The DUMOINE RIVER Trip 2003!!.

Click on any of the pictures below to get an enlarged version.

Day 1, July 4th 2003

Distance traveled = 17km
Hrs on water = 6hrs
Location = Camp Wanapitei to Witch Bay (705068)
Weather = sunny; heavy winds from South
Portages = None
Additional Notes = Nice big campsite

Off by 11am After recovering the fresh food pack stolen and repacked by Vanessa. Led by the hawk cries of Morgan wee paddled past Ferguson's pizza allotment centre, founded 13 yrs ago on Lake Pimiskiming (which is now a sewage bed). We stopped just before Devil Mountain for a lunch of PB and J sandwiches (Wilkie if you order jam and jam you have to eat jam and jam. Liam flipped out of his canoe during a water fight after Annie's and Derek's boats tag-teamed him. In an attempt to rescue his paddling partner, Morgan "I ate a snake." We treated an ulcer with gorp before setting up camp on the northern side of the peninsula above Witch Bay (705068). We had an awesome stir fry before Moss headed up cookie baking bonanza while others read and did their business (crafts). The sound of a nearby thunderstorm sent us to our tents early. We got hit with a wall of heavy winds but no rain. Great light show. Bon soir mes amis.

Off we go!!

Day 2, July 5th 2003

Distance traveled = 26km
Hrs on water = 9hrs (9am-7:15pm; over an hr shopping in Temagami)
Location = Witch Bay (705068) to Snake Island Lake (947131)
Weather = sunny; heavy winds from Southwest
Portages = 1 = 650m = Begins at day use docks at the shell station on the highway. Walk north along the highway and turn right after 100m (go across highway ¨C can be sketchy but not too bad) at the road between the mini putt course & the train station. Then turn left at the 1st main rd. and walk 500m to the water. Put in is just past the lodge.
Additional Notes = An annoying speed boater on Snake Island Lake but nice campsite.

6:30 came way too early. The horror of the early morning was brightened by McMuffins. As we spooned out the last of the eggs, the bags were loaded into the canoes for a 9am departure. As the morning went on the boys entertained us with underwater canoe wars (Poor Holly) and Bella's impression of a Sicilian Gondolier (Mia gondola!). A floating lunch of cream cheese, another of Shauna's all time fav's. As we neared Temagami and the excitement rose, so did the level of lunacy. Cletus (Jamie) the son and brother of Yolanda (Annie), Hank (Morgan), the son and cousin of Butch (Jessie), Lucy Lu (Holly) and Betty Ann (Shauna) included the locals in their Texas heckling (what a hootenanny). Portage was done quickly so we could spend more time (1 1/2; hours) devouring Busy Bee ice cream (over 30 flavors). Paddled lazily to our campsite where we soaked sun stroked bodies in the water. After much thought, North was unable to conjure up a homemade set of goggles in search of the lost ring. Supper was replaced with GORP and granola bars due to the laziness of our sugar filled bodies. The bugs escorted us to the tent by 9:30. Sleep well mes amis.

Day 3 - July 7th

Hours Paddled: 10:30 - 3:00
Distance: 17 Km
Weather: Sunny and hot¡­ again! Another great day for some paddlers "tans" or burns

Awoke campers with the smell of chocolate (carob¡­ hehehe!) pancakes being fried. As campers loaded boats it was discovered that Wilkie's knife had been thrown out at the Temagami Marina covered by a tube of cream cheese. On a recovery mission Morgan (as a Texan), Wilkie and Derek headed off to rescue the knife while North and Annie headed up another search for the missing ring. Upon a successful return on the knife crew, we headed off into tailwinds. The morning sped by with frequent swims keeping our body temperature in check. As we approached Rabbit Point for our chick pea salad lunch we were greeted by VERY eager boaters insisting that we camp at their favorite site¡­ um¡­ not today thanks. Continued the relaxed paddle right up to the Moore's cottage where we were greeted by Ted, Janny and a trampoline. Liam, Wilkie, Morgan and Matt Moss excelled in their hucking of flips while Bella, Jesse, Holly and North practiced and practiced, with some success (ya Jesse!). Indoor beds, hamburgers, hotdogs, pickles, chips, and pop were so appreciated by all! Some Harry Potter scamming: "Noooo HOLLLLLYYY!" Chinese checkers, Egyptian rat fart and a huge game of Balderdash made the evening complete. Wonderful day you guys. Thank you Moores for your hospitality. It was appreciated by all!

