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Temagami
Canoeing Canada's largest interconnected canoe routes
© Outdoor
Adventure Canada
 I
enjoy the quiet solitude of paddling calm rivers and lakes. I
stay away from busy provincial parks where on a long weekend there
can be a hundred people on a portage and traffic jams on the lakes.
I head straight for Temagami, named by the Ojibway Indians and
translated as "deep water by the shore".
This northern
expanse of pristine wilderness is ten thousand and five hundred
square kilometers and is located only three hundred and eighty
kilometers north of Toronto on highway eleven. A great deal of
this region is crown land. Within Temagami's boundaries are many
parks including Lady Evelyn Smoothwater Wilderness Park, the Sturgeon
and Obabika River Waterway Parks, Solace Provincial Park, and
Grays-Makobe Provincial Park. The significant number of rivers
and lakes combine to make Canada's largest interconnected canoe
route system.
Ishpatina
Ridge is the highest point in Ontario at two thousand two hundred
and seventy five feet above sea level. You can hike to the top
of this ridge where you will see a stunning view of the Ishpatina
canyon, over seven hundred feet deep, and the surrounding lakes.
Maple Mountain is a more difficult five kilometer climb but is
well worth the three hundred and sixty five degree view. On a
clear day you can see for approximately forty kilometers off into
the distance. There are plenty of blueberries along the way so
watch for bears.
These are
just two of many "paddle in" trails in the Temagami
area. Many of the trails have historical or archeological significance.
In fact Temagami has more registered archeological sites than
anywhere else in the north. When you are canoeing close to the
cliff walls watch for the famous Anishnabe pictographs.
While traveling
through this area you can expect to see plenty of bears, moose,
marten, fisher, lynx and sometimes even a rare sightings of the
eastern cougar. You will paddle and camp among huge towering old
growth pines that are hundreds of years old and enjoy cooling
off at many of the sandy beaches.
When planning
your own route through the thousands of kilometers of rivers and
lakes make sure you pack topographic maps and a compass as this
is a remote environment.
You may purchase
maps and literature for the Temagami region from...
Canadian Recreational Canoeing Association
P.O. Box 398,
446 Main St. West
Merrickville, Ontario
Canada
KOG
1NO
http://www.crca.ca
The website
Ottertooth
is a great resource for canoeing in the Temagami region. Another
site of interest is Friends
of Temagami.
For more articles
please view the archives.
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