This is a photo of my favorite statue in Akron. It’s a sculpture of a Native American carrying his canoe between the waters of the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas rivers. Carrying a canoe or watercraft between two navigable bodies of water is called a Portage. This sculpture is on an appropriately named street, Portage Path. The history of Portage Path is that it was an 8 mile portage between the previously mentioned rivers. The Native Americans used this path to carry their canoes between those bodies of water.
I walked a good deal this weekend. Nearly 11 miles on Saturday morning and about 9.5 on Sunday morning. Monday morning, I had to give my feet and joints a bit of a rest, only walked about 3, perhaps 4. Anyway, I stopped along the Towpath trail, which is a trail between Akron and Cleveland, Ohio. This is the same path that the Erie and Ohio Canal used to get goods between Akron and Cleveland. Of course, I didn’t walk the entire distance or I doubt that I’d be writing this right now! I would have been exhausted.
As I was walking, I thought of how they carried canoes across those vast distances. 8 miles is no joke just walking; however, carrying a canoe and walking, well, that’s a whole different story. It’s no wonder they were in such great shape!
I’m glad to say that at no part during my walk did I have to carry anything heavier than my S90! 
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3 Responses to “Suddenly, my walk didn’t seem so long”
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We are a soft culture. Walking is done by so few but hours can be spent in front of a TV or this laptop. Not much exercise in either of them. Walking is the easiest and most practical exercise we can do. I like that you, and Hobbs, walk as much as you do. We are a mobile country. We drive, fly, catch a bus, take a taxi to get from point A to point B and do that in a couple of hours. I wonder how long it took them to traverse those 8 miles with a canoe.
I wondered about that too. If they did the portage in one day, or walked 4 miles one day, slept, walked another 4. Either way, it’s impressive. We have too many conveniences such as elevators, escalators, cars, and even, dare I say, valet parking at the health club. What’s up with that?!!!
Heck, Paul we don’t flush toilets or turn on faucets anymore. We start cars remotely. We have a generation of children who have not idea what a crank handle is for on a car window. I admire our ancestors and how they lived. No restaurants, super markets, no HVAC, etc. Yet, I live my life with all those and expect them to be there.