wanapitei: emotional growth for child and parent€¦ · town of wendigo, past la tuque, and almost...

By JJ (Jennifer Jupp) and Woody (Eoin Wood), Directors

HAVE BEEN A SUMMER camp director for a lot longer than I have been a parent – twenty years as a director, nine years as

a parent. This past summer, I became a summer camp parent. We sent our first born, Anna, to an overnight summer camp – an arts camp eight hours drive from Wanapitei. When I think about parenting in the age of anxiety, I find myself reflecting back to when Anna was in the womb. Our midwife advised me to stop reading pregnancy books because I was focusing on all of the diseases, malformations, and death sentences that my little fetus could face during 9 months’ gestation. Talk about anxiety provoking! I am sure that many parents reading this article can relate. Then this little bundle is born and I realize that there are millions of germs on every surface. As she grows, I feed and protect her all the while feeling with each passing year, that the number of ways for her to be “broken” is growing – not just her skin and bones, but her heart and spirit. My professional training has me keeping my behavior in check while my mind and emotions are tending towards a hell of

anxiety. And this is the way it is for many of us who are parents – too much on the news – too many awful things to hear about especially with the onslaught

of media information coming at us in all forms.

... continued on page 29

Join Us for Family Camp and our Banquets!We welcome you to join us for our third annual Wanapitei Family

Camp program in August. See the back page for details.Community Banquet is July 26th, 2014.

Harvest Night is August 23rd, 2014.Please plan to join us.

Wanapitei: Emotional Growth for Child and Parent

I

By Bruce W. HodginsWanapitei President and Honorary Director

HE LONGEST VOYAGEUR styled trip during the years of my parent’s camp direction, 1956-1970, was in

1966. This one involved two laps. The first lap, an all boys group led by Ted Moores (current Wanapitei Board CEO), and the second longer lap, fully co-ed and all in Quebec, led by myself, Ted Moores, Ann Scott and Carlene Ridley. The first lap paddled from Camp east into Quebec and well beyond Grand Lac Victoria to the Cabonga Reserve. We canoed, from the upper Rouge River east over to the Manoune River and east downstream to the St. Maurice River near the ghost town of Wendigo, past La Tuque, and almost to Shawinigan Falls. Vin Norris (current Board member) was one of the campers. Counting both sections of the trip, it was Wanapitei’s most ambitious and lengthy canoe trip to date, almost seven weeks in duration. In 1971, Carol and I, with Vin Norris and Shelley Beal, led a very large co-ed trip from the highway crossing on the

T H E P A D D L E R ● W I N T E R 2 0 1 4! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! P A G E 2

The Voyageur II Program: A History by Bruce Hodgins

Volume 17, Number 1Winter 2014

EDITOR ..................................... JENNIFER JUPPDESIGN & LAYOUT ......... ERIN SUNSTRUM

The Paddler is published byCamp Wanapitei Co-Ed Camps Ltd.

a canoeing and outdoor leadership centrebased in Temagami, Ontario.

Off-season address:Camp Wanapitei

17B Southampton StreetGuelph, ON N1H 5N3

PHONE: (519) 767-9714 OR (888) 637-5557SUMMER PHONE: (705) 237-8830E-MAIL: [email protected]

INTERNET: www.wanapitei.net

T1977 EastmainVoyageur trip: Erica Rechnitzer (bow), Tim Southam (middle), Kelly Lawson (stern)

1978 Voyageur trip on the Nahanni River, at the brink of Virginian Falls: Shawn Hodgins, Glenn Hodgins, David Wilkie, Erica Rechnitzer, Eric Hodgins.

P A G E 3 T H E P A D D L E R ● W I N T E R 2 0 1 4

... continued from previous page

Nagagami River, down the Albany River to Fort Albany. From there, we flew southeast to Moosonee and took the train southward all the way to Goward (now Temagami North). We got back in our boats and paddled into camp via Jack Pine and Lenore Lakes. At Fort Albany, we found ourselves part of a large young persons’ Cree Square Dance that lasted hours and hours; some of our participants fell fast asleep on the floor. The following morning, I bought my moose hide, Cree-made square dance jacket which I still own and wear today. We sold our two wooden canvas canoes which, after a long journey, were in the worst shape. The Cree had an arrangement deal with the Federal Government for re-canvassing and repairing canoes. It was good to know the boats would be returned to their former glory. In 1972, there was a two-lap, seven-week canoe trip from Wanapitei to Rupert House (Waskaganish) on James Bay. Marcus Bruce and Vin Norris led the first lap deep into northern Quebec to Metagami on the Bell River. A second lap was even longer and led by Carol and myself, Marcus Bruce and Gaye Wadham. Malcolm Thomas (who would go on to lead at Wanapitei) and

Hilary Heath (current board member) were among the participants. The year 1975 marked the first formal Voyageur II trip, a full South Nahanni from the Moose Ponds to Nahanni Butte and down the Liard to the Mackenzie. The trip was led by Marcus Bruce and Mary-Ann Haney. Both would have very long service on the Wanapitei Board. Mary-Ann is still a member. Marcus, a Trent graduate, would serve for many years as the Assistant Director.

The next two Voyageur Trips, 1978 and 1980 were also on the Nahanni. The 1978 trip was led by Malcolm Thomas, who had been on our first Nahanni and Mary Ellen Ripley. The 1980 trip also on the Nahanni was led by Joe de Pancier and Hilary Heath. Both of these Voyageur trips went down the Little Nahanni, which had road access, to the Virginia Falls merger.

Glenn, Shawn, Dan and Eric Hodgins were Voyageurs on that trip. So too were Dave Wilkie, Van Ridout, Barb Sylbaski, Eric Rechnitzer, Marian Heintzman and Antony Southam. Since then there has been no break in Voyageur IIs. In 1981 the Voyageur II trip under the leadership of Nicola (Jarvis) Jennings (current board member) and Hugh Glassco would travel far north in Quebec on the George River all the way to Ungava Bay. In 1981 Huge and Ben Wolfe (our current square dance leader) would lead a Blackstone-Peele-Chilkoot Pass and Kluane trip. In 1983 Shawn Hodgins and Hilary Heath would lead a Voyageur II trip on the Little Nahanni and the South Nahanni Rivers, and the Chilkoot Pass. So the pattern has continued moving from glory to glory. In 2013, we reached a landmark in Wanapitei history with three Voyageur IIs, something that once seemed an unfathomable feat. What a triumph! We strive to carry on this strong tradition as we move forward. The Voyageur II program continues to set the bar for youth canoeing programs in Canada. Eastmain, 1977: Shawn, Glenn and Eric Hodgins.

Nahanni River, 1978 (left to right): Shawn Hodgins, Erica Rechnitzer, Eric Hodgins, Barb Sybalski, Van Ridout, and David Wilkie.


JUNIORS

DATES: July 16 – July 18 2013LEADERS: Kai Bruce, Carling Dal

Bianco, Alex Hodgins, Tess McCutcheon

PARTICIPANTS: John Evans, Dante Fenos, Tyler Green, Alex Iwanowski, Jackson Leggett, Xander Linzel, Griffin Miller, Judah Onstadt-Bauld, Mia Onstadt-Bauld, Tabitha Parmegiani, Adrian Wilson, Anna Wood.

Day 2Distance travelled: 1 kmHours on the water: 0.5Weather: Very, very hot – no wind. Short, intense storm. Morning, Juniors! After a nice sleep-in we got up and were eager to get back onto the water. Kai and Tess made a breakfast of apple crisp with help from the fire experts, Dante, Xander and John. The crisp was quickly eaten and boats promptly loaded with much help from Judah and Anna, so we were ready to hit the water. A short paddle and many riddles later we reached our new home for the night. We unloaded the boats and hopped in the water for what we thought was going to be a warm sunny afternoon. Snack lunch was snacked on while we played. Soon after, we noticed some dark clouds moving in so we all collected our things, packed up our gear and headed to our tents for shelter. The Storm was blowing around our tents, so we all headed to the woods

to escape the winds and assume lightening drill position. The Juniors proved to be tough and brave! After the storm, when we were all slipping into some dry clothes, Adrian dressed up like the Valentine’s Day version of the Tin Man and Dante did some hilarious impersonations. The sun came out once again so we all decided swimming would be the best way to spend the afternoon. The camp surprised us by sending Katie and Eliza with some awesome treats and pizza! After the pizza and chocolate bars, the water toys were set up and played with. Lunch was made for the next day by Griffin, Mia, Tyler, Jackson, and Xander, while Dante helped out with the fire. Adrian, Dante, Anna and Alex H. played some guitar to help us all unwind before bed. After a fun and very excited day we were all tired and a long night of sleep was needed. Night!

DATES: July 22 – July 24 2013LEADERS: Kai Bruce, Carling Dal

Bianco, Alex Hodgins, Eliza JacksonPARTICIPANTS: Thomas Carrie,

Lauren de Simone, Tyler Green, Joshua Keyte, Jackson Leggett, Bridget West, Margot West, Simon West, Anna Wood, Sasha Zuchlinski.

Day 2Distance travelled: 1kmHours on water: 2.5 Weather: Sunny! Morning, Juniors! There were cloudy skies overhead as the whole group helped make our breakfast of hash browns. As the leaders finished the cooking, campers packed up and sous-chef Jackson stoked the fire. Thomas led a game of scatter before heading off the site, just as the skies cleared and we had ourselves a beautiful sunny day. We left our campsite and headed over to the Ferguson jumping rocks hoping to do some cliff jumping. However, much to our dismay, the winds proved too strong and the waves too big so we had to settle for a snack of “c-bars” instead. With this new boost of energy we paddled across the bay to our next campsite at Teabag Point. There, Bridget and Josh tried their hardest to catch a minnow for Carling to eat without success. After a late lunch of big soup we had a visit from some super heroes who brought us delicious cookies and Anna! As the day cooled down Tyler, Margot, and Simon brought out the sleeping bags and started a sleeping bag party complete with a pyramid and lots of snuggling. More

The Adventure Begins: Juniors and Temagamis

Juniors end their first night on trip with roasted marshmallows for dessert.


scatter was played as the leaders made some wow butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner and Lauren showed off her awesome gymnastics skills. A few marshmallows and it was off to bed after a long fun day. Goodnight, campers!

DATES: August 7 – August 9 2013LEADERS: Katie Devlin, Julia

Higgins, Sean Leckie and Tess McCutcheon

PARTICIPANTS: Kate Blumberg, Anne Carscallen, Lucas Conrad, Sofia Davidson, Ella Iles, Sarah Ingoe, Finnegan Killmurray, Evelyn Lewis, Rafe Murray, Kyra Odell, Isis Sullivan, Alice Torrie, Ross Torrie.

Day 2 We awoke to the sounds of restless campers, eager to start the day. The sun was shining, which put a smile on all of our faces, especially Alice and Sofia who were especially against the idea of another rainy day. After a much needed wood collection (where Isis first displayed her fantastic firewood collecting skills), we were able to boil a pot of coffee and proceed with the morning’s events. Julia and Sean made a fabulous peach crisp which was enjoyed by all. The boat had been loaded prior to breakfast thanks to Finn, Sarah, Anne, and Kate as they eagerly volunteered to help the leaders. We were off the site in record time (under three hours) and began the paddle from Pickerel Bay to the Sandy Inlet Beach. We arrived in a little under two hours and got our hands on a great and expansive campsite – prime real-estate for a beach day full of fun in the sun. Sunscreen was applied and we dove into

the lake. Rafe and Lucas spent hours on a special sand structure while others played in the waves – or read a good book! Some even did both (Ella + Kiki). For dinner we had mac + cheese and the combo of lactose + gluten + butter put us straight to sleep. Good night, Juniors! Sweet dreams.

