Alyce Kuenzli and Lisa Pugh are two weeks into a 4,000 mile, source to sea expedition of the Jefferson-Missouri-Mississipi rivers, an adventure that once completed will make them the first all-female team to paddle the vast system. The Source of Confidence Expedition began at Brower’s Spring, Montana on May 11 and they plan to finish at the Gulf of Mexico in late November. Filmmaker Victoria Carpenter is meeting the pair along the way, providing resupplies while gathering footage for an expedition documentary.
The river expedition so far
Speaking to Canoeroots from their current location near Butte, Montana, alongside Carpenter, the two adventurers said the first section of the expedition had been full of challenges and surprises. The initial plan was to packraft and hike for some of the first section, but unforeseen circumstances saw them hiking most of the first 135 miles before their canoe was dropped off to them. Now in Montana they are encountering volatile weather, super muddy back roads and preparing for the next step of the journey, the Clark Canyon Reservoir.
Not just a canoe expedition
While the route alone is impressive, this expedition is about more than long days and covering liquid miles. Kuenzli and Pugh, both educators, are focused on using the expedition to promote positive risk taking, learning from failure and the development of confidence in girls and women. They will be facilitating confidence-building workshops in towns and cities they travel through on the expedition.
While the expedition will allow them to share their confidence-building curriculum, it has also had a positive effect so far on the adventurers themselves. Pugh says that the expedition been an incredibly boost to her self-confidence as she has been able to successfully use skills she has been honing for years in new situations, like navigating in the mountains.
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