Friendly faces on the shores of the Great Lakes

On August 7th, under a blanket of thick fog, we departed the community of Silver Islet located on the Sibley Peninsula near Thunder Bay. After enjoying incredible hospitality, a springboard diving competition, a sauna, and several pieces of homemade pie at Silver Islet, we bade farewell to the quaint town and the friends we’d made there, to Ross’ parents, and headed back out onto the Lake. And what a glorious lake it is! That day, visibility was poor and we were fortunate to have the sailboat Hakuna Matata, crewed by Nathalie’s Uncle Gilles and Papa Andy, to guide us across the first bay and back on our way. These Brunet brothers remained nearby up to Sault Ste. Marie. We enjoyed their company so much; the fatherly hugs, beers in the wilderness, weather updates, navigation advice, and genuine good humour. These guys are great!! It took us 14 days to paddle from Grand Portage to Sault Ste. Marie, some days we covered up to 65 kilometres. We had several days of calm paddling when the water was like glass, un
characteristic of Lake Superior at this time of year. There were many days that we fought a headwind, or worked with a tailwind or cross wind but thankfully only a few partial days were spent waiting on shore for the wind to decrease.
We’d long heard great legends of the North shore of Superior, it is rumoured to be dotted with fishing camps and saunas, open for the use of those who know where to find them. After our journey to the North Shore and back again, I am willing neither to confirm nor deny the existence of such fantastic places, it’s one of those mysteries you’ll have to investigate for yourself. I can attest to the incredible beauty of Lake Superior. The ever-changing shoreline of rocky cliffs, lush green hills and white sand beaches that border the water filled us with awe. But the most unexpected for me was the colour of the water; beautiful shades of blue, green and turquoise. The water itself, sometimes smooth and calm, can also be impressively powerful making the lake one of the most dangerous bodies of water in North America. The huge sky provides the entertainment of the day, watching storms roll by, fog settle and disperse, the glowing sunrises and sunsets. Lake Superior never ceases to impress those who travel its waters.
Off the coast of Pukaskwa National Park we met a Parks Canada patrol which informed us that the park was closed to backcountry campers due to a bear attack the week before. We had heard about the attack on the radio in Silver Islet and had planned to paddle past the park boundary in one day. The Park employees left us with a radio to call them in case we didn’t make our destination by nightfall. We continued paddling hard but by 7pm we were still 20km from the Park boundary with a storm building all around us, so after a brief radio call we were instructed to meet a Parks boat and spend the night at the Weidman’s Island warden cabin. Within an hour and a half we were speeding down Lake Superior under a stunning pink and yellow sunset with lush forest, beaches and rugged cliffs flying past. After camping the night on the island with a few friendly park staff, we were returned to our canoes in the same way, and continued out of Pukaskwa National Park. We were tremendously appreciative of the park staff for allowing us to paddle on through.
Days later, as we fought the wind crossing Whitefish Bay to Sault Ste. Marie, we were met by Whitney’s parents who commandeered a motor boat to come and pay us a visit. They were amazed by how well our Clipper Whitewater II canoes handled through the big swells, while they were being tossed around in their motor boat. There smiling faces and endless photos showed just how proud of us they were. They met us for dinner in Sault Ste. Marie, and for the following two days along Saint Mary’s River and Lake Huron with snacks and meals. Going through the locks at Sault Ste. Marie was neat. We entered through a thick metal gate and held fast to the cement wall. The water was drained from the channel and we were lowered ~30 feet to the level of Lake Huron. The process took no more than fifteen minutes; we left through a similarly menacing gate to enter the river channel that would bring us to our second of the Great Lakes and onward to the rest of Canada.
This section of our trip, as jam-packed as it was with delightful beauty, was also one of the most physically and mentally draining parts that we’ve yet experienced. We’ve been bone-tired, we’ve been sick, and we’ve had our moments of grumpiness. A head cold brought Ross and I down midway through the lake, and hung on for far too long. A stomach flu-like sickness plagued us last week, beginning with Shane, moving to Ross and Nathalie, then Steph, then me. Only Whitney has remained healthy. There were moments when it seemed that we were just so far from our destination and making such slow progress that it seemed difficult to ward off a negative outlook. We’ve found that singing- and usually at the top of our lungs- works best to cure us of poor mind-set in stressful or tough situations. There has been many a long afternoon when I’ve been drifting into a mental funk only to be snapped back into a good attitude by Whitney belting out the words to a favourite song. It seems insane that we could possibly feel gloomy when we truly are living a dream every single day and I can’t begin to explain why this happens, but it can happen if we’re not careful to keep ourselves smiling.
Our welcome at the North Channel Yacht Club set the tone for our stay in Sudbury: we were greeted by a crowd of amazingly kind and inquisitive folks including members of Nathalie’s family and members of the Yacht Club, and a potluck dinner. We were shuttled to Sudbury and are now staying at the home of Andy and Monique Brunet, Nathalie’s parents. These two rest days have allowed us time and space to once again reorganize gear and food, and to recharge our bodies and minds for the rest of our journey. We’re ready to carry on to the Georgian Bay and beyond! <Abby>

Superior is awesome!

