Trying to Pass the Torch at Wabakimi Outfitters

"After 46 years, Bruce Hyer is ready to retire. But who will take the reins?"

"Photojournalist Colin Field and his son venture into the Wabakimi wilds on a guided whitewater adventure to find out what the outfitting operation is all about and to discover the magic of the Park for themselves."

It would be sad if it disappeared.

Talked to his wife last September in Armstrong and she said they rarely made money with this business. The earliest I ever paddled in the Wabakimi area was the third week in May and the latest was mid September. I understand it is still possible to paddle in October but the cold better not bother you. So you would have a short season to to make all your money. In the off season the Hyers moved back to Thunder Bay and may work there at that time.

Judging from the number of abandoned outfitters, outpost camps and full on lodges I've passed over the years I would guess that any type of setup (fishing, hunting, paddling) is not a route to riches. The ones I know that are active AND making money are exclusively in the rod & gun business and charge way more money than 90% of paddlers are inclined to spend.

Lots of nice photos in the linked article. Re-reading it, I got a chuckle out of this quote from Bruce Hyer:

“I quit my job and brought my first wife up here and lived in a tipi for a year and a log cabin for a year,” he recalls. “My first wife went away after a few months. We had this very polite conversation: ‘Bruce you’re very persuasive, you made this sound very romantic, but I’m sick of eating blueberries and beaver tails, and I’d like to see a few other human beings.’ So I stayed and she left.”

Wabakimi Outfitters still has a website, so maybe Bruce hasn't yet sold but is still in business.

I've met Bruce a few times, bought a canoe or two off him. He was originally an American I believe. He was elected as an NDP member of parliament for the Thunder Bay region, and that is where he earned a great deal of respect locally, not so much federally. The Conservative party of Canada was voting to end the long gun registry in Canada. Bruce went against the party line and voted with the Conservatives to end the registry. Bruce was the rare politician who actually represented the wishes of his constituents above the party line. There are a lot of gun owners in the Thunder Bay area. He was disciplined by the NDP for not voting with them, and in the next election he ran as an independent. I voted for him then too, but unfortunately I don't think he won. Anyway, very interesting fella!

This year Bruce did not exhibit at Canoecopia after having a booth for many years. And the Midwest Mountaineering Spring show in Minneapolis is no more because that shop closed after the owner retired. When I asked about Bruce I was told he and his wife were traveling and thus not at Canoecopia. Sounds like the business is winding down. His son, who previously worked in the business with him, is a newly minted attorney and will not be taking over the business.