TEMAGAMI (LATE JULY)

ROUTE: Canton Lakes. Camp – Pickerel Bay – Thunderhead Lake – James Lake – Stiles Lake – Log Lake – Bob Lake – Sharp Rock – Napoleon Portage – Lake Temagami – Camp.

DATES: July 18 - July 23 2013

LEADERS: Julia Higgins, Alicia Hodgins, Will Radden

PARTICIPANTS: Verity Carrie, Eric Chaput, Mathieu Forster, Evan

Kauffman, Chloe Priestman, Frida Purdon, Patrick Richardson, Russell Roberge, Henry Seymour.

Day 5Distance travelled: 6km Hours on the water: 5 Weather: very windy

QOTD: “The prunes are doing their job” The leaders awoke to a dream this morning. Henry, Patrick, and Evan were fully packed up before the leaders were even up! When they came into the kitchen they found Mathieu and Eric looking in the Wannigan “Tischu” for all the dishes they needed to wash! The campers all picked a ton of blueberries while waiting for beaver tails to be made for breakfast. Once beaver tails were devoured, we paddled quickly to Napoleon portage with Evan sterning a camper boat. Now that everyone is an expert portager, Napoleon was a breeze! We had an energy booster of granola bars and dried fruit at the end of the portage before paddling out onto Lake Temagami, where we were met with fierce headwinds. We decided to

camp at Tea Bag Point and spent time playing hand games, brushing hair, and singing while waiting for pizza to be made. Good night campers, tomorrow we go under the bridge!

TEMAGAMI (LATE JULY)

ROUTE: Lady Evelyn - Frank Falls. Camp – Napolean Portage – Sharp Rock – Diamond Lake – Lady Evelyn Lake – Lade Evelyn South Channel – Frank Falls – Reverse to Camp.


Late July Temagami boys give a thumbs up on the Sangego porch.


LEADERS: Dumaresq de Pencier, Bronwyn Hodgins, Stephanie Vaughn

PARTICIPANTS: Katie Berwick, Elliot Carusone, Ted Cass, Max Coleman, Sacha Edwards, Eric Gravelle, Romey Karovitch, Hannah Levesque, Hanru Liu, Jude Roberge, Leona Zuchlinski.

Day 3Distance travelled: 6kmHours on the water: 7Weather: Sunny, very windy Today we awoke to beautiful blue skies and winds from the southeast (headwinds, naturally!). Two of the leaders finished the portage from the night before and one made breakfast while the campers got themselves packed. As we were enjoying a huuuge breakfast of oatmeal and dried fruit, the headwinds began to pick up. Leona came to the rescue of her leaders by taking an extra-large serving of breakfast. Despite the crippling winds, the brave travelers set out across the unnamed lake to another, slightly longer portage, completing it in excellent time. Eric carried the crazy heavy tent pack AGAIN!

At the end of the portage we enjoyed a positively decadent snack of watermelon and chocolate chunks, with Elliot naturally managing to get more chocolate on his face than in his mouth. We pressed onwards with impressive speed, despite winds that continued to be killer. Hanru broke out her ‘robot power stroke’, her boat zipping along despite the rough conditions. We took a long leisurely lunch with delicious pesto and an awesome game of PKAWK! We paddled onwards and camped 2.5km from Frank Falls, then cooked and ate remarkably cheesy macaroni. An unseasonable August cold descended and after we’d all bundled up several people brought their sleeping bags out to the fire for hot chocolate and campfire songs.

TEMAGAMI (EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Blueberry Island to Devil’s Mountain. Camp – Napoleon Portage – Sharp Rock – Diamond Lake – Lady Evelyn Lake – back through Diamond to

Lake Temagami – Devil’s Mountain – Ferguson Bay – Camp.

DATES: August 3 – 8 2013

LEADERS: Carling Dal Bianco, Emma French, Will Radden

PARTICIPANTS: Matthew Blumberg, Zane Chaplin, Arlen Griswold, Ethan Hartman, Callum Lewis, Quinn McCart, William Pinckard

Day 3Distance travelled: 14 kmHours on the water: 6.5 hoursWeather: Sunny and blue sky all dayQOTD: “What’s ginger… Ginger…” - William We woke up again this morning to blue skies and the leaders steam rolling the campers! We had a quick breakfast of oatmeal before heading off, back in the direction we came from. Blueberry Island was great fun, but now we must venture to our next highlight, Devil’s Mountain. We paddled back towards the Lady Evelyn Chutes and into Diamond Lake, pushing on through small headwinds but we still made good time! For an energy boost we all ate oranges. Ethan, Matthew, and William did 100 squats with the leaders, before we got back into the boats and paddled back towards Sharp Rock Portage. We sang songs (especially Taylor Swift) and continued with sunny weather for a while, before stopping for lunch on a small island before the portage. After eating yummy Thai Pasta Salad, everyone was ready to challenge themselves on the looming portage. Zane carried the tent pack once again! At the end of the portage, the boys were rewarded with a chocolate bar snack. The campsite was only a quick paddle away. We unloaded and enjoyed Big Soup and Watermelon for dessert. We played some “Darling if you Love Me” and headed to bed. Good night Temags, we have a big day tomorrow, let’s dream of sunshine!Early August Temagamis take time to explore the Pictured Rocks on trip.


TEMAGAMI (EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Centre Falls. Napoleon portage - Sharp Rock - Diamond Lake - Lady Evelyn Lake - Sucker Gut Lake - Franks Falls – Reverse to Camp.

DATES: August 3 – August 8 2013

LEADERS: Alex Hodgins, Alicia Hodgins, Eliza Jackson

PARTICIPANTS: Liam Brown, Madeleine Brown, Brandin Geiler, Nathan Hartman, Calum Murray, Emma Pierson, Hannah Reilly-Jackson, Brett Stich, Min Timmins, Peri Yee.

Day 5 Distance travelled: 12km Hours on the water: 8 Weather: rainy, thunder storms and sunny in the evening We woke up and wiggled our way out of our sleeping caverns ready to greet the day and unaware of the thunder god’s evil plans for us. We shoveled our faces full of the casual and classic breakfast of oatmeal. Fueled and ready, we pushed our boats into the water and were not far past Blueberry Island when Zeus’ bolt was spotted on the horizon. This forced us to pull up alongside shore, where we were blanketed with rain and wind as we headed to the forest for cover. We then sat upon our lifejackets - as is standard lightning drill procedure - and sang and chatted the time away with Hannah’s on the spot story telling as a highlight. Following the story, we huddled for warmth in a cinnamon bun formation for a while we were able to continue on our journey. After a brief paddle we then came upon a small swiftie, which the leaders dragged the boats up quickly before we once again remounted them, now in Diamond Lake. About a kilometer after this we came to the pictured rocks, which are the remnants of aboriginal art located

on a white rock-face on the (right side) of the lake. The wind picked up and we stopped for lunch on a sheltered point and waited for a while for the headwinds to give way before we decided to tow some of the camper boats. Luckily, after battling the waves for a while, the clouds began to part and tail winds pushed us the last kilometer to the portage. On this portage two strapping young campers, Brett and Calum, carried canoes. Soon after the portage we camped. At the campsite, spirits were high and we swam merrily and sang stupendously sappy sad songs sweetly. And also ate amazing risotto! Bed.

TEMAGAMI (LATE AUGUST)

ROUTE: Blueberry Island – Devil Mountain Loop. Camp – Napoleon Portage – Sharp Rock – Devil’s Mountain – Ferguson Bay – Camp.DATES: August 16 – August 21 2013

LEADERS: Kai Bruce and Katie DevlinPARTICIPANTS: Jonah Brooks, Elliot

Carusone, Simone Chung, Nicole Grigorieva, Mackenzie Latimer, Mickaela Lewis, Hannah Licop, Tenley McKay, Liam McMullan.

Day 2 Distance travelled: 6 kmHours on the water: 4.5Weather: Clear skies and windyQuote of the Day: “Roma-Ro-ma-ma” – Boys singing We woke up at 8am to another beautiful day! Kai started a fire and together a breakfast of bacon and eggs was prepared. Drama ensued when Kai accidentally knocked over the scrambled eggs; however he was able to salvage much of them and no one went hungry. We were off the site by 11am and everyone did a great job of packing up their stuff. After about an hour and a half of paddling we reached the portage where all of our campers were relieved

to find that it was nothing like Napoleon. Elliot carried three packs and Liam, Tenley and Mac all pitched in and portaged the canoes for a portion of the trek!!! We had a snack of oranges and played with a couple’s dog. We paddled long and hard for a few more hours before we stopped for lunch; PB&J on chapattis! We swam and basked in the sun for quite a while, until we came to the decision that we would just stay at our lunch spot. Such a spacious and picturesque campsite for such tired souls! Lots more playing and swimming was done, and pizza was made by the campers for dinner! Night!

Paddles up for the late August Temagamis.


COUREUR DE BOIS (LATE JULY) ROUTE: Montreal -Anima Nippising Loop.

Camp – Napoleon Portage – Diamond Lake – Lady Evelyn Lake and River – Montreal River – Anima Nippising Lake – Carrying Lake – Red Squirrel Lake – Red Squirrel River – Lake Temagami – back to Camp.


LEADERS: Becca Gillmore and Jake NorrisPARTICIPANTS: Patrick Dunlop-Ellis,

Phillippe Forster, Kira Green, Cody Hodgins, Sarah Irvine, Sophie Karovitch, William Kauffman, Callum McConnell, AbbyRose Mulvihill, Grace Murdoch, Abigail Pullen, James Risk.

Day 7Distance travelled: 7 kmHours on the water: 3 What a sweet day. Everyone got to sleep in till 9 since the leaders knew it would be a short day. The kids were thrilled when they found out that no bakes were for breakfast, so they all packed up quickly. It would have been our quickest morning yet if it were not for the mystery of Will's missing shoes. Unfortunately, they were nowhere to be found so we had to continue on without

them. Some very mild head winds faced us on our first part of Red Squirrel Lake but once we turned the bend they changed into tailwinds. We got to the portage and finished it with ease since it was the last one. We wound our way down the river afterwards and tried to sneak by camp unseen. Only a couple people saw us as they gave us funny looks why we were going the wrong way. Only mild headwinds faced us so we got to Ferguson Point at 2:30. Everything was very laid back as tents were put up, firewood collected and lunch/dinner prepared. Everyone became independent in cooking their own beavertails for lunch and pizza for dinner. Even though it was relatively cold, the bugs still made an appearance as campers cleaned up and ate some s'mores as the leaders retreated to their tents. CAMP TOMORROW!

COUREUR DE BOIS (JULY)

ROUTE: Sturgeon – Wanapitei – French – Killarney. Camp – Obabika Lake –

Wawgamika Lake – Sturgeon River – lake hop into Lake Wanapitei – French River – Georgian Bay - Killarney – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Sean Leckie and Sierra Mulvenna.

PARTICIPANTS: Madison Demaria, Russell Fenton, William Paterson, Illan Rodriguez-Marin, Alex Wolf, Charlotte Van Dyke-Talbot.

Day 14Distance travelled: 15kmHours on the water: 6Weather: Rainy and cold then hot

and sunny We awoke to mayhem as the campers left their tents. A huge storm had come by the previous night, and the boys forgot to put on their fly. Everything was soaked. As the boys put their stuff out in the sun to dry, we had breakfast. We had carrot muff. Delicious! Unannounced to us, a huge storm was rolling in again. It poured as we tried to pack up all the stuff we had left outside.

From Ferguson to Georgian Bay with the Coureurs de Bois

Coureurs de Bois have an air band jam session at their campsite.


