Rolf Kraiker: Hi there. Glad to be here and I'm looking forward to the questions.

Bernard Lord: Rolf and family: enjoyed following your trip. wish I could have accompanied you. what was the highlight for you?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Bernard That's a good question, and easy to answer. The most important highlight for me was how well I got along with my boys on the trip. We saw a lot of neat things, but the enduring memories is the quality time I got to spend with the kids.

Kristen Birch: I am interested in planning a trip to the Sand Dunes with my family but we aren't ones for canoeing. Is there any way we could visit but just set up camp for week, and then do some hiking and fishing. Who would we contact?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Kristen The Athabasca area isn't an easy place to get to. It is a provincial park in Saskatchewan, so you can contact the Saskatchewan government to get a package of information. There are several commercial outfitters that offer guided tours into the region and choosing one of those would be the best bet if you're not experienced in wilderness travel. There are no road to the area, so the only way to get there is by air or possibly by boat.

Stella McCaffrey: How old were your children when you first took them on a canoe trip?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Stella Our boys were late bloomers to paddling - they were both around 3 months old. The boys were born in the middle of winter and we had to wait for open water before we could take them paddling. From our perspective, the sooner you can get them out, the easier it is... but that only works if you are comfortable travelling in the wild and your skills are good enough that you don't endanger the kids

George G.: Can you recommend a trip for a family that's just beginning to learn about canoe-camping? Something not too far north, not too dangerous (we have two kids under 5 so we're worried about white water and cliffs etc) but still which is remote enough to get us away from motor boats and cottages and capture a bit of the 'Canadian Shield' experience? Thanks.

Moderator: This writer does not say where he is from, but perhaps you could recommend a trip in Ontario, Rolf.

Rolf Kraiker: Hi George A good place to get that kind of information is from canoe clubs. Usually the clubs are populated with lots of folks who've travelled extensively in the local regions and can provide you with information. The Canadian Recreation Canoeing Association www.crca.ca can put you in touch with most clubs. In Ontario, I think a good option for what you're after might be in the Sudbury region. Places like Killarney Provincial Park or the lower French River might just suit your needs. They are both fairly easy trips, yet offer a good margin of safety.

Sam O'Doyle: How much would such an Athabasca trip cost? (we have camping gear but would need to pay to rent good boats, for food, transportation from Winnipeg etc. and obviously not the technology to make it an interactive trip like yours - which I thoroughly enjoyed.) Thanks and good job!

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Sam The prices for a trip of this nature are intimidating. We went with our own gear and drove to the nearest access point possible. It took us about four days of driving one way to get there. We did our best to maximize our space utilization so that we could hire the smallest plane possible to carry the load. The air travel alone cost about $3,500 dollars. Most float plane charter companies nowadays offer canoe rentals or they can put you in touch with outfits that do. There were a couple of rental canoes on the dock in La Loche where we loaded our plane, so that shouldn't be a problem.

Sarah: Was it difficult to pack enough food for your entire trip?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Sarah Fortunately for us, my wife is a true miracle worker when it comes to food in the wilderness. We spent a lot of time before the trip drying our own supplies. Water and packaging takes up a lot of bulk in most food we buy, and if you can get rid of that, its fairly easy to both make it compact and light as well as making it last a long time. We did bring more than enough food with us. We always plan for a few extra days of food and we never assume that we'll be eating fish.

Moderator: We have a few more questions about equipment Rolf.

Rick 'Dainty Stroke' Bardawill: Hi Mr. Kraiker: Firewood is hard enough to find along Ontario's French River; what type of fuel did you use to cook meals? If you did use wood, was it easy to find?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Rick We actually used a camp stove for most of our cooking. There was lots of wood along the way, but Debra doesn't like to get her pots black and sooty and the kids balk at having to clean them. On most trips like this, we'll often start by using fires to cook to conserve some fuel, but we still use the stoves most often. Even on trips into the arctic, you can usually still find firewood on canoe trips because most of the rivers begin in treed areas and the deadwood drifts downstream.

Elizabeth Green: Can you tell me more about the reflector oven you used? It looks useful. Where can I buy one?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Elizabeth The reflector oven we used is one I designed and built. We've been using it for quite a number of years now and its withstood the test of time. There are some commercially available units similar to mine, but in my unbiased opinion, none are quite as good. I've posted the plans for building my unit on my web site at www.blazingpaddles.on.ca and if you know anyone who's handy with tools, especially working with metal, it should be fairly easy to have one made.

Moderator: Rolf, we have several questions about bears and wolves and how you prepare to protect yourself and your family?

Rolf Kraiker: I've never had any cause for concern regarding wolves in the wild. Any experiences I've had have been very positive and I've never been worried in their presence. The wolves have been mostly curious about us and their gestures and body language seemed to make that fairly obvious. Bears are another matter. Basically, there are two types of potential bear attacks. One is the bear attacking you because its threatened, and the other is an act of predation where it views you as a food source. The chances of surviving a preadatious bear aren't good, but that's an extremely rare event - in the order of getting hit by lightning....

Rolf Kraiker: To protect your self from the other type of bear attacks, you need to reduce the possibility that a bear is coming towards you because it thinks you might have something to eat and also you need to make sure the bear knows of your presence well in advance. If you don't attract it with food and you give it time to get away from you, there should be no problem. We brought along a can of "bear guard" (pepper spray) for each member of the family.

Sam Thompson: Your photos are great. Do you have any basic pointers for creating such great memories of your vacation? We're taking a short family trip in October and I'd like to have some framable photos when we return.

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Sam Assuming some measure of technical competency, there are two things that separate good images from mediocre - composition and lighting. I like early morning or late evening light. That's more dramatic and makes the colours richer. Most people tend to have too much clutter in their images. I recommend looking at the ENTIRE viewfinder field to make sure you really want everything that's in there. Pay attention to the viewfinder and try walking closer and closer to the subject. Once you cut out something that was important, back up a bit - then take your shot. That should help a bit.

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Sam Assuming some measure of technical competency, there are two things that separate good images from mediocre - composition and lighting. I like early morning or late evening light. That's more dramatic and makes the colours richer. Most people tend to have too much clutter in their images. I recommend looking at the ENTIRE viewfinder field to make sure you really want everything that's in there. Pay attention to the viewfinder and try walking closer and closer to the subject. Once you cut out something that was important, back up a bit - then take your shot. That should help a bit.

Moderator: We only have time for one more question today...

Chris Forrest: Hi Rolf, been a few years since we chatted. Anyway, I followed your adventure with much interest. I know, too, that you've been on many adventures over the years to film docs and shoot pictures. What has been your favorite adventure thus far (and why)?

Rolf Kraiker: Hi Chris That's a tough question. My favourite trip is usually the last one I went on, or the one I'm just in the process of planning. I don't think I've gone anywhere in the wilderness that I haven't enjoyed myself immensely. All the places I've been bring back fond memories. There are some I don't think I'd go back to and others that I long to revisit, but I'm thankful I've had the opportunity to visit them once. Each trip has some special moments and some of the most special moments I've had have not been on long extended trips. You can find great memories even close to home.

Moderator: Thanks a lot Rolf for chatting today. I'd like to remind people that they can learn a lot more about tripping from your book, Cradle to Canoe, Camping and Canoeing with children by Rolf and Debra Kraiker, published by Boston Mills Press. Thanks again.

Rolf Kraiker: It was my pleasure to be here. There were some great questions.