The shorelines were flooded b/c of the dam on top of FourBass Lake

Now that was something to remember. Trampolines, nachos, hamburgers and for me and Annie.... a BED!

Day 4, July 7th 2003

Distance traveled = 29km
Hrs on water = 8hrs
Location = Rabbit Lake to Four Bass Lake Dam (138 195) Weather = Sunny with a few clouds. Medium winds from the SW enough to set up sail. Portages = 3 - North end of Rabbit Lake (400m) on the left. Rabbit Chutes (200m) on the left. Portage at the Dam on Fourbass Lake (600m). Follow the road and turn left at the intersection. Near the bottom of the large hill there is a small trail on the right leading down to the water. You can also sometimes walk the flume pipe that leads to the road. The pipe begins just past the gate near the generator.
Additional Notes - None

After a breakfast of apple crisp at Ted and Janny's we were off by 11am. Liam finally convinced us to set up a sail to speed to the dam on the North end of Rabbit Lake. The two boats kept up to the other canoes, so it was a success. We got to the portage on the left side (400m) and made quick work of it. Then came a lunch of tuna sandwiches at Rabbit Chutes (P200 m on left). Afterwards we came upon three runable sets of rapids/swifts on the Matabitchuan, the 2nd of which was lots of fun to swim down and play around in. We discovered that Matt Chan needs to tighten his lifejacket. Once on Four Bass Lake all six canoes sailed in two different groups to the dam. We were flying! We camped out at the dam, feasting on blueberries and then a wonderful Mac and Cheese! No one had to worry about collecting firewood with the massive pile of driftwood left behind from the logging. While some cooked dinner, others went down to check out the flume pipe and portage. The pipes were admired (Morgan has found his life's passion). After dinner another trip to the flume for everyone while Annie and Bella began baking bread for tomorrow. North and Morgan went on an exclusive mission the whole way down the pipe and left Matt Moss and Holly to fight off the bugs as they attempted to do dishes. Sleep well all!

When we finally listened to Liam we were thankful.

Random Picture.

We ate like Kings and Queens. Thank you Annie.

We ate like Kings and Queens. Thank you Blueberry bushes.

We portaged all our canoe and gear down this old log flume. The load seemed easier though since Derek lost his helmet and only pair of shoes here.

Day 5, July 8th 2003

Distance traveled = 21km
Hrs on water = 7.5hrs
Location = Dam on Fourbass Lake to Portage du Sauvage Campsite (265 069)
Weather = West winds. Sunny skies, again! The tanning saga continues
Portages = 1 - The Portage du Sauvage (2km) 265 069. The beginning of this portage is VERY uphill. The whole trail was flagged for us, but the trail itself can be very hard to find. Bring flagging tape in case it is needed. There is a really awful campsite on the Timiskaming side of the portage and a REALLY nice one on the other end.

The morning started out with a missing shoe. Somehow in the middle of the night one of Derek¡¯s shoe disappeared. All was made better with bran muffins, until we found his crushed helmet on the road! Yummy. We then started the morning with 2 portage trips down the road and the log flume and onto the Matabitchuan. Derek wiped out constantly with his replacement shoe made of duck tape. We made our way, pretty lazily to Timiskaming. The waters were calm so we headed across. As we crossed into Quebec, Jamie led a crew to swim across the border and into a whole new province! We found a cliff and enjoyed a cheese loaf and honey shots (sorry Moss!) After lunch the sailing races that had started yesterday continued in full force. Wilkie's team (who were wired on candies and Hershey's kisses) went faster and became the self proclaimed winners, the all time champions. The other group, using Liam's tarp, was the first to the portage. During the race, Suzie Q, Derek's black walnut paddle fell overboard unnoticed. Tough day D-rak! At 5 we pulled into our campsite at the beginning of the portage du Sauvage. The campsite was definitely small, but it worked. We took a load of canoes and food packs across the portage before supper. It took 3 hours to do the load. There were a few turns on the trail but blue and pink flagging tape led the way, except for Holly and North who managed to make a wrong turn and walk and walk and walk. They managed to make it home safely and in time for the unlimited pesto. Everyone get ready for two more loads tomorrow! Bon Soir!