We waited for the sun and the thunder to pass. Soon we realized the rain wouldn’t relent and pressed on. Headwinds made it near impossible to paddle towards the channel. But our willing hearts and minds brought us to the old voyageur channel. As we got into the channel, the rain and wind stopped. We explored the routes that had been traveled hundreds of years ago by the voyageurs. We lapped up the history. After that we got to the Bay. All we could see was a vast expanse of thousands of islands all begging to be explored. We found a campsite right at the end of the French River Provincial Park. Once there we unpacked and swam around exploring the islands. We had Mac and cheese for dinner. It was delicious. Goodnight guys!

COUREUR DE BOIS (EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Emerald Lake Loop. Camp – Obabika Lake – Pond Lake – Emerald Lake – Manitou Lake – lake hoping through unnamed lakes – Gull Lake – Skunk Lake – Lake Temagami – Camp.


LEADERS: Dumaresq de Pencier and Becca Gillmore

PARTICIPANTS: Emily Brown, Dana King, Theodore Pinckard, Elise Proulx, Sean Richardson, Lee Rosensweet, Varvara Shvetsova.

Day 5Distance travelled: 16kmHours on the water: 8.5 Weather: Sunny, becoming light clouds. Consistent tailwinds! Awakened slightly earlier than we’d wanted by some very loud crows, we breakfasted on muffins as the sun burnt the mist off the lake. Once embarked, we headed back up the lake to the portage trail, making one quick detour

at a weird hunting-trail-to-nowhere that turned out to not be the portage. At the real trail, we clambered over a somewhat log-strewn takeout but otherwise made good time. One down. An extremely brief paddle across an unnamed lake later and we were at portage numero dos, our longest of the day. As always, we blitzed it in two loads. Two down. Another short lake hop later, and we were at the wide (if slightly puddly) ATV trail that was portage three. It was quickly surmounted, though a missing paddle and snack-lunch meant we spent a fair amount of time at the spacious put-in on Turtleshell Lake. During that time, Dana’s slow-mo paddle kung fu and Elise’s startlingly good sense of balance combined to inspire our trip skit plans. Emily returned from recovering her paddle to find a truly bizarre paddle salute waiting for her. Three’s done.The paddle down Turtleshell was pleasantly uneventful, and we’d soon finished portage number four and were on Gull Lake. Four’s the charm. Buoyed by strong tailwinds, we zipped ‘cross Gull Lake, and were confronted by a dilemma; we could either camp at the bush crash site on the left of the two portages, or we could push on into Skunk Lake, which would entail two more portages. A vote was taken. A consensus reached. And so, with thunder in our bellies and fire in our hearts, we PUSHED! down a very pleasant, straight trail into the third unnamed lake of the day.

Five down, one to go. We refueled on dried fruit and watched Theo pretend he was the Messiah (he can walk on water? PAAAANIC.) After yet another short lake hop, we came to the tree-jammed take out of our sixth and final portage of the day, where small clusters of carnivorous pitcher plants sprouted in swampy water. It went well. Six. Blammo. Done. We did the short distance down Skunk Lake to our large, sprawling island campsite. While the leaders made far, far too much risotto, Varvara pretended she was a tree by dressing in leaves and led the rest of the group in tree-makeovers. Sean practiced a bit of soloing after Lee’s expedition to go to the bathroom revealed that the small island we were on was not actually accessible from the mainland. (“The stream’s really, really deep. Sorry, Theo and Sean.”) With our bellies full of oh

A C.deB. smiles over a fully loaded boat in Early August.


man that was a lot of rice, we headed to bed, satisfied/exhausted.

COUREUR DE BOIS (EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Montreal Anima Nippising Loop. Camp – Napoleon Portage – Diamond Lake – Lady Evelyn Lake and River – Montreal River – Anima Nippising Lake – Carrying Lake – Red Squirrel Lake – Red Squirrel River – Lake Temagami – back to Camp.


LEADERS: Kai Bruce and Megan Buchkowski

PARTICIPANTS: Saul Chaplin, Flavie Deveaux, Sam Douey, LeDain Gordon, Mathew Hartman, Claire Hunter.

Day 2Distance travelled: 28kmHours on the water: 7Weather: Sunny, then thunderstorms for the afternoon It was up early today! The kids even

asked to have a big day today—they are hardcore! We got up, had bacon, eggs and English muffins—as well as blueberries—for breakfast. We were on the water within 2.5 hours, thanks to speedy packing and fast dishes by Claire and Flavie. Up Diamond and a stop at the Pictured Rocks got us to the Lady Evelyn Chutes. The kids got to experience some white water thanks to high water levels. For the hours before lunch, LeDain, Sam, Flavie and Megan played Botechelli and Saul, Mathew, Claire and Kai played Ghost. The weather was incredibly nice until we stopped for lunch. After serving out delicious pasta salad made by Saul and LeDain, it began to rain and thunder. However, these circling storms gave us great tailwainds so we flew up Lady Evelyn. We pushed past our original destination of Obisaga Narrows and headed to Obashingwakoba Narrows where we decided to camp by a little fishing resort that was on an island nearby. Wet wood fire skills were tested to the extreme, but a fire was successfully made by Megan and Kai finally. Dahl Soup for dinner and Quinoa salad for lunch was made –

dinner was devoured. Saul and Sam did wonderful dishes, and Claire was a trooper for cutting veggies in the rain. Mathew was a gentleman and helped the girls with their tent. As dishes were being finished the rain picked up and scattered us to our tents. Good night, wonderful campers!

COUREUR DE BOIS (LATE AUGUST)

ROUTE: Lady Evelyn South Channel. Camp – Napoleon Portage – Sharp Rock – Willow Island Lake – Centre Falls – Helen Falls – Katherine Lake – Bridal Veil Falls - Fatman Falls – Lady Evelyn River - The Barn Portage - Diamond Lake - Sharp Rock - Pickerel Bay - back to Camp.


LEADERS: Tess McCutcheon and Asa Thomas

PARTICIPANTS: Jordan Decker, Emma Gordon, Sophie Gordon, Alex King, Samuel Liptay, Jacob Mac Whirter, Aldara State-Ezust.

Day 1Distance travelled: 13.5km)Hours on the water: 10:30-6:30Weather: Sunny but coolVibe of the Day: Level One The bold CdeB As rode out into the placid Lake Temagami. Big fluffy clouds welcomed us onto trip as we waved our good byes. We got through the first few km in good time as the sun heated up. Napoleon soon reared his head and not-so-short stature. The cliff face was scaled, Aladara managing a food pack, and the trail stomped. Sam took a canoe with almost no breaks. Sharp Rock Inlet was a sight for sore eyes as bagels and cream cheese were consumed. Bellies full, eyes on the prize, Sharp Rock in sights, we set off. The moderate winds were tackled and it was time to portage again. However this time it came in at a puny 75m. The CdBs

Dinner time for Early August Coureurs de Bois.


harnessed the power of clutch-money and made it over in no time. Apples were hungrily consumed as eyes were cast over a beautiful Diamond Lake, glinting in the afternoon sun. Campsites in mind we set out again, gliding across calm waters. Jokes were shouted and the lake’s calmness appreciated. Before long we happened upon a perfect campsite with a glorious view. Preparations for stir-fry were underway as various tent-based problems were overcome. Darkness fell, tumbling after a perfect sunset that magically reproduced itself in the shimmering lake. Dinner was consumed, and very much enjoyed. Dishes soon followed with Sophie, Emma and Jordan braving the cold and unseasonably vicious bugs to leave the campsite sparkling.

COUREUR DE BOIS (LATE AUGUST)

ROUTE: Emerald Lake Loop. Camp – Devil’s Bay – Obabika Lake – Emerald Lake – Manitou Lake – lake hopping though unnamed lakes – Skunk Lake – Lake Temagami – Camp.


LEADERS: Carling Dal Bianco and Sean Leckie

PARTICIPANTS: Madelyn Edey, Emily Gardner, Deanie Harding, Theodore Heintzman, Abrial Levisky, Wilson Symons, Ella Taylor.

Day 7Distance travelled: 6 Km Hours on the water: 2.5 Good morning, Campers! Today we woke up a little later than usual knowing that we had about half a dozen kilometers to our campsite. Scrambled carrot muffins were exactly what we needed to get ourselves moving. We were graced with rather large tail winds, which meant that we would shortly make it to the Ferguson campsite! We

made it to our destination with plenty of time for fun! Kids ate up some dried fruit and other snacks that were left over and got in boats once again to go play at the Ferguson jumping cliffs. Sean bravely jumped first followed by every camper. With a little time and encouragement the campers were also able to convince Carling to jump as well! We then headed back to the campsite and relaxed for a while before starting up pizza. Ella and Deanie created their own artwork out of pollen and bark. After some quiet time, kids headed out of tents and started with dinner. We ate delicious pizza and Wilson decided to add some extra spice and syrup to his. Emily, Maddie and Deanie went swimming followed by a group hangout and scary stories! Before bed the leaders were able to sneak up and scare the campers for one last laugh before bed. Kids decided that it would be fun to sleep outside and gaze at stars for their last night on trip. Goodnight, campers! Under the bridge tomorrow!

COUREUR DE BOIS (AUGUST)

ROUTE: Sturgeon – Wanapitei – French -Killarney. Sturgeon – Wanapitei – French – Killarney. Camp – Obabika Lake – Wawgamika Lake – Sturgeon River – lake hop into Lake Wanapitei – French River – Georgian Bay - Killarney – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Angus MacPhail and Jean Murray

PARTICIPANTS: Alannah Chung, Nico Fischer, Gabe Fischer-Schmidt, Jack Heath, Rachel Heath.

Day 14 Distance travelled: 30kmHours on the water: 10Weather: Hot ‘n sunny A gorgeous pre-dawn morning got us going as we awoke early to beat the wind. The rising sun caught us munching on granola with tents down and ready to go. We paddled north of

Late-August Coureur de Bois girls demonstrate a proper Therm-a-Rest pile.


Green Island and down the voyageur channel for our first glimpse of Georgian Bay!! As we began to paddle out into the Bay we were met by a sheet of fog that obscured everything outside of a 30m radius. Leaving the final island behind us we paddled following our compass as the sun began lifting the cloud cover to reveal the breathtaking beauty of the area. Spurred on by Botticelli games the kilometers sped by. Stopping for snacks and swimming we sped along the exposed portion of our paddle thanking Big Momma N for keeping the winds nonexistent. As we began to enter Beaverstone Bay the tailwinds picked up behind us to help. Coasting on these winds we enjoyed a floating lunch of black bean dip and chapattis while listening to “Lost in the Barrens”. Satisfied and rested the remainder of the day flew by in a sunny haze before eventually turning into Collins Inlet. With scarce campsites to be seen we bush crashed on the southern shore in what turned out to be a gorgeous spot. Dinner of chickpea curry perfected by Jean was followed by cookies, tea and more reading time before a great sleep.

PIONEERS (LATE JULY)

ROUTE: Spanish River. Bus to put-in at Biscotasing – Biscotasi Lake – Spanish River – Agnew Lake – bus from Agnew Lake Lodge to Ferguson Bay – paddle into Camp.

DATES: July 16 – July 24 2013

LEADERS: Jean Murray and Asa Thomas

PARTICIPANTS: Kate Baron, Joel Fetterly, Alise Grant, Thomas Heinrich, Bridget Liddy, Hunter Purdon.