After the numerous portages of Quetico Provincial Park and the Boundary Waters, we find ourselves on the magnificent Lake Superior. Since Rainy Lake, we have been hopping from lake to lake, by a variety of ponds, rivers, creeks and portages. Although often unpopular among canoers, some portages have been quite enjoyable, filled with fresh raspberries and blueberries! Our favourite is when we can bypass the portage by lining the boats upstream.
This portion of our route has largely followed the waterways comprising the border between Canada and the United States in Northwestern Ontario. The 250 km route from Lac la Croix, east to Lake Superior via La Verendrye River Provincial Park has been designated the Boundary Waters Voyageur Waterway by the Canadian Heritage Rivers System. A listing of other waterways designated by the Canadian Heritage Rivers System can be found on their website. At Loon Falls, where we portaged into Lac la Croix, we were impressed by the motorised rail system used to transport motor boats between lake systems. We spent the night with a wonderful couple, Dana and Fred who used to operate the rail system. Before the construction of a road to the Lac la Croix reserve, the rail system was the only way to get to Fort Frances, and was a busy place!
Throughout the trip, we have employed the "bridge sprints” rule that marathon paddlers from home use during training sessions: if you see a bridge, you try to get there first, by either distracting your competitor, sneakily riding your neighbour’s wave, or just racing to get there if the other strategies failed. We had heard that Janice, the Quetico ranger at the Cache Bay station, could provide us with some interesting information regarding the region, so as we came around the corner, and saw the Quetico flag for the Cache Bay station, we got to racing (it had been a while since the last bridge). As we pulled up to the dock, Janice came down and gleefully stated "I have not heard the word ‘hut’ in many years!”. We took a long lunch while Janice shared her stories of her time marathon racing, her 27 years as a ranger on the island in the park, and her encounters with other cross Canada groups, including Max Finkelstein (Canoeing a Continent: on the trail of Alexander MacKenzie), Roman Rockcliff and Frank Wolf, who paddled from St. John to Vancouver in 1995 (http://www.clippercanoes.com/c2c.php), and the Mountains 2 Montreal group who started May 1st of this year from Rocky Mountain House (www.mountains2montreal.ca). Janice promotes the importance of treating the land with care, and really encourages youth to spend time in the park, and to later return with their friends. For me, this really struck home, as I have been reading "Last Child in the Woods” by Richard Louv. Having grown up as a city kid who always appreciated the mornings I spent in my kayak on a calm Wascana Lake, I believe in the message of the story as it presents the importance of the calming effects of nature in healthy childhood development. For the first time along the trip, we encountered numerous other canoers, mostly Boy Scout and YMCA groups from Minnesota and various other parts of the United States. We were impressed by the enthusiasm of these youths, and the positive impact these trips have on the groups is apparent. I loved the boisterous laughter of the young boys and the giggles of the teenage girls as they solo portaged their canoes across treacherous trail without complaint.
The 40+ portages (actually >40!!! We counted!!) through Quetico and Boundary Waters really made it seem like our daily goal was just around the corner, but we just couldn’t quite get there. When we met with the Trans CanEAUda crew on the Winnipeg River, they mentioned burgers at the Gunflint Lodge. It felt like it was our goal to get to that lodge for three days--- "it’s just after the next portage” we all kept thinking. The burgers and moose tracks ice cream were well worth the wait!
After a slight wrong turn leaving Gunflint Lake, we encountered a canoe of two men dressed in voyageur garb who were paddling to the "Rendezvous", where Voyageurs from east and west would meet for a festival at Grand Portage . Their characters were from Fort Frances and Fond du Lac (now Duluth), Minnesota; they wore Metis belts, used canvas tents, forehead straps for the portages and even made their own moccasins. These men had a real passion for voyageur history. They sung "O Canada” for us as we paddled away.
At this point, we thought our portaging days were coming to a close, especially when the height of land portage went swiftly. This portage marked our entry into a new major watershed, where water now flows towards our final destination, the Atlantic Ocean. Following the Howse River in Alberta, we have been paddling on water bodies that drain towards the major basin of Hudson Bay. In the Lake Superior basin, the portages increased in length, muddiness and treachery. In due time, we made our way to the Pigeon River, and were surprised by Rhonda and Dave Phillips at Partridge Falls. We decided to call it a day and take a little rest before making our way into the community of Grand Portage, and spent the evening enjoying the Partridge falls, as well as burgers and beers courtesy of the Phillips.
The amount of gear necessary to complete a journey of this magnitude made it nearly impossible to complete portages in one trip, unless we were able to use our "expedition carts”. As a result, we chose to portage using minor roads into the community of Grand Portage on the shore of Lake Superior. This decision saved our bodies from the long, muddy and difficult ~13 km "Grand Portage” trail historically used by the Voyageurs. As we made our way into Grand Portage, we were struck by the beautiful Lake Superior! We were excited for a new challenge, a change of pace, and to avoid portaging for a little while. We paddled past the huge Fort as we made our way back into Canada. As we crossed into Canada, we were greeted by Nathalie’s Uncle Gill and dad, Andy, travelling by sailboat! It will be wonderful to have their smiling faces around for the next couple weeks.
Our first couple days on Superior have been wonderful. The water is clear, cold, and refreshing. The view is spectacular! We have already had our first wind-stayed afternoon on Pie Island waiting to cross towards the Sleeping Giant. As the sun rose this morning, we paddled across the calmer water and were blown away by the sight of the rocky cliffs, lush forests, and bigness of the water. I’m looking forward to getting to know this beautiful and historical lake! Today we are resting and reorganizing at Silver Islet, a quaint little town near Thunder Bay, where they have a great pie and pastry shop, and plenty of warm hearted folks. After Shane binged on donuts in Fort Frances, Shane bet me a pie in the face that he would not eat any treats the whole time we are on the Great Lakes. I wonder how long he will last! <Steph>