Day 6 - July 9th

Start of Indian Portage to little island near Laniel 316 110
Hours paddled/portaged: 9:00 - 6:00
Km Traveled: 8
Portages = 3 - 1) 2 loads across Indian Portage 2) Portage from 2ieme Lac du Portage du Sauvage to 1ier Lac du Portage du Sauvage: 300m. Takeout is down the creek 100m. Past the cottage on the left. 3) Portage from 1ier Lac du Portage du Sauvage to Lac Kipawa. 1km. Takeout is 304 105. A trail leads out to the hydro wires. Turn left at the wires and 100m down on the other side is an ATV trail. The trail ends at the highway. 50m to the right is a lodge where they allowed us to load our boats. It might be a good idea to flag the ATV trail and to check with the lodge as to whether it's okay to load your boats on their property.

Awoke to aching muscles that were to take us across the Indian Portage two more torturous times. As granola was eaten, teams began to pack up and head out. All groups were on their way by 9. The morning passed slowly as we trudged, dragged, heaved, wheezed and panted our way across the portage. North and Holly completed their "return canoe to the right trail" mission while the second load was started up. As the group slowly flooded into the put in after two loads, tortillas, cheese, pesto, salsa and organics were inhaled. The portage was done, and done soooo well! Two Pac singing from the grave was the entertainment on the quick paddle to the next portage onto premier Lac du portage du Sauvage. Water was bleached, and we were soon off. Done in no time, bodies finally arrived at the last portage du jour. We began and upon finally finding the highway, lay on the side of the road begging trucks for honks and telling tales of time spent in Quebec. Annie ran ahead to find a put in, and was thrilled by the opportunity to use her long lost French skills. 2.5 loads later we were done. A leech was chased down by Jamie and Lauren to the dismay of others, while people swam in Lac Kipawa. The 1km paddle to the tiny island campsite was spent dreaming of the Laniel general Store. After putting on our best apparel we headed over the town. Calls home, ice cream, juice, chocolate milk (and Holly losing her mind) had everyone smiling. We returned to our little island site for a late night pizza party headed up by North. Ahh¡­ my muscles are sore. I am going to bed. See you wieners in the morning.

Day 7, July 10th 2003

Distance traveled = 9.5km
Hrs on water = 3.5 hrs
Location = Island near Laniel to island on Kipawa (394 055)
Weather = head winds (east winds) and overcast
Portages = None
Additional Notes - None

Slept in until 10, after Jamie hurled rocks at mating crows that woke us up at 5. Paddled to Laniel again for a porta-potty run after carrot muffins. It was too cold for any swimming but not for a friendly dog who greeted us all as we passed by his campsite. After a tea biscuit lunch we all decided to hit up our campsite early and found an island, a rather awful campsite really. Lauren and Annie made chili for supper as D-rak prepared chapatees for tomorrow¡¯s lunch. After a supper discussion of Volvo¡¯s and Jerry Seinfeld, the boys left the island sporting lifejackets and helmets for wrestling. The girls prepared their wintergreen hand soak, raspberry tea, and David's Maple Cookies (the local kind) for their Northern Spa experience.

Day 8, July 11th 2003

Distance traveled = 0km
Hrs on water = 0hrs
Location = REST DAY! NO MOVEMENT!
Weather = Wind bound. High winds in the morning, thunder in the afternoon and laziness there after kept us in our tents most of the day.
Portages = None
Additional Notes - None

What can you say about a rest day¡­ not too much. Derek and Annie hid in their tent, Annie engrossed in Harry Potter and sleep and Derek the same (but not Harry¡­ what a wiener). Leftovers and gorp for breaky, chapatees for lunch and soup and dumplings for din din.

