5 Days Alone in the Heart of Temagami

[CanoeDaddy]

I just posted this video of my 5-day trip from Twinkle Lake Access in Temagami, up the Yorston to Florence Lake, down Ames Creek to Pinetorch, then back to Twinkle. The Dead Beaver Falls Portage was a disaster after the microbursts at the end June. Very demanding trip for a 55-year old fart going solo, but incredibly rewarding and beautiful. Hope you enjoy!

 

[GeoBoy]

Wow, what a trip.

 

[CanoeDaddy]

Wow, what a trip

Wow, what a trip.

Lol. Yep. Memorable, indeed!!

 

[gadabyte]

Only about 1/2 into the video so far, but enjoying it. Some overlap with the route I took this summer, plus a bunch of areas I want to get to on my next trip - thanks for the reminiscence and scouting report in one.

The area you point out on Mudchannel Lake as possibly being the route over to Pinetorch, i think the route is actually a bit south of there. I'm operating solely from memory, and having to transpose things in my head since I was heading South and you were headed North, but I think it's 1/2-ish of the way between that little bulb off the main body of the lake and the outlet. In any case, it's not easy to find, but it is there and is passable (and the route from Mudchannel to Pinetorch is really pretty).

also - I think we fell into the same bog on the long portage between Bluesucker and Florence. Hope you had as good of a laugh about it as I did afterward.

 

[CanoeDaddy]

@gadabyte Glad the vid can help you for future trips. Yeah, I was only half looking for that route east toward Pine Lake but not really hard and it wasn't my intended route. Thanks for the clarification.

I had a very good laugh falling in the bog. Had the canoe and my food barrel on and both legs went in all the way up to my crotch. There was another paddler right behind me from another group. He offered to help but I didn't want him to fall in either, so I managed to get out on my own without losing a boot. Wish I caught it on video but I was too busy trying not to drown in the mud Lol.

 

[Pook]

Wow!!!
I am not worthy!!!
I spent 5 days solo in Temagami the first weekend on October- 1st to 6th- but nothing like this!!
I went in Marten River at the south end up to Bruce Lake then around into Wicksteed Lake over the dam. My one portage was 180 m around Wicksteed Lake dam!!

3 days of spectacular autumn scenery - then final 2 days of wind and rain. And cool- down to zero overnight
That is some incredible video- but I'm not tempted to repeat it.

Bruce

 

[CanoeDaddy]

Lol. Thanks Pook. Who knows?!? You might have it in you! Don't know till you try...

Some gorgeous colors there. BTW... the Wicksteed-Martin River area got hit even harder by the very same micro bursts mentioned in my video. Any carnage left from that?

 

[Pook]

Thanks- you have more faith than I . I think my days of dragging 75 lb cedar canvas canoes through some of those "portages" are over...

Interesting that you mention those micro-bursts. The campsite on Bruce Lake had a field of downfall pine, birch and spruce just behind the cleared "site" including the top 40 feet of this old pine that just missed the thunderbox. Half an hour with a hatchet remedied the situation.
And looking for the "portage" from Bruce to Wicksteed, what appeared to be the start of the path was completely blocked by downfall. Hence the decision to go over the dam instead...

Cheers! Bruce

 

[CanoeDaddy]

Yep. I tried to get down to that area a couple of weeks after the trip to Florence and got stymied going down the Temagami River by crazy amounts of dead trees on the ports there. Was told it got worse further to the southeast where you were.

 

[Tryin']

Good video, sir! Thanks for sharing!

 

[CanoeDaddy]

Good video, sir! Thanks for sharing!

Glad you enjoyed it.

 

[Tryin']

REALLY dumb question: What is Temagami? I see parks all around the area, but looking at trip reports, it seems like we are generally discussing the entire municipal area. Is that correct?

 

[paddler123]

REALLY dumb question: What is Temagami? I see parks all around the area, but looking at trip reports, it seems like we are generally discussing the entire municipal area. Is that correct?

View attachment 157999

There's a Lake Temagami, Temagami River (which flows out of the eponymous lake), and the town of Temagami (at the eastern tip of the lake, with the municipal boundaries you highlighted). But in a canoe tripping context, the Temagami region generally refers to a wider area than any of those three, roughly bounded by the Wanapitei River on the west, Lake Timiskaming on the east, Montreal River to the north, and Wanapitei Lake/lower Sturgeon River to the south. At least that's the geographic range that the various canoe trip camps in the region (mostly based on Lake Temagami) generally cover, which is my experience with the region.

 

[paddler123]

See here for an interesting historical map of the region: http://www.ottertooth.com/Temagami/Maps/nastawgan/nastaw-index.htm

 

[Alan Gage]

After hearing you say Temagami in the video I realized I've been saying it incorrectly in my head for years. Thanks for straightening me out.

And thanks for sharing the trip report!

Alan

 

[CanoeDaddy]

@paddler123 You answered that way better than I could have. Spot on.