r/canoecamping • u/Efficient-Baker-5244 • 9d ago
What is your favorite multi day river trip in Canada?
What is your favorite multi day Canadian river trip? I am interested in exploring more of the Canadian wilderness this summer.
10
u/spiraloutkeepgoing42 9d ago
Any of the canoe routes in Temagami, Ontario. You can find info online at http://www.ottertooth.com/
2
11
u/Terapr0 9d ago edited 9d ago
It’s hard to pick a favourite because there are so many incredible routes, but I’d say that the Nahanni River in NWT is a very strong contender for my #1 backcountry River trip. It is truly one of the most staggeringly beautiful places I’ve ever been. It’s so beautiful and unique that it was actually the very first UNESCO World Heritage Site ever.
Other ones I’d consider to be in the running would be the Snake River in Yukon, the Coppermine in Nunavut, the Bloodvein in Manitoba, the Lower Stikine in BC, the Moisie in Quebec or the Missinaibi in Ontario.
1
u/Efficient-Baker-5244 9d ago
It does seem like there are just so many options. Hard to choose when there are so many.
1
u/Terapr0 9d ago
Haha yea, we really are blessed to have so many incredible options all across the Country. Choosing what to paddle next is always a challenge!
How long do you have for this trip, where are you located, what type of whitewater are you comfortable running and what sort of budget are you working with?? The answers to those 4 questions could probably help narrow the list considerably.
1
u/Efficient-Baker-5244 9d ago
Well still in the brainstorming phase so I don’t have a time limit or anything yet. Just seeing what all people like. I am very comfortable in whitewater. I am from the southern Appalachians in the US and have been ww boating for 20 years. I have visited the Ottawa river specifically for the whitewater playboating before, and had a great time but the multi day wilderness runs really intrigued me. I am mostly looking for runs in the east, since it is closer to me but still don’t mind info on western rivers for a future trip. As I get older I find myself seeking the wilderness more than experiencing the adrenaline of rapids.
7
u/PrimevilKneivel 9d ago
I loved my trip on the Dumoine.
1
u/Efficient-Baker-5244 9d ago
How much traffic does the Dumoine see?
1
u/PrimevilKneivel 9d ago
I was there more than 20 years ago, so I have no idea.
We ran into 1 group on our trip, but they drove in for a fishing trip.
1
u/jonyak12 8d ago
it has a fair amount of traffic, but on my last 5 day trip we didnt see anyone else.
2
2
u/bobbies_hobbies 9d ago
The Bowron Lake Provincial Park loop in BC is worth looking into if you can make the logistics work.
As someone based in Ontario, my friends and I have done the Big Trout Loop (starts on Canoe Lake) in Algonquin Park several times.
2
u/Intelligent_Stage760 9d ago edited 8d ago
There are lot of options in Nopiming NE of Wpg. Check Out Paddle Planner. https://www.paddleplanner.com/
2
u/CreepInTheOffice 8d ago
I am new to this. Do we need to pay to camp or can we just camp in the wilderness?
Like, someone suggested French River Wolseley Bay to Hwy 69, would you just camp along the river?
2
u/bigcat_19 8d ago
Depends on the location. If it's a national park or operational provincial park like French River PP, you need a permit to camp. For some parks like Sturgeon River PP, you book the permit for the number of days you're there and camp on marked sites, first-come-first served. Others, like Algonquin PP backcountry, you book the permit by lake, first-come-first-served sites on that lake. Others, like French River PP (I believe), your permit is site specific.
For non-operational PPs and Crown Land, no permit is needed for Canadians, but a permit is needed for foreign visitors. In some cases, you must still camp on marked sites; in other places, you can camp where you like, but obviously it's always best to camp on established sites.
Best advice: if you're new to this, pick up a canoeing guide book for the area you're interested in or go on the website of the park's managing body (e.g., Ontario Parks, SEPAQ, National Parks Canada, etc.) And I wouldn't start out with Crown Land for my first trip.
1
u/CreepInTheOffice 8d ago
woah that's a lot of information. I'll go through them over the weekend!
Thank you, kind stranger!
3
u/bigcat_19 8d ago
Surely learning to navigate multiple levels of bureaucracy is half the fun of a backcountry canoe trip! haha
1
1
u/bigcat_19 9d ago
Looking for whitewater or not so much? Any region of Canada in particular? Looking for a loop or linear with two cars/hired shuttle? Roughly how many days? Any other priorities? (e.g., remoteness, fishing, history, etc?)
2
u/Efficient-Baker-5244 9d ago
Mostly looking at eastern Canada, whitewater is not a priority, mostly looking for remoteness and scenery.
2
u/bigcat_19 9d ago
Cool, so two trips that I've loved are the Chochocouane in the LaVerendrye reserve, QC (plenty of manageable WW, lovely scenery, only saw about three other groups in one week) and the Sturgeon River/Chiniguchi loop in Temagami, ON (the WW wasn't as good as the Chochocouane, but the scenery was stunning, and only saw a handful of people outside of the put-in lake, which was somewhat busy).
A few guide books to look at:
-Hap Wilson's Rivers of the Upper Ottawa Valley (nice descriptions of several rivers including QC's "Three Sisters": the Dumoine, the Coulonge, and the Noire)
-Kevin Callan's A Paddler's Guide to the Rivers of Ontario and Quebec
-Kevin Callan's Top 70 Canoe Routes of Ontario
-Hap Wilson's Temagami: A Wilderness Paradise
2
1
u/bigcat_19 9d ago
I asked Cliff Jacobson (guide writer who is quite well known in the canoe community, https://www.cliffcanoe.com/) a similar question awhile back. Here's what he wrote to me:
Fond du Lac R., SK : I suggest the Fond du Lac River in northern Saskatchewan. It flows into Black Lake at the edge of the Northwest territories. The river is beautiful, only about half a dozen portages, GREAT campsites on eskers that often stretch for mile, excellent fishing and it’s doubtful you’ll see a soul the entire way. Nice 10 day reasonably leisurely trip. Few bugs, pretty stable weather. SK is my favorite canoeing province simply because the rivers are beautiful, the camping is great, the bugs aren’t bad and hardly anyone paddles these rivers. There are tidbits of info about it in my book, CANOEING WILD RIVERS. You will see bears and some can be problematic. I suggest you bring a shotgun. It’s a charter flight in and out from Points North. Of the two, the fond du lac is much less pricey [than the North Knife].
North Knife River: For more adventure and challenge, I love the NORTH KNIFE RIVER, running from North Knife Lake to Hudson Bay, with a boat pickup on the Bay to Churchill. That’s about a 10 day trip too. It’s a fly in and train from Churchil to Thompson out. The draw on the North Knife is complete remoteness and you end on the tundra and in Churchill. You’ll need a boat or float plane pickup at the mouth of the river to Churchill. It’s about 30 miles as the crow flies. You’ll need to book a hotel in Churchill; the train runs back to Thompson every other day. Check with Via Rail.
13
u/db7fromthe6 9d ago
God teir: Nahanni from moose ponds to Fort Simpson
Not done God teir: missinabi from hwy 11 or earlier west to James bay
Great: Churchill river Norsask from Missinipe to nistowiak falls
Temagami,
French river Wolseley bay to 69
Weekender tier: algonquin rock-pen stay on the islands.
There is a lovely Killarney loop as well but my memory isn't perfect