your route five perfect weekends
Once you have the gear, the next question is where to touch your hull to water. “The average distance a canoeist paddles is 12 to 20 kilometers a day. But for a pleasurable weekend, I’d keep it to eight to 12 kilometers,” recommends author and wilderness paddler Kevin Callan. A number of factors will influence your mileage, including the number and length of portages, whether it’s a river or lake route, wind issues, and the abilities and size of your group. “Forget doing 20 kilometers plus and making camp at 7 p.m. No one will want to go with you again,” he adds. Below we’ve taken all the guesswork out of the equation. Here are five trips ripe for a weekend escape.
Shoshone Lake, Yellowstone National Park
The largest backcountry lake in the lower 48 states that can’t be reached by road? Count us in. Leave behind Yellowstone’s crowds by crossing Lewis Lake and paddling up the Lewis River to beautiful Shoshone Lake. Don’t miss the backcountry geysers, beautiful pools, steam vents and bubbling mud pots on its west end—just watch your step! Located at almost 8,000 feet above sea level, Shoshone Lake has only 20 well-spaced sites, so advance reservations are needed. Expect to catch brown, lake and brook trout. Pelicans and otters are a common sight.
www.yellowstone.ws.
Eleven Point National Scenic River, Missouri
Meandering without hurry through southern Missouri, the Eleven Point National Scenic River offers some of the finest canoe floating and camping in the Midwest. Here you’ll find clear water, forested banks, rocky bluffs and over 30 natural springs, including Greer Spring, the second largest in Missouri. The surrounding hills and hollers abound with wildlife, everything from whitetail deer and beaver to bobcat and coyote. It takes two to three days of easy paddling to complete the 44-mile trip, launching at Highway 99 in Thomasville and pulling out at the Highway 142 bridge. —Larry Rice
Edisto River, South Carolina
Paddle a section of the longest free-flowing blackwater river in North America over a
46 SUMMER/FALL 2013
weekend. Oaks and Spanish moss hang over this gentle river that meanders at two to four miles an hour. There are no dams or rapids to portage, but be on the lookout for the occasional logjam. Bring your rod for redbreast sunfish and keep an eye peeled for alligators. The official Edisto River Canoe and Kayak Trail begins at Whetstone Crossroads and ends 50 miles later at Long Creek Landing. Contact Canoe Heritage Outfitters for shuttles, sandbank camping reservations or a night spent in a water-access, riverside treehouse.
www.canoesc.com.
Buffalo National River, Arkansas
The swift-moving Buffalo River winds 135 miles through the Ozark Mountains of northwestern Arkansas. It is one of the longest stretches of free-flowing water in the U.S. and one of the most pristine, which helped earn its title as America’s first national river. The 24-mile, class I to II run between the hamlets of Ponca and Pruitt is a favorite two- to three-day trip for paddlers. Along the way you’ll pass beneath one of the tallest cliff faces in mid- America: the aptly named, 500-foot-tall Big Bluff. A few miles downstream, reached by a short trail from the river, is a 175-foot waterfall called Hemmed-in-Hollow, the tallest of its kind between the Southern Appalachians and the Rockies. —Larry Rice
O.S.A. Lake, Killarney Provincial Park
Dubbed the crown jewel of Ontario’s provincial parks, Killarney was made famous by the works of the Group of Seven painters. The reputation is well
deserved. Views are as good above the water as below—thousand-foot tall quartzite hills surround clear, blue O.S.A. Lake while nearby lakes boast visibility up to 100 feet. Portages are well trodden and relatively flat. Don’t miss out on a vigorous day hike up to the Crack, which offers a panorama of the park. Watch for beaver, moose and bear and make backcountry reservations in advance.
www.ontarioparks.com.
Quick and Easy Adventures
BWCA, Minnestota
Start on Brule Lake and head up the Cones towards Winchell Lake. There’s just one lone campsite on South Cone Lake. Trust me; you
won’t see a soul! —Author Cliff Jacobson (
www.cliff-jacobson.com)
Kendallville to Decorah, Upper Iowa River
Chimney Rock Canoe Rental & Campground in Cresco, Iowa, offers a shuttle service to this beautiful
area. —Photographer and writer, Bryan Hansel (
www.bryanhansel.com)
East Shore Columbia Lake, Invermere, British Columbia
Highlights include the headwaters of the mighty Columbia River, rare grassland ecosystems, bighorn sheep herd and ancient Ktunaxa
First Nation Pictograms. —Writer Dave Quinn
PHOTO: COURTESY ONTARIO TOURISM
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