Kayaker finishes 1,700-mile solo trip in 54 days

[August 11, 2008]  NEW YORK (AP) -- A solo kayaker's 1,700-mile journey to promote prostate cancer awareness has wrapped up at a Manhattan pier.

Dozens of kayakers and well-wishers greeted Skip Ciccarelli (chick-ahr-ELL'-ee) on Saturday as he paddled down the Hudson River. He set out from Chicago 54 days earlier following a route through three of the Great Lakes and the Erie Canal.

The 60-year-old kayaker encountered 6-foot waves and heavy thunderstorms during his trip. He says he sometimes sang songs to pass the time but mostly just enjoyed the ride.

Ciccarelli teaches at a vocational high school in Massachusetts. He is a prostate cancer survivor himself.

[Associated Press]

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