Day 6Distance Traveled: 26 km Hours on the water: 6.5Weather: warm and sunnyQuote of the Day: “I find I float better with a lifejacket on.” - Thomas A chill was in the air this morning, as mist rose off the river and the Pioneers struggled to get out of bed. The promise of chocolate chip pancakes was only a mild motivator, though were highly enjoyed. Waving good morning to the Pinecrest group as they passed, we loaded up our boats and eventually got on the water. A fun swiftie started off the day, as Bridget sterned her first set of trip (and ROCKED IT), but soon we were on to a long stretch of flatwater. The pelican soup riddle had everyone stumped for a long time, but soon we all learned the horrific truth. The day began to warm up into a scorcher, and before you could

say “the day has warmed up into a scorcher”, layers had come off and sunscreen had gone on. More riddle ensued to pass the time, like that scoundrel Billy Williams. At the end of Spanish Lake, we stopped for a floating lunch of quinoa salad, floating an impressed 5 meters downstream in the process. Trip skit was brainstormed, though to minimal success. As we headed back down the river, we were met with some fun R1/swifties, and breezed through a massive stretch of river in no time. Stopping only for a session of “ates” (hydrate, urinate, congregate, celebrate, etc.) and a swim, we made great time. Soon, Graveyard rapids was upon us. We shot the first R1 river right, then went down a little chute to the beginning of the next portage, eddying out at the portage sign just above the ledge. Our beautiful campsite was in the middle of the (short) portage trail, with an amazing view of the set. Bridget was the only one brave enough to go for a swim on the washout of the set, and Alise finally managed to stump Jean with a riddle as dinner was being cooked. After crushing an amazing

Rocking Rapids with the Pioneers

Pioneers take a swim (and a splash) to beat the heat in July.


dinner of chickpea curry (“It looks just like Indian takeout food!”), breadmaster Asa started his loaves, and a good giggle session was had by all. As they say, a good laugh a day keeps the forest monkey away…) Finally, after a great map session and some intense nicknaming, everyone headed off for some well-earned rest. Great day today, friends, can’t wait until tomorrow!

PIONEERS (LATE JULY)

ROUTE: Temagami River. Camp to Kokoko Lake – Cross Lake – Red Cedar Lake – Thistle Lake – Temagami River – Five Fingers – Ragged Chutes – River Valley Bridge – shuttle to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Megan Buchkowski and Scott McCutcheon

PARTICIPANTS: Logan Germain, Lucas Hayes, Aidan Hueton, Cooper

Kauffman, Amelia Keenan, Simon Rechico Moisan, Ben Risk, Kyla Ruch, Hayley Watt.

Day 6Distance travelled: 8kmHours on the water: 4 hoursWeather: Hot and sunny A calm Thistle Lake with mist rising from the mass of water greeted us this morning. We decided to try and start early to get the good campsite at Ragged Chutes. Eight-grain and ALL the fixings this morning! Though some put a little too much richness in and couldn’t handle it . . . Cooper. A quick alpha bathroom break on main land and then we were back on the river! Boy, did we move. Thistle Falls portage done in a moment the set done swimmingly or should I say . . . without a swim. We were greeted at the bottom by some fellow canoe trippers swimming in the left eddy. Megan and Amelia had a mild heart attack because we thought they were our group, but no worries, they weren’t. The Island Portage was done in record speed with Hayley, Aidan and

Amelia all amazing with boats. When we were lowering the gear down the sketchy put-in Cooper and Lucas were a great help with Scott on the receiving end. Another quick swift or two and we reached Ragged Chutes. Amazing time. We portaged, with a little confusion around campsites due to Megan’s faulty memory, Scott’s misunderstanding of numbers and the extreme distraction of BLUEBERRIES EVERYWHERE. We had snacks for lunch, and some of us swam in some current while Simon fished. Scott practiced his rescuing with Cooper who didn’t need rescuing at all. The sun baked us continually while everyone hung out and picked blueberries. Scott cooked up some spicy Thai Noodle Salad for dinner for which Kyla and Cooper were late due to their discovery of the “dream” blueberries. The campers decided for dessert and left to their own vices they became savages, swarming the scrambled cookies made by Cooper and Kyla. Ben and Hayley did dishes—they slaved over the burned cookie griddle bravely with knives. Megan vowed to bring steel wool on her next trip. Then quick to our tents as the temperature dropped and the bugs began to mow us down.

PIONEERS (JULY)

ROUTE: Coulonge River – Northern Approach. Bus to put-in on Ruisseau Jackson – Grand Lac Victoria – Ottawa River – lake hopping to the Coulonge River – bus from Terry Fox Bidge to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Emma Hobbs and Angus MacPhail

PARTICIPANTS: Matthew Bowles, Neil Brubacher, Walter Conde, Taj Dyson, Ian Karovitch, Hayden King, Samuel Klooster, Oscar Link, Cameron MacPhail, Dana Price, Andrea Rodriguez-Marin, Jacob Wolf.A crowd stands on the Bridge to welcome home the Pioneers.


Day 13Distance travelled: 11km Hours on the water: 6Weather: hot and sunny, THUNDERSTORM, less hot and sunny, DOWNPOUR. This morning’s wakeup was slightly less scorching than yesterday’s, but only just barely. A big ol’ pot of oatmeal n’ fixins got us off the site and onto the glorious Coulonge! Just past our campsite, we hit our first set of the day. It was a sweet R1 with an obvious channel on RR. Four guys solo paddling

stopped to help as safety boats after running the set, but rapidly moved on after seeing the first couple of boats totally nail the set. The rest of the boats followed with expert style and poise. Kilometres of wondrous swifties followed. After we zoomed by our solo boating friends having lunch, we were inspired to stop to chow down on some hummus and chapattis. Forced hydration and a little dip in the river occurred before we hopped back into our boats. We nailed a few more sets as the afternoon wore on. These Pions are turning into some pretty slick paddlers,

we are impressed. As we continued down even more swifties and easy pick and choose R1s, we heard some distant rumblings and noticed some fairly ominous clouds creeping up on us… not again big momma N! We paddled our very hardest in an attempt to reach Tall Pine Rapids before the storm hit, but our plans were foiled by an hour of lightning drill mere metres from the Tall Pine portage and the R1 above. The rainstorm had the group wondering what we had done to so upset the great and powerful Mother Nature… no good ideas were proposed. Soggy and

somewhat peeved, we finally returned to our boats and shot the remaining set like pros. Dana sterned her first whitewater and did amazing! Just when we thought our luck had turned, we saw our new nemeses (but not really), the Camp Temagami boys, lining their boats down to the Tall Pine campsite… NOOOOOO! Thankfully, we realized that the portage above Tall Pine is complete with a fairly nice campsite, and with some lollipops to fuel us, we set up for the night. Before a dinner of shepherd’s pie empanadas was whipped up, we had a group scrub down… so nice

to feel clean! While dinner was prepared, people lounged in tents, mixed muffins, and worked on happy day gifts. Taj took some sweet photos of the campfire smoke… so wicked. As dinner was served, yet another storm blew in and we hastily bomb proofed and set up an amazing tarp. We shovelled our food in, gave up on baking due to the torrential downpour that was now upon us, and retreated to our tents. Let’s all hope for a medium-hot, slightly overcast, dry day with some more sick whitewater tomorrow!

PIONEERS (EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Temagami River. Camp to Kokoko Lake – Cross Lake – Red Cedar Lake – Thistle Lake – Temagami River – Five Fingers – Ragged Chutes – River Valley Bridge – shuttle to Camp - paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Sierra Mulvenna and Asa Thomas

PARTICIPANTS: Landers Gordon, Callum Graham, Charles Hunter, Kieran Yee, Elias Zaarour.

Day 5 Distance travelled: 11kmHours on the water: 6.5Weather: sunny, but cool. We woke up this morning to some wonderful sunshine. Asa prepared some delightful hash browns and the rest of us packed up camp. We started the day off with a set, wohoo! We ran into another group from Kandalore and got to say a quick hello! We had to line the first bit of the set and then the kids watched Asa and Sierra run the bottom section. The boys were very happy that the Kandalore group was all girls and spent some time chatting them up. We kept paddling until we reached the next set. We had some delicious bean salad before conquering the set. After

The Early August Pioneers smile at end of a successful trip on the Temagami River.


satisfying our appetites we were ready to keep going. The camper boat made it down safe with only a little bit of damage to the boat. Good job Charles and Elias for giving it a go! We eventually hit our last set of the day and Kieran gave it a go at sterning, he was awesome! Onto Cedar Lake we went and straight to our campsite! Mac and cheese was loved by all…. especially Elias and Charles who finished off the pot! Dishes were complete and off to the tents we went! Great first days of white water guys! Cal and Landers you’ll be sterning tomorrow!

PIONEERS (LATE AUGUST)

ROUTE: Groundhog River. Bus North to put-in – down the Groundhog River to Fauquier – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Megan Buchkowski and Sierra Mulvenna

PARTICIPANTS: Nathaniel Basque-Giroux, Rachel Carmichael Campbell, Ivor Forrest, Eden Israeloff Smith, Nicholas Kaegi, Zack Levisky, Kai Malcolm, Nowlan Maynes, James Smallhorn-West, Lucas Whitear.

Day 7Distance travelled: 26 kmHours on the water: 5Weather: Overcast, sunny, HUMID. One big rain storm/thunderstorm in the evening.QOTD: “So, just so you know, there’s a dam.”—Sierra“There’s dam?! What?!” –the boys Good morning to an overcast day! Everyone packed up and got more firewood for scrambled bran muffin. Yum! Then after a much needed weather ritual, we pushed off to finish 10-mile rapids. The ritual worked although overcast, the rain stayed away and the heat continued. We scooted

gracefully down our rapids, rafting up occasionally. Kai and Lucas were very eager and stayed right behind the lead boat. They also wrote a great paddling song to the tune of row row row your boat. Once 10-mile ended we rafted up for lunch. Murmurs of joy spread through the waiting crowd as chaps, hummus, salami and cheese were brought to the table along with pb and j. During our lunch, we had big tailwinds, so with a few raincoats and Zack and Ivor’s persistence, we made some good distance. Then it was just a song on two from Rachel and a number of games of Ghost (of which Nowlan won all) and we reached our dam. We were quick to unload and had a brief centre-flipping lesson—way to go James, Nowlan, Lucas and Kai! We set up tents, for which Eden’s peg job was awesome. As we began quinoa-sweet potato soup for dinner, some people drove by and told us a HUGE storm that was in store for the night. This got us nervous as the wind blew everything around. Just as we were finishing dinner,

the thunder and rain came. However, our luck prevailed and it past us in 20 minutes, leaving us with some blue sky and a beautiful sunset. They boys went a little stir crazy, and James picked up Sierra while Nick frolicked like a fairy. Kai and Megan killed themselves laughing at each other’s turtle faces, while Nowlan eventually found his headlamp. Zack’s loud shirt kept him easy to find, and we all stood in a circle as the sun descended on our second last night of trip. Brilliant day, guys, thanks for the laughs!

PIONEERS (AUGUST) ROUTE: Coulonge River. Bus to put-in at

Resevoir Dozois – lake hopping into the Coulonge River – down the Coulonge – take out at Terry Fox Bridge – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Bronwyn Hodgins and Jake Norris

The four-week Pioneers navigating white water on the Coulonge River in August.


PARTICIPANTS: Bronwyn Bates, Gavin Clarke, Hannibal de Pencier, Jasmin Emery-Wookey, Theophile Fournier, Jack Gardiner, Carolyn Nicol, Emmerson Wilson.

Day 9Distance travelled: 9.5kmHours on the water: 4Weather: hot, humid and sunny. Thunderstorm in the afternoon. Another relaxing day of fun white water was ahead of us. The group ate some 8-grain and were off to start the day. In no time, we had finished a portage and were at our first set of the day. Here in our first dump of trip, Turbo’s boat demonstrated the perfect way of how not to pass through a hole broadside and grab the gunwales. After a quick self-rescue, the group began to shoot one by one over the mini ledge, each with a big smile on their face. Since we were making such great time, we decided to practice ferrying back and forth across the washout of our last set, working on our MITH carves. With

hunger emerging, we arrived at the campsite and pulled out the pesto. The group enjoyed some 7 restful hours at this camp site before hitting the hay. Mac ‘n cheese was served and a loaf was baked in the Dutch in prep for tomorrow’s lunch. Fun re-counts of the day’s whitewater were shared while we enjoyed cookies under the tarp. Night!

