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- Colts Neck resident Cathy Mumford paddled 750 miles in her nine-and-a-half foot kayak this summer.
A Trip On The River Of Life
By John Burton
COLTS NECK - Cathy Mumford found herself at a personal crossroads, a time of change in her life, and looked for a new challenge, a different path to travel.
This summer, she found it.
For nearly two months, Mumford loaded her nine-and-half-foot kayak with supplies and paddled 740 miles along the Northern Canoe Forest Trail.
As her 50th birthday approached, Mumford found herself at a juncture in her life. She had gone through a divorce and she had recently been laid off from a job she'd held for about a decade. With her two children grown and living their own lives, and her mother having health concerns, Mumford left Tennessee, where she'd lived for 15 years, and returned to her native Colts Neck.
With so much change in such a relatively short time, Mumford began thinking about what she would do, both long and short term, and facing a significant birthday, immediately. "I've been wife, mother, employee," she said. "I wanted to get back to me."
Growing up in Colts Neck, in close vicinity of the Swimming River Reservoir, Mumford had been a lifeguard in high school, and had always enjoyed canoeing and boating, the outdoors in general, regularly camping. In Tennessee, she said, she would kayak.
Those interests made her recall what she used to tell her students when she was teaching photography: that they should follow their passions. "I felt it was time to take my own advice."
Her sister, Beth, brought the Northern Canoe Forest Trail to Cathy's attention, and Cathy contacted Mike Stavola, a New Jersey native who had paddled the trail. Stavola, Mumford said, became a friend offering his insight as she prepared to take the adventure. "He really was my mentor," she said, with Stavola giving, "advice about everything from gear to what to expect emotionally."
She planned the trip for about a year, preparing herself for what was ahead ("I knew I had to be prepared for anything, from 30 degrees to 100."), and heard from friends and family members who tried to talk her out of it. "Most people tried to talk me out of it," for a number of reasons, but not in the least because of her own admitted terrible sense of direction.
But Mumford wouldn't be swayed. "I wanted to challenge myself, something that would make me feel good about myself," she explained.
On June 19, Mumford started her trek north from Old Forge, New York, from the Fulton chain of lakes, carrying with her basic necessities, such as a small portable stove, three changes of clothes, a cell phone (though reception was hit or miss, she said), easily prepared food ("My food was anything you could make with boiling water."). For protection Mumford carried a can of mace, an air horn and a tracking devise, which included an emergency button, to contact authorities.
Stavola told her, "Your head has to be in the right place." And it took her a little time to get there, she acknowledged. "After two weeks I was really into it," she said.
The trail has been detailed for about 10 years, though there is a long history associated with it, having been used by trappers, loggers and merchants to transport wears for hundreds of years. The area while picturesque and beautiful has long stretches of seclusion, with some campgrounds along the way. And while it took a little while, Mumford said she came to love the solitude. "That was one of the best parts," she said.
The trail led her to campgrounds and areas where she would check into local hotels and lodges for a shower and laundry, which also led her to meet a wide variety of lovely people, who were generous with their homes and time, she noted.
There were some tough stretches, too, as she struggled to bypass many dried streams, and those with water levels too shallow to travel, meaning she would have to physically lug her kayak and gear overland, an arduous trek, she noted. "Low water was my nemesis," she added, recalling the tough patches. Other difficulties included dealing with going against the current in some spots, storms, which could be violent and scary as she braved them alone, and the change in temperatures, when it sometimes dropped to be downright cold, she remembered.
On July 7, while just about in the middle of her journey, Mumford celebrated her 50th birthday, and to commemorate the occasion she read a poem her mother wrote her and gave to Mumford to be read on the day. She realized she was in a good place. "I'm 50 and I'll do whatever the hell I want."
On Aug. 16 she completed her trip, arriving at Fort Kent, at Maine's northern point, along the Canadian border, saying she was the first woman to complete the trail solo.
There were lessons learned, she said. "I wanted to get strong and clear, physically strong and mentally clear," was one of the reasons for the trip, Mumford said.
About herself she learned, "that I'm tougher than I thought I was."
Mumford said she hopes to pursue her other interests in photography, graphic design and writing; and probably writing and maybe lecturing about her experiences, taking her story and lessons especially to young girls, letting them know they can follow their passions, too.
"I think challenging yourself is empowering," she said.
