Nagagami River: Northern Ontario Wilderness Canoeing
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- čas přidán 26. 01. 2019
- Untamed, wild and remote, Northern Ontario's Nagagami River snakes its way through the vast boreal forest. One could paddle her waters for over a month, north to the Albany River and eventually the Arctic Ocean's James Bay. Leah and I set out to paddle over 110km of her waters, swollen, boiling and angry from the spring melt. It was a trying experience, but we sought a challenge and an unforgettable adventure. The Nagagami did not disappoint!
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Thanks for watching.
Thanks for taking us along...I paddled this back in 1982, and my favourite portage was Trout Falls. It doesn't look the same. I wrote a short story about that night at that spot when I was in college. It really got to me.
Love the footage of the spill. Subtle mention of the 5km+ portage...you beasts. The great thing about a sufferfest is they're extra fun to watch. Amazing edit. You two are great.
Thanks man! That was definitely not the most enjoyable way to start off a trip, but it was wayyy better than Dirty Bush or Jackpine :D And you've got that right about a sufferfest! The perfect trips never have a truly compelling story to share.
At age 80 I can't do that trip anymore, but enjoyed the times I did. Always in summer when the water was lower but the blackflies at their most ferocious. Of course we had trout for dinner a couple of times and Walleye at least once. I do not recognize the Nagagami with the water that high. Takes a brave soul to do what you did. Love the video!
thks .... i need to see these type of vids to remind my old self to stay within my limits .... paddling can still be fun without the extremes .... that girl is one in a million ...
Yeah Brad and Leah, you two are a dream team! another awesome video, wouldn't be surviving this quarantine if not for watching all of your adventures and dreaming of the day when I can get back in the water again. Yewww
I am 82 so you give me nice memories of youth, thanks a lot
Hey man I think I could say with confidence that she's overcome her fear! Kudos girl great job! From Ontario Canada
One of the best canoe videos I've ever seen. Congratulations! Keep 'em coming.
Thanks Chris!!! I'm getting to work on another one already!
Crazy good, what a adventure...... Thanks for letting us see a piece of Canada that most of us will never get to... Wow..
Thanks Jim!!
Great video! You guys are awesome. Thanks for taking me along. Looking forward to the text trip. Cheers.
Freaking amazing trip video, thanks for bringing us along. I am humbled, impressed and stunned how tough Leah is, and of course yourself - but I’ve come to expect this from your videos.
Leah's one tough gal! Our first outing was in a crazy deep freeze, blizzard with thundersnow. I knew she was a keeper after she powered through that one!
You two are both so real. Thank you.
You guys did a great job showing us just what you went through. Thanks 🇨🇦👍
All Hail the Voyageurs!
They Defined Canada.
I know this is year late, but every time I watch one of your videos, I’m amazed by what an awesome girl Leah is.
Awesome trip! Crazy water and great recovery! Enjoyed it you guys! Thanks
Thanks man! Glad you enjoyed it!!
Impressive. Brad & Leah you two had to overcome some tough circumstances and you did show resourcefulness in your solutions. Dry suits are also sauna suits as you demonstrated. And your fuel issue brought back memories of a similar experience and the loss of oatmeal due to a white gas issue decades ago. Again, an impressive trip and video footage too. Hope the electronics are recoverable.
I just read a report the other day about a couple who paddled the Anderson River and had a gas leak ruin their oatmeal as well! Haha, never putting fuel in the barrel again... I'll shuffle weight another way. Seems everyone has 'one' experience. Thankfully all the electronics worked after the fuel evaporated. It took about a month for my phone to lose a fuel streak though. Biggest causality was my wallet.... Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it!
@@ExploreTheBackcountry Sucks about the gas leak. Mental note to keep fuel bottle elsewhere.
Hi Brad, very glad to see you were prepared with spray skirt, dry suits and dry bags. My son and I head out every spring right after ice out, no getting wet that time of year. Sometimes the hard, rough, cold trips make the best memories. Nice job both of you!
You've got that right! Being prepared makes a world of a difference. That icy water would have led to hypothermia without the dry suit. Getting out in the spring is challenging but, oh so worth it!.
My heart was pounding through a lot of this, so much action, & great use of music around the 7:00 mark!!! You guys are champs, well done!!
:D Thanks a lot! Glad you enjoyed it!! It was certainly heart pounding in person!
