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I have an experience I would like to share with my fellow PWP's. Yesterday I took a 20+ mile canoe trip down the Susquehanna River. I friend of mine had asked me if I was interested in the trip a few days before. He offered two options; from Nichols N.Y. to Sayre PA. (about 10 to 12 miles), or Owego N.Y. to Sayre PA. (about 22 miles). He was concerned about my endurance and suggested the first option. I said, well if I'm going to do it, I may as well go for the whole shabang.The bad news is he was right…the good news is I still made it. I hadn't been in a canoe in years and realized 5 minutes into the trip I had a problem. You sit very low in a canoe with your legs stretched in front of you. I do not have the flexibility I once had and this proved very uncomfortable…even painful. So I knew from the beginning that this was not a matter of leisurely trip down the river, but a test of what I could, or could not, still do. The first hour was uneventful, then I had to take a dose of Sinemet. I knew this may be a problem in that it always causes me to feel tired and a bit low. Well it did. I started tiring as we approached Nichols, N.Y., the half way point. I had a very hard time getting out of the canoe; I couldn't get my feet over the seats and supports. We had a good laugh over this, but I finally managed to get out. We sat on some large rocks for lunch; afterward I couldn't standup. It took about 4 tries before I finally got up. These are symptoms the medication had been controlling, but the fatigue must have overcome the effect of the Sinemet. At this point I considered (to myself) calling it quits, but decided that this may be my last chance to do something like this and damn it, I was going to do it. The second half of the trip was very difficult, my friend had to do more than his share of paddling. I tired and had to rest frequently. I could see known landmarks further down the river and it seemed to take forever to get to them. We were rewarded when a bald eagle took off and crossed the river in front of us. I have never seen an eagle in this part of the state before….that was great. We finally got to my friend's cottage, on the river, after about 5 hours. I was absolutely and totally beat. I had a very hard time getting out of the canoe, but after a struggle did it on my own. I walked a few yards and lay down on the softest lawn I ever felt in my life. I post this for two reasons: One is that no one I deal with on a day to day basis, can understand how good finishing the trip made me feel. The second is to remind fellow PWP's that we should take pride in overcoming our day to day challenges. For those in different stages of PD the challenge may be different, but the difficulty is the same. Maybe it is a two mile walk, or when you finally getup out of your chair, or get your shirt buttoned. When you do it, take pride in it. By God I can still do that's...it's harder...but I can do it. Well, I held you up too long already…thanks for listening. Jim Dolan