And so, the adventure begins!

First and foremost, introductions are in order! My name is Mer (short for Meredith), and as the blog suggests, I'm a paddling enthusiast! This growing addiction started during my childhood at the family's summer home on Wampler's Lake in SE Michigan - just me, an aluminum canoe, and lots of time for exploring, fishing, and learning the ways of paddling. This passion was further fueled by paddling classes at summer camp and a two-week "Venture Out" trip as a teenager in Northern Michigan.

In high school I earned a bit of a reputation for taking my recreational kayak, which I still own and use frequently, down the Ottawa River, which has had warnings posted about using the river recreationally. From Wikipedia:

The Ottawa River Risk Assessment, a report published in 2000, tested the
water of the lower section of the Ottawa River, and found many chemicals in the
water with an hazard
quotient greater than 1 (from highest to lowest concentration): lead, aluminum, PCBs, manganese, iron, DDT, thallium, selenium, chromium, nickel, cadmium, cyanide, and zinc.[1]

Let the jokes about my growing third eye and my future offspring's birth defects begin! I was, and still am a big believer in the river. During my day-long trips from a put in point at Wildwood Metropark to the floodplain off of Bancroft road, I was amazed by the sheer amount of wildlife that resided in and along the river. I've been hoping to make a return trip to the river one of these days, but I'm not as young as I used to be. As I recall, the trip demanded lots of mid-river portages and an occasional spill into the lovely waters described above, seeing as the river is not maintained for recreational use. An adventure nonetheless!

Now, as a director with an outdoor environmental education program at the camp of my childhood, I have made it my goal to use warm weekends in the Spring, Summer, and Fall to enjoy paddling trips in the beautiful wilderness of Northern Michigan. Along with my "right hand man", my assitant director at work and good friend in life, Nate, I have had the opportunity to explore much of the Manistee and have begun to enjoy the Pere Marquette (affectionately referred to by many Michiganders as "The P.M.").

My next trip should hopefully find me somewhere on the Manistee - I'm shooting for Memorial Day weekend. I'm doing my darndest to make sure I can staff one of our camp's Venture Out programs as well. The Michigan Rivers trip will be a nearly two-week trip with 7th, 8th, and 9th graders.......I'll be sure to post more details later!