Hi all,
People on this forum are generally adventure minded so I thought I'd point you in the direction of this blog. My bro and my dad are canoeing the Mackenzie river in Canada unguided and over 10 weeks. They're not elite adventurers nor are they doing it for charity...they're doing it simply because it's there!
This is their blog:
http://mackenzieriver2012.blogspot.co.uk/ 
