I saw that Neenah Historical Society was offering free voyager canoe rides during the farmer's marker. Danielle was free and we decided to check it out since it was not raining.
We signed up for a group as soon as we got to the farmer's market but it was still an hour wait. They only had one canoe which did hold 15 people. While we waited we perused the famer's market and picked up some fresh produce for the next week. I even tried my first honey stick.
When it was finally our group's turn, we met our guides Jean Paul and Claude to get our introduction into being part of the voyager canoe company. Our guides worked for the Northwest Fur Company and we enlisted to be part of their crew. They taught us the history of the Northwest Fur Company and made sure we understood the British Fur Company was no good (pe-tuey).
After getting our paddles and life vests, it was time to board the canoe. Even tied to the dock it was pretty tippy. They said the best way was sit down on the dock and lower yourself into the canoe that way. It worked but I felt like it was going to tip over any time.
Then we started our journey down the Fox River. I will be honest, I did not paddle much at all just a little bit when we pushed off the dock. The front of the canoe did most of the work. I sat back and enjoyed the ride while looking at the back side of all the houses along the river.
Once we got to the sailboats, we turned around and headed back to the library dock. Again we just mainly floated back instead of doing any paddling. More time to enjoy the sites and take pictures.
We were never in any danger since the police boat was always nearby and there was a fire fighter on the dock. The hubby was a bit concerned that I was going canoeing but felt much better when I told him the police boat was nearby the entire time.
This was a great family activity. Normally it is done the day of the Pow-Wow in September but the re-enactors were booked so they did it in August instead. It is definitely worth checking out next year.
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