NEW ULM - Birds chirped while soaring over the Minnesota River Saturday as two recent St. Olaf College graduates paddled a loaded canoe under the Beussman Bridge, towards Hudson Bay.
Ann Raiho of Inver Grove Heights and Natalie Warren of Miami are en route on a journey no women and few men for that matter, have ever done.
This is no internship or entry level task.
It's for those interested in nature in its purest form.
The women left Fort Snelling State Park on June 2 in a 17-foot canoe.
They plan to travel 2,250 miles to Hudson Bay via the Minnesota, Red, Nelson, Gods and Hayes Rivers plus a trek across Lake Winnipeg to Hudson Bay where they will be picked up by a sea plane.
It's the same route the late CBS news journalist, war correspondent and Minneapolis native Eric Sevareid followed with a friend decades ago.
Sevareid wrote a book about the trek - "Canoeing with the Cree" which is still in print.
The women average 15-17 miles a day on the river despite bucking strong winds the first few days on board.
They plan on reaching Hudson Bay on Sept. 10.
"The wind was tough the first few days but it's been better since then," Raiho said.
The duo don't plan on doing any scientific studies on the river but they are keeping journals and said they hope their journey will inspire others to make the trek.
Their supply list is long.
It includes water and a large plastic barrel full of Granola, dehydrated eggs, pasta, salsa and biscuits; cooking and first aid kits, a cooking tent, bear spray, water bladders, sleeping bags, life jackets, down jackets, hiking and rubber boots, paddling gloves, fuel bottle, satellite phone, stove, hatchet, rope, lighters, headlamps, camera, matches, mittens, hats and even a gun, in case they encounter a bear.
To train for the trip, the women hiked trails with heavy packs, ran, lifted weights, played Ultimate Frisbee and paddled upstream on the Cannon River in and around Northfield.
Former New Ulmite Jack Stone, who owns Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply in Grand Marais, helped sponsor the trip by donating the canoe.
After meeting their fund-raising goal, Raiho and Warren will donate the rest of their proceeds to Camp Menogyn, a Northern Minnesota YMCA camp specializing in canoeing, backpacking, rock climbing, dog sledding, cross country skiing and snowshoeing.
The women met and quickly became friends at Camp Menogyn while attending camp there.
Raiho graduated with a math degree and environmental studies concentration a few weeks ago. She will study population ecology at Colorado State University in the fall.
Warren earned an Environmental Studies degree and took part in a Minneapolis urban affairs consortium about environmental sustainability.
"I hope to get a job studying the environment," Warren said.
Three years ago, two Chaska teenage boys, who said they also were inspired by Sevareid's book, canoed from Fort Snelling to Hudson Bay in 49 days.
For more information on Raiho and Warren, visit www.hudsonbaybound.com
Fritz Busch can be e-mailed at fbusch@nujournal.com.