PIONEERS (AUGUST) ROUTE: Coulonge-Noire Crossover. Drive

to put-in at Resevoir Dozois – down the Coulonge River to confluence – paddle down to the Noire River – pick up at the Black River Inn - bus to Camp.


LEADERS: Scott McCutcheon and Tori Miller

PARTICIPANTS: Liam Agnew, Francesca Berkowitz, Stefan Dowhaniuk, Jacob Fischer, Olivia Gordon, Pearce Gould, Declan Gray, Molly Heintzman, Lukas Lister-

Stevens, Said Maalim-Chartres, Sadie Segriff.

Day 16Weather: hot and sunnyQOTD: ‘Freedom isn’t free, so everyone’s gotta pitch in their buck oh five’ – Said We awoke this morning to another beautiful sunny day. We got out of our rest day tents and had a quick breakfast of oatmeal. Jacob and Scott were stuck in the leaky boat number 14 due to being the last paddling group to rise. We hit the water in incredible speed. Yet another paddle had gone missing, either Olivia’s or Sadie’s, we don’t know. The sun was blaring and we were all sure to keep hydrated. We arrived at our first portage early in the day. A short one around the top of the Falls. We shot a technical R1 at the bottom. Stefan and Olivia picked a funny line but were able to correct themselves in time. We kept paddling until we reached Targie. It looked really really fun but it was a little too big for loaded boats. We portaged the top and shot the bottom again. Next set we reached was the Staircase. We shot the big chute and the top. Jacob and Scott took the fun line and punched through the big hole. They dunked a gunnel and took on a bunch of water but didn’t dump! We decided that we would avoid the bottom section by shooting the river left channel. It was a crummy set but still better than portaging. Next up we reached Mountain Chutes. We pulled out at river right. We had an amazing snack of corn nuts. Frankie pretended to be a dog and we all rewarded her with corn nuts for doing tricks. After the portage, Jacob and Scott pawned off our leaky boat on Stefan and Liam. Sorry boys, leaders can’t have number 14. We had another short portage directly after Mountain Chutes. After that we had lunch. Some of us went swimming while others napped in the sand. We pushed onwards down the Noire. We stopped Early August Pioneers smile at end of a successful trip on the Temagami River.


for the night at the beginning of Hells Portage. We had Shepard’s Pie for dinner. Sadie attempted to make no bakes for dessert, but a little bit of fuel taste had got into them so we decided that we wouldn’t have any and have hot chocolate instead. Nighty night kiddos.

BAY TRIP (JULY)

ROUTE: Kesagami River. Bus north to Upper Kesagami Lake, across to Kesagami River – down into James Bay – paddle west on the Bay and up the Moose River to

Moosonee – train and bus back to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Andrew Brown and Gill Thompson

PARTICIPANTS: Myfanwy Cappel, Frederick Foccroulle-Bussieres, Sam Karovitch, Malcolm King, Elena Lopez de Cos, Jasper Ophel, Nathan Roberge, Alex Roeder.

Day 9 Distance travelled: 4.5kmHours on the water: 4Weather: cold, rain We woke to some overcast skies and drearily packed our bags and boats while Brown and Gill struggled to make coffee and peach crisp. Our sweet and savory breakfast consumed, we jumped into our boats and paddled all of 200m to a falls and unloaded for our first portage of the trip. Isn’t it like, day 9? Admittedly, it was a bit disorganized, and the put in did not lend itself to easy loading of boats. As a result, Elena’s water bottle somehow bounced out of a

boat and we were forced to simply watch it drift away as no boats were loaded enough to give chase. Nathan’s paddle also somehow became separated from its boat, but his boat mates were able to cast off and retrieve it in time. Perhaps we should stop throwing things for a short time… We made our way, and the rain came down. Hard. And a cold wind with it, but we managed to stay warm enough by paddling. Most sets where washed out into R1-R2’s and we only had to do a serious scout for one set which we all shot beautifully, even the mojo boat, which managed to find the best line-though they shot it backwards. Shivering with whitewater-excitement, or perhaps cold, we cautiously approached the first island portage, which had very large falls on either side. We rocked the take out and warmed ourselves by dominating the portage. Moral was further raised when Fred, while doing quick surf with Brown spotted something red in a grassy eddy. Low and behold, it was Elena’s water bottle!! Onward! The next island portage was even more challenging to get to, as it featured bigger falls on either side plus some considerable current near the take out. After some careful line-consideration all of the boats were being unloaded and packs donned. We made it about 2/3 of the way down the trail only to find a sweet campsite with a great view of the gorge and falls. Given the rain and cold and a ‘leader feeling’ we decided to camp then and there. The rain had eased up enough for us to set up our tarp and tents, but soon started again. Another wet wood fire project, but after a lot of fanning we were having coffee and tuna toasties on the grill. We are not sure how, but we managed to spend 6 solid hours under the tarp, didn’t leave once. We took turns reading out loud, telling stories and jokes, and had lots of laughs. Bellies full we hit the hay.

Both groups of July Bay Trippers sit in a train car in Moosonee at the end of their trips.

Tracking Tides with the Bay Trippers


BAY TRIP (JULY)

ROUTE: Partridge River. Bus to put in north of Cochrane – creek to Cooke’s Pond -– Lake Kesagami – Partridge Lake – Partridge River – James Bay – Moose River to Moosonee – train and bus back to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Charles Heath and Emily Miller

PARTICIPANTS: Elia Deck, Austin Gardner, Jenna Gardner, Frieda Hodgins, Kimberley Huisman, Abigail Mackenzie-Armes, Ruairidh MacPhail, Paul Richmond.

Day 14 Distance travelled: 0 – Rest day!Weather: hot and sunny Everyone enjoyed a nice sleep-in this morning and when we finally rolled out of bed, Abigail learned the art of making cinnamon buns from Miller. So good! The sun was shining and everyone was enjoying lounging in the heat. We saw a trillion horse flies that also decided to come out and enjoy the sunny day, but they weren’t received

with as much enthusiasm as the sun. In the afternoon everyone paddled down the sweet chute we were camped beside and we got some amazing pictures and videos. Babs and Frieda took a little unscheduled swim and then everyone went for a swim at the bottom of the chute. We made quinoa salad for tomorrow’s lunch and then started on pizza for dinner! Best pizza ever! Kim and Frieda made cookies for dessert and then it was time for happy day gift exchange! Jenna wrote a sweet rap for Paul and Paul wrote Jenna a sonnet about trip. Abigail knit Miller and toque with her name on it and Miller made Ruairidh a flower for his life jacket. Ruairidh made Abigail a wooden spoon because we were short one. Frieda made Charles a wicked quick dry pillow case and Charles made Kim a birch bark map of our route. Kimberley made Austin a hat to make up for the one he lost. Austin made Elia a stick with everyone’s height on it so he knew how far he would have to bend to hug people and Elia wrote Frieda a song. What a great happy day! Sleep well tonight guys, we’re back on the river tomorrow.

BAY TRIP (AUGUST)

ROUTE: Kattawagami River. Bus to Lawagamau Lake put-in, Kattawagami River down into James Bay – up the Moose River to Moosonee – train and bus back to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Tim Moss and Gill Thompson

PARTICIPANTS: Becca Carter, Mira Chaplin, Kyle Gardiner, Henry Gould, Anna Hayman, Kishan Patel, Mika Rogers, Aidan Timmins.

Day 17Distance travelled: 20kmHours on the water: 12Weather: Beautiful and calm at night, windy later in the morning. Good morning Bay Trippers! Rather, good evening Bay Trippers. That’s right, it is 10 pm and we are just starting a long day of paddling. We were on the water by 11, and had an incredibly calm and beautiful paddle to the start of Hannah Bay. The moon was bright and we dragged our boats over the sneak channel and stared following the tides out to the sea. The stars were amazing. We couldn’t have asked for better weather for our first night on the Bay - what an incredible experience. We had granola around 3am, then continued on until 5am when we beached ourselves on a small rock island. Our anticipated break of several hours was hastily shortened when we realized that the tide was coming in sooner than we expected. Intrepid trippers that we are we pushed on, getting past a sand bar and aiming for Netitishi point. The winds picked up, so we started walking towards the point, stopping when the tides were on their way out again. A brutal portage across the mud flats to high ground was probably our biggest challenge of the trip so far - great determination team. Eventually we

August Bay Trippers sit down to a family dinner at the end of the day.


made it there, set up our tents and crawled in for a nice long sleep.

BAY TRIP (AUGUST)

ROUTE: Kesagami River. Bus north to Upper Kesagami Lake, across to Kesagami River – into James Bay – paddle west on the Bay and up the Moose River to Moosonee – train and bus back to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: North de Pencier and Connor “Fred” Thompson

PARTICIPANTS: Jason Ashe, Dan Devlin, Severen Fischer-Schmidt, Henri Fontaine, Marguerite Fournier, Phillip Jobin-Joy, Mary McNee, Xiu Timmins.

Day 8Distance travelled: 17kmHours on the water: 7Weather: blue skies with fluffy clouds We were all still slightly moist from the night before. The mood improved greatly when everyone realized that it

was in fact sunny. Jason, your offering of some Mars to the river gods must have been appreciated. We decided to take advantage of this blessing and soon the trees around the kitchen were decorated with wet clothing. It took a little while for the beans to refry for breakfast burritos but nobody minded. After we ate, there was a quick white water talk before we got on the water. Hello Kesagami River! The current was wonderfully fast and before we knew it, we were running swifties and R1s. At one point a moose crossed the river right in front of the lead boat. As the rapids became more consistent we pulled into an eddy for a snack of crackers and dried fruit. Not too much later we started to hit bigger sets. Two R2s were scouted and shot perfectly. At the bottom of the second we ate quinoa for a late lunch. This was rushed through due to outrageously bad bugs. We paddled another kilometer and another set before stopping to camp. After pushing through about 5m of thick brush, we reached a beautiful mossy forest with more tent sites than one could count and, at least for the moment, was relatively bug free. It

must be a magical fairy forest. We quickly exploded everywhere and made it our home. Severen and Xiu helped make Fettuccini Alfredo with Henri as fire god. Meanwhile Marguerite started to make her first bread. After dinner we gave ourselves full body baby wipe baths before bed.

RIVER ADVENTURE(EARLY AUGUST)

ROUTE: Coulonge River. Bus north to put-in past Verendrye Lodge – Coulonge River to Terry Fox Bridge – shuttle to Camp – paddle under the bridge.

DATES: July 31 – August 9 2013

LEADERS: Emily Miller and Laura Wilkie

PARTICIPANTS: Brenden Duffley, Luca Hennart, Andrew Pickering, Anik Watts, Paloma Watts.

Day 5Distance travelled: 30kmHours on the water: 6.5Weather: Sun then rain, repeat We rolled out of bed this morning and packed up in record time. Yummy chocolate chip pancakes were devoured and then it was time to get moving. We started with some swifties right away and Big Mama (Mother Nature) started playing games with us. First sunny and hot, then rain and wind. Back to sun. More rain. She just couldn’t make up her mind! In no time we were arriving at our first portage. Anik rocked three loads and Luca and Andrew took a

Skill Building with the River Ads

Campers or jungle cats? River Adventurers growl for the camera in August.


minor detour, but we finished in no time. After the portage, we had apples for a quick snack and then we were back on the water. Then we got to Rapides Wolfe and Andrew was the master sternsperson and hit the line perfectly! I know Paloma appreciated it with her huge sigh of relief at the end. We had a floating lunch of tuna wraps and passed a dead deer in the water as we floated by. Killer tailwinds made for a quick afternoon and Anik slept through all of it in the mojo seat. We got to the campsite at the top of Chute Diables and Luca translated for us with another group who happened to be from the South of France like him! Mac cheese was whipped up and then off to bed! Goodnight!

