Newspaper Page Text
HHHp **
uml
sonal meeting was memorable. I learned that every
one has a story and every life is worthwhile."
Along the way, Guider captured mesmerizing
photographs of people and landscapes, more than
10,000 shots in all, which he plans to exhibit in
museums in 2008.
A hero’s welcome ... sort of
Of course, no journey of such magnitude ever had
a more slapstick ending than Guider's
victorious arrival into downtown New
Orleans. Reaching his take-out point,
he joyously reunited with his wife,
Mona, there to greet him at journey’s
end. Suddenly, four squad cars, a police
helicopter, the Coast Guard and the
harbor patrol descended upon the pair,
after a protective citizen spotted Guid
er from a bridge overpass and phoned
police, convinced the city was under
terrorist attack. Fortunately, a quick
explanation by the mild-mannered
Guider soon diffused the situation.
Guider took to his canoe again in
August 2005, this time journeying the
Mississippi from its point of origin, near Lake Itasca
in northern Minnesota, to Minneapolis—a jaunt of
550 river miles. The month-long passage was high
lighted by a near-death experience, in which Guider
capsized in marsh water near Bemidji, spending
the night in 38-degree temperatures and paddling
through the night to ward off hypothermia.
But even under those harrowing circumstances,
Guider found splendor in the experience. "It was the
most beautiful evening I've ever seen in my life,” he
recalls. "Meteorites were going this way and that;
I saw constellations I ve never seen before. I was
Piam.itit.illy
Oil Incut 'tBHKL.
. fib ~ -
r - *
vM' An.,,
“I learned that
N. everyone has a story
\ and every life is & ■
X. worthwhile.” JBP™ Bj
Guider’s camera captures a fisherman at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers in Cairo, 111.
just enthralled. I thanked God that, if this was the
night I was going to go. He couldn't have provided
A young angler’s catch
hard for me to ever be afraid again.”
Alan Ross is a freelance writer in Columbia, Tenn.
Visit www.johnguider.com to learn more.
E
'llhv,
\V* J
■L Ih-lit r lnes, l l/iv./zf.. (j&r/liid, '/m Skiri.y SiPi'kiity.i
( WWW.THUI-ICLASSICS.rOM "1
■flL KiUTinj>i(»n. I! • Phone: 847 W)4 4961 • I mail: I
a better exit.
This past August, Guider attempted
canoeing the final leg, from Minneapolis
to Cairo, 111., to complete his 2,800-river
mile excursion. A misadventure, however,
near Bellevue, 111., in which his canoe
capsized outside a river lock, sinking his
camera equipment, caused him to abort.
Undaunted, he will try again in the
spring. Nonetheless, the many and varied
lessons gained from his eventful voyage
have registered an indelible impact upon
him.
“I don’t know if it's so much what I
learned about myself, but what I affirmed
within myself," he says of his experience.
One thing is that it's really going to be
Online Extras
To see more photos &
discuss this story, visit
AmericanProfile.com
f A \
a mk T
A Ski) •( Qulitf 1 Vilit
CLASSICS
iKk. ' /
John Guider’s journey began near his Franklin,Tenn„ home.;
68 styles
4 1/2 40 tall
5 year light warranty
10 year tree warranty
100% satisfaction guarantee
factory Direct
Save 40% 60%
f ""If',',/
Always jUgi
JBL free
shipping.jjßng*