Rivers of Algonquin

Guides: Isabelle and Clover
JAG's: Gemma and Maya
Trippers: Andrew, Dave and Joe

Day 1:
Put-in at Brent on Cedar Lake to small island at the end of the lake.

Today was the first day of paddling. After a long drive we got to the put-in point and set out. Cedar Lake went very smoothly and now we are sitting around the campfire with the loons singing.

Some high points of the day:
The sunset over the water was amazing!
Meeting everyone was fun.
The paddling was fast.
Getting into canoes after a long time (a whole year for most) was awesome.
The weather was fantastic.
The campsite was great (a tiny little Island).

Now for a the low points…………
Well, the bugs are out.

Day 2:
From Cedar Lake to Radiant Lake

These are the high points of the day:
Seeing the sun as we climbed out of our tents this morning.
Our morning swim on the misty lake.
Practicing our t-rescue strokes.
Practicing our strokes and learning about the white water.
The happy spirits over a fresh pita lunch.
The wind that enabled us to sail Radiant Lake (oops…and that ripped the tarp!).
Clover's encounter with the swimming deer at the end of the portage.
And…fresh blueberries in mass quantity at the campsite!

And a few low points:
Having to line the boats down part of Sunrise Rapid.
Flipping the canoe over (Maya, Clover and Andrew).
Wearing wet socks and shoes.
And, the bugs on the portage.

Day 3:
From radiant Lake to Wagtail Rapids

We woke up, went for our morning dip, had French toast for breakfast, packed up our gear and headed for the fist set of rapids, where everyone who wanted to could try steering. And, everyone did really well too! Going under the old railroad bridge, we saw a black bear slowly making his way from one side to the other of the river. Now that was cool! We stopped for pasta salad lunch on a flat rocked campsite where we also went for a swim and saw a toad. Went down more rapids in the afternoon. Andrew saved his boat by hugging the rock that his boat hit. Good one Andrew! We camped out on an island just beside Wagtail Rapid, in which we went to play after setting up camp. And, for dinner, we had some of Clover's best pizza baked over the open fire!

And, the lesson of the day…..Do not use pinecones as a toilet paper replacement….Dave!!!

Day 4:
From Wagtail Rapids to Lake Travers

The water levels seemed to be higher today. We ran (and lined parts) of MacDonald Rapids…a1.4 km long rapid! We saw some impressive chutes there. We didn't run those, but, the rapids that we did get to run today were so much fun! We paddled through the "Temptations" where Gemma and Joe went for a swim or two. We also did a few portages and on one of them Gemma took a wrong turn and was heading to a lake about 3km away! She realized that ¾ of the way there and came back to us! As we were waiting for her at the end of the trail, we saw a weasel playing on the rocks. And, to finish off and to answer to Dave's desire, we had lemon pie for dessert!

Day 5:
Lake Travers to just above The Natch

High points of the day:
Awesome weather today (group feeling).
Really pretty scenery through small islands and dense forest (Joe).
Not being in a 3-person boat (Maya).
Rafting up after Crooked Chute (group feeling).
Starting Rollway (Andrew, Dave and Joe).
Getting the boat unstuck in Rollway (Isabelle and Clover).
Getting to the campsite and having dinner (Maya).
Putting on dry shoes (Andrew).
Knee pads in the boats (Dave).
Group efficiency and team work (Isabelle).

Low Points:
Dave would like more rapids!
The portage trail was made for mountain goats.
Flipping the canoe (Joe in Rollway..).
Having wet tents (Group feeling).

Day 6:
The Natch to Lake McManus.

The short paddle to our first rapid "The Natch" was one of the most gorgeous views of the trip. We were paddling through mist with the sun rising over the steep banks. Awww! We all had really nice lines through The Natch which was good because we had an audience cheering for us. What started off as a cold morning turned into a really warm and sunny day. So, we finally found the 100m high cliffs Clover was talking about and we jumped off lower parts of them (Fun!). The two 4km long rapids of relaxing class I made today's paddle easier. After those, we had tuna, corn and apple wraps for lunch as we floated and sailed towards Lake McManus, playing "going on a camping trip" and "20 questions". The campsite was the best yet… beautiful, pen and flat, surrounded by a sandy pointe and lots of wind to keep the mossies down. This wind also made a tent fly away..into the lake. Isabelle and Clover rescued it before it totally sank!

Day 7:
Take out and River Boarding.

After eating "the best pancakes ever", we had a short paddle to take out where Robb met us just before it really started raining. Good timing! We drove to a lower part of the Petawawa (at Catwalk) for a fun filled afternoon of River Boarding and as much food as we could possibly eat. This was where we met up with the Dumoine and the Coulonge trip and got to share our stories with all the other campers.

Over all highs and lows of the trip:
Highs
Rapids
Being with Nature
Bear sighting
Smoothness of the whole trip

Lows
Should be longer
Less bugs would have been better! (yes Dave, we know!)

We were happy to see that you enjoyed the trip so much. We definitely had a blast! Hope to see you again on the Petawawa or another fun river!
Isabelle, Clover and the PaddleFoot crew.

Ontario: