Canoe Camping in the Temagami Wilderness (Part 1 of 2)
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- čas přidán 13. 04. 2023
- A 5 day fall canoe camping trip in Temagami, Ontario.
We start with a road trip north, and an overnight stay closer to our destination. Never having been to the area we expected rough road ahead, and that’s what we found. We discovered our car wouldn't make it all the way, so we portaged to the access lake - Lake Temagami.
After battling strong winds and white cap waves we arrive at a site on Diamond Lake that had been through a storm and was closed due to the downed trees. We didn’t end up seeing the sign stating that it is closed until we paddled away the next morning! We had our favourite dinner, steak cooked over the fire. That evening we discuss changing the route. We originally intended on doing a challenging route over 6-7 days but given that we only had 5, we decided on something easier. Of course we were tempted to switch back to the original route and complete it in the shorter amount of time that we had. In the morning it was decided, we would do the more challenging route after all. We began heading towards beautiful waterfalls, spending one night and one very cold morning on Lady Evelyn Lake, and continuing on through challenging and rewarding terrain. Never have we seen so many rocks. The portage difficulty levels were very high, but the views were breathtaking.
Part 1 of 2
Boy oh Boy! This was such a great adventure and so well done....and ..I just happen to tune in...lucky me....Great job you two & the Pup.....!
Thanks for watching Jim! 😀
Great advice - in rough water just stay low and balanced and trust the canoe.
Totally ✨
That rock cliff portage looked brutal!
😅😅😅 it was
Wow. That is some crazy portaging! Quite the masterful job by James of carrying that canoe up and over everything in his path. Awesome effort by both of you.
Thanks so much! A big effort, but well worth it.
I get a kick out of Emma going up the rocks and looking back like "Are you coming?". I also couldn't believe how well she listened when you were getting the boat across the beaver dam. She clearly didn't like it but stayed put at your command / comforting.
Ya she's always got this smug look, like 'geez.. any slower and I could nap while I wait' She's so good, 9 times out of 10 she stays in the canoe when we ask on beaver dam crossings.. but sometimes we loose her to a swim haha
I've been watching your videos for the last couple days. Brings back memories. I was born in "54" in Pa. My parents, sister and I would spend vacations canoeing in Ontario in the early 60's.. A bit different. No cell phones, no light tents or light sleeping bags, always found an island to camp on. Mon said my sister and i could swim like fish but we couldn't get lost in the woods. No privies, No portage signs. Just an axe blaze on a tree. Some very old. Fishing was better. I can vividly remember 5 casts and catching four fish consistently. The view was just as beautiful.
Sounds amazing. More effort to bring in heavier gear, but once you are there, it’s all worth it! We still don’t have cell reception when we’re out in Algonquin but we’ve got the phones to record all the action! Thanks for sharing your experience, fishing sound amazing!
Arugula pizza - wow 1st time and your doing the loop!!!! Brave :)
We just did the same trip this year in the same weekend 28th -2nd
Rocks, waterfalls and easy ports ;)
The locals keep people out of Sandy inlet with that last road lol
Nothing like a 600m portage to start the actual trip - ominous ❤
Arugula pizza was 👌
We left thinking we didn’t have enough time for this loop, and we would do it another time.. try something more tame.. but we silently knew the night before ..then in the morning we both looked at each other like.. we knew we both wanted to try the harder loop 😂 and so it began. The last road was ominous for sure haha felt like an adventure from the get go
Well done! Wanting to go Diamond lake in the fall too. Your Emma is beautiful. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much! It’s a beautiful lake, you’ll love it.
Really love your videos, it's so fun to tag along your adventures! Would have been hilarious to know what Emma is thinking she seems like such a good doggo :) That huge portage was crazy btw, creds to you guys for making that climb, especially with the canoe!!
Typically I feel like Emma is an open book.. but sometimes she has that look in her eyes where I think she might be thinking deep thoughts ♥️ one thing is for sure, she does live in the moment. Thanks for coming along on the adventure! I feel like I was baffled at how James was navigating the portages with the canoe.
Wow wow wow 4.5 hours from downtown Toronto! Amazing footage. Thank you for sharing.
A true gem 💎
Thanks for coming along 💫💫
awesome job! thanks for helping us live through your experience!
Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed the experience with us ♥️
Quel bonheur de vous revoir.
Merci de nous apporter avec vous sur nos magnifiques cours d'eau.
Thank you Raymond, glad you enjoyed ☺️
Welcome to Temagami. I did that river solo last summer with my dog. There was definitely some really cool parts of that trip but also a lot of type 2 fun where I was cursing the portages at first but laughed about it later when I was done. I laughed at your comment "Don't come here". LOL! Definitely not for the weak of heart.
