Natalie Warren is an accomplished paddler and writer who lives in Minnesota. Currently teaching at the University of Minnesota, Warren is well-known for her 2021 book “Hudson Bay Bound.”

Warren is currently advising a group of four young women who plan to paddle from Lake Superior to Hudson Bay in 2025. Paddling under the name “Hudson Bay Girls,” the four paddlers will be appearing in an episode of the Paddle and Portage Podcast this spring. We’ll also be sharing updates of their travels this spring and summer once the journey begins. Learn more about their adventure here. 

Warren is well-versed in epic canoe paddling adventures. In addition to Hudson Bay from Minneapolis, she has paddled the length of the Mississippi, and won first place in the Yukon River Quest in the women’s voyageur division, paddling 444 miles in 53 hours. A contributing writer to outdoor publications, she has worked with Bancroft Arnesen Explore, St. Croix River Association, and River Management Society, and she started a nonprofit to present urban rivers as natural, dynamic classrooms for youth. Warren now has two children, and this summer hopes to take them on their first trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

We spoke with Warren about the Hudson Bay Girls, as well as some of her own paddling accomplishments across North America.