not to be disqualified, can be hindered by weather, injury, or equipment problems. The Farrells said they have been lucky over the years to have never had anything worse than a broken seat in the canoe, and a few tip-overs. “Three of the ten times I’ve gone, I’ve tipped,” said Stephen, “but luckily it’s happened close enough to shore that I’ve gotten back in quickly. You just keep going.”

Fueled by a big breakfast prepared by their pit crew, Joe’s wife Nancy and Stephen’s wife Mizuho, the rest of the day they subsist primarily on several packs of “Goo,” an energy snack, and any light snack that Nancy and Mizuho meet them with along the way. Their main interest, though, is water, said both men. “We couldn’t do it without Nancy and Mizuho’s help,” said Stephen.

Many of the 500-plus canoeists camp out each night, but Joe and Stephen are ferried back to the family summer home on Upper Saranac Lake at the end of each day, where a hot shower, a filling pasta meal, and a soft bed await them. Then they are all up before the birds in the morning to return to the starting point for another long day of paddling.

This past September, the Farrells came in fourth out of 12 in their division, a respectable finish, they said.

There is no monetary prize in the race along the historic water route that once carried tourists from trains to sprawling timber resorts in the Adirondacks during the 1930s and 40s. What propels the racers for the 27 years that the Adirondack Watershed, the Central Adirondack Association, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have hosted the race is simply a love of friendly competition and a love of the outdoors. “It’s a race for people who love to canoe,” said Stephen. “It’s fun. There are a lot of little ‘races’ within the big race. You might not be in the same division, even, but you’ll see someone you’ve been beside for the last hour or two and it becomes a sort of little race between you. It’s the doing of the race that is attractive. It’s the camaraderie, I think,” he said.

The 90-Miler has also turned into an opportunity for the father and son to bond, they said, through the preparation and the actual three-day trip.

“You get to know people year to year,” added Joe, “and it’s just nice to get out there.”

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