Background

So my name is Nick aka Nickfish03 (those of you who have watched my videos will recognize my intro) and I'm 23. Born and raised in California, just north of San Francisco. Went to college in Northfield, MN - St. Olaf and currently in Richmond, KY. The outdoors has always been apart of me, even if not an active role. I participated in the Boy Scouts and achieved Eagle Scout (mostly and gratefully thanks to my mom's support), founded the Camping and Outdoors club in college and became a canoe guide at Northern Tier BSA Canoe Camp for two summers. I've guided numerous canoe trips, backpacked in Yosemite National Park, and went on a trip with the Boy Scouts at Philmont in New Mexico. I've been with friends in the Superior Hiking Trail two times, once as a leader of the college outdoors organization. I don't pretend to know everything or very much for that matter about the outdoors, but really who does? I know enough to more than get by, and I love to research and learn. When I grew into backpacking, the way of thinking then was "be prepared" which also meant carrying a ton of stuff. While I still like to be prepared, I also realize you can only prepare for so much, and while it may be comfortable to bring along a 6 ounce splint, it's more practical to have the knowledge and know-how to build one from a sleeping pad or even some sticks and cordage. I'm also not a survivalist or primitive outdoorsman, but I am an improviser. If something needs doing, I will do it with what I have. That's the way I look at things.
As to canoeing, I love it. I think I prefer canoeing over backpacking, but each has their own merits as do all things. Being on the water, slipping the paddle into the glassy water, hearing the loons, seeing fish underneath the canoe, it all just resonates with me. I didn't have any experience with canoeing before I became a guide. It was a summer job that was with the Boy Scouts, that I've heard of, and was going to pay me to be in nature. It was one of the first things in my adulthood that really grew me as a person and paved the way for many other growths. But I went into it as a novice and came out as a confident leader. Not necessarily from the knowledge I gained, though that was a significant part of it, but from the knowledge that I could do things I hadn't thought I could handle. I still remember getting near the end of a portage and a scout coming up behind me saying someone had twisted their ankle. I put down my canoe and bag and ran back to meet them. I charged the other boys with helping him along as I took up his gear and canoe and did the long portage twice so others wouldn't have to. Or later that year, my girlfriend (later fiancé) would over exert her knee and I would put her pack on-top of mine and carry it until her pain subsided. Perhaps I've digressed from canoeing, but it's one of those places that just bring memories of solitude, peace and awe of nature to me that I can't help but share and even want to share, as I organized my own trips with my college and my fiancé (I proposed to her while on our canoe trip).
What I don't have, I'll improvise. But what I don't know, I will also learn. That is where we come to the present. I've mentioned I grew up with the old way of backpacking. Carrying many things, training, dealing and suffering through the weight. When I came to canoeing I entered into the thought of lightweight, but weight did not take it's toll as much as it did when backpacking. For this trip and my soon-to-be wife's, I've made it a goal of ours to become ultralight backpackers. On my part, this requires me to throw out a good deal of what I know and reconsider, recalculate and reevaluate every piece of gear I have. This isn't my first time counting ounces (or grams), but it will be a complete overhaul of my inventory. This is where my research comes into play and the hope to provide you, the reader, with the knowledge I've gained in a more central location. Obviously everything I do and suggest is my opinion, but I want you to know that opinion stems from a great deal of thought and research of other people's opinions and practice. All I want from this blog is to help someone else achieve the most wonderful time they can in nature, with as much knowledge that is practical for them to obtain.