RIVER ADVENTURE(LATE AUGUST)

ROUTE: Upper Missinaibi River. Bus to put -in at Missinaibi Provincial Park – Missinaibi River to bridge take out – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Emma Hobbs and Emily MillerPARTICIPANTS: Sam Allen, Andi Breckles, Frieda Hodgins, Abigail Mackenzie-Armes, Pierre Rouanet.

Day 6Distance travelled: 29 kmHours on the water: 6Weather: warm/muggy with thin cloud coverQOTD 1: “I’m gonna need a pick axe and a shovel to eat this thing” – Hobbs talking about cinnamon bunsQOTD 2: “So, should we do something about this?” – Miller talking about upcoming set while rafted up We awoke this morning to somewhat cloudy skies, but nothing

could bring our spirits down because we were having cinnamon buns for breakfast. The warmest, fluffiest, most delicious cinnamon buns in Canada were devoured and then everyone fell into a minor food coma. After a quick “rest and digest” session, we were on the water for a morning of flatwater. A couple of hours in, we reached a small set (before Thunder Falls) which we ran with ease. Then we got to the portage which we finished in no time. Way to go, guys! We ran another small set a little bit after the falls and paddled for a bit before deciding to stop for lunch. Heavenly garlic herb and cheese loaf with hot sauce was on the menu and everyone gobbled it up. Andi had an unfortunate break up with her sunglasses as they left her for the bottom of the river. Ugh that sucks! An afternoon of flatwater and planning our dream celebrity canoe trip brought us to our campsite and we shot the little R1 before camping on river right. Hobbs busted out ring pops for everyone and Frieda fell while trying to make a Hobbs kebob. Dat soup was whipped up for dinner and then so

many s’mores were eaten before the bugs chased us to bed. Nighty night!

WLIT WHITEWATER TRIP (JULY)

ROUTE: Dumoine River. DATES: July 17 – July 23 2013

LEADERS: North de Pencier, Graham Preston, Sophie Roher

PARTICIPANTS: Isaac Beattie-Booth, Matthew Fyfe, Eamonn Gogan, David James, Michael Lilly, Léa Marcotte-Richardson, Patrick Melanson, Jeffrey Schreier.

Day 4 Leaders of the Day: Matthew Fyfe and Eamonn Gogan Weather: Rainy to blue skies.QOTD: “Went to sleep with my shirt off, woke up with it on…The hooligans are at it again.” The day began with a challenge. As Sam (Matt) was first to rise, he had the daunting task of waking me up. After several minutes of gentle shaking, he decided to yank my sleeping bag from my body only to find me stark naked. The yelp that rushed from Sam’s mouth however, was an effective alarm and I immediately bolted upright ready for the day. After examining several old growth trees that reached 100 feet high into the morning sky, we sat down to a breakfast of oatmeal. After a demonstration of how to properly

WLITs take a break to enjoy the view.

WLITs: They Can Follow and They Can Lead


communicate in whitewater by North and Sophie, we loaded boats and got onto the river. Surprisingly, we looked into the sky to see dark rain clouds fast approaching. As it rained extremely menacing vibrations were all around us with overtones of extreme personal danger. However, with a twinkle in his eye, Graham halted the rain and replaced it with flawless blue sky. We spent the remaining time playing in sets and dining on pesto and brine. We reached the top of Little Steel and portaged our gear to a fantastic campsite at the bottom. Sam and I cooked a delicious batch of Chili that was eaten faster than humanly possible. We then enjoyed some brownies and an intense pot vulch. An early bedtime and an intense spoon train proceeded and eventually everyone fell into a coma-like sleep. The night was beautiful and cold and David didn’t snore!

VOYAGEUR I (AUGUST)

ROUTE: Esachistuwach-Enistuwach-Pontax Rivers. Drive north to put-in at creek – Lake Amsisk Matawan – Lake hopping to Riviere Esachistuwach – down the Esachistuwach to Riviere Enistuwach to the Pontax to James Bay – pick up in Waskaganish – bus to Camp – paddle under the Bridge.

DATES: July 30 – August 24 2013

LEADERS: Charles Heath and Sophie Roher

PARTICIPANTS: Brendan Agnew, Tessa Jobin-Joy, Cameron Miller, Julia Pepler, Nicola Protetch, Jeff Schreier.

Day 13Distance travelled: 12kmHours on the water: 8Weather: Cloudy turned to sunny for the most part We woke up this morning with dreams of the Pontax. After some delicious and somewhat waterlogged pancakes (due to the rain), we packed up and sang songs on the way to some glorious rapids. On the first two sets, we continued to work on our back paddling. At the falls, we pulled out on RL and Charles worked on trimming/creating a trail for us, as the rest of the group portaged gear. Some of us stepped in bear poo (Sophie). Once we worked together to load boats into the creek, we rejoiced at the bottom pool with a delicious lunch of chaps and hummus. The view of the multi-layered ledges was spectacular – so spectacular

that we had to take many photos of ourselves with the glorious view. Sun-kissed and energized, we paddled onwards to some more rapids. The R3 was noteworthy and we all worked on the technical line RL to RR at the bottom. Special shout-out to Nicky and Julia who shot it spot-on! After a couple more pick n’ choose rapids, we could see the remarkable view of the Pontax. The ledge from the confluence was vast and beautiful. It was hard to look at anything else. Sophie and Charles deliberated camping options and we decided to camp RR on a bushcrash with a five-star view of the confluence. Brendan and Nicky baked some cheesy tea biscuit for lunch while Cam (head chef) and Tessa made mac for dinner. A fabulous day full of everything – flatwater, whitewater, portages, creeks. We did it all. Pontax, lull us to sleep!

Voyageur Is on the Pontax Mountain in August.

Voyageur Is Paddle the Pontax River


VOYAGEUR II

ROUTE: Yellowknife – Emile River – Parent River – Coppermine River – Kugluktuk – fly to Toronto – bus to Ferguson Bay – paddle under the Bridge.

DATES: June 29 – August 24 2013

LEADERS: Morgan Moores and Holly Nesbitt

PARTICIPANTS: Max Adshead, Dane Blanchard, Emma Bogler, Connor Cepella, Piper Deck, Emma Gillmore, Caleb Guthrie, Morgan Hodgins, Cori-Anne Huisman, Sasha Pickering, Harry Silbaugh, Helen Thomas.

Day 43 Today happened as follows. We woke up in spaced-out ducky style (imagine a duck being particularly spaced out). Breakfast was creamo and lunch was an amazing love loaf. Much swimming was done, and the sport of aquatic ladder climbing was created and later perfected (one must grab first, ankle, then knee, then hip or shoulder so as to effectively climb up one submerged being who is holding on to a rock farther upstream of the climber). Sasha, Helen, Cori, Clam, Caleb, Piper, Dane Connor and Morgan M went for an exploratory hike up a creek valley and then right on to the top of a mountain to scout for overnight hiking options in the coming day. The mountains were beautiful, but the lakes were full of evil, sharp rocks. We return on the morrow

to take our revenge on the rocks and sleep amongst the gods on the top of this mountain. Dinner was had in the form of lentil burgers, expertly crafted. Dear future me: If you forget the recipe for the patties it is: lentils/black beans, eggs, breadcrumbs/flour, jalapenos and cilantro. In nine days, with our canoe trip over and the Coppermine behind us, the ties that bind we fourteen individuals in to one group will exist only in the past, living on as shadows in our memories, subject to the wasting power of time. And much as the river must flow in to the ocean and forget it was ever a river, and much as the place we define tomorrow will revert to its nature as wilderness so will our collective identity fade. Though we may keep ties that bind us as friends and hold us together, our known self as a group will never again be as it is now. V2 will mean very different things to each of us. In memory we will have the freedom to make it suit our needs, to fill whatever role we see fit to give it in the larger story of our lives. I hope that I can remember the feeling of Me serving IT, of having my identity completely subsumed into a groups’, and having all

my efforts go towards furthering its end, and having all my experiences be group experiences rather than my own. Like a wrapping boat or a fading place, it’s a reminder that all things flow both ways. Except rivers. But sometimes, if you push hard enough, you can go upstream. - Caleb

Day 45 Day 45 was a special day. We were silent as we rose from our tents to eat oatmeal, grab a few important possessions, and one by one embark on solos across the craggy landscape of our current home. Morgan and I spent the morning talking quietly, playing guitar, writing, and doing Tai Ji. We departed from our protected bowl by two mountain lakes to roam in a great circle, checking in on our campers. One by one we found them, some sitting quietly in the shelters they had made from the sun, some making music, and some wandering through the land. We walked along the ridges, dipping down into the valleys only when we had to. Our walk was guided by the gentle rises of the drumlin-like hills which end quite suddenly in crumbling, rocky cliffs. The valleys between the drumlins are soggy

Voyageur IIs: On the Ultimate Journey

Voyageur II Group A strike their toughest pose in Kugluktuk.


and cool, gusts of cold fresh air rise from them and we know that the permafrost is not far below. The ridges allow incredible views – to the north we can see the pink canyons of the Coppermine River, to the south the hazy outlines of the rolling Coppermine Mountains. The sound is of nothing – save for the occasional deerfly and hikik (ground squirrel) – and the feeling of insignificance and awe permeates into me easily. The smoke of the forest fires to the south covers the land in a grey fog that makes this place all the more mysterious to my foreign eyes. My camera clicks away but fails to capture the essence of the barrens. The Barrens. At first glance, a land of pale brown oblivion, devoid of meaning, movement, and life. Upon closer inspection, you realize how subtle this place is. Subtle yet harsh and brutal, the meaning creeps in and captures your lonely soul and suddenly you are enraptured and you can’t understand how you didn’t understand moments ago, eons now. The movement is in the wind, in the earth, in the water and ice. You can

imagine the land being heaved up by the molten rock, thrust by the freeze-thaw of the permafrost below, pushed, beaten and scraped by the glaciers above, and finally carved by the powers of the river, which snakes deeply and then sprawls into the ocean. When you see it, you see it big. The power is overwhelming as it rushes in and fills you. But there is more. This “sagebrush desolation”, full of colour in green mosses, red berries, yellow flowers, white cottongrass, is home to massive herds of grazers. The caribou we have seen in small numbers, having only witnessed traces of the great herd. But on day 45, we witnessed another of the herds – the muskox. After campers had started to trickle in from their solos, Clam came running, gestured silently, and had us all running across the hummocky hills, hearts racing from exertion and thrill. In the valley of the final hill we crested was a heard of 11 muskox. We sat on the cliff and watched as they grazed, moving slowly, sitting, sleeping, and grazing again. The alpha male is enormous – twice the size of the others. If his size didn’t give him away, his behaviour certainly did. Growling (yes, growling), he kept the others in line. Twice, a male feebly attempted to challenge him and twice the alpha

charged. The growl sounds like it’s coming from the jowls of a king lion, not from a grass eating grazer. The muskox look like a cross between a grizzly bear and a cow, and sound very feline in their guttural aggressive growls. They were funny and shocking to watch. We felt blessed to have seen them, especially after having seen wolves days earlier (how lucky!). We returned to our campsite elated. Dinner of quinoa was cooked up to a rambunctious crew of campers, eager to make as much noise as possible after their day of silence. Retreating from the group to write, I’m looking out over the Coppermine landscape. The breeze is cooler now, and carries with it the smell of moisture, although no sign of that moisture is yet visible. It’s the ocean. I can sense it just a few river bends away. The trip is nearing an end and my emotions are conflicted. Excited to make “contact” again but heart grippingly sad to leave the barrens, the adventure, and the people behind. I can hear the roar of stoves cooking at our campsite. They sound like a rocket launching even at this distance. Time to return to my people. - Holly

Group A heads back to camp after a hike.

