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Upcoming Trips
Trip policy reminder: It is the responsibility of both the trip coordinators and the participants to discover and share information related to each others’ experience and capabilities regarding trip-related activities and responsibilities.
Thursday – Monday, August 28 – September 1 LABOR DAY WEEKEND
Border Route Trail Maintenance/Intro to the Border Route Trail. This trip to the Pigeon River Section of the Border Route Trail is a great chance to visit the Border Route Trail, one of the highest rated trails in the Midwest. You'll enjoy excellent scenery, gourmet food by our renowned foody, Trish Hannah, unbeatable camaraderie, plus great swimming at our campsite.
This section of the BRT lends itself well to day hiking as it has a total of five access points, lots of great overlooks, and very little damage from the “Big Blow” of 7/4/1999. As many of you already know, the BRT was built by Rovers during the 1970’s. It’s a significant part of Rover’s heritage to which we’d like to introduce newer members, hence this will be a combination day hiking, trail reconnaissance, deadfall clearing & brushing sweep. We did a deadfall sweep of major portions of this section last fall and earlier this summer so we don't expect many deadfalls. That means that the group should move along almost as fast as a normal day hike group would travel on their own. This will be a great chance to see a major piece of the BRT and feel good about contributing to its upkeep at the same time.
Leaving Thursday after work and return Monday evening ~9:30 p.m. In order to maximize transportation efficiency, we’ll use my 12-passenger Dodge Maxi-Van and BRTA trailer for carrying extra gear. We’ll car-camp at the Otter Lake trailhead with its “executive beach” and newly installed BWCAW style latrine. Trip cost includes transportation and all food except for stops on the way up and back. Estimated cost: $70. Deposit: $70. Max trip size: 12.
Since the trip involves trail maintenance and is organized as a joint effort of the Border Route Trail Association and Minnesota Rovers, the trip costs are tax deductible.
Sponsoring organization: Border Route Trail Association
Ed S. • 612-822-0569 | Trish H. • 612-824-1328
August (2 weeks)
Canoe / Kayak / Camping — Katmai National Park, Alaska. Canoeing and kayaking in Katmai National Park is traveling back to the time when bears, wolves, eagles, and salmon were abundant, and humans were few and far between. We will see distant glaciers and volcanoes while we paddle. Drop off is by bush plane on Grosvenor Lake and then paddle our way back to civilization at Brooks camp via the Grosvenor River, Savonoski River, and the Illiuk Arm of Naknek Lake. Once at Brooks Camp we will have access to restaurant food and showers. The remainder of our time we will day hike the Valley of 10,000 Smokes, to the top of Dumpling Mountain and watch salmon leap into the mouths of Alaskan brown bears at Brooks Falls. The Savonoski is a Class II river. No large waves, but the river flows fairly quickly and there are tree snags in the river and islands to paddle around. We will paddle folding canoes and kayaks. On days with wind we will stay in camp to avoid white caps. We will paddle about 55 miles over the course of 6-8 days (weather dependant).
Difficulty level: Medium. (No Portages).
Must have good experience wilderness camping.
Must have good experience canoeing or kayaking.
Estimated cost: $1,400 - $1,800. Deposit: $200. Max Trip size 7-8: We will use two bush planes if more than 4 people sign up.
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John R. • 763-424-7973
Tuesday, September 2 DAY TRIP
Beginner Mountain Biking — Part 1 (again). Mountain biking doesn't always mean hopping logs and avoiding collisions with trees. Join us for a great aerobic workout riding non-technical turf trails. Meet at Oak Grove Park in Brooklyn Park at 6:00pm. From there we will bike to Elm Creek Park Reserve and explore the trails. HELMETS REQUIRED!
Scott & Jodi S.
Wednesday, September 3 NIGHT HIKE
Hiking at Battle Creek Regional Park in St. Paul. Meet at 7:00 p.m. in the parking lot at Battle Creek Community Recreation Center located at 75 Winthrop Street South in St. Paul. We'll hike until approximately 8:30. This section of the park is hilly and unpaved.
Directions to Battle Creek Recreation Center: Take I-94 east past downtown St. Paul; exit at McKnight Road and go south about 1/2 mile to 4-way stop on Upper Afton Road. Turn right on Upper Afton. Go about to 2 blocks to 4-way stop at Winthrop and turn left. Look for the parking lot on the right about 1 block down the street. | map |
Jack G. • 651-247-6490 (cell)
Thursday – Friday/ Saturday, September 4 – 5/6
Viewing Whooping Cranes. The purpose of this trip is to view juvenile whooping cranes (some adults are also in the area), a federal listed endangered species, at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge in central Wisconsin.