Day 9, July 12th 2003

Distance traveled = 34km
Hrs on water = 8hrs
Location = Small Island on Kipawa to 655 975
Weather = Rainy all day! Eww! Winds were from the North and coooooold!
Portages = None
Additional Notes = Saved time by going South of the McKenzie Island rater than North by Ile Fox

Awoke to the pitter patter of rain and as peach crisp was started, lazy campers stumbled out of tents. Campers were coaxed to hurry by a surprise reward to the first tent packed¡­ yeah for Jesse, Shauna, Matt M and Liam. As boats were loaded, a runaway barrel was chased down by Derek and Matt C and we were off (our ETD 9). Morning rolled by and Matt Chan, not related to Jackie, kept us entertained with riddles (his hat was green). Bundled up, we fought our way through Kipawa, showing as little skin as possible (other than a few full moons (thank you Boys) Lunch of tuna sandwiches was made more welcoming by a fire, some rikishiing (sorry Bella) and Annie and Morgan battling in a low budget Kung-Foo movie. The rain slowed and finally we pulled in at our huge campsite stocked full of firewood. Derek and Bella cooked up spag, while Jesse, Shauna and Holly battled their way through coffee cake baking. Cards, rainbow end chasing and some swimming finished off the day as the sun peaked its way out promising a nice day tomorrow! Bon Soir!

We had alot of rain.

But we kept warm with some Japanimation

Day 10, July 13th 2003

Distance travelled = 27km
Hrs on water = 9hrs
Location = 655975 - 766151
Weather = sunny & warm; great weather!
Portages = 1 - 250m from N end of Lac du Bouleau into Pommeroy. Clearly labelled takeout on the left.
Additional Notes = The first creek from Riviere Audoin into lac du Bouleau was trackable for us. We pulled over a fallen bridge at the end.

We woke up to SUN at 8 and began the long process of cooking B-fast burritos. 3 hrs later with bellies full (of food and gas) we headed off. A long and lazy paddle was broken up by Wilkie who decided that $8.75 was worth it in exchange for mowing down on a leach. Ewwwwww! Cajun brown sugar coffee cake was eaten for lunch on Hunter's Lake big island. It was a really eerie but the visit to the ghost town of Hunter¡¯s Point was pretty neat. We explored all the various cabins and signed the guest book in the old church. We pushed on up the Audoin to the first creek into Lac du Bouleau, which was traceable. A rescue mission was sent for Morgan and North as we hauled the boats up over the bridge. We portaged up the second creek in a speedy 2 trips. As we headed towards our island campsite, D-rak and the gals talked about hot celebrities as the sternspeople miagondollad their tired bowspeople a la Bella style. Listening to the echo on Pommeroy we were surprised to hear another group of¡­ BOYS! Trying to coax them over to the campsite for desert the girls yelled and hollered to no avail. Mac n cheese n leaches were cooked up while the boys team attacked Derek for a solid ½ hr. Others enjoyed the 1974 Annual Fishing Ed. In the dark cookies were battled for before going off to bed.

Some ghost town exploration time.

Lunch didn't fill up Wilkie. $8.75 was earned by him for eating a leach! Ewwww.

Day 11, July 14th 2003

Distance travelled = 22km
Hrs on water = 9.5hrs
Location = 766151 - 970133
Weather = sunny with clouds; heavy winds
Portages = 3
1) 826161 - straightforward down ATV trail. 300m
2) 839161 - follow the trail up to the ATV trail and take a right. Then hang a left on the first side trail on the left. TRUCK PORTAGE! 600m
3) 915127 - follow main road until water is in sight and then take the side trail to the lake. There's an outhouse along the way! 500m

Another morning of sun rolled us out of our tents by 7:45. The carob chip pancakes were a great start to the day. Mission One - check out those boys we were shouting with all night. As we paddled by we became glad those Tawingo boys never came over last night for brownies! We plowed thru the portage from Pommeroy to L'eau Clair accidentally leaving behind North's camouflaged helmets (but we got it back). We then flew thru the portage into Lac Sas. At the end of this trail we signed our names in the old truck. Ernold, Arnold and Urnold all signed their alias names. As the autographs were engraved a hummus lunch was prepared. After a few swims and underwater missions in Lac Sas we arrived to the porta potty portage into Lac Ogascanane. Others may have trouble finding the toilet now that Wilkie stole the 'Toilette' sign. Afterwards a quick but necessary snack of smarties gorp was devoured before reaching our beautiful campsite where we enjoyed lasagna along with the entertainment of Morgan's new face dance. G'night clowns

Lunch Time!

You know your in Quebec when....