You two are awesome really enjoyed thanks for sharing
I absolutely loved that video and now this channel is no doubt my favourite! You two are a great creadit to your generation! Leah is quite a trooper! I have been to Africa three times, Siberia, did a lot of white water, winter mountain climbing ( I prefer winter camping lol. ) and had no Idea I was missing so much so close to me in upstate N.Y.! Thanks so much for sharing this !
Oh yeah! Northern Ontario has some great whitewater opportunities, you don't have to travel too far. Some are spring only (Nagagami gets fairly tame later in the year), but some of the big rivers keep flushing all season. Glad you enjoyed the video! Hope a few of the other videos give you some ideas.
Amazing and impressive! Tough crew. Thank you so much for sharing with us these beautiful places.
Thanks for watching!! More on the way, hope you enjoy!
Yes! There's not may kayak camping channels that have me on the edge of my seat! You two are hardcore.. I'm so jealous! Great TV,.. 👍🛶
Great video. Do what you have to do to keep Leah around. She is very definitely a keeper.
What a spectacular route! Awesome to see what the right gear can open up. I'm always really impressed with your routes. On another note I used your QE2 Wild lands map on my phone again this weekend while camping there thanks for making and publishing that.
Awesome! Glad you've put it to good use. I still have to finish the updated one... nearly there. Too many things on the tasklist.
Leah is an absolute trooper. Awesome job guys, weather looked a bit rough ha
Heck yea she is!!! Trip was a wee frosty haha. Thanks lads!
Bro, @8:04 you saying 'you did awesome' shows your character .. and yes she did do awesome !
That video is just amazing. A superb canoe trip in a beautiful area. Just loved watching every minutes of that video. Job well done.
Thanks!! Glad you enjoyed it!
For years and years, we would go up and stay a week at Rick and Sue Levois cabins right where the river crosses HWY11. Been a few years, I don't know if they still own the cabins, but while we would only boat upstream from the cabin's to the canyon(10ish miles, slack current for the most part), I still have terribly fond memories of that place. Was nice to see what the river is like above the canyon(pretty much just as I imagines, based on what the canyon itself is like!!).
Really a great story, a great adventure. Thanks for sharing this awesome trip.
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!
Nice trip! I've done it in many variations, multiple times. It's best run in July, while the water is high enough but not too high. The fishing along the trip is exceptional and I'd add an extra day or two. The one boring day is from couchiching on, but it's really only a half day that's boring. The portage trails improve in July but dirty bush is the worst spot on the river. The portage is rough and the insects are worse. You can get further down river along the portage trail in lower water, but the best route to portage is actually to climb higher and avoid the mud. Be careful in lower water, scout before you shoot as there are many big rocks in many of the larger rapids. Couchiching for one is a rapids you wouldn't shoot in lower water. However, many of the smaller rapids were simply washed out on your trip due to the high water levels. FYI, that sure looks like white owl rapids in the morning on your way to rough rock with really high water. I could be mistaken though.
Wow, what a trip. We were sweating just watching with coffee in hand! Lol. Love your videos. A few have been on rivers I’ve been on many years ago. Leah...OMG ! Loaded down with gear slogging through bush and muskeg. She is on the very peak of the awesome scale!
Ah, this was quite the fun, yet challenging trip. Nagagami did not disappoint! Leah is quite the trooper! She can hack it out there with the best of em 😁 and I agree, tops on the awesome scale 😉
Glad you've enjoyed the videos!!
I love spring trips. One we had a 20 deg day, 6 inches of snow overnight, windchill of -5 next day on a wild lake crossing. Those are the trips you remember.
Great video! This is only the second video, of yours that I have seen. I have seen others of yours I will be watching. These videos bring back fond memories from when I was about your age. From what I have seen the areas you are visiting are areas I camped at and fished in. Keep these videos coming, both of you are a joy to watch.
Did you catch any good speckle trout?
Fantastic trip adventure. Wish we could have seen some amazing Canadian wildlife. The canoeing was great, but the portages where a pain for sure
Thanks for watching Jim! I agree, we surprisingly didn't see much in the way of wildlife in this trip, and those we did see, hightailed it into the bush before I could get the camera out. Ah well! Was a fun trip despite the conditions, they just season you 😁
Awesome video you two, really enjoyed it. Love the drone work, not easy while on the river. Can't wait for the next one!
Thanks 😁
Crazy trip. Not on my bucket list thanks to this video :) You guys rocked it.
Ha, no eh? Dirty Bush not enticing enough? ;)
I like that you tell us the landmarks of where you start and stop each day. It make fallowing your trips on google maps very easy.
Can't go without those northern Ontario F bomb's! Great trip! Great video!
Haha you got that right. Well deserved bombs! Thanks man!