Each summer, for the past seven years, hatchling whooping cranes have been transported to the Refuge in order to establish an eastern population of migratory cranes. During the summer, they are raised and then trained to fly with ultra light planes. When ready, they follow the planes to their wintering area in Florida. They fly back north on their own during the spring migration.
Our trip also includes a special tour of the Refuge including restricted areas. After lunch at the Little Crane restaurant, we go to Baraboo, Wisconsin for a self guided tour of the International Crane Foundation.
Details:
Leave on Thursday Afternoon to camp at the Wilderness Campground on Lake Petenwell, north of Necedah, Wisconsin. Rise before dawn on Friday and taken to a viewing site to see the whooping cranes and then tour the Refuge. Have lunch at Crane Cafe in Necedah at noon. Travel to Baraboo to visit the International Crane Foundation.
Costs:
$13 per tent, which includes a car, for one night (sharing tents reduces cost per person)
$8.50 per adult for admission to the Foundation.
Meals are on your own (estimated cost includes anticipated individual costs each person will pay on their own).
I will bring a small grill for those who wish to stay a second night of camping and cookout.
Cost of gasoline will be shared with individuals in carpools (included in estimated cost with car pooling of two or three people per vehicle).
Estimated cost: $100. Deposit: $21.50. Max trip size: 14.
Mike S. • 952-997-2986
Friday – Sunday, September 5 – 9 SORRY, THIS TRIP IS FULL
Horseback Riding and Hiking. Sisseton, South Dakota. Leave Friday morning — possibly a Friday afternoon option (stop for a geocache?) and short hike on the way out (5 hr drive).
Stay in camper cabins at Fort Sisseton State Park. Friday night we hope to visit a local fish fry. Bring your own lunches and snacks. Trip cost includes Saturday and Sunday breakfast and Saturday supper, lodging, transportation, park admission and riding.
Saturday: Guided tour of Fort Sisseton in the morning. Hiking at Sica Hollow in the afternoon. Possibly a bit more geocaching.
Sunday — the highlight: Horseback riding at Canyon Ranch! CONFIDENT RIDERS ONLY, please. We plan on doing some cantering! I already have 12 riders for Sunday morning, but there may be some room left for Sunday afternoon riders, with a late return to the Twin Cities (9 p.m.)
Who knew that eastern South Dakota was so beautiful? Come fulfill those cowboy/girl dreams.
Estimated cost: $120. Deposit: $50. Max trip size: 12-15.
Deb G.
Wednesday, September 10 EDUCIATIONAL OPPORTUNITY
CPR class. I will be taking a Red Cross "CPR - Adult" class on at 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. The cost is $55 I am taking the NOLS WMI first aid class and want to have my CPR certificate before that. I am taking class number HSSFA102-1506443 (top right on the webpage).
Estimated cost: $55.
Sponsoring organization: Red Cross
Tom H. • 763-391-0774
Thursday – Sunday, September 11 – 21
Trail Clearing on the Border Route Trail. Join us for fall trail clearing on the Border Route Trail. The bugs should be getting a bit better after the long summer buzz.
Thursday – Sunday, September 11 – 14
Trail Clearing on the Border Route Trail. Join us for fall trail clearing on the Border Route Trail. The bugs should be getting a bit better after the long summer buzz.
Friday – Sunday, September 12 – 14
Sailing. We will drive up Friday night to Bayfield WI, and board the boat. It's a 4-hour drive from the cities. Checked out 8:00 a.m. Saturday, sail out to islands, anchor overnight, some hiking, etc weather permitting. Return boat to slip 3:00 p.m. Sunday. The Apostles are a beautiful group of islands, and when accessed by sailing is quite adventuresome. The weather can vary from calm and warm, to cold and rainy--no guarentees, and you need to dress for anything. This will not be first come, first serve — I want a few members of the crew to have sailing experience of some sort; preferably at least one who is used to bareboat chartering.
Estimated cost: $125–$150, plus food. Deposit: $100. Max trip size: 5–6.
