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Leading the Way
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Thomasville man guides adventures on exotic trips.
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By Tom Steadman, Staff Writer
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THOMASVILLE - He’s kayaked wild rivers, climbed glaciers and mountain-biked the Andes in Ecuador, where he’s also guided expeditions and delivered boatloads of tourists to the rugged, unspoiled Galapagos Islands.
So Cary Kanoy hardly seemed a surprising choice for author Robert Whitaker, who was gathering material for a book and needed someone to guide him on a 15-day trip through Ecuador’s remote and inaccessible rain forest. Much of the journey would have to be made in native dugout canoes, along the Bobonaza River.
Unsurprising, perhaps, if not for the fact that Kanoy lives and works form his hometown of Thomasville, which, as the crows flies, is only about 3,000 miles and cultural light years removed from the Ecuadorean rain forest.
“ I thought I was talking to someone in Ecuador,” Whitaker said. “I was amazed he could be doing that from North Carolina.”
Kanoy, 35, and his wife, Grace, run their company, Core Expeditions, from the small rural house they share with 2-year old son, Sky.
In college at UNC-Wilmington, Kanoy struggled in basic Spanish courses, but his life took a turn when he spent a summer studying in Ecuador. He learned enough of the language to get by, and soon returned for more, living in the capital city of Quito and attending the Universidad San Francisco de Quito.
He became fluent in Spanish joined a mountain-climbing team, and spent his spare time kayaking the country’s rivers. Perfect training for a future expedition guide.
Back in the United States, he guided whitewater-rafting trips in West Virginia and western North Carolina and sought more adventures. He married Grace Kim, a Canadian with Korean roots and they spent time in Korea before returning to Thomasville and launching their own expedition company.
Now, with Core Expeditions, they offer a variety of adult, teenage and student tours that range from mountain-biking the Andes to photography treks, to the ever-popular Galapagos Islands visits, in which expeditions members go kayaking as well as see the islands’ famous turtles. Prices of the various expeditions range from $1200 to $2500.
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“People ask me, ‘Why Thomasville?’” Kanoy said.
“Spending so much time in Latin America made me realize how important the concept of family is. Family is very important there. And this is home. We enjoy country living.”
Working from North Carolina presents certain challenges, said Kanoy, who spends a lot of time speaking Spanish on the telephone, lining up trips with Ecuadorian contacts he’s developed over the years.
The expedition he planned in 2001 for Whitaker, the author, presented even more of a challenge.
Whitaker’s book, “The Mapmaker’s Wife,” published this year by Basic Books, centers on a 1735 French mapmaking expedition to Peru that stretched on for 10 years, and the survival journey of Isabel Godin, who set out across the Amazon jungle to find her long-lost husband.
It was Godin’s difficult trek that Whitaker and Kanoy retraced through rain forest during 2001. To accomplish the feat, Kanoy hired indigenous river guides and a former colonel in the Ecuadorian army to help them navigate both the river and numerous cultural obstacles.
Portions of the Bobonaza River are controlled by two different tribes, the Kichwa and the Achuar, Whitaker said. And attempts by oil companies to exploit the resource-rich region have angered both tribes.
“You just can’t go down this river by yourself,” Whitaker said. “There are worries about poisonous snakes and malaria, worries about the fact that some indigenous groups aren’t so happy to see you, and logistically, it’s a challenge.”
Kanoy and Whitaker traveled by bicycle from Cajabamba to Puyo, following a road made inaccessible to cars by volcanic eruptions.
Then they traveled down the Bobonaza River to Andoas by dugout canoe. Dinner at times was peccary, or wild pig, roasted in palm leaves, compliments of villages they visited. They also sampled some native grubs offered by villagers. Other meals were provided by Kanoy, who brought along enough provisions for the whole company.
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“One night we had pizza,” Whitaker said. “Cary loves to cook.”
At one village, they were detained for a night, until leaders decided their intentions were harmless and let them go on with their trip. Eventually, they made it to the end, unscathed, Whitaker said.
“I sent out feelers to about eight guides,” Whitaker said. “He was the only one willing to consider it. It’s a difficult area to travel into. The Bobonaza River takes you into indigenous territory where travelers don’t go. It speaks well of Cary that he was willing to do this.”
Kanoy says he’s always liked a challenge. In 1998 he participated in the Raid Gauloises, a 10-day adventure race in Ecuador that involved canoeing, kayaking, hiking, biking, horseback riding and mountaineering across some of the country’s most rugged terrain.
A point of pride was that he competed as a member of Team Ecuador, comprised mostly of friends from that country.
Back in Thomasville, Kanoy spends his spare time mountain-biking or playing Ultimate Frisbee, his longtime favorite sport. Growing up in Thomasville, he never envisioned his life would be like this, he said.
“I always knew I’d do something different. I just didn’t know what it would be.”
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Greensboro News and Record
Tuesday, July 6, 2004
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For photos from the expeditions or more information about The Mapmaker’s Wife, see www.themapmakerswife.com
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