Voyageur II Group B displays their mustache growing prowess.


VOYAGEUR II

ROUTE: Yellowknife – Winter Lake and Rive – Starvation Lake – Coppermine River – Kugluktuk – fly to Toronto – bus to Ferguson Bay – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Tim Bourns and Maeve Freeman-MacIntyre.

PARTICIPANTS: Julian Carusone, Shea Darlison, Jacob Fischer-Schmidt, Lucie Fournier, Stuart Fowler, Eléonore Fox, Liam Kehoe, Robin Matchett.

Day 29 Today was possibly our longest day yet. We’ve begun using our stoves for there is no more wood, anywhere. Pancakes for breakfast and a nice elevensis at the bottom of a set were about to drag. Lots of beautiful arctic cotton in this area. Lunch of cheesy T, gorp and some interesting games of

scatter and strike. Several new games were also formed and one was preventing Jing from ever winning at scatter. We’ve faced so many hardships this trip and gotten through all of them, a little stronger and a little crazier. There’s a fine line between sanity and insanity and we are becoming quite masterful at playing jump rope with it. However, we have almost reached the height of land. Morale is good and our group is stronger than ever. Most importantly we know how to keep each other sane. Weather it’s starting to use a New Zealand accent, starting a new joke, giving some affection or even paddling into the campsite standing up in your canoes (Robin, St, Jing, Julianson). All of these things have become an integral part of our group and ultimately our craziness is actually what keep us sane. - Robin

Day 45 At the ungodly hour of 6:15 in the morning, Robin, Jacob, Stuart, and Maeve woke up to hike the beautiful

mountain across the river from our beach campsite. Kudos! The rest of us slowly arose at our standard time of 8:00 am, and chugged down coffee galore. Upon the return of the valiant explorers, a breakfast of cream-o with craisins and roasted peanuts in the mix was feasted upon. Toppings of cinnamon, vanilla, and/or molasses were offered to improve this unpopular meal, and although they helped, there were still leftovers. The berry scones, disguised as pancakes, were finally discovered, and they were also fried up and tasted delicious. We got on the water and started paddling – and the doldrums continue. It was another day of plain flatwater and gentle current, but with exciting wildlife spread throughout. Soon into the day, Tim, Shea, Stuart, and Julian – in the lead – spotted an arctic wolf in the distance, running along a beach. It quickly left our view, but further investigation revealed wolf tracks and perhaps hair in some branches (this might not actually have been real wolf hair, in retrospect, but it was still tres cool). Before leaving this spot we played in the clay-mud, and Tim got stuck up to his waist and beyond, thus having to thrust his way out to freedom. Maeve and the girls also got stuck, but not nearly as bad. Why didn’t anyone help?!?Paddling in the doldrums continued, Shea read from Mordechai Richler’s “Solomon Gursky was here” and after a couple days away from the game, we played three rounds of mafia while eating some GORP. Then we continued paddling, admiring the consistently beautiful mountain scenery. Eventually we had a ‘floating’ lunch of Thai Pasta Salad with various sauces (I say ‘floating’ because we floated into land and just stayed there). Perhaps to make up for lost time, we played more mafia, and then continued paddling. Through the doldrums. In exciting news, we then saw a moose! It was especially close-up for the

Voyageur II Group B is all smiles at the river’s edge.


lead boats, and it was a majestic experience (see the pictures!). A splendid animal indeed. We encountered a creepy cabin on RL, where we decided not to camp, hoping to avoid the evidence of it having been a campsite previously, and shortly afterwards we found a nice flat spot on RL. Then we decided that it was Halloween! Maeve donned the nurse outfit and I wore the chef ’s apron; Julian came as a teletubbie and Shea as his handsome self; Jacob was some sort of Arabian prince (?) and Robin was a scantily clad Facebook; and Stuart was dressed as Eléo, and vice versa, and Liam transformed into Lucie, and again, vice versa. It was hilarious! More clothes came back on for those of us in more revealing outfits as the blackflies emerged. Eléo and Jacob made delicious big soup for dinner, with cheesy dumplings, and Stuart and Liam made chapattis and falafel for the next day’s lunch. As it was Halloween, we also ate the candy that we hadn’t already consumed earlier in trip, feasting on fuzzy peaches, cherry blasters, and melted starbursts. Then Eleo busted out her special treat: Werther’s caramels and some absolutely delightful Nougat de Provence. Games were also played. Multiple rounds of limbo, and catch with the falling-apart “Girls Rule” pink baseball. Some of us stayed up late, playing guitar and making recordings. Another awesome day everyone! Thanks & love to all! P.S. Other wildlife spotted today included multiple eagles and other birds, a groundhog in the morning and another at the evening campsite

(chased away by Jacob and Robin), Muskrat and Beaver and potentially Otter (‘twas difficult to distinguish water mammals, but it probably wasn’t an Otter … who knows!). The Wolf and the Moose though … and the Eagles … amazing! ~ Tim

VOYAGEUR II

ROUTE: Yellowknife – Great Slave Lake – Pike’s Portage – Hanbury River – Thelon River – Beverly Lake – Aberdeen Lake – Schultz Lake – Baker Lake – fly to Toronto – bus to Ferguson Bay – paddle under the Bridge.


LEADERS: Emma Dowds and Matthew Thompson

PARTICIPANTS: Sam Angel, Victor Bates, Stephanie Berg, Grant Conover, Keiton Moffat, Mark Nicol, Lindsay Ophel, Rebekah Richardson Duffy, Zac Smith, Shelby Yee.

Day 7 Today I caught a whale.

Day 36 Two of the hardest days. Maybe ever. 4km portage in the blazing heat yesterday and then today a 1.5 and a 2 something in calm, blasting heat and bugs. Had to run the second portage because one of our boats went over Helen falls. It was a massive beautiful waterfall and we are all amazed that the boat is still in one piece.

Day 37 “The sun also ariseth.” Going to bed this evening around 1am we had the pleasure of watching the sun rise. Far off, above the needle spruce oasis and the barren hills beyond it, spectral wisps of high-atmosphere cloud caught, and were illuminated by, the first hint of the sun. We had witnessed the sun set only a few hours before. Keiton and I saw a white wolf today and we stopped to investigate its tracks.

Voyageur II Group C takes a break from paddling to enjoy a sail on McLeod Bay on Great Slave Lake.


The group also saw a cow moose and her calf. We ate alfalfa sprouts on salami sandwiches. It was Happy Day and our gifts have reminded us why we are here. I haven’t felt very present the last few days on account of the pace we have had to keep, but listening to the guitar as the sun rose in the middle of the night was very much here and now. “The earth abideth.”

Day 39 Early morning and motivational speech made mostly by Emma allowed us to get back on schedule. We paddled 68km today. The current and the weather combined to make our progress and pace the best it’s been yet. We sprinkled tobacco in the river last night. It’s eerie how different today was (as a result?). The deep rumbling of a moving but unbroken river throbs by our sleeping forms. We are camped on a plateau separated from the river by a steep

embankment. We may have left the oasis, but we still have trees.

Day 44 Hot and hazy today. It was like paddling through an island chain on the ocean of another planet: dry rocky shorelines, green flecked water and hot gusts of wind coming off the land. We saw a lone caribou calf that ran about aimlessly. It ran with its head down and looked strangely like a Were-wolf. We were creeped out many times today by the foreign nature of this place, but it is also so beautiful. We stopped just a kilometer and a half from our designated night 45. The land undulates along the water. We camped in a dip between two higher points of the shore on the northern bank of the Thelon as it opens into Lake Aberdeeen. The haze obscures much of the lake and makes it look somewhat like the end of the world. There are small ponds just behind our site and the

ground around them is soft and flat. The bugs are bad, but not awful. I think I may have found a rock grave. The sun set red through the haze and the twilight was long and soft.

Day 49 We’ve made it through the lakes to the last section of the Thelon. Elated and exhausted. We ate so much food today that I am feeling quite sick. We’ve packed well for the most part, but we have extra to be sure. margarine is gone, salt is gone, peanut butter is gone, but we have four or five more gorps and probably about ten blocks of cheese. - Matt

A panoramic view of one of Voyageur II Group C’s campsites.


By Allan “Vin” NorrisTreasurer and Board Member

It’s Paddler time again and we get to revisit the fantastic experiences we had at camp and the incredible canoe trips of this past summer. The T.S.C.B.F. helps to overcome the financial obstacles that keep many children from the camp experience. This past summer, nine young people were able to go to Camp Wanapitei with the help of the Bursary. That is nine campers that would not have had the chance to develop the life skills learned and experience earned from a summer at camp. The Bursary Board believes that a summer at camp is

pivotal in shaping the healthy futures of our young people. The T.S.C.B.F. is always looking for ways to help children get to camp. The third annual T.S.C.B.F. Art Show was held this past September. This event was held at the Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto. It was an exciting and unique way to support the Bursary. There were many artists involved headed by the artists’ co-operative, Drawn Onward. The art included oils, prints and sculptures. The T.S.C.B.F. received forty percent of the art sales with the remaining sixty percent going to the artists. Camp Wanapitei has a direct connection to the T.S.C.B.F. through the Bob Boutiller Memorial Fund. Bob was a long time member of the

Wanapitei community serving as program staff and later as treasurer on the camp’s Board of Directors. The T.S.C.B.F. has sent one thousand children to camp over the past forty years. With your continued support, we hope to send a thousand more. If you are interested in participating in or just learning more about what we are up to in year forty and beyond, please visit our website www.tscbf.com. Donations are always welcome and can be made through the website or by a making a cheque out to T.S.C.B.F , and mailing it to the T.S.C.B.F. , P.O. Box 1128, TD Centre Postal Station, 77 King Street West, Toronto , Ontario, M5K 1P2. Please specify your return address in order to receive a tax deductible charitable donation receipt.

Words from the Taylor Statten Bursary Fund

Wanapitei 2014 Session Dates and PricesProgram (Age) & Price Dates

Junior Camp (7 - 9)$795

July 12 - 18Junior Camp (7 - 9)$795

July 19 - 25


July 28 - August 3


August 4 - 10

Temagami (10-11)$2045

June 28 - July 11Temagami (10-11)$2045

July 12 - 25

Temagami (10-11)$2045

July 28 - August 10

Temagami (10-11)$2045

August 11 - 24

Coureurs de Bois (12-13)Two weeks: $2045Four weeks: $3590

June 28 - July 11Coureurs de Bois (12-13)Two weeks: $2045Four weeks: $3590 July 12 - 25


June 28 - July 25


July 28 - Aug. 10


August 11 - 24


July 28 - Aug. 24

Program (Age) & Price Dates

Pioneer (14 - 15)Two weeks: $2160Four Weeks: $3820

June 28 - July 11Pioneer (14 - 15)Two weeks: $2160Four Weeks: $3820 July 12 - 25


June 28 - July 25


July 28 - Aug. 10


August 11 - 24


July 28 - Aug. 24

Bay Trip (16)$4045

June 28 - July 25Bay Trip (16)$4045

July 28 - Aug. 24

Bay Trip (16)$4045

River Adventure (16-18)$2320

July 30 - August 11


August 12 - 25


Voyageur I (17)$5090

July 28 - Aug. 24Voyageur I (17)$5090

Voyageur I (17)$5090

Program (Age) & Price Dates

Wilderness Leader in Training (17)

$4935

June 28 - July 25Wilderness Leader in Training (17)

$4935 July 28 - Aug. 24

Wilderness Leader in Training (17)

$4935

W.L.I.T/VI (17)$8280

June 28 - August 24

Voyageur II (18)$8390*

June 28 - August 24

*Cost of travel is not included in VII fees, and session dates do not include the time needed to travel to the starting point of the trip.

Fees include everything except transportation to and from camp, camp store purchases, rentals,

medications or related medical expenses, and taxes.

