Pine River
We kicked off the first session of the Wilderness Canoe Immersion this past Saturday, which is a week-long canoe adventure in the Headwaters Wilderness located in the pristine Chequamegon-Nicolet Forest. Wilderness Guide Chris (Abel) Bean utilizes a minimalist approach to living in the wilderness with nothing but the bare essentials, and an emphasis on wilderness survival and canoe skills. Participants are also guided towards a deeper relationship with themselves and the natural world through team building, speaking one’s truth, and dream sharing.
Early Saturday morning, the participants gathered their supplies onto their backs and hiked a half mile to Mashkodens (Ojibwe for Little Prairie) home to Teaching Drum Outdoor School’s training programs. There they were shown how to set up their cordless tarps for shelter, learned basic wilderness first aid, and had their first introduction on how to effectively maneuver a solo canoe. Later that evening, they were given their first instructions on how to build a bow drill fire just in time for dinner, which included fire roasted fresh caught fish. They fell asleep under a clear sky, 
many of the participants reporting vivid dreams that they shared around the hearth with one another the next morning at sunrise. After breakfast, they packed up their gear and paddled down Julia Creek until they arrived at Julia Lake where Teaching Drum staff were waiting to transport them to Pine River, where they are now continuing the next 7 days of their canoe adventure.
The participants vary in outdoor wilderness skill level, but all have come with a desire for a deeper connection with earth and self, and a willingness to venture outside ones comfort zone. There is one more Wilderness Canoe Immersion session available from October 23rd through the 31st. If you have any questions, or want to learn more, you can visit the Wilderness Canoe Immersion webpage.
Stay tuned for more adventures…