Our talk in Sequim is called “700 Miles of Canoeing, by Bike.” When it all started, we expected to do a fair bit of biking. That’s what brought us together as a couple, and what we’d been doing for years. In fact, we’ve come to Sequim twice before to share some of our more exotic cycling adventures.

But canoeing? No, we only thought we’d do just a little bit of that.

However, adventure travel sometimes turns into true adventures. Our canoeing extravaganza started very, very small when we planned a bike trip up the coast of Maine. “Let’s see if we can find a cabin or two to rent for a week, maybe even one with a canoe.” We did. Two of them, in fact.

The first one was on a salt marsh and afforded only short but interesting paddles, and only around high tide.

The second one — oh my! — was on a tidal estuary where we could paddle for miles and miles, into deeply forested coves, across open water to a town devoted to lobster-ing, even out to the wide-open edge of the Atlantic. We were hooked!

The next year we plunged in. We booked nine cabins in Maine — seven of them on tidewater, two on lakes. Each one came with a canoe. They also had to be no more than 40 miles from the one before it or the one after, so we could move ourselves and all our gear each weekend on our tandem bike.

Groceries had to be less than five miles away so we weren’t spending all our time biking for food.

Finally, we added a batch of one-, two- and three-day stays at other places which had canoes or were near canoe rentals, giving us access to yet more lakes, rivers and tidewater. Those two summers were followed by yet another, where we rented three cabins for two weeks each.

Come along with us for all three summers to see what canoeing by bike is like: how we found the places to stay, how we managed food supply, how we figured out where to paddle, how we navigated in unfamiliar waters, and more.

Then, vicariously visit some of our charming cabins, and most importantly the rivers and lakes in the pine tree woods, and tidal channels along the rock-bound coast of Maine. You might just want to start canoeing by bike yourselves.

About the presenters

We’re both now long-term retirees. We met through our mutual interest in cycling, and long before we decided to get married we bought a tandem bicycle together. Luckily for the bike, marriage eventually happened.

While we each worked at the University of Washington, we spent almost every vacation cycling somewhere for the one, two or three weeks we had available. In the next 15 years before retirement, we found we had ridden 40,000 miles on that tandem through three Canadian provinces and through a dozen U.S. states.

Since retirement 16 years ago, we have pedaled another 45,000 miles together, in many more provinces and states plus New Zealand and a dozen countries in Europe. Along the way, we also did a little canoeing, then a bit more, then a whole lot more.

We love both tandem biking and tandem canoeing for the beautiful places they take us to, for the exercise, and for the togetherness and teamwork involved in keeping that bike or boat going where you want it to.

As lovers of history (Louise worked for the UW’s history department, and years earlier Jeff got a graduate degree from it), we’ve also found that both are able to bring us in interesting ways to spots that have interesting places in history.

About the series

Traveler’s Journal, a presentation of the Peninsula Trails Coalition, raises funds to buy project supplies and food for volunteers working on Olympic Discovery Trail projects. Shows start at 7 p.m. at the Dungeness River Nature Center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road.

Admission is a suggested donation is $5 for adults. Attendees are encouraged, but not required, to wear mask.

For more information, email Arvo Johnson at amjcgj@gmail.com.

2024 Traveler’s Journal Series

When: 7 p.m., Thursday, March 7 (door opens at 6:30 p.m.)

Presenters: Jeff and Louise Davis

Presentation: “700 miles of canoeing, by bike”

Where: Dungeness River Nature Center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road

Cost: Suggested $5 donation (adults)

Coming up: “An Adventure into the Great Nearby: Cycling the Pacific Coast” with Bill Thorness, March 14

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / This is all the gear needed for a summer’s worth of canoeing and biking.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis Jeff and Louise Davis paddle past a beaver lodge on the Ipswich River.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Looking down to Linekin Bay from the cabin Jeff and Louise Davis rented in Boothbay Harbor.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / One of the many cabins Jeff and Louise Davis rented, complete with canoe plus plenty of comfort.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Lobsterman getting ready to set out in Friendship, Maine.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Can’t visit Maine and not eat lobster …

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Loon on a lake in southern Maine.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Jeff and Louise Davis paddle in Hockomock Bay, essentially a large tidal lake.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / A peaceful night on Lake Arrowhead in southern Maine.

Photo courtesy of Jeff and Louise Davis / Fall foliage hits Lake Arrowhead (southern Maine) in late September.