Day 12, July 15th 2003

Distance travelled = 32km
Hrs on water = 10.5hrs
Location = 970133 ¨C Kipawa River 177135
Weather = sunny w/ clouds in the morning changing to shitty and rain and thunderstorms
Portages = 2
1) Ogascanane to small lake before Lac des Loup, 005137, right side of the peninsula, 200m easy path.
2) Liftover at Lac du Loup to the Kipawa river over the peninsula, 042143, 10m, avoids 2km of paddling around it.
Additional Notes = 3
1) Creek from small lake to Lac du Loup is paddleable.
2) Tracked set from Lac Watson to Lac du Foins in the skinnier section of the river, 50m. Did another set up to the campsite on the left side of the island, 100m. THERE ARE NO CAMPSITES ON OR NEAR LAC DU FOINS

The smell of Hashbrowns cooked in honey and salt awoke us this morning at 730. We propelled onto the lake by 9 and flew through Ogascanane except for Derek who had to deal with the smells of Liam and Chan. Come on guys, the burrito's were two days ago! We pretty much two tripped the first portage for the first time yet! Through Lac du Loup Sport's and Simpson's trivia passed the time until we got to a peninsula where we did a quick liftover, which got us into the Kipawa River. The river led to Lac Watson, on which Bella spiced up an awesome chick pea salad at a beach lunch site. More word games passed the time until we got to the second section of the Kipawa River. It started to rain as soon as we tracked up our first swift. Thunder followed soon so we pulled over on the shores of Lac Du Foins to wait it out. As the lightening subsided we headed back on the water to find a campsite. We saw lots of hunting blinds and explored a couple but we never saw any campsites. Snack time¡­CHOCOLATE CHUNKS! With no campsites in site we decided to head up to the 3rd section of the Kipawa hoping for better luck. Unfortunately, we ran into a band of natives who hurled arrows at us. We had to run through some fields before finding a safe place to camp. At this safe place to camp the boys decided to pee themselves while sitting in an old chair with their pants on. Supper was soup and dumplings, which took the chill out of us. We retreated to the tents early to get out of the rain. Wash up before bed, boys!

Day 13, July 16th 2003

Distance travelled - 30km
Hrs on water - 10.5hrs
Location - Kipawa River to Lac Dumoine (Ile Quabie, SW end) 784947
Weather - overcast and cold. Where's JULY???
Portages - None just straightforward tracking
Additional Notes - None

Woke up to a surprise¡­¡­ grey skies! Oh gosh! As wet bodies emerged from the tents the best Shit hocho yet was stoved up and our cold bodies soon made back up the Kipawa. We began our long day with a morning of tracking up 5 sets, including one very big one (1km). North, Liam and Morgan reminisced about the night tracking they did the year before at the last swift. Meanwhile, Moss bailed his leaky boat with a billy. The Harry Potter boat (Annie, Bella and Holly) were excited to talk about the terrific ending¡­.Do you know who died yet? Lunch was had at the campsite on the end of Lac Red Pine. It consisted of cracks and cheese, gorp, tastes of India and a fire. The cracks were allotted crack by crack and then inch by inch until finally pinch by pinch with the crumbs. Still cold we headed up the last section of the Kipawa for Lac Dumoine. At 4pm, we busted out the Fig Newton's. During the snack Bella dropped her ring in the lake which sent Annie fully clothed into the water diving after it. Close but no ring. One less ring in the game... watch out girls! What seemed like hrs later (and probably was) we began to approach our campsite as the clouds disappeared as if they were being peeled off the sky. The sun reached the blue layer of the sky and warmed us up. The rocks were scattered with clothes to be dried while a late night pizza party commenced. A rainbow appeared before dark so some of us chased after the end which was pretty close¡­¡­.but no gold was found. It was a late night for us all, until tomorrow...?.

Annie took the ring game seriously!

The clouds disappeared like a blanket as we reached Lac Dumoine!

With just a few km to our campsite it only took us only a few HOURS to get there.

Did you find any Lucky Charms at the end of the Rainbow?

Day 14, July 17th 2003

Distance travelled = 24km
Hrs on water = 9hrs
Location = Lac Dumoine to campsite at end of portage trail. 5 Star. 841759
Weather = sunny and warming in the afternoon. N winds
Portages = 2
1) First portage after Lac LaForge, 200m river right
2) Second portage. We pulled out to early there is easier trails past the first entrance that you see.

