New Presenter

Bianca Boettcher

Oh the Places I Went

Sylvania - main floor Sat 10:30am-11:15am

Bear - upstairs Sat 12:30pm-1:15pm

Sylvania - main floor Sun 12:30pm-1:15pm

Curtis Casto

The Onion Bag Solution: Empowering Paddlers to Protect Our Waters

Killarney (Spark by Hilton) - Hilton Fri 5:30pm-6:15pm

Killarney (Spark by Hilton) - Hilton Sun 10:30am-11:15am

Abigail Cichocki, Emma Brackett, Helena Karlstrom

The Hudson Bay Girls- Lessons Learned from 80 Days on the Water

Quetico - main floor Fri 5:30pm-6:15pm

Algonquin - main floor Sun 11:30am-12:15pm

In the summer of 2025, the Hudson Bay Girls-a team of four college-aged women-completed an 80-day, 1,381-mile canoe expedition from Lake Superior to Hudson Bay. They are the first all-female crew to publicly document their paddle along the historic fur trade route from Grand Portage to York Factory. Join them to hear stories from the trail, learn what it takes to plan a multi-month wilderness expedition, and explore how their journey connects adventure, environmental stewardship, and ... Read More

Peter Frank

4,853 mile eastern US circumnavigation by canoe

Bear - upstairs Fri 3:30pm-4:15pm

Bear - upstairs Sat 9:30am-10:15am

Algonquin - main floor Sat 2:30pm-3:15pm

On October 20th at 9:43am, Peter Frank completed the circumnavigation of the eastern United States, "The Great Loop", becoming one of the few people to complete the route by paddle. The journey, spanning 5,043 miles, was performed solely by canoe, and took 500 days to reach the destination from whence it began. There was no dedicated support crew, he spent most nights in a tent, apart from the times he was hosted by strangers whom he met along the way. Peter started at 22 years old, and crossed ... Read More

Dave Mangin

Paddling the Potowatomi Islands

BWCA - main floor Sat 1:30pm-2:15pm

After building a rowboat for a trip downt the Mississippi River, Dave Mangin endeavored to built a kayak for a different trip through the Great Lakes and out to the Eastern Seaboard. After making it to the tip of Door County, this past summer he paddled from Rock Island, WI to Garden, MI.

Dave's presentation describes that beautiful trip into some remote parts of the Wisconsin/Michagan interface, the Potowatomi Islands. Limestone outcroppings of the Niagara Escarpment, abandoned ... Read More

Paul Mellor

Strokes of Kindness: The People of the River

Bear - upstairs Sat 11:30am-12:15pm

Caribou - upstairs Sun 10:30am-11:15am

Embarking on his 2300-mile kayaking journey down the Mississippi River, Paul Mellor encountered logjams, 27 locks and dams, gigantic cargo ships, and alligators. He also capsized three times, but his message is not so much about that. His story is about what the river offers; peace, serenity, and kindness from people who live along its banks. Scores of people, many of them strangers, offered him a place to stay, fed him meals, and miraculously showed up when he needed them the most. It's a ... Read More

Rolf Peterson

The recovery of wolves in Isle Royale National Park

Caribou - upstairs Sun 1:30pm-2:15pm

The ongoing study of wolves and moose in Isle Royale National Park has a long-term goal of understanding the role of wolves in this isolated and protected ecosystem. The National Park Service re-established a wolf population in 2018-2019 after the recent native population virtually died out from inbreeding, caused by dwindling ice formation on Lake Superior. Wolves have been shown to have a major influence on the population dynamics of moose as the two species fluctuate in a roughly inverse ... Read More

Riley Smith

The Ephemeral Joys of November Canoe Trips in the BWCAW

Bear - upstairs Fri 5:30pm-6:15pm

Bear - upstairs Sat 2:30pm-3:15pm

Seth Taft

Friendship Matters: The Trail Ahead for Wisconsin State Parks

Sylvania - main floor Fri 4:30pm-5:15pm

Beverly Vaillancourt

The Story of the Baraboo River

Caribou - upstairs Fri 6:30pm-7:15pm

Sylvania - main floor Sat 12:30pm-1:15pm

Calem Watson

Alone Across the Northwest Territories

Quetico - main floor Fri 3:30pm-4:15pm

BWCA - main floor Sun 1:30pm-2:15pm

Marcy West

Water Lovers Role in Protecting Landscapes

Killarney (Spark by Hilton) - Hilton Fri 4:30pm-5:15pm

Killarney (Spark by Hilton) - Hilton Sat 12:30pm-1:15pm