In the summer of 2011, Lindsay Bean and her friend, Jess Laxo, set out to canoe the Lake Superior shoreline in a 17-foot Grumman canoe.

Although the pair faced many challenges, the presentation will focus on the lessons they learned along the way.

NMU’s Organization for Outdoor Recreation Professionals will host Bean and her presentation: “There are No Tests, Only Lessons. Canoeing Around the Lake Superior Shoreline.”

Bean’s presentation will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3 in Room 105 of Jamrich Hall. It is free to NMU students and the public.

“The main focus is what I learned from the trip and what I learned about life,” Bean said. “The bottom line is you don’t need to go on a big trip to learn those things either, they’re all things you can learn in life.”

Bean has been studying and teaching the value of outdoor adventures and its meanings toward life for the last 10 years.

In addition to her degree in outdoor recreation leadership and management, Bean also obtained a master’s degree from Prescott College in adventure education.

Bean works at Switchback Gear Exchange in downtown Marquette and has taught courses for NMU’s outdoor recreation leadership and management program for the last six years.

“We didn’t get to do anything, we came up with an idea, we put our minds to it and planned it out and we did it,” Bean said. “Anybody can do something like that. There is nothing standing in your way of doing that. All you have to do is do it.”

Leah Ross, a junior outdoor recreation leadership and management major, said she is looking forward to learning from Bean’s experience.

“I think one of the highlights will be learning about what they did and how they made it around Lake Superior,” Ross said.

Ross is also the president of the OORP and one of the students responsible for setting up Beans presentation.
The OORP is a group of mainly outdoor recreation leadership and management majors and minors, along with other NMU students.

Each year, the group takes part in various camping and hiking trips and volunteer activities.

The students also travel to Colorado to attend the Wilderness Education Association Conference.

In addition to these activities, the OORP has hosted guest speakers.

“In the past few years, we’ve brought speakers and all of them are pretty remarkable,” Ross said. “They have a pretty good story to tell and a lesson to be shared.”

Some past presenters have been Conrad Anker and Survivor finalist Scout Cloud Lee.

For more information, email the OORP at [email protected] or call at (906) 228-2181.