ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Peter Frank paddled this month from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay aboard his 1982 Sawyer Loon deck canoe, but he still has a long way to go.
The 23-year-old is about a quarter of the way through the planned route of about 6,000 miles (9,656 kilometers) to complete the Grande Boucle route. This continuous waterway includes part of the Atlantic and Gulf intracoastal waterways, the Great Lakes, part of the Canadian Heritage Canals and the inland rivers of the United States.
For Frank, the trip is largely a way to express gratitude for still being alive and able to meet the physical challenge, nearly a decade after a car accident left him with 14 broken bones and almost paralyzed. He was hiding in a pile of leaves to surprise a friend when a car full of teenagers drove through the pile without knowing he was there.
“This is my way of showing my appreciation for being alive and being able to walk and do the things that I can do,” he said during a break in Annapolis, Md. , at the beginning of the month, one day before leaving.
He also enjoys writing about his experiences on his blog and meeting people along the way.
“I’m happy to be here and share this story,” Frank said. “In a way, I feel like I have a responsibility to document the things I experience for people who don’t have the opportunity to experience them or who dream of experiencing them. That’s why it’s important to me.”
Wearing a rabbit fur hat and clothes he made himself to look like a pirate, he typically paddles six to ten hours a day in his 1982 deck boat, whose hull is hollowed out for storage. provisions. Many nights he sleeps in a tent by the water. However, he often receives invitations from readers of his blog to stay at home.
To stay warm, he bought a vintage 1970s heavy down coat, an ultra-light Patagonia jacket found at a thrift store, 1950s German military cold-weather mittens, a set of warm thermals, and several cotton socks. wool. Recently, when he was feeling underdressed, he designed and sewed his own pants which he quilted onto cotton flannel for added layering.
It carries 10 portable power banks, along with cords and power outlets. He says his electronics bag, containing only batteries and cords, weighs nearly 25 pounds.
“I find 10 is a good amount and will keep me charged with GPS, radio, cameras and phone battery in any tough situation,” he says. “I also have a solar panel with me as a backup and can charge almost anything I need.”
He doesn’t carry much with him to defend himself: only a small fillet knife for the fish and a pocket knife for cutting the rope. Frank says he has confidence in his ability to protect himself, such as being cautious in bear country, attaching food, or simply avoiding populated areas.
“In the long run, it’s never really been a problem, and anything beyond my control is not something I can avoid with everything I can carry with me,” he says.
The Eagle Scout, who always visits a local scout troop in his hometown, prepared much of his own food for this long adventure. He dehydrated game meat and ground beef in the oven and vacuum-sealed them for the trip.
Frank earns some income by writing about his experience. Her blog also helps her pay her grocery bills through her “Rotisserie Chicken Fund,” which people can click to send her money.
“Every once in a while someone sends me $20 online, which helps a lot for food and other things, but in the meantime I also write for magazines, and the magazines publish my work,” he said.
Frank has already made long trips by bicycle, unicycle and canoe. For example, he once explored Florida by canoe, which took him about 11 months, until May 2023. This is an important part of what he is trying to do now. He knows he’ll end up tying his canoe to the mangroves for a while to sleep.
“I really, really enjoy them,” Frank says of these adventures. “I value above all being alive, and so I guess for me these expeditions are not only my university and my education, but also my form of worship in a way, I thank the world for ‘to be alive and able to walk.
The Grande Boucle is his most difficult journey to date. Although the trip is a must-do route for avid boaters, it is rarely done with the help of a brawny canoe.
Frank also travels clockwise, which he says is the most difficult route because he paddles against the flow on inland rivers for more than 25 percent of the journey.
Frank kicked off his trip June 27 in Escanaba, Michigan, where he is originally from. He paddled to Canada and crossed Lake Ontario, where he camped on islands. On his way south, he passed through New York, floating near the Statue of Liberty.
Although he studied the route of the Grande Boucle at length, everything was not perfectly mapped out for the canoeist. He says he had to find his way on his own.
Leaving New York, he took the Delaware and Raritan Canal, using portages he said he found on his own and which were not mentioned in the route plans he had seen previously. Frank says he hopes to write an informational guide to fill in some gaps on route details. He is also considering writing an autobiography.
“I would like to put together something that is purely educational, that would be a guide, and then I would like to put together something that is a bit like the story of a young man finding himself in a world that he doesn’t completely understand. .again,” Frank said.
He lived with his parents before he began traveling when he left home to unicycle across the United States for charity at the age of 19.
“I sometimes go back for a few months between two expeditions, but for the past three years, I have been traveling full time,” he says.
Everything he owns is in his canoe.
He says he doesn’t need a lot of money to keep operating.
“Contrary to what most people think, traveling is not very expensive, especially when you eliminate plane tickets, gasoline, goods and accommodations like hotels and restaurants,” says- he.
He never had much money and once made expeditions with less than $1,000.
“Is it comfortable or practical? Absolutely not, but through struggling to achieve my dreams with little or nothing, I have developed the ability to enjoy less and, as a result, I live well with little,” he says.
He also describes the journey as a journey of self-discovery.
“It’s very difficult to imagine where I will be in three years, because I am still young and growing, but I hope that on this journey, this very long journey of self-discovery, I will find maybe -be that,” he said.
He estimates it will take about 17 months to complete the loop. He will have to finish it by next November, he says, due to a natural deadline set by the freezing of the lakes he will have to cross.
“I would say nature is definitely my biggest competitor,” says Frank.
