About CAMERONDUECK

Cameron Dueck grew up in a Mennonite family on a remote turkey farm in the Canadian Prairies—an unlikely start for an international journalist, filmmaker and accomplished adventurer. His journalism career took off in Chicago, where he wrote about American agriculture while learning to sail on Lake Michigan during the weekends. He moved on to New York City, where he further whetted his appetite for the open sea and international news. It didn’t take long for him to join Reuters as a correspondent in Singapore, where the idea of foreign ports and strange seas really took hold. Cameron quit his job and jumped aboard a yacht to sail from Thailand to the Mediterranean, dodging pirates off the coast of Yemen and braving dust storms on the Red Sea. He earned a Royal Yachting Association Offshore Yachtmaster qualification before setting off across the Atlantic Ocean. He soon returned to journalism, joining the South China Morning Post and then the Financial Times in Hong Kong. In 2009 he once again jacked his day job for the sea, this time making a proper expedition of it. The Open Passage Expedition set sail for Canada’s Northwest Passage to learn more about how climate change was impacting Inuit communities. The journey produced Cameron’s first book and film, both titled New Northwest Passage. Cameron was elected to the prestigious New York City-based Explorer’s Club in recognition of his Arctic voyage. Cameron lives in Hong Kong. His articles have been published by Wall Street Journal, Outpost Magazine, Outer Edge, Business Traveller Asia, Asia Pacific Boating, Prestige Magazine, South China Morning Post and Financial Times. He is currently researching a book about modern Mennonite culture in the Americas.

Winner – Best Documentary Feature

I am very excited to share this great news…my film, The New Northwest Passage, won the award for Best Documentary Feature at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival last night.

Thank you to all this who came to see the film, and those who supported me with their votes. Thank you to Edwin Lee for his great editing and to Adam Wright (AKW) for the stunning soundtrack he created.

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WR2R Film Fest press coverage

We’re making the local papers…If you are coming to the WR2R festival, don’t forget to vote for my film!

Here’s a story about my film in The Herald, a Winnipeg newspaper.

And this is a preview that ran in The Interlake Spectator.

My film The New Northwest Passage is premiering at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival. Visit their website for a full programme and ticket information.

It will be screening at North Kildonan MB Church, 1315 Gateway Rd.

Show times are:
Sat, Feb 16, 4pm, Theatre 1
Sun, Feb 17 2pm, Theatre 2

Here’s a link to the trailer to give you an early taste.

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Thank-you

I’m at the airport in Santiago, Chile, about to fly to Winnipeg. Bike is sold, gear either tossed, given away, or jammed into my bags. I’m done and heading home! I set off for home with a rather empty bank account (budget? Oh, that! It’s busted, in a ditch somewhere in Colombia!) but I feel like the richest man alive with all I’ve seen and learned. Once again, I’ve been changed by a challenge, a journey, a goal achieved. I am incredibly lucky to be living the life I dreamt of as a child, and even luckier that you want to read about it.

Thank you for reading this blog over the past seven months. It’s been a pretty special journey. Not only have I see a good chunk of the world (19 countries!), but I have learned so much about my heritage and who we are as Mennonites. Now to fit that into a book!

Thank you to all those I’ve met along the way. The long-lost cousins, the Mennonites in far flung corners of the Americas, the bikers, the new friends made on ferries, dusty roads, in dodgy hostels, in splendid campgrounds. You, more than anything, made this journey worth the effort.

Many people have sent me notes in the past months. Encouragement, contacts, questions, challenges and advice. I’m sorry if I have not responded, but they were all deeply appreciated. Thank you!

Next up, seeing my first film, The New Northwest Passage, up on the silver screen at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival. It plays on Feb 16 and 17, I hope to see some of you there. Then, it’s back home to Hong Kong, where the real work begins…

Keep checking in for updates on the book, film, and my next adventure.

Slow down for curves,
pullover to help those in need.
But never stop,
because there’s even greater things ahead.

Cameron

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Onward!

So I’m back on the road. I’ve made a few thousand km to the north since leaving Ushuaia. I stopped in Punta Arenes, Chile for a week and thought I had the bike sold, but the buyer backed out at the last moment. So I hit the road and the plan now is to go to Santiago, which allows me to see some of Chile and where there’s a bigger market for the bike. I expect to arrive there in about 1.5-2 weeks from now.

The ride so far is stunning. I’ve been riding up the western border of Argentina, following the Andes and cutting through the heart of Patagonia. It ain’t all bad.

48º North magazine reviews The New Northwest Passage

48º North, a Seattle and NW US sailing magazine, did a story about my book The New Northwest Passage. You can read the story by clicking here. It will open an online pdf viewer at the contents page of the magazine. The article starts on page 44, and the link is the second from bottom on the contents page.

Film screening times

As I’ve mentioned earlier, my film is premiering at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival. Visit their website for a full programme and ticket information.

The New Northwest Passage will be screening at North Kildonan MB Church, 1315 Gateway Rd.

Show times are:
Sat, Feb 16, 4pm, Theatre 1
Sun, Feb 17 2pm, Theatre 2

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