Andy Knapp, an amazing outdoorsman and veteran buyer for Midwest Mountaineering, has been inducated into the Midwest Mountaineering Minnesota Adventurers and Explorers Hall of Fame.



In June 1967, Knapp, then 19, embarked on a life of adventure when he took off from the Twin Cities on a 10-speed bike loaded with more than 40 pounds of stuff crammed into an old Duluth pack, bound for the new state of Alaska. Returning by bike to Minnesota 99 days later, he had logged 7460 miles and filled his diary with countless stories.

 

Knapp's has since traveled more than 156,000 miles on nothing but his own human power in the last 46 years. His legendary treks include a bicycle trip to Alaska and back in 1967, a 500-mile backpacking journey
through the Brooks Range in 1972, and a 30-day circumnavigation of
Lake Superior in 1996, the first without resupply.

 

He has bicycled in 34 states and 12 other countries, has hiked and climbed throughout North America, and has paddled extensively in the wilderness waters of the upper Great Lakes area and beyond. Andy has worked for over 34 years in the outdoor equipment industry as a retail buyer, has served on the boards of several trade associations and advocacy groups, and has written two books and numerous magazine columns.

 

After being diagnosed with potentially terminal kidney cancer in 2003,
and, after the initial panic, Andy realized that he must face the uncertainty and pain with the same stubbornness, perseverance, and sense of humor that he put into the thousands of miles of paddling, bicycling, hiking, skiing, and mountaineering adventures. With the help of family and friends, Andy has survived two major surgeries, a bout with radiation, and a series of potent drugs, and is still bicycling and paddling away.



After several years of battling cancer, Andy decided it was time to motivate with another long self-propelled trip, so why not bicycle to Alaska again! This past July, he left Minneapolis on a 27-speed touring bike, with state-of-the-art lightweight gear, and arrived in Skagway, AL. 24 days and 2,655 miles later.



Knapp's unstoppable spirit for adventure despite his battles with
cancer earned him his induction to the Minnesota Adventurers and
Explorers Hall of Fame.