Tunes, camping and friends go hand in hand and that’s how one former Flin Flonner likes to celebrate his talents.
David Fort grew up in Flin Flon and developed a passion for the great outdoors.
He’s found a way to incorporate music – his talent – along with his sense of adventure.
He and partner Brooklyn Samson make up the self-named hypno-folk music group TWIN and are coming back home to Fort’s roots.
On Saturday the pair will release their second album, North Americana, with a release party on Denare Beach’s Denare Beach.
More than just tunes, the duo will incorporate adventure into the release with a canoe tour.
Roughly five years ago TWIN developed the canoe tour to ensure that they were hitting the small towns along the way to the bigger cities.
TWIN was playing in larger cities, but saw that there was an opportunity missed by many.
The duo packs their two-seater canoe like any other pair would, bringing their tent, rain gear, clothing, matches, food, lifejackets and other necessary items. But they include their acoustic guitar and violin before leaving shore.
“It’s how TWIN has been touring,” said Fort, excited about this weekend’s show.
The canoe tour is new to the Flin Flon area, but
TWIN has travelled across parts of Manitoba as well as a few American communities in their boats.
“We did some shows in Los Angeles and California,” Fort said, “And then it just hit me.”
Growing up in the Flin Flon area Fort is no stranger to the open lakes, camping and adventure.
“I grew up paddling,” he said.
Fort kept his love of the water and the outdoors and decided to combine it with his true love of music.
TWIN gathers maps and looks for the best routes along the shoreline to perform in communities.
Fort realized that by using a canoe tour the pair were reaching a lot of communities otherwise missed in the entertainment market.
“We would just see how rivers would lead to the major cities,” he said, pointing out that the smaller cities in between were often missed by others.
Fort acknowledges that canoe travel is not the most practical form of transportation, but says it’s been an interesting ride.
“We’re having fun,” he said. “It’s hard, but has a funny way of (working itself) out.”
In the Winter months and locations that don’t allow for the canoe tour TWIN does fly or drive, but enjoys being able to spend their days on the water and evenings performing
Through their unique form of travel Fort says he’s able to accomplish one of his favourite parts of the music industry.
“We get to communicate with (everyone) and meet them,” he said. “We get to meet so many people and sometimes just sitting around a bonfire with them.”
Over the course of the five years the canoe tour has been going on the pair has visited a variety of sizes of communities and venues.
In some towns the pair perform at a coffee shop – or places similar to NorVa from their first stop in Flin Flon. But other communities have the duo playing around a bonfire or on the beach – like Saturday’s event will see at the Main Beach.
Denare Beach’s location will feature a sound system, but Fort says it’s not always available and they do not travel with their own by canoe.
“So sometimes that means we’re playing by a bonfire or at a park. It simplifies it a lot of the time,” he said.
Fort and Samson have opened the invitation for area residents to join them on Amisk Lake Sunday morning as they paddle from Main Beach to the end of the Sturgeon Weir Road to set up camp.
The duo will spend the night camping before packing up and heading out on the water to Cumberland House.
“If someone wants to paddle with us they are welcome,” said Fort.
Before any paddlers, experienced or not, take off Fort says they will receive safety instructions and precautions to take.
Fort encourages area residents to paddle with them, but reminds everyone that they will need their own canoe.
Those participating have the option of paddling to the camp site and taking their boat out of the water for a drive home the next day, or they can paddle back to the Main Beach were they started.
