SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A Yellowknife woman who helped a group of six American canoeists when they passed through Yellowknife last summer said she was absolutely thrilled to hear the paddlers had won a prestigious award for their journey.

Luke Kimmes, left, John Keaveny, Jarrod Moore, Dan Flynn, Adam Trigg and Winchell Delano arrive at the Old Town boat launch last August. The six American canoeists stopped in the city during their 8,000-kilometre-plus canoe trip from New Orleans to Kugluktuk, Nunavut. Earlier this month, they won the Canoe & Kayak Magazine Expedition of the Year award. - photo courtesy of Patti Delano

Dawn Marie Ashlie was quick to downplay her and her husband Ross's role in the eight-month, 8,370-kilometre journey, which began on the Mississippi River near New Orleans just after New Year's 2015 and ended last September 2 when they paddled the Coppermine River to Kugluktuk on the Arctic Ocean. The adventure was called Rediscover North America.

The Ashlies helped the paddlers with several small chores while they passed through Yellowknife.

"We helped store their food while they were in town. We put their canoes on a trailer and brought them to the Yellowknife boat launch. We shared out camper and sleeping accommodations with them," Ashlie said. "When they got back from Kugluktuk - they had a three- or four-day layover and all six boys stayed with us at our home."

She said hooking up with the canoeists all came about organically. She and her husband were camping at Fred Henne Territorial Park and just happened to meet the parents of Winchell Delano - one of the paddlers. Patti and Steve Delano were also helping with resupplying the canoeists and just happened to arrive in Yellowknife before the paddlers did.

Ashlie said they were camping across from each other and the rest, as they say, ended up being canoe-adventure history. She also pointed out many people supported the canoeists as they passed through 10 U.S. states as well as Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, the NWT and Nunavut.

Since the adventure, Ashlie says she has become great friends of the Delanos and went to visit them this summer at their home in Minnesota.

Ashlie, who is an education assistant at Range Lake North School, also had all six paddlers come into the school last September before they went home to the U.S. to talk to several classes of students.

"The kids were very engaged. The guys went through their presentation outlining their route," Ashlie said, adding some of the students who were there for the presentation took their own five-day canoe trip this spring and she thinks they carried a lot of inspiration from the American paddlers' adventures with them.

The six paddlers, all in their late 20s and early 30s, had extensive canoeing experience before they set out on the trip. They all said their stop in Yellowknife was really remarkable and memorable. They all raved about paddling into Yellowknife, passing houseboats and making sure they stayed clear of float planes taking off on Yellowknife Bay.

The six paddlers received the Expedition of the Year award at the Canoe & Kayak Magazine award ceremony held earlier this month in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Patti Delano said she and her husband can not wait to return to Yellowknife to re-connect with the new friends that they made here. She thinks her son Winchell feels the same way.

"Winchell told me that it was one of the most beautiful places on earth and he could see himself living there," she said.

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.