Final Thoughts

As this semester comes to a close I have been able to reflect a lot on myself, the expedition, and the communities we have been warmly welcomed into.

Throughout my life, I have been blessed to go on a few adventures that really pushed me and allowed me to grow. I've always had the mindset that I could do anything, but I didn't really know what that meant until I did this trip. I was really pushed mentally and physically every day on this trip. I really do see more of my capabilities and how far I can really push myself and where my limits are too.

I have also been able to live in this amazing community with so many amazing people that I love so much, but also drive me insane when they don't wash their dishes. I have been so honored to be part of this experience with all these people and it has been a beautiful experience.

The expedition was hard in its self to do, but we were met with some heavy weather that kept us off the river for a while. Most of our paddle day it was raining, heavy winds, and even snow. One of our lunch stops we were so cold that some of us tried to go under a tarp to keep warm from the piercing cold wind that was hitting people with sand. Most of the time we were trying to make up miles from days we had to stop paddling because of the weather so most days we paddled about 25-30+ miles. The expedition was a lot in itself and on top of it, we had a full course load of work.

Something that I never really thought about until the trip actually started was the community I was with. At first, I wasn't too sure about the people I was with, but bit by bit we all started to peel away at our layers and we got to see each person for their generosity, the way they stepped up to do the work, and just how genuine people are. 

Along the way, we met lots of people and got to have many conversations about diversity. There is a lot of work to be done for getting diversity to the outdoors, but there is also a lot of work to be done along the river for diverse communities that have fewer resources and are affected by the decisions made by upstream neighbors. 

From being able to be on my hometown radio I have had people contact me about getting youth with diverse backgrounds into nature. When I get back to my hometown I am going to be working with outdoors activist to get funding and have the local public schools agree (hopefully) to have us take kids out to the local river (Canon River) and hopefully get some tandem canoes out for summer school. I have also be invited to be part of the Northfield River council as well to help with upcoming decisions on the river banks.

This program really has opened me up to many interesting doors that I really never thought I'd even be thinking of walking through. I am excited to get back home and work on diversity out in our local nature and help others engage in it because it is truly a blessing.