Geoffrey S. • 651-698-5097
Tuesday, September 16 SEMIANNUAL EVENT
Rovers Spring Intro Show. Find out more about Rovers and/or see what we’ve been up to lately at the Spring Intro Show at 7pm at REI in Bloomington. Visit the Special Events page for more information.
Thursday – Sunday, September 18 – 21
Trail Clearing on the Border Route Trail. Join us for fall trail clearing on the Border Route Trail. The bugs should be getting a bit better after the long summer buzz. We wil be leaving Thursday night (9/18) after work. Driving up to McFarland Lake (eating dinner on the way) and camping at the McFarland campground. Friday we will canoe about 7 miles to the Pine / Pike portage campsite, set up camp, have lunch, hike up to the trail and start clearing to the west. Saturday we will continue clearing the trail to the west and spend some time at the overlooks before coming back down to camp. Sunday we will have an easy morning, canoe back to McFarland Lake, drive home (eating lunch on the way), expecting to get home mid evening. Sign up using the online registration form.
Estimated cost: $65. Deposit: $65. Max trip size: 9.
Sponsoring organization: Border Route Trail Association
Tom H. • 763-391-0774
September (1 week) SORRY, THIS TRIP IS FULL
Whitewater Rafting in Grand Canyon. Exciting whitewater rafting trip on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon! The outfitter is Arizona River Runners. This is a motorized raft with room for 30 people, includes food and camping gear. The trip starts in Las Vegas with a short (optional) flight to Lee's Ferry on August 31, 2008 and ends at Whitmore and a bus ride back to Las Vegas. Not for the faint-hearted! This 7-day trip includes more hiking opportunities than the other trips offered by this company.
Costs: $2,275 to outfitter; optional flight from Las Vegas to Lee's Ferry is $212 and the state park pass is $12. The total is $2,502 plus airfare from Minneapolis to Las Vegas and optional nights and meals in Las Vegas before and after rafting trip. Deposit: $400 paid directly to outfitter. Max trip size: 28.
Joanie J. • 612/812-6445
Saturday – Sunday, October 4 – 5 SEMIANNUAL EVENT
Fall Extravaganza. Save the date for this year’s Fall Extravaganza at Jay Cooke State Park. Deadline to sign up: Thursday, September 25. See the Special Events page for more details, agenda, and contact information.
Date TBA SEMIANNUAL EVENT
Adopt-A-Highway Cleanup. Bring your work gloves and lend a hand for just a few hours cleaning up Rovers’s designated road. Meet at 10am at County Road 202 (corner of 109th Lane N. and Zachary Lane) in Maple Grove. Pizza lunch afterward for all volunteers. For more details, check out the Special Events page.
Friday – Sunday, April 25 – 27 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Midwest Mountaineering Outdoor Adventure Expo. Want to check out our club? The Outdoor Adventure Expo’s fifty plus exhibitors can help you find your true passion for the outdoors. Check the Special Events page for more information.
We need volunteers to help staff the booth. Please contact Stacey G. to sign up for a 2-hour time slot.
Saturday  Sunday, November 22 – December 14
Wild China. Join me on a trip to China for 23 days. Arrangements to be made directly through GAP Adventures at www.gapadventures.com/tour/ACWC. It is difficult to travel China independantly so I joined a tour group with a focus on Wild China. We'll vist Beijing, Hong Kong, Pandas, the Great Wall, trek the Yangtze River gorge, bicycle, see the world's biggest stone Buddha, meet the Chinese minority Naxi and Bai people, and the limestone karst hills of Yangshuo. This is a more relaxed, gentle trip with a focus on the wild side of China and culture. It is rated a 3 out of 5 on physically demanding which I interpret basically as being capable of walking for many hours a day. Transport will be by train, bus, and boat. We will need a dual entry visa for this trip in order to get the most economical airfare.
Estimated cost: $3,500 estimate includes tour costs, food, airfare. Deposit: payment to GAP Adventures. Max trip size: 15.
Sponsoring organization: GAP Adventures
Cheryl B. • 763-566-1197
Saturday Saturday, May 30 – June 13
Bicyle Tour of Scotland. Spend two weeks bike touring with panniers in the Highland region of Scotland.
The early plan is to start from Glasgow and ride north to Inverness tour the Northern Highlands while visiting Loch Ness and other areas.
We will be staying in Hostels including the haunted Carbisdale Castle Hostel.
Estimated cost: $3,500.Max trip size: 6.
Chris F. • 952-807-6688
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