Fifteen years ago, Laurie Apgar Chandler and her two children moved to Maine, beginning a new chapter of life in a log cabin surrounded by lakes and ponds. Changing careers from forestry research to special education, she remarried, and discovered a new passion, wilderness paddling. After losing her husband, Laurie began taking longer and longer trips alone. Photography and journaling captured many of the magic moments, but she began to dream of writing about her adventures.
In the summer of 2015, Laurie set off from Old Forge, New York for a 740-mile solo thru-paddle of New England's Northern Forest Canoe Trail, finishing in Fort Kent, Maine 53 days later. Upwards, the story of that journey, is her first book. Achieving her improbable dream, to travel 740 miles alone in a small canoe, was by no means certain. Relatively new to wilderness paddling, she encountered challenges, expected and unexpected, that pushed her to the limits of her courage and endurance. Surprisingly, the scariest of these had a human face. Providing one of the first looks at the country's longest mapped inland paddling route, this tale weaves faith, nature, and the goodness of people into an inspiring adventure on storied waterways like the Allagash. Join us as Laurie regales us with stories and photos from this incredible journey. Her book, Upwards, will be available for purchase.
Potluck dinner will start at 6pm (please bring a dish to share, help us be green and bring your own cup, plates and silverware). Presentation at 7pm. Free and open to the public.
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