Historical Badasses: Don Starkell

The glory days of adventuring ended long ago, unfortunately – all the unknown territory of the world has long since all been mapped and travelled. While there may not be any new land masses to discover, though, there’s still some pretty damn insane places to travel, though. The Amazon rainforest, for example. Or maybe the Arctic Circle. Oh, except it’s way more than just that. You’re starting in Canada, for one. Oh, and you’re paddling. And that, folks, is why Don Starkell is a ridiculous badass.

Don Starkell

Born: December 7th, 1932

Died: January 28th, 2012

Occupation: Paddler, adventurer, author

Don Starkell, by all accounts, lived a hell of a life. Born in Winnipeg, things started out tough; he grew up in North Kildonan, and his father was an abusive man; Starkell later spent time in both an orphanage and foster care. When he was 17, he took up canoeing for the first time, and quickly fell in love with the sport; when massive flooding struck the city in 1950, Starkell paddled from house to house, delivering groceries and supplies to those in need. As a professional canoiest, he won a number of races, but he’s best remembered for a number of his cross-continent (and global) journeys. Here’s why Don Starkell was such a badass:

  • In 1967, as part of a team representing the province of Manitoba, Starkell competed in a 104-day canoe race from Rocky Mountain House, Alberta to Montreal Quebec, to commemorate the Canadian centennial celebrations. This race still holds the Guinness world record for the longest canoe race in history, both in time and distance, as the race was 3,283 miles (5,283 km) long. His total reward for competing in (and winning) the race? $1000 for the finish, and $1500 for the victory – $2500, which is equivalent to just over $17,000 CAD in today’s dollars.
This route mirrors the old routes of the voyageurs, the French explorers and trappers who were responsible for establishing the Canadian fur trade, mapping the continent, and spreading religion amongst native peoples.
  • In 1980, after over a decade of preparation, Starkell, along with his two teenage sons Dana and Jeff, embarked on a 12,000-mile journey from Winnipeg to the mouth of the Amazon River. They went south down the Red River, followed the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico, hugged the coastline through central America, and through Venezuela, ending the journey at the mouth of the Amazon on the Atlantic coast of Belem, Brazil. The entire journey took almost two years to complete; the family almost died several times along the way, and dealt with harsh weather, winds, starvation, illness, alligators, piranha, and pirates along the way. While Jeff ended up leaving the trip when the three decided to recuperate in Veracruz, Mexico, for three months in November, 1980, Don and Dana ended up completing the trip alone, finally making it to Belem in May of 1982; Don and Dana Starkell made it into the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest canoe trip in history in 1986. (If you want to check out the autobiographical account of their trip, I highly recommend you check out Starkell’s book Paddle to the Amazon, which was published in 1987 – a riveting read that I couldn’t put down).
The red line maps the Starkells’ journey from Winnipeg to the mouth of the Amazon, in Belem, Brazil. [source]
  • In 1990, Starkell decided to trace the famed Northwest Passage, in Canada’s Arctic Circle, by kayak; the trip took three years due to the heavy ice and bitter cold, and ended just thirty miles short of Starkell’s goal of Tuktoyaktuk, NWT, when he and his kayak became completely trapped in ice. He lost all of his fingertips and a number of toes due to the severe frostbite from this journey, but remarked, “When I did the Arctic trip, I gave absolutely everything I had, and that was success.” He also wrote another book about this journey, Paddle to the Arctic, which I have not read, but I’m sure is also fantastic and would also highly recommend. Despite his missing joints, Starkell continued to paddle for his entire life, with many other solo journeys, including from Iowa to New York and all up and down the Red River too.
  • In 2010, Starkell was badly burned in a house fire, notably to his legs, but recovered all the same to return to paddling. He finally passed away from cancer at age 79 in 2012, having lived a full life; he was inducted to the Manitoba Sports Hall Of Fame in 2006, which still doesn’t do justice to just how much of a badass this man truly was.

On the closest time he ever came to his own death, way up north in the Arctic ice, Starkell said this: ” I sat in that kayak for 25 hours. The only reason I didn’t die – and I could have died a hundred times that last night – it was easier to die than live. I felt, that yes, I’m in agony, I’m in pain and I’m dying and all that but so many times I was fighting with myself, should I release myself and go into my final sleep, which I could have done so easy. It was easier to do that than go through the pain I was going through. I said to myself that I don’t care how painful, my life is going to have to be taken. I’m not going to release it.”

Don Starkell was very evidently a man who lived 300 years behind his time; all the same, there’s no doubt he took every opportunity to push the boundaries of human achievement – no matter what era you lived in, I think it’s safe to say that the travels of Don Starkell put him up among the greatest adventurers (and possible craziest people ever) of all time.

0 0 votes
Article Rating
The Maestro
The Maestro is a mystical Canadian internet user and New England Patriots fan; when the weather is cooperative and the TV signal at his igloo is strong enough, he enjoys watching the NFL, the Ottawa Senators & REDBLACKS, and yelling into the abyss on Twitter. He is somehow allowed to teach music to high school students when he isn't in a blind rage about sports, and is also a known connoisseur of cheap beers across the Great White North.
https://www.doorfliesopen.com/index.php/author/the-maestro/
Subscribe
Notify of
14 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Dolph Ucker

Starkell was a badass! Canadian folk hero too… I always thought of him as bizarro Bill Mason, with a darker streak of human running through him.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

comment image

JerBear50

Looks dangerous. I should probably help suck the poison out, just in case.

litre_cola

Starkell used to come to our school every year and do an assembly in both jr high and high school. I grew up in North Kildonan in Winnipeg and this guy was a god in the city.

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

I hate people that can find a life passion (that isn’t murdering/ raping/ pillaging in modern times) that they can devote to and focus on and it makes them happy.

*Doesn’t hate at all, just envious.

Horatio Cornblower

Meanwhile I only reluctantly use my canoe because it’s such a pain in the ass to get on and off the car.

Low Commander of the Super Soldiers

These are awesome!

comment image

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

I went to a paddling website to research this a bit and while it was VERY adventurous there was no canoes……….

Moose -The End Is Well Nigh

One kayak, but it was spelled different.

ballsofsteelandfury

Even more impressive: The man was a Cubs fan.

ArmedandHammered

Makes sense, his fandom made him inured to prolonged pain and suffering.

Rikki-Tikki-Deadly

He probably just wore that to make nice with the local bears he encountered in his travels, the same way that I wear my Raiders hat when I have field work in Compton.

Low Commander of the Super Soldiers

Ah, so you must have field work in We Ho too. That would explain your breezy short shorts.

Unsurprised

Nah. That’s just for comfort.