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Hi guys,
I'm looking at doing a portaging trip in northern ontario. Just wondering if anyone has portaged before and what kind of tips and tricks they can offer for a novice portager. I found this website that described this couples journey on this specific route and I am going to try and follow it. (http://www.canoecouple.com/Adventure.../Sakatawi.html)
Any and all advice would be helpful. Also should mention, this is not a solo trip. I will most likely have company.
Thanks,
birdbuff
When you say novice, what's your experience canoeing/portaging/back country?
No portaging experience really. But i am very comfortable in the back country and canoeing.
Depending on how many days you expect to be out and the distance of some of the portages, you may want to work yourself up to it. Try a few weekend trips leading up to your big adventure.
Portages in provincial parks like Algonquin are heavily used, well marked, and easy to navigate for the most part. In the north, it's a very different story. You'll want to be very good with your map and compass, know your route, and travel extremely light.
I'm all for adventure, not trying to keep you from one. Being prepared is the #1 thing you should have in mind. There are lots of resources out there. Keep reading, but more importantly, get out in the bush. If you have no experience portaging, get some before attempting something off the beaten track.
Just my $0.02
Would you consider the French river?
Its fairly easy to navigate nice campsites a good 4 day run from Dokis down to 69.
There is some moving water you can run or postage around. Not to mention the fishing is awsome
have done thesturgeon river trip before...real nice4-5 day trip
Very good suggestions. I will probably go on a couple of easier weekend trips before attempting anything bigger.
Thanks
Its years and years since I've been tripping. Love it, there no way my body could take it, could allow it anymore. Part of me would just love to do some ultralight back country tripping/camping again but I'm a realist. My days of sleeping under canoes, long portages and what not are way behind me.
Not sure if the site is still active or not but canoe routes if you join will give you all kinds of ideas, from short 2 day loop trips, to trips for the advanced.
Plan, plan carefully. Its not often everything goes to according Hoyle. In fact I can't think of many trips off the top of my head where things weren't forgotten, lost, injuries, just plain old bad luck/weather.
If just starting heres my 2c.
Plan your route carefully and allow plenty of time to complete it, so you can take it easy. Don't push yourself. What I mean by this is, plan to break camp and head out say 8am each day. PLan to make camp say by noon, or 1pm. It gives you lots of time, to enjoy. Ive had to cover more distance than I wanted to in the dark due to misadventure and falling behind schedule. Not fun.
Consider gloves for your hands, appropriate foot wear, and even your canoe, its balance, yoke, comfort on the shoulders.
Murphys law. Never forget Murphy is the boss and every now and then he like to pop by and remind of us of that.
A list of the most bare essential things for portaging, in order,
#1 portage solo.
#1 Make sure your canoe is well balanced at your center thwart/ yolk.
Other things: If it's bug season be prepared, some are not fans of bug jackets with the zip hood but that's what I prefer. The big down side is that the hood will cause you to over heat more quickly so make sure you have lots of water for the portage.
I find the biggest issue on long portages is soreness and losing circulation/ tingling in the hands caused by point pressure.
The best thing to deal with this is to be able to change the pressure points and your position as you go.
This is one of the reasons balance is so important as it allows you to portage with one hand on the gunnel and one hanging relaxed.
Other tips to help with this are:
Lash your paddles to the thwarts so you have lots of options for hand positions; ie. thwarts, gunnels, paddles.
Use a Tump line attached to the center (carrying) thwart.
Try putting a lifey on upside down so the bottom of the back covers your neck and provides some padding.
Portage while waring a small/medium sized pack and rest the thwart on the top of the pack so the straps take the weight. Best to have waist and chest strap so some of the weight is distributed there.
I'm more of a fan of the straight round carrying thwarts as opposed to the elaborate yolk thwarts as I find the front points dig into my back when I slide the thwart down my back a bit.
