Tips Quebec’s
Launch Pad to Adventure by Derek Folmer
La Vérendrye N
Best campsite—On the western shore of Lac Nizard. This lake is almost impossi- ble for fishermen to access so only the occasional canoe passes by. There are many beautiful beaches, which are marked on the canoe maps.
Don’t forget—not to come on Labour Day. This is the busiest weekend of the year in La Vérendrye. The traffic out of Montreal crawls, stretching the four-hour drive out to five or six.
umbers alone have much to say about La Vérendrye Wildlife Refuge. The refuge dates back to 1939, contains over 4,000 lakes and rivers and has some 800 kilometres of maintained canoe routes, plus another 1,400 kilometres of
“wild” canoe routes. Covering 14,000 square kilometres, the refuge is larger than some European countries. This is the same glacier-worn boreal landscape as Ontario’s Algonquin or Temagami, but flatter, making for short and easy portages and an immense network of routes that draw about 6,000 canoeists a year. La Vérendrye is a headwater of the Ottawa River and many canoe-tripping camps use the refuge as a launch pad for multi-week expe- ditions into the Dumoine or another of the Ottawa’s tributaries. There are gentle lake routes for beginners; the enormous, island-studded Cabonga and Dozios reservoirs for sea kayakers; and, for veteran paddlers, whitewater rivers such as the Capitachouane, Chochocouane and Gens-de-Terre, which sees only a dozen canoe parties a year.
Newfoundland’s
Main River by Keith Nicol
‘70s Hit
Guidebook— Canyons, Coves and Coastal Waters, by Dan Murphy, Kevin Redmond and Jim Price.
Outfitting— Eastern Edge Outfitters,
kayakeeo.hyper-
source.com.
How to do it
A great three-day introductory trip is the 44- kilometre Portage-Larouche circuit, a loop of lakes, marshes, sinuous streams and short portages. Head to Le Domaine, the base for La Vérendrye Canoe Camping (a partnership between the Quebec Canoe and Kayak Federation and Sépaq, the organisation that runs and man- ages Quebec wildlife refuges). Le Domaine offers convenient camping and supplies. La Vérendrye Canoe Camping handles park access registration and also rents an astonishing variety of canoes, sea kayaks, and even voyageur or Rabaska canoes. Other services include shuttles, guided trips and gear packages. Park staff work with a quota system and assign specific starting points to avoid congestion. Many routes start right at Le Domaine, and most others are accessible from Highway 117 and through a network of gravel roads. The Portage-Larouche circuit is just a 45-minute drive to the north. Start at Ruisseau Duman or the southern end of Lac du Portage and travel clockwise to avoid headwinds on the larger lakes.
Info and maps—Québec Canoe & Kayak Federation,
www.canot-kayak.qc.ca. In summer call Le Domaine directly, 819-435-2331.
T
he Main River is relatively unknown across Canada even though in 1974 it was selected by Parks Canada as one of Canada’s top 10 wilderness rivers. It is located in Western Newfoundland along the seldom-visited eastern side of the Northern
Peninsula. Although the Main is not a long river (a 57-kilometre trip), it has such a diversity of scenery and terrain that it is comparable to rivers many times its length. The Main rises in the Long Range Mountains in alpine tundra and then, as the elevation drops, the boreal forest of spruce and fir begins to line its banks and blanket the surrounding hills. The Big Steady area has grassy floodplains and numerous islands considered ecologically unique in Newfoundland, home to waterfowl and caribou. This area is a great place to relax, camp and enjoy the great salmon fishing. But don’t get too complacent since this leads to a steep, 18-kilometre canyon (with a drop of 10 metres per kilometer) that provides the most exciting river rafting trip on the Island. As quickly as a roller coaster, the trip ends at in saltwater at Sop’s Arm.
30
www.canoeroots.ca
How to do it To get to the river’s mouth at Sop’s Arm take highway 420 from the Trans Canada Highway. Recent logging activity and related road building allow you to forego the upper sections and pad- dle just the canyon from the Main River Bridge. This is a popular day trip for canoeists, kayakers and rafters. Class I to III rapids can quickly be transformed to class IV to V rapids by heavy rains. Check water levels before you go—
www.gov.nf.ca/wrmd/hydro_model.asp. There is a narrow range suitable for open canoeing, about 20–45 cms. Good flotation and a spray deck won’t be wasted. The logging road also allows you to access the Big Steady area. To do the entire six-day trip from to Sop’s Arm, charter a floatplane from Deer Lake to the Four Ponds put-in from Newfoundland Air Transport Ltd (709-635-3574).
Tips
Best campsite—The Big Steady. Rare grass- lands with caribou and great fishing.
Don’t forget—your fly rod and license for famed Atlantic salmon. It’s fly-fishing only. Non- residents will need a guide.
Headlamp reading—Will Anyone Search for Danny by Earl Pilgrim—an amazing story of a life along the Northern Peninsula and heart- breaking story of Danny, a game warden who gets lost in the winter of 1936.
photo by Kevin Redmond
photo by Derek Folmer
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