😂 Yes that river route is most certainly not everyone’s cup of tea.. but we loved it. Pain is easily forgotten and overshadowed by the good moments and memories. An epic trip for sure.
excellent vid. really enjoy your videos, looking forward to part 2
Thank you!
What a great down to earth presentation! Great job!
Ah thank you! We love documenting our adventures.
Awesome fall trip. Temagami looks very cool, I'm glad you had the opportunity to finally trip there.
Thanks Steve! We’re so glad we finally got to Temagami, can’t wait to go again!
Wow, temagami is a whole other world. So rugged and beautiful. Its crazy how different the temperatueres are up there. Btw my 2 golden retrievers love the Emma content. They are tuned to the TV when I play your videos. We are going to attempt to get both of them in the canoe this year (wish us luck).❤
Awesome! Emma loves watching other dogs camp too.. and people, especially if they are swimming lol.
Pack your patience and high value treats 😂 I’m sure they will do great, as long as they don’t think the canoe is a diving board like Emma did! Have fun
Those portages are crazy!
They kept getting crazier, it was unreal.
Great trip so far!!! That portage was nuts! I got nervous when Emma started sliding down that rock....glad she is ok. Looking forward to the next one in Part 2
Oh geez I think its the only time I stopped breathing and had to remind myself to start again. She normally handles herself so well climbing, it's the first time she's slipped. No other incidents though after that, for any of us thank goodness!
Amazing trip , climbing those hugh rocks would be quite a challenge , i'm glad that you made it over them .
There were some close calls! But we made it, thanks for checking the trip out 😊
Wow, that rock climb portage with the canoe was harrowing.
The portages here were epic. Still feels like a dream that we *james* did all that.
Aaaand we still want to go back 😂
Thank you..
Thanks for watching Steve
Wow! Nice job on those crazy portages. I’d have been airlifted out to a trauma center with all of the broken bones.
Other than that, it’s looking like a great fall trip. I had flashbacks of canoeing lakes like that in the Adirondacks and in Vermont in my younger days.
😂 we’re lucky we didn’t break anything.
Adirondacks are on our wish list for someday ☺️ looks stunning there.
This must be what portage canoeing looks like in the French Alps! You guys are amazing and in shape! One thing i was thinking about in the storm damage site was - at least you know most of the widowmakers had been blown down at that point.
What a joy to get a two part series from you guys! It’s definitely getting me excited about kayaking season!
You know i watch you guys and jon and errin and xander and his brother and it was getting me really interested in investing in a canoe and and all the gear to go with but since I’m vested in kayaking with the different paddles, boats and a sail i have been feeling blessed to just have what i have and to be able to access big water whenever i want. Im in New England so plenty around salt or fresh. I really like that tarp you used as a windbreak. Just was wondering what kind it was. Always a joy to see Emma with the zoomies😊. You all take care and i can watch part deux tomorrow night😊👍🏼. NQU
Ah, great to hear from you 😄 yes this must be what French Alps are like. I don’t know if we will ever find out.. maybe not with a canoe 😂. That site must have been beautiful before, we weren’t sure how long it had been this way, but we did have a look to make sure nothing looked to precarious at least where we would be spending time. Kayaking is awesome, and whatever gets you out and exploring is perfect. Sounds like you have great waters to trip around. The tarp is really great, we love it. It’s a Rab Siltarp 2
Cheers!
Nice trip. You had a lot of wood available at that first site!
Haha we sure did!
I have stayed in the same spot you did I am from New Liskerd
Very cool! Its so beautiful
We love Temagami and I have been waiting all winter for you guys to post this trip! So a huge thank you. We did the Chinaguchi waterway last summer in Temagami and would highly recommend doing the Donalad lake loop. The fishing on Donald is spectacular. Jon from Lost Lakes inspired us to do that loop and no regrets, loved it so much we did it twice last summer. Can I ask why you didn't paddle up into Lady Evelyn and do the two smaller portages into Willow Island Lake? We are seriously considering this route for this summer, but my husband really doesn't want to do the 3000m out of Diamond lol
Awesome, thanks for the tips, we can’t wait to go back to the area!
The map we were using suggested that those portages weren’t in the best condition, so we assumed it might not be the path most travelled. The 3000 out of Diamond is ..one of the easiest portages on the route haha. After we did it, we said it was the hardest we had done yet.. and they kept getting worse. The length of the portages in the route we took is the least important factor as we discovered. Our usual quick pace was majorly slowed down on this trip. Well worth the effort of course.
@TwoPacksandaPup the portages to MacDonald lake don't look as difficult as the ones you did. I have convinced my husband to do the waterfall route after watching your part 1 😊 yay! So after we do it this summer I will be able to see which route was more challenging! I was impressed there were thunderboxes on our route, I really didn't expect them in a unmaintained park.