The Dumoine today! This brought extra morning cheer and expediency to our b-fast of bran muffins. Even the morning lake paddle seemed to be quick with the morning sun beating down on us. We were surprised to see a lone person on a rock, then another and then another. It turned out to be an O.B. group doing their solo's. Liam and Morgan entertained one young girl with their soon to be famous randition of ¡®Mr. Sandman¡¯. Giggling and good-humoured we arrived at our first set on the Dumoine!!!! A river morphology talk was given in all the excitement and a line was chosen. Everyone ran it to perfection! Brilliant! The portage following was 2 tripped and suddenly we were back on lakes again. We mosied down Brulard and Laforge stopping for lemon loaf, wrestling, jumping and chasing at nice campsite (835876). The lakes seemed to drag on forever until finally at 3pm we arrived at the first portage after Laforge, which had a long stop for blueberries at the end. The second portage we unloaded too early and had to follow a rough trail at the beginning to hook up with the easier and more popular trail further up. We camped out at the end and had spag for supper. Popcorn and some peculiar crossdressing followed all this before we went off to the tents.

"On a warm summer's eve..."

Canoe trips do funny things to people!

Day 15, July 18th 2003

Distance travelled - 12km
Hrs on water - 7.5hrs
Location = 841759 - 822680 (bush crash on portage trail)
Weather = clear morning turning to drizzling afternoon
Portages = 5
#1-4 were all river left along a set at 824725. It would have been faster to portage them all at once b/c there was a trail connecting them.
#5 was at 815712 on river right.
*All 5 portages were easy and had numerous entrances for all sorts of water levels. Most entrances close to the drop were safe but a couple were a little sketchy.
Additional Notes = There was a bridge at 817712. It was not marked on our topo's.

The reason you should come to camp in August is b/c the councillors are done experimenting with meals. This morning we unsuccessfully experimented with a potato pancake recipe. Fortunately Annie whipped up some Java to give us a little kick in the morning. We approached our first set of the day 45 minutes after breaking camp. We pretty much ran and portaged around rapids, ledges and falls all day long! An awesome day! At the end of our 3rd portage we ate a lunch of logan loaf. Argueably the best lunch yet! Shauna rolled her ankle as she tried to load her boat. Good thing she's tough. The best of the day and maybe the trip came at the old bridge 817712. The set was a kilometre long of dodging rocks. It made Morgan and Derek thunderstruck! By the time 5pm rolled around we were all pretty tired and decided to bush crash at the end of the last portage trail where Liam rolled his ankle jumping off a cliff (he was O.K. though). A delicious but painful (NOTE: Boiling water hurts) supper of tuna turnovers was had and chased by Wilkie's raspberry crumble. Moss got in his daily Rikishi by catching Annie off guard just before we all retired off to our sleeping bags. Sleep Well!

Day 16, July 19th 2003

Distance travelled - 15km
Hrs on water - 9.5hrs
Location - 822680 - Big Steel Rapids, 868563
Weather - cloudy all day, rain in the evening
Portages - 2
#1 Canoe Eater - 826678 - river right
#2 ledges - 866640 - river right
Additional Notes - Numerous sets all day. Everything was scouted. Really fun day!

The morning begun with a breaky of oatmeal muffins. A welcome delight to all. We only paddled a few metres before we got to our portage around the Canoe Eater. We flew thru in 2 loads even though one of Jessie's loads was Shauna. The morning was filled with a bunch of sets that followed this. We ran everything. Really fun section! At the bottom of these sets we stopped for chapati's and hummus. Moss was so hungry he was fishing for swimming chick peas. The afternoon carried on like the morning with some fun set after set action of runnable whitewater. Noone dumped all day except for Jessie and Bella but that was on a dragover. Some of us even pushed our luck; Lauren and Chan hit everything we scouted to avoid and Liam steered towards whatever Derek told him to avoid. Morgan on the BBC broadcast all this action. We got to the lakes section of the day and stopped to camp a few clicks above Sheerway. We couldn't have Alfredo b/c, 2 big bags of Milk-o were found instead any Parmasean cheese which means that Annie's Bay Trip next month has 2 bags of parm and no milk-o. Thus we opted for Mac n cheese, best one yet, Wilkie supplemented it with some dried lasagna. A little more work on the Japanimation video game tired us out. This, in combination with the onset of rain sent us off to bed. G'night.

Whitewater!