Brad, grand narration of your trips. I enjoy them all.
Thanks Jim!!
Wow spectacular trip. Great camera work as well. Very tough route. Thanks for sharing
Thanks! Glad you liked it!
You’re a great couple. Nice photography but nice attitudes.
awesome video guys!!!! can't wait until spring.
Thanks!! We can't either. They way this winter's going.... it may be a lonngggg wait 😥
Any girl willing to go on a trip with you is a keeper !! Put a ring on it !!
Leah loves it. In fact, she craves challenging trips, sometimes to the point she's disappointed if a trip was too easy. Lol.
Omg when y'all flipped it was panicked for y'all! Got my heart rate up! You guys rock!
haha, and believe me, our heart rate was up too, pre, during and post :D If you run whitewater, sometimes you'll go for a swim!
Thanks for watching!
That looked like a great trip Brad! Love that scenery too
The boreal is certainly gorgeous! These arctic watershed rivers are always fun to run. Thanks for watching Dave!
Great video I did that route in 1987 with junior Rangers cleaning all portages you brought back memories thanks
Wow! Awesome! It hasn't seen much maintenance since. Parks did some work a few years back, but some of those portages are now in terrible shape - dirty bush is getting close to non-existent! I checked in with parks and they have/had plans to send a crew in. Great river to paddle, would love to see it taken care of.
Simply Awesome!
It's like roll-your-own Navy seal training. Well done. Anyone who has done a trip even close to that knows how tired you are at times, and yet you almost always keep the cameras rolling. And the editing is very very good. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching! Oh yeah, we felt pretty beat at the end of each day, but it was that good beat feeling that only comes from pushing yourself. Thanks for watching 😁
Great music background! Love this video!
Tough spill in that rapid. The fuel spill is always a bad thing!
Ah, yea. The highs and lows of tripping! Lots of teachables from this trip. We keep our fuel external now to avoid duplication....
Great video, Brad. Looks like it was an memorable trip. The rapids looked like a lot of fun. The cold on the other hand looked miserable - Leah's hands were shaking pretty hard in one shot - she didn't look too far from hypothermia Also, thanks for sharing the shot of you draining the sweat from your dry suit - it's good to see the full story and not the sanitized version; how much water was in your boots.
Thanks Bill! Yeah we stopped to make camp about 25m away from that portage where she's shaking. Thankfully a prime island campsite not marked on our old MNR topo was just waiting for us! Both feet had about a cup of water and then another cup in my saturated socks. I was pretty thirsty at the end of that one. Went through about 3L of water in 10mins!
Outstanding Brad. You and your girlfriend have more courage than me! Hat's off to you both, for tackling a challenging trip at that time of year.
Thanks Dan! Those hard trips are always worth it. Little harder than expected, but an amazing trip nonetheless!
I find when entering class 3 and above wave train rapids building up that maintaining momentum is key in not flipping. The momentum allows you to plow through waves with more energy and domination of the rapids will to turn, manipulate or flip ones canoe. Diagonal wave like the one that flipped you guys are key to hit straight one perpendicular with momentum. I saw you trying to get lined up properly for it. Sometimes it just doesn't happen. All this said, anyone who says they don't ever flip in white water is not paddling class 3 and above. Fantastic adventures paddles the remote wilderness. Keep them coming.
Oh yeah! Exactly. You're bang on too, "sometimes it just doesn't happen". That's the beauty of whitewater. Never underestimate its power and dynamics. Every flip is a learning opportunity, but sometimes the bigger runs just don't work out. When they do, it's quite the rush 😁
Thanks for watching. More content on the way this winter!
Nice to see young people enjoying nature. Thank you for a great video. Would have loved to do this when I was young but always too busy working. Glad you didn’t make that mistake.
Thanks 😀 We try to balence it out as much as we can. Sometimes that means a bit of a financial sacrifice for emotional wellbeing, but you really can't put a price on that!
Yes I have learned that now.
Leah is a tough cookie !! You as well. I enjoyed the longer video, as I have pretty much stopped watching TV and far more enjoy true "reality" shows like this one. I get to experience the adventure (minus the cold, wet, pain, hunger, etc., of course). I am planning to try the Ranger Lake loop (Algoma) this Spring. I'll haul in the video camera, gopro, drone, and see what I come up with. I picked up a Tensile tree tent, to avoid the issue of finding clear, flat areas for the tent. I don't care about the weight. See how that goes. If I survive the trip, I'll post the video. Great work on this one. It was a delight to watch.
