Dokken: ‘Ladies from the River’ embark on second leg of canoe trek to Hudson Bay

Deb K, Deb W and Anne paddling.jpg — Deb Knutson (from left), Deb White and Anne Sherve-Ose paddle toward the Gulf of Mexico in this undated photo from a 13-year canoe adventure that began in 2004. The trio is now paddling in Manitoba on the next leg of a multi-year trip from Lake Traverse to Hudson Bay. They plan to wrap up this year's portion of the trip in July 2023 in Norway House, Manitoba, at the north end of Lake Winnipeg.

By Brad Dokken

June 17, 2023 at 7:01 AM

“The Ladies from the River” are back on the water – this time in Manitoba – and if all goes according to plan, they’ll reach the First Nations settlement of Norway House at the north end of Lake Winnipeg sometime in early to mid-July.

I first wrote about “The Ladies from the River” – Anne Sherve-Ose of Williams, Iowa; Deb White of Rosemount, Minnesota; and Deb Knutson, of Owatonna, Minnesota – last summer when they embarked on the

Sherve-Ose said they decided to paddle to Hudson Bay as a sequel, of sorts, to a canoe trip they made down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico over a 13-year-stretch beginning in 2004.

The women had met and become friends while attending St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Paddling north seemed like a logical progression, said Sherve-Ose, who is originally from Jamestown, North Dakota, and has friends and family in Fargo.

READ MORE OUTDOORS RECREATION COVERAGE:

A retired music teacher, Sherve-Ose had spent her summers while in college as a canoe guide, camp counselor and fishing guide in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

And so it was that the trio, each in their late 60s or early 70s, set out from Lake Traverse – the southernmost point in the Hudson Bay drainage – on Thursday, June 9, 2022. Battling ever-present mud from receding floodwaters on the Red River, a full week earlier than originally planned because of last year’s swift currents on the northward-flowing river.

Stage one of their epic adventure ended Sunday, June 26, 2022, when they paddled their well-worn 18-foot Alumacraft canoe into Pembina, North Dakota.

I hadn’t heard anything about the women’s plans for this year’s trip, so I reached out to Sherve-Ose earlier this week for an update.

No surprise, they were back on the water.

According to Sherve-Ose, they launched on the Red River at Emerson, Manitoba, on Thursday, June 8, and passed through Winnipeg on Monday, June 12. They paddled into massive Lake Winnipeg on Wednesday, June 14.

“We are making good time so far,” Sherve-Ose said in an email. “We are the same three people, we have the same boat, and we are having fun!

“We plan to get to the north end of Lake Winnipeg this year, to a town called Norway House. Actually, it is a First Nations settlement. Hopefully it won’t take us longer than a month.”

Sherve-Ose has a blog – – where she posts regular updates, not only from this trip but from other adventures. As of this writing, her most recent update was Tuesday, June 13, in Lockport, Manitoba.

“The weather is good, the bugs are nonexistent and the people are friendly,” Sherve-Ose wrote. “The river remains quite muddy, especially when we want to get out.”

Such is life on the Red River, but that portion of the trip is now behind them. Sherve-Ose also provided me with a website link to track their progress via satellite.

If their recent progress is any indication, they should be well into Lake Winnipeg by the time this column hits the web and print on Saturday, June 17.

No doubt there’ll be some delays on massive Lake Winnipeg, which has the well-earned nickname of “Big Windy,” but I’ll provide occasional updates as the trip proceeds.

Safe travels, you “Ladies from the River.”

Canoe ladies.jpg — With the Sorlie Bridge in the background, “The Ladies from the River” – Anne Sherve-Ose (from left), Deb Knutson and Deb White – enjoyed the luxury of eating in a restaurant Tuesday, June 21, 2022, upon paddling into East Grand Forks. They paddled the Manitoba portion of the Red River and north across Lake Winnipeg to Norway House, Manitoba, last summer, and are set to return to Norway House on Friday, June 21, 2024, to begin the trek to their destination at York Factory on Hudson Bay.

Wanted: Your fishing photos

With open water fishing now in full swing, we’d like to see your nice fish photos – whether it be a walleye, pike, catfish or other fine-finned specimen you’d like to show off – to run in our

If you don’t have a photo, that’s fine, too. You still can have your catch recognized in the Nice Fish listings that run in print in the Saturday Northland Outdoors section.

Share your photos and report your big fish tales to Brad Dokken at bdokken@gfherald.com , by phone at (701) 780-1148 or toll-free (800) 477-6572 ext. 1148, or mail to Brad Dokken, c/o The Grand Forks Herald, 3535 S. 31st St., Ste 205, Grand Forks ND 58201. Please include the angler’s town of residence, where the fish was caught and whether it was kept or released.

Photos will be posted to the shortly after they’re submitted, and some will be printed in the Herald, as space permits. Since I work remotely and am rarely in the office, sending photos or reporting catches by email is the most timely method of contact.

By Brad Dokken

Brad Dokken joined the Herald company in November 1985 as a copy editor for Agweek magazine and has been the Grand Forks Herald's outdoors editor since 1998.

Besides his role as an outdoors writer, Dokken has an extensive background in northwest Minnesota and Canadian border issues and provides occasional coverage on those topics.

Reach him at bdokken@gfherald.com, by phone at (701) 780-1148 or on X (formerly Twitter) at @gfhoutdoor.