New Year plans...

[Mihun09]

January 2nd. -24C windchill and a storm moving in...

This year we have initial plans for 3 trips. Late June, August and beginning of September. Long weekends are also possible short trips.

Late June on the Rice River again, exploring new areas deeper into the bush, further upstream. Can only do this early or with higher water since the river bed can dry up over a normal, long hot Manitoba Summer.

August, the Canoe-Tripping group trip out of G-Town. Having the opportunity to reaquaint with Rob and Irene and potentially meet more members from this site helps with the 12 hour drive to G-Town. Wilderness, exploring and good fishing, what more could anyone ask.

September. Queen Hughes. Been talking about this trip for a few years, did a short exploration a few years ago but it has become a Quest. It is a larger lake tucked away in the bush below the super highway of the Broadleaf River, which is used by most paddlers to get from Wallace Lake to the Bloodvein via Aiken's Lake and the Gammon River. Nobody stops to smell the roses along this way other than us. By September the Broadleaf could be a trickle though and we know all the ports need to be cut out.

This year we have to change our style a bit. Christine's heart attack last April is having a lasting effect and my blown out shoulder isn't improving. Shorter days perhaps, smaller chainsaw, less distance travelled each day. We won't know until we get back out onto the water after the thaw in May.

What have you?

 

[Guest]

I plan to continue with my exploration of the ADKs and return to some favorite spots there also. Have many local paddles planned also.
Turtle

 

[memaquay]

I'm thinking the time period between August 7 and the 16th would be good for anyone interested in coming up this way. Brad and I have been talking, and we're quite open to route adjustments, etc. If we stick with the Marshall trip, there would be no need to do the entire loop, we could play around after the bridge for a couple of days....anyway, flexibility is the key!

Other than that, I have a few other trips planned. Of course, the trip in June with the kids where we will open up the ports again on the marshall Loop. My buddy was here last night and we looked at the possibility of putting in at the Ogoki Bridge and going up to the reservoir and then down to Cliff Lake to see the pictographs. Then we would explore the lower stretches of the Pitigushi River to see if we could get out by train. Or we might open up the Little Pic river again. Not decided yet. Probably several weekenders in there as well.....so looks like it could be a busy summer!

 

[stripperguy]

I am retiring this year in June, gone will be the 55 hour plus work weeks, but the upkeep on our rental properties should be minimal, allowing actual free time!!
Most plans are for the ADK's, it's my backyard...
I have a trip planned for early May, before leaf out and before the black flies, on the Cedar River and through the Essex Chain Lakes. There is a 1.4 mile carry to Unknown Pond, and a short (.2 miles) bushwhack back to the Cedar, the a little upstream travel on the Rock River and up the Chain Drain. Still have to work out a car shuttle...We'll spend a night at Unknown and another at Pine Lake.



A return to the southern ADK's with a paddlewhack to Clockmill Pond, a trip down the Hudson River from Newcomb to Indian Lake, son Josh wants to return to Fish Pond, Lower Bog River.
And if I can work out the logistics, a Rock River-Cedar River-Hudson River loop, if...
Plus a few mild trips to satisfy MDB, Little Tupper, Lake Lila, Bog River.

 

[Mihun09]

Further afield and something we have talked about would be doing the Gunisao River. It is not one of the popular Manitoba Rivers like the Bloodvein, Pigeon or Berens. It is much further north. It drains into the Nelson River at Norway House. It would be a fly in, paddle out trip. The river is 208km long and has 48 marked rapids/falls on the maps. It would have to be a 2-3 week trip for sure for us. It would be possible to do in 6 days maybe, but we would be fishing our way out and mapping the ports. We know the indigenous people of the area still use the river so we imagine there are existing ports. The lake itself has a trophy fishing lodge on it with an airstrip.

What we call our backyard is anything accessible within a 4 hour drive, which includes Nopoming PP, WCPP and Atikaki WP. We have covered most of those areas which is why we are looking further afield. Even the 12 hours to G-Town is less than anyone in Southern Ontario would need to drive to get into the wilderness that is our backyard.

 

[Odyssey]

The 2015 season is already slowly filling up with family commitments and work. Why should this year be any different? Well, I hope it will be. For a start, this year I haven't plotted several trips on a calendar. Maybe in this way I won't jinx myself, and have them pushed aside one by one for higher priority stuff, like family commitments and work. A very big family event in mid June might allow some day tripping around my region with like minded family members...I hope. For sometime in July I've already suggested to our family of doing day paddles in Temagami while doing a son's DIY home project nearby. And then in August comes the