QUESTION NUMBER 7:

Do we need to be experts in camping and canoeing?



NORTH COUNTRY'S ANSWER:

Experts? NO! But this should not be the first time you have been in a canoe or slept in a tent pitched other than in the back yard.

If you have mastered the basic camping skills of setting up and sleeping in a tent, along with boiling water over a camp stove or wood fire, you are well on your way to being ready to go.

Elementary map reading skills are handy, but can be picked-up quickly.

While you don't have to be an accomplished canoeist, a few hours of practice on a local lake or park pond is highly recommended. Your first day on the canoe trails shouldn't be your first time in a canoe.

We think it is very important that participants:

• Know how to swim.

• Know basic first aid skills

• Are in average physical fitness for their age

• Have average outdoor skills in evaluating weather and water level conditions, and understand how these conditions will effect camping and canoeing

• Have an understanding of their party member's strengths and weaknesses, physically, as well as in their canoeing and camping skills, and their mental fitness for the trip

The big thing here is that you give us an honest evaluation of your camping and canoeing skills ... beginner, novice, advanced, or ready for the "Iron Man Eco-Survival and Endurance Challenge". Don't inflate or diminish your skill level. You are not hiring us to be impressed or to be judgmental about your background.

If there is anything else you are unsure about, just ask ... it is our business to assist you in preparing for your trip.