Annie & North

Bella & Jess

Matt, the one-legged Shauna and North

Day 17

Distance traveled = 34km
Hrs on water - 8
Location - End of Portage Trail to above Red Pine Rapids
Weather - Sunny and Hot
Portages = Grandes Chutes. The takeout is on river right above the falls (is that obvious?)Turn right at the road, and approximately 300m along the road is a turnoff (on the left). There is another trail, just before the bridge. This trail is much longer, but also more scenic.

Awoke early this morning to pancakes and began the mental preparations for the big day ahead (Grande chutes portage... ooooo). On the water by 10, we shot some nice sets in the morning and the hit the flatwater section above the Grande Chutes. Side by side, we entertained ourselves as we hauled through the headwinds towards the portage takeout. Several hours later we had arrived and ate some tuna salad for lunch, in order to fuel up for the challenge. Boat by boat, pack by pack, we headed off. Two hours later, the portage was seemingly completed... until the discovery that Lauren was no where to be seen. Oh dear. Search missions set off in search yours truly. She was discovered by Holly on the road, one kilometer past the turnoff. Lauren's Wani was returned to the boats by the ox, Matt M, and a quick snack of cashews and gorp was dished out. Drink water! Tired and anxious to camp, we found the first campsite, just above Red Pine Rapids. Cooked up some spag, and with aching muscles, we headed off to bed.

La Grande Chutes!

Take a left and then a right. Follow the flagging tape all the way to the swamp and then take another right up the hill after the first three left turns.

Day 18

Distance traveled - 34km
Hrs on water - 6
Location - Red Pine Rapids to Driftwood Provincial Park
Portages - 2
1) After Red Pine. 40 m. On river right.
2) After the cliffs. On river left. 75m. Very well traveled.

Yeah for last big day. Campers crawled from bed at the early hour of 8... oh we are sooo mean. Bran muffins for B-fast, we were quickly off the site, anxious for Red Pine Rapids. The first drop was too gnarly for us, so we decided to line on River left. Gimpy Shauna made her way down, aided by the cheers of the campers. Annie wore Morgan's extra cool glasses frames to keep spirits up. The second drop was shot, perfectly, river left and we eddied in on the left, being forewarned that it was a scary eddy line at times. Scouted the last section of Red Pine from the left, and determined that it could be cautiously shot on the far left shore. Watch out for the ledge 1/3 of the way down. Boat by boat, we headed down, with perfect style! Some rock grinding near the bottom left our mark. Swifts and current helped us along to our first portage of the day, starting on river right. The short portage was done in no time, and we were soon off to the next set, two ledges. Shot the two ledges close to shore on the right, avoiding the scary looking ledge further on left. Beautifully done campers!!! Passed by the huge rock cliffs, were we wondered, in awe, if you would die if you jumped from the top... hum... tortillas and leftovers were devoured at the portage trail. We examined the small falls for feasible lines, and only after convincing the campers that it was NOT shootable, did we begin the portage. Sorry wieners! The rest of the river was flat as it opened up to enter the Ottawa River. We occupied our minds with Disney songs and jokes. The Ottawa was calm, and so we were at Driftwood Provincial Park in no time. Annie and Derek headed up to the main gate to get the group campsite... a huge campsite away from all other park-visitors (a good thing... our shenanigans might be found obnoxious by non-trippers). Phone calls, reading, exploring and night missions kept us entertained. Yellow school bus tomorrow guys!

Lunch Time!

Now there's a jumping Rock!¡­¡­.ya right!

Jess and Holly

A Nalgene with a group of people in the background

Shauna and Moss

Chan and Wilkie

This is not a GRP!

"As I lie on the marge..."

Who's that hot guy next to North?

The Walsh shuttle arrived early today, eight o¡¯clock. Thankfully Annie had woken everyone up at six, and we were almost totally packed up. The bus loaded, we thanked the Driftwood crew, and headed off in search of candy. Milkshakes and ice-cream at the Deep River Dairy, and then on to Temagami for everything else. We were done the beach portage by three, and played in the water for the next hour. Before we knew it, the trip was done for another year, and we were paddling our way under the bridge, to the sound of cheers and hollers.

Thank you ALL so much for an incredible trip. The month was perfect and we will miss you guys in August! Have great summers and wicked years! Don¡¯t go home and rikishi your mothers, you silly assclowns!

Love,

Annie and Derek

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