Oh that she is!! I used to watch OLN back in the day when it was actually about the outdoors.... now I just stick to CZcams for all the 'real' stuff! Have fun on the Ranger Lake Loop! I've always wanted to paddle that one. I hear low water can make it a slog... but that's half the fun! Enjoy!! I'll look for the video when you're out of the woods ;)
That lake is beautiful and inviting😇
That looks like the type of trip you look back fondly on.
You got that right!
Despite the rough runnings... man great video and still an uplifting video on a cloudy day for us slackers at home eh..? New fav. outdoors shorts as these two are the monsters of low key outdoor challenges.. Cheers!! sting vodka cocktail.. to yous.. too!
Haha! Thanks a lot!! It's always (usually) fun in the end, no matter what is thrown out way. Thanks for the support! More on the way. Cheers.
thanks for sharing. tough trip!
Your girl's face after flips over was priceless :) I have to show this movie to my girlfriend for motivation:)
Oh yeah, sure was 😅 Haha! What type of motivation are you going for here 😉
Great Job Brad and Leah
Thanks mark! 😁
You row well together. Great action
You guys are crazy! Way to go. I may have the theory but definitely not the practice to run those rapids. Nicely done. I heard of white gas exploding before but not like that. Wow! Sorry about that. Thanks for sharing.
Oh NO @ 17:00 This is raw... Am running trains through this area and LOVE the view!
LOL @ 20:30 go girl!
This channel has my mind racing with ideas.
Good thing I take it? 😉 Let me know if you ever have any route questions.
Well done! Enjoyed it! Thanks
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it :) Happy adventuring!
Great object lesson as to what Pierre Burton describes navvies building rail bed through N. Ontario.
often the least accessible places are the most beautiful. Good job.
You've got that right!!
Great Video: Hard Lady Leah!!
Amazing vids absolute champions
Thanks a lot Matt!! 🤙
Great video! Would love to find my way up there sometime. I just found those Blue Dragon meal kits in the store a few weeks ago. Have one for dinner tonight. I thought they would be awesome paired with dehydrated chicken as well. Cheers
Yeah they totally do! We tend to dehydrate all our meals but we bring flavouring and satay kits like that to enhance things. Makes for a great backcountry (and at home) meal! I tend to grab a bunch of those when they go on sale.
Nice video. Your early spring trip (May?) was quite different from my two August trips. In '77 we rode the train to the Foch River and portaged out through Garnet Lake. In '81 we actually had the CPR's Trans-Canada train stop and let us out at the Obakamiga River bridge (one of our canoeists was a RR Engineer)! Went to Hwy #11 with no drama, no big whitewater - just Idyllic paddling, some lining/portaging, great fishing and fabulous campsites. We had heard about "Dirty Bush", but it turned out to be just another portage. That trip ranks as my all-time favorite, and I've been down the Missinaibi, to the Bay.
Awesome! Yeah this trip was May 24. Crazy how a few months (and many years) can make a big difference. I brought the fishing rod but we never really had the time, or the weather, to fish, but I'd imagine it would be top notch. I'd still like to put at the Foch and go further down the river, connecting with the Albany and taking that out to the Bay.
Safe travel advice: When you're driving - Keep the Shinny side UP. When you're canoeing - Keep the Shinny side Down! That was years ago, but the Shinny side is still down - mostly solo. I've got been doing trips that don't require the SS UP. I could still portage but I fear for my ankles.
The Foch is not very interesting - better to start at Hwy #11. Albany return logistics are complicated: Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Paddle on!
Great footage. Quite the woman that can handle a trip like that!
Thanks! Oh yeah, Leah is something else 😁 one tough cookie!
Great video Brad.
Thanks Scott!
Looks like both of you took the time to pick the right person
Nice!
Super good video, great job
Thanks Paul 😀
Amazing.
Thanks George!
I miss canoeing, aren't a lot of places to canoe here in Arizona. Fantastic trip, Thanks!!!
Some awesome places to bike and hike though! We do enjoy a good winter escape to the sunny south 😁
@@ExploreTheBackcountry Yes, I do a lot of biking & hiking year round...
I spent 6 weeks paddling around the Owakonze Ontario area in 1971. Coming from Texas, it was remote and beautiful, Dropped off by a train. No depot, the train just stopped at a predetermined location on the side of a lake. Off we went. Seems so bizarre today but most likely still the same.
Yup! You can still do that today!! So many wild palaces in Northern Ontario. A train or plane could drop you off and you could paddle for months without seeing a soul! Love Texas too btw, paddled the Rio Grande twice and absolutely loved it!!
