Jeff Bach

We're all the sum of our experiences, to some unknown extent. For me, it all started off with paddling the old canoe my brother and I had on the two small ponds by our house growing up near Duluth, Minnesota. The canoe was a hand me down, the ponds were from melting snow, and the paddle and poles we used were the fruits of our own labors. That childhood experience led to bigger trips with newer canoes and better paddles. It led to a lifetime of happily doing stuff on water, from guiding in the Boundary Waters to guiding out on the Salmon River in Idaho. A mostly digital career came along and added cameras and content creation.

This book is the sum of all that, held together with a bit of DIY glue. Getting out on the water with your own paddle is like heating with wood. You're twice warmed. Once from the pleasure of making the paddle and again from the pleasure of using something you have made with your own effort!