Love your videos, can't wait for part 2!
Would love to know what dog toy that is and what dry bag packs those are. This is a great video and your reactions are authentic - just love it🥰
Just answered your questions in the last comment. Thanks so much for your kind words 😊
What an awesome trip with spectacular views! Thanks for sharing it 😊 Would you say you'd go back to temagami?
My husband and I are actually headed for a trip there this summer!
Nice! We can’t wait to go back. Planning to go again this season. While doing the trip, James said he doesn’t think he would do this route again. I asked why.. and he said it’s too difficult and the rewards are the waterfalls and views.. and now we’ve seen them. Now that we’re home and the pain has passed, we would do it again 😂
@TwoPacksandaPup ha! That's usually the way it works out on more challenging trips isn't it?! 😂 glad to hear you would go back though!
Love your stuff! Can i ask what dry bags you guys use??
Thanks Carrie, we use the MEC Slogg 70L. Love them
Awesome looking trip.. Do you have a link to the scent proof bags you used?
Yes, they are awesome. We use the same ones for every trip and they last a few years with care. Opsak Loksak we use the 30x50cm
www.mec.ca/en/product/5044-253/opsak-odour-proof-barrier-bags-2-pack?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIvMmP_8Wy_gIV9O3jBx1R5A7uEAQYASABEgLtxfD_BwE&colour=NO_COLOUR
Did you start at Sandy Inlet? I got my VW Jetta all the way down that access. But while we were gone there was a lot of rain and I got stuck in a mud pit on the way out. Done really nice guys got me unstuck, thankfully! Did you do the Napoleon Mountain portage?
Wow, it’s a rough road! We didn’t want to attempt it haha (Yes we started at Sandy inlet) hood thing you got out! We did do the Napoleon Mountain trail to the lookout on our way out. Will be in part 2!
@@TwoPacksandaPup will be interesting to see how you liked that portage, lol! Personally I’d heard some scary stories about it, but I didn’t find it that bad and I’m in my late 60’s. You just have to watch your foot placement very carefully each and every step in the “bolder staircase”😃
My wife and I are out there from the UK in July/August, do you mind sharing your route?
We did the trout streams section of Lady Evelyn River. This is the section of river where Cabin Falls Ecolodge is located. We put in at Sandy Inlet aka Red Squirrel Bay
Did you know that you were very close to Ishpatina Ridge, the highest spot of land in Ontario ?
We did! Yes, I didnt film it but we talked about it when we saw the ridge from the canoe. Was not part of our scope on this one unfortunately. Hopefully next time.
You found some amazing scenery. Emma seems calmer now and less liable to jump out all the time! And like you said, can’t believe that James did both those steep portages with the canoe and a pack. 🫡
Emma has come miles from when she first started tripping! We're so happy with her progress. She hasn't jumped out in a long time.. last one was this past summer when James had a nice trout on and there was too much action for her to contain herself lol The portages just kept getting crazier and crazier, the second half of the trip was wild!
Yep and Sharp Rock portage….remember that one fondly😂
We were expecting rugged terrain but when I saw this one at the start of the trip.. I was like, oh boy, here we go! Lol
@@TwoPacksandaPup it ended up not being too bad once you get going….looks worse than it is
What model is your canoe? (Sorry if this has been asked/answered elsewhere. I have not seen it.)
Swift Keewaydin 16, love it!
At 13:00, it looks to be a Swift Keewaydin 16 although not sure on the trim package.
What site number did you use on Lady Evilan?
We’re not sure!
What brand / model of PFD does your husband use?
Stohlquist Fisherman is the pfd James uses 👌
It is wine's job to leak in food bags, sorry 'bout that ... 😅
😂 it’s not a trip of something doesn’t leak in your bag. Best of it’s something smelly
Did you know Julia Stiles looks like you?
I haven’t heard it put that way before, but I have heard that we look alike!
portages too rocky for my liking . A broken ankle is a real possibility
Thats for sure! knew it would be rocky, but it was crazy. We were pretty worried about possible injuries, so took it as slow as possible, but still a risk.
You can do routes with less intense portages with the endless Provincial parks the temagami wilderness has to offer
Sorry but the only reason I watch your videos is because of Emma nothing a against you guys
Here from Ontario Canada ❤️❤️❤️🇨🇦🇨🇦😎
Haha, it's ok, we suspect that many of the folks stopping by are rather fond of her
Alcohol and hiking,camping is not a good mixture.
Everything in moderation!
@@TwoPacksandaPup Always learned that Alcohol has no meaning or health benefits. Just a better experience without recreational drugs. Just spreading joy to humans.