{"id":36210,"date":"2025-06-28T00:00:13","date_gmt":"2025-06-28T07:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/?p=36210"},"modified":"2025-06-26T10:36:23","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T17:36:23","slug":"france-to-the-black-sea-a-study-abroad-by-canoe-part-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/2025\/06\/28\/france-to-the-black-sea-a-study-abroad-by-canoe-part-two\/","title":{"rendered":"France to the Black Sea: A Study Abroad by Canoe – Part Two"},"content":{"rendered":"

This spring, from March to May 2025, Dartmouth College students Sumant Sharma and Ben Shaman will undertake a roughly 86-day, 2700-mile canoe journey across Europe from Nantes, France, to the Black Sea. This is Part Two of their journey.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

This trip, which has now reached its halfway point, is the product of a single night\u2019s homework procrastination. Instead of writing my final paper for who knows what class, I was reading expedition blogs: backpacking South America, descending the length of the Yukon River, and eventually one on canoeing the European Continent by James Warner Smith. I thought, \u201cThat could be me!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

My roommate Adam told me, \u201cBen, no making major life decisions after 9 pm.\u201d But I had the expedition bug and couldn\u2019t seem to shake it. In a week I had an outline; it was laughably easy to convince Sumant to join, and the rest is (now) history.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why do this? Many of you, the DTD readership, may feel you know already, and I thought I did too, but the further along we get, my answer continues to change.<\/span><\/p>\n

I learned how to canoe in middle school. I\u2019m very grateful to have gone to Westtown School<\/a>, which has a robust outdoor education program. I knew I wanted the outdoors to be part of my college experience, so I was thrilled when I found out that Dartmouth has the oldest collegiate canoe club in the US<\/a> (with a number of Olympians to show for it). Since then, canoeing has been an integral part of my life. I paddle at least a few times a week when the Connecticut River isn\u2019t frozen over.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve long idolized people who thru-hike or thru-paddle. The draw is the idea of getting to experience the world at a slower pace; to wake up and have only to care for basic survival needs and make another day\u2019s progress. That idea comes, at least in part, from a desire to escape the \u201creal world\u201d and this looming sense that I\u2019ll have to be an adult soon. Some of my friends rushed to become neophyte bankers and consultants, but I\u2019m not quite on that same wavelength.<\/span><\/p>\n

That said, this trip has not been so carefree. Not only did the \u201creal world\u201d not magically disappear, but we\u2019ve also diverged from our planned itinerary now too many times to count. There\u2019s more than ample time to take in the Windows Lock Screen-like views of rolling hills, pastures and fields of golden rapeseed flowers. Even views that good can\u2019t hold my attention for 8-10 hours a day. Instead, I find myself thinking about life back home, about future sections of the trip or about the Wawa hoagie I\u2019ll have when I get back.<\/span><\/p>\n

A theme of this trip has been managing expectations. So, what I\u2019ve found on this trip, then, is not an escape from the \u201creal world.\u201d However\u2014and maybe in another month and a half I\u2019ll contradict myself\u2014the most impactful moments for me so far have been our interactions with the people we\u2019ve met, particularly those who\u2019ve helped us out in our (already many) times of need. Let me indulge in a few stories.<\/span><\/p>\n