Camping, canoeing and bears! Oh my!

The temperature's rising, the days are getting longer and the birds and bees are trying to have sex with each other. Spring has arrived, and then so will summer! I can't wait for summer to begin. Even though I'll be doing my internship, I fully expect to make the absolute most of my summer. That includes more camping, more trips, more gallivanting outdoors. There's many things I need to do here in the city (like finally get my G license), but I am mostly looking forward to getting away.

This year, I think I will try my hand at portaging and camping. For anyone who doesn't know what that is, it's basically camping without a car, without a toilet, without anything. It's just you, the bears and raw nature. Basically we'll be canoeing 2-3 hours to our campsite, which to me sounds like quite the adventure. 2-3 hours on the water?! At first, this made me uneasy, but I realized I have to learn to get over 'fearing the worst'. I feel sorry for the person who ends up in the boat with me because my arms aren't exactly like Popeye's and I bitch.

I have a feeling this trip will be physically demanding for me, but I'm still looking forward to it! I can't wait to be out in the middle of the woods with no reminders of civilization. Except my walkman...and cell phone... maybe my portable DVD player... Which also brings me to the next problem with this trip: what to pack. For anyone who's ever gone travelling with me, especially camping, I DON'T TRAVEL LIGHT. Yes, clothes is mainly the issue here (sometimes even shoes!). I really don't know why I bring so much, wear only 2/3 of what I bring and end up taking home clean, unworn clothes. I'm gonna have to learn to travel light for this trip because we're not driving, we're hiking and canoeing. Which means we're carrying everything (ugh). Which pretty much means I'll live in my bathing suit the whole time we're there, just so I don't have to carry so much stuff! Bathing suit, sweater and pants is probably the only clothes I'll bring because I have other essentials I have to carry with me like alcohol and a toothbrush. I've decided I'll leave my huge tent at home, and I'll sleep in someone else's sleeping bag just to carry as little as possible! I found this useful checklist online and I'm starting to wonder why they didn't add 'kitchen sink'.

Ah well, I'll get over it. I just can't wait to be in the glory of nature and meet a bear or something. I sincerely hope I see a coyote (at least 100 metres away) or a moose! I'm not crazy, I don't want to be mauled by anything, I just like animals (which reminds me, I need to buy a jackknife. Y'know, just in case). Seeing a moose in its natural habitat is just not the same as seeing it lying on a highway, y'know?