Here is a pic (not mine) of paddle lashing and a thump line:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7-xW8O3vmR...erlost+048.jpg
As mentioned, practice! Even if it's around the block as you will find the mix of things that you prefer.
Also try different ways of getting the canoe on your shoulders to see which one works best for you.
Vertical branches 6-8' off of the ground make great resting places along your way, this saves you from having to raise and lower your canoe at each rest.
Note on balance:
Ideal is to have it balance so that the bow of the canoe points up so that you can see where you are going.
However it is better to have it slightly stern heavy than bow heavy, a life-jacket works well as a counter weight as you can strap it to one of the seats, anything that ends up swinging or sliding while you are portaging becomes tiring quickly.
I found this website: http://www.myccr.com . Its pretty informative. Lots of great tips and gear advice. Many of the canoe routes in Ontario are covered and discussed on the forums.
Great help.
Thanks guys
Birdbuff you can start by wetting your beak with me in Algonquin for splake on trout opener. Three days weekend trip, easy 4hr portage.
The poker lakes route in muskoka is quite nice and pretty easy for a novice.fishin aint to bad either.
OMG I love that canoe Rugger….
No joke on balance and comfort Rugger especially on longer portages…There are some I remember not fondly and I always made a point of good balance/comfort. If I couldn't control the canoe with just my fingertips and light pressure I wasn't happy.
The reason I mention gloves is it doesn't take much when portaging/camping to do any kind of damage to your hands, from cuts, scrapes, burns and blisters. You don't want to be miles from your takeout and long paddles with/against wind when your hands are screaming.
Hwy 17 on the White River to Pukaswa Park on Lake Superior. Three to four days and the fishing is excellent. Check in with the Park first and you are good to go.
Pick up one or two of Kevin Callan's books. They're an easy read, offer some trip suggestions, and have lots of information for portaging and equipment.
Some of those portages around Opeep are a tad difficult. Some of the larger rivers are clear sailing but portages between Opeep and Rice may not be well marked even though snowmachine traffic in the winter keeps them cleared.
Your biggest issue is when you decide to go. Late May might put you in the middle of blackfly season but water levels will be higher making fewer portages possible. If you delay your trip to mid summer then skeeters, deer and horse flies will drive you crazy.
Mid to late August is the best time for cooler weather and the worst of the flies have died off. Water levels will be down though.
Pickeral fishing is good as long as you have a basic knowledge about how to catch the critters. Unfortunately, slimers are also common.
After alot of tripping experience I can tell you all of the advise above is excellent. Balancing is crucial for a somewhat comfortable portage. The other thing I need to say is "Portaging hurts..... it really hurts...... it can never not hurt ..... so buy into it and don't bother looking for the magic solution". The pain and discomfort becomes more tolerable the more you trip. It's the price you pay to be a tripper.
Dan O.
X2 I relied on his books when getting back into interior trippingQuote:
Originally Posted by mbhunter
Here's a report on a trip I took my wife and kids on last summer:
http://www.oodmag.com/community/show...s-in-Pic-Heavy
This was a 4 day trip and involved 4 portages in and 4 portages out and lots of bass. I solo'd the entire trip as we had an odd number of people in our group. This trip could be made longer as there are numerous back lake extensions that could be added. It was entirely on crown land (fewer rules, no permits and free) and completely off the grid (no road access) after the first portage. We did not see a single person after the first portage until we got back. It starts in the Port Loring area and heads into the big chunk of crown between 11 and 69 and south of 522.
This would be a good trip to cut your teeth on. If interested shoot me a PM.
all very good info...and Dan O.....u said it....it just hurts...its the price of being a tripper....
a trick I learnt from one of kevin Callahans books is to pack light....then spread all your gear on the lawn and start cutting stuff out or off....seriously...cut your toothbrush in half....thats a 50% weight change....and if you sit back and really look at everything you can really lighten your load....and the weight of even half a tooth brush can be felt on a 5 km portage.