My name is Ekon, which means strong. The day that I was dropped into the Red River was a special day, because that's the day that I began my journey. I was dropped into the river with other canoes, but we all parted ways when there was a big current that caused us all to spread apart. When I was making my way down the river, in the first few miles I got stuck in the Riverside Dam. I got stuck in the rocks of the dam, and I was there for six months until there was a huge thunderstorm that caused the waves to crash. I was then able to get out and continue my journey on the Red River. My journey was going very smoothly, and I even met a few animals along the way. When I was making my way through Pembina, a big bald eagle flew over me for two minutes thinking that I was some type of food. I looked around and I saw his nest up high in the trees. His nest was made out of sticks, grass, moss and feathers. The bald eagle suddenly dropped down and looked at me closer. He then grabbed me in his mouth, but then he realized that I wasnՉt prey, I was just a piece of wood. He dropped me back into the river letting me go on my way through the Red River. I have seen lots of garbage on my way, but I have been lucky and haven't gotten stuck in any. I was now in Canada and almost to Lake Winnipeg, but then my luck went away and I was suddenly stuck in a plastic bottle. I tried and tried to get out, but the bottle wouldnՉt budge. After about a week, I met a catfish who I named Kevin. He realized that I was stuck in plastic so he kept trying to get me out by bumping into me. After a few tries I was out! I thanked Kevin and he said that he would stay with me and continue the journey with me. We were now in Lake Winnipeg and the day was bright and the water was calm. After two days of exploring Lake Winnipeg, Kevin and I ran into a beaver dam. I was floating toward the dam and Kevin noticed that I was in trouble so he swam in front of me trying to back me up. Kevin was able to get me out before I could enter the dam.Kevin and I now entered Hudson Bay. I have been traveling for 4.5 years and it has been a long journey with many ups and downs. I have been in Hudson Bay for three months. One of the days I was just floating around, but in the distance I could see a big speed boat. On the boat it said ՉCommercial FishermanՉ which means that they are going to catch fish and they may catch Kevin. We were getting closer to the boat when a huge net came in front of our faces. We were then brought into the boat in the net. There was a dog on the boat who I learned was named Charlie. His owner was Philip, he was also the owner of the boat. Charlie grabbed me out of the net thinking I was a bone. When I was in the middle of getting eaten by Charlie, I saw Kevin losing his breath in the net. After fifty seconds of Kevin being in the net, Philip finally put him in a container and into a big cooler. Charlie stopped chewing me and I could tell we were moving somewhere. We were taken to the Grand Forks pet store that Philip owned. When we went inside the pet store Kevin was put in a big tank full of water. I, however was kept for Charlie to play with. One day a girl was walking into the pet store in search of a pet. She looked at every fish, snake, dog, bunny and cat. She found the fish she had always dreamed off and she named her Luca. When the girl was on her way to the register she saw Charlie walking around with me in his mouth. She began to walk toward Charlie and it seemed like she was looking at me. Charlie dropped me hard onto the ground and the girl picked me up. She yelled to her father ՉThe canoe. ItՉs my canoe. The one that I made and dropped into the Red River.Չ I was her canoe. Memories flashed back into my brain from the day I was dropped into the Red River. The girl at the pet store brought me to her house and put me on her night stand. That was my journey and I am proud to say I made it all the way to Hudson Bay.