Awesome thanks 👍🇨🇦
😁
Epic. video aweseom thanks for sharing..
Thanks for watching 😁
almost fell off the couch when you flipped lol
Very impressive, except now I know I can never complain when a Portage in algonquin isn't perfectly manicured, thanks for sharing
Haha, it's always okay to grumble to yourself if it's not what you had expected!
Awesome
Thanks!!
really enjoyed this thank you!....c
Thanks for watching 😀
Rock & roll
You are both really awesome.
Your north water gear is awesome,
I have it bacouse I trust it.
Your canel is really unterrated
Hey thanks 😁 Really loved the decking last season. North Water makes a great product!!
Go right, go right. She went right and the boat went over. That's okay Baby. She what you said.
my friends and I just did a trip to Nagagami Lake - stayed at one of the fly fishing lodges on the northern shore of the lake. We made a documentary of our travels on my page !
Who sings the cool song at the beginning? I would love to know.
Northwater Barrel Pouch/sleeve for the fuel?
Was woundering if i could share this video on my web site?
Very well done video...what model tent is that. I really like my 12.5x9 Hotcore tarp and I'm in the market for a new 2-3 person...Is that the discovery 3 (@ 9:08)?
That's an older model Mantis 2
Loved this one. Quite funny at times. To paraphrase:
Brad: okay, awwwesome day out here in the Boreal Forest.
Leah: this is colder than winter camping.
Brad: we’ve got a little 4k portage with fully loaded packs to get to the river. No problem, let’s get ‘er done.
Leah: oh dear god, just shoot me now.
Brad: just an awwwwesome river, the Nagagami.
Leah: my hair is still wet and I’m about to pass out from the cold.
Brad: well, we went for a little swim on the mighty Nagagami but it was awwwwesome!
Leah’s look after the spill: if I don’t get a fire going I am going into shock.
Brad: evvvvveryone should paddle this great river.
Leah: I survived. I SURVIIIIIIIIVED! I will never take another day on this planet for granted.
@19:30 there is a sasquatch left side. No joke, check it out
“dirty bush” in NE ont. is a rarely used term which pretty well means what it says. the term could be thought of as the opposite of a mature hardwood forest. it’s a tangled mess of mixed but primarily softwood with plenty of understory growth. a place where a grouse would easily outdistanced any olympic sprinter.
Hahaha, this makes sense! Really thought it was a fitting name for this location too. I live in the NE and hadn't come across the term in my travels before. Not much is moving through there fast at all.... Cool, thanks for the info!!
Hi,
I am super curious about you canoe set up. I am looking for a canoe with spray deck, something similar to your set-up ,is what I think i'm leaning towards. Would love to hear your take on what you like/dislike about it and would you recommend. thanks
Certainly! This is 16ft Prospector from Nova Craft Canoe. The layup is TuffStuff Expedition with skid plates and anchors for whitewater attachments. The spray deck is from North Water Paddle Sports and Equipment. The P16 is probably, imo, the best all around canoe design for wilderness tripping and it's offered by quite a few companies. Short enough for whitewater maneuverability, but still retains capacity for gear. You could make do with a 17 as well if you want extra capacity, but we love the 16.
The TuffStuff layup is much lighter than SP3 and the royalex of yesterday, the only catch is it's coated in gelcoat and will require patchwork after every season if you beat it up on rigorous river trips. The hull integrity is solid even if you chip some of the gelcoat. I actually pinned one a few years back and despite a big crack, continued to paddle it without leaks etc. I haven't had to do too much patching, the odd gash and dime size nick.
Last year was our first year paddling a decked canoe and we loved it. Left it on all season. It adds a bit of weight and reduces visibility on the portages, but the water shedding protection is more than a fair trade off. You can customize it to fit your requirements and it's hand sewn in Canada.
Lemme know if you have any questions
I'd like to see if you ever fish on your canoe trips
Sometimes. I always bring a rod, but it's a lower priority and I don't always film when I do. Tend to eat fish on trip a a few times per year.
Brad, is your canoe a Nova Craft SP3 prospector? How cumbersome is it on portages? I'm looking at an SP3 model myself, but hesitant.
No, Tuffstuff Expedition. Needs a bit more maintenance overtime (gelcoat), but I've been pleased with it. Layup is from a few years back, so materials may have changed a bit.
Ive never put fuel with food for this exact reason
Yeah, we'll never do that again. In all our years of tripping, we've never had an incident like that. Don't want to chance a repeat though..