Due to the unpredictable fuel costs, a fuel surcharge may be necessary for some programs. If applicable it

will not exceed $200.

http://www.tscbf.com

http://www.tscbf.com


By Ted MooresWanapitei Board Chair and CEO

S WE WEAVE THROUGH our lives following our dreams, opportunities, “shoulds”, or simply, the clearest paths open

to us, there are a few things that remain constant. Of course we all want to be successful enough to not be in survival mode, and beyond that, I believe that we have two organizing principles guiding our lives. One is developing and maintaining connections with primary relationships, other loved ones, our communities, and with our own spirituality, meaning how we relate to both the measurable and immeasurable world around us. The other, I believe, is how we can contribute to that world, meaning what gifts do we bring to the mix that can help make the world a better place. Wanapitei has a lot of strengths that speak to the best of educational pedagogy, and it is unusually strong in helping to discover and nurture those connections and contributions which I spoke of above. Wanapitei campers usually find what they are uniquely good at, how they contribute to a group and community and are honored for who they are, but I’m not going to focus on the “contribution” part. I believe the “magic” of Wanapitei is mostly with the connections people make there.

I signed up for Facebook recently and now items pop up on my email periodically. When I click on one to see if I can guess what a former acquaintance is doing, up pop lists of other people to connect with, (or “like” or “friend” or whatever the proper term is). What’s interesting is that literally hundreds of people on the lists I see are

Wanapitei people from all generations. Like it or not, social media is an amazing tool for maintaining connections, enough so that we now have an office administrator, (Erin), who is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the camp’s social media sites. I’m beginning to understand. I don’t give a rip about what someone had

for breakfast, but I do find myself thinking that I’ve known that person so well, I wonder how their life is and where their passions have led them. I just saw Robyn Mitz’s name, (camp Director from 2000 – 2003), on Heffy’s Facebook page and got excited just to think that I might be able to connect with her, (though I’m not sure how yet).

When I think of special times and events that have influenced my life I always think of Wanapitei because I was young, forming my own character, highly engaged and living my passion. But the good feelings stem from the connections that I had, whether it be a quiet meditative experience in the wilderness, such as paddling under the northern lights, or with my best friends. The shared experiences were so profound, and we got to know each other so well by living simply and working together, that these friends remain best friends even if I haven’t seen them for twenty years. Three years ago I put together “Camp Geezer”, when a dozen of these friends from the 1958 - 60 era came together at camp, joined in the camp activities and did a canoe trip. It was wonderful, and we all picked up where we had left off, even with entire lives in between.

What we hadn’t realized was how inspiring our gathering was for the young people at camp, many of whom might have been thinking that when they are no longer at Wanapitei all of these great connections will drift away. People do drift away and lives become richer with the years, but the

From Our CEO: Developing & Maintaining Connections

A

Connections formed at camp often extend long into adulthood.

Emotional Growth... Continued from page 1

For years I have been counseling other parents as they try to land their hover craft for the period of time that their child is with us at Wanapitei. Now I really understand the urge to helicopter parent the first-time camper. When Anna was leaving for her session at camp, I desperately wanted to tell my colleagues, who direct the arts camp, all about Anna’s needs. I felt that their medical form was not as complete as Wanapitei’s and almost filled out our form and sent it to them. I didn’t believe them on the phone when they called me on the first full day to tell me that Anna was fine. I resisted the urge to get in touch with them daily for her first few days at camp. If I didn’t have my summer camp director training, I would have been an active helicopter parent during Anna’s stay at camp. My anxiety was high and I wanted to act on it to help myself feel better. Michael G. Thompson, PhD has just written a book called Homesick and Happy which is being heralded as a

must read for parents as much for themselves as for their support of their children. He claims that summer camp can be an antidote to parenting in the age of anxiety. I agree! We need a break from our children for our own well being and learning as much as they need to develop independence from us. Thompson believes that “children who are away from their parents can be homesick and happy, scared and successful, anxious and exuberant.” This was absolutely true of Anna’s experience away from Woody and me this past summer. What a concept! A child can be homesick AND happy! I know that this past summer, both Anna and I became more mature and resilient because she attended an overnight camp. I learned that my anxiety and need for control will do nothing to increase the quality of

her life experiences. If I helicopter parent, my actions are for me and not for my daughter. I’m still parenting in the age of anxiety, but I’m much better at landing my hover craft and letting go.


... Continued from previous page

connections, warmth and friendships remain. Interestingly, even with a forty year hiatus, nothing that an old Wanapitei friend says is much of a surprise because we’ve know them so well, having lived 24 / 7 for weeks on end together in the wilderness. Of course the ultimate culmination of summers with these intense connections is the VII, as witnessed by people dissolving into puddles after Harvest night as their entire twelve-person community scattered to new adventures around the world.

The unusual thing that struck me this year was that in the story telling, nearly everyone in all three VII groups had a profound experience with the barrens. Camp folklore, at times, has led to a preference for mountain rivers, but the barrens are equally spectacular. One just has to have the right framework to be part of it. The groups this year had good hiking and reflection opportunities, and it seems they were all touched by Kaila, the spirit of the barrens. I believe that this type of connection with our world not only shapes who we are, but ultimately could help shape policy as it relates to conservation and protection of world

resources. Some may remember when Prime Minister Trudeau, a paddler, flew over Virginia falls on the Nahanni because a dam was in the making. He was so moved he declared it a national park right then. Happily, these connections are not confined to our youth. On parent weekends I see dozens of people re-kindling old relationships, sitting on a quiet rock or standing on the bridge staring out into Sandy Inlet, revisiting the spirit that keeps them and all of us connected.

Summer camp increases maturity and resilience.

By Ted MooresWanapitei Board Chair and CEO

HE MOUNTAIN RIVER is one of the several jewels running out of the Keele Peak massif which is the highest mountain in the

Mackenzie’s, (the northernmost extension of the Rockies). Out of that height of land run several fabulous rivers, including: Nahanni, Natla / Twitya, Keele, Mountain, Redstone,

Hess, Stewart, Ross, Snake, Bonnet Plume, and countless smaller feeder rivers that could be destinations on their own. The Mountain is basically a 400 km long set of rapids, a giant water-slide with increasing volume and wave size, and at several times squeezed through spectacular canyons to add sharp, technical turns, boils and whirlpools. At other times there are braided sections over a kilometer wide where we choose the best channel and bounce down. We had heat

Alumni Trip on the Mountain River: July 2013SUMMER 2014

IMPORTANT DATES

SPRING

TBA: Camper Medical forms online.TBA: Online Store opens.TBA: New Family Orientation sessions.TBA: Gear Swap.

MAY

1st: Final balance of camp fees due.

JUNE

1st: Last day to submit medical forms.28th: Early July, July & full summer sessions ) begin.

JULY

10th: Mid-month Banquet.11th: Early July session ends.12th: Late July & Junior 3 sessions begin.18th: Junior 3 session ends.19th: Junior 4 session begins.24th: Mid Summer Banquet.25th: Junior 4, Late July & July sessions end.26th: Community Barbeque.28th: Early August, August and Junior 5 ) sessions begin.

AUGUST

3rd: Junior 5 session ends.4th: Junior 6 session begins.8th: Mid-month Banquet.10th: Early August & Junior 6 sessions end.11th: Late August session begins.11th-16th: Family Camp.13th-16th: Family Camp 3-night option.23rd: Harvest Night.24th: Camp ends.


T

Front to back: Gary Norris, Claudette Kohut, Allan Norris, Ted Moores, Hilary Heath, Gaye Wadham, Janet Campbell, Christine Sivell, Gerard Gagnon, Alister Thomas, Ray Kohut and Don Mason.

UR COMMUNITY OF parents, campers, volunteers (including our Board of Directors) and our staff members give so

much of themselves in many ways. Over the past year, we also received financial donations and gifts. We give our sincere thanks to every person that contributes positively to Wanapitei.

Cedar Strip Canoe Restoration- Canoe #11Restored by Glenn Hodgins-Canoe #32Restored by Kevin Alsop+

Cash donation for the purchase of a new canoeBill McCutcheon

Gas range and oven for the camp kitchenAllan “Vin” Norris

25 Paderno serving platters for the Chateau and camp eventsAlison and Trent Mackenzie-Armes

Professional bread knives for the kitchensCatherine Robinson and Allium Consulting Group Inc.

Cash donation for the development of camp prioritiesJ. Phillip Nicholson Policy and Management Consultants Inc. (Ottawa)

Wanapitei Camper Bursary Fund Cash Donation of $1184.58Families who chose to donate the balance of their child ’s camp store account. This is enough to sponsor two Junior campers to camp. Wanapitei Sailing ProgramWe are purchasing a new sailboat in 2014 thanks to donations from families through our online registration program.


Our Deepest Thanks to This Year’s Donors

... Continued from previous page

stress and cold weather, started out with low water and flushed through “third” canyon in high water, so we experienced several of the rivers “moods”. All participants have a long history with Wanapitei, and many have a long history with each other outside of the camp, so conversations ran the gamut, from education and politics, to funny incidents people remembered when they were younger together. Needless to say we spent a lot of time laughing with and at each other. At one point we figured out that our group had a combined total of 435 years of actually doing canoe trips, not counting those years in between with kids or whenever people didn’t do trips. Here’s on excerpt from the trip log. Participants (chronologically): Janet Campbell, Hilary Heath, Gary Norris, Gaye Wadham, Christine Sivell, Gerard Gagnon, Alister Thomas, Ray Kohut, Claudette Kohut, Allan Norris, Don Mason, Ted Moores. There were a

couple of youngsters in their mid-50s but the average age was over 60. All were Wanapitei trippers and all but two had been on staff.

Day 11 We travelled a blistering 16km and the river dropped 80 meters. Winds stopped, sun was out. The water had dropped four inches but was still frenetic from being too high for the banks containing it. There were continuous high volume R2s with lots of R3 waves. A third (and last) swim was had when, in a gravelly bump area, a boat hit a rock broadside and dumped. The rescue was very fast, leaving one boat well downstream to track back up in order to join the group for lunch. Shortly we approached third canyon, the most technical of the trip, and stopped to scout on river right. The very high water created two large R IV drops so we opted for the chicken poop run over the shallow area on river right. The rest of the canyon we scouted as we ran. It was very steep and fast with R3s

on almost every corner which we “softened” by constantly crossing the wide current to get to the inside of the next corner. We still bounced down very large waves, especially in the final big drop where the R4 sized waves couldn’t be avoided. Everyone did well, we stopped on river right to camp at the end of the canyon and had a big “adrenaline dump” huddle.” Once again the bonds of friendship were forged or tightened on yet another spectacular arctic river. Although much of this area is likely the most remote mountain region in the world, it always felt comfortable and homey. It was wonderful to hear the stories of those who went to university together and played at Wanapitei together in the 70s. Some people renewed old and strong connections, a few met for the first time, although with Wanapitei being the common glue everyone picked up as if we had all been old friends.

O

T H E P A D D L E R ● J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 4! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! P A G E 32

FAMILY CAMPAUGUST 11th to 16th, 2014

Join us for five days of fun for the whole family:

CANOEING * HIKING * ARCHERY * CAMPFIRES * YOGA * TIE DYE * OVER NIGHTS * SWIMMING * CAMP GAMES * BEADING, HEMP &

EMBROIDERY * AND MUCH MORE!

Visit www.wanapitei.net for more details and to register.

facebook.com/campwanapitei

twitter.com/campwanapitei

youtube.com/campwanapitei

flickr.com/campwanapitei

www.wanapitei.net/aboutus/directors-blog

We’ve made it easier than ever to

STAY CONNECTED

@campwanapitei

wanapitei: emotional growth for child and parent€¦ · town of wendigo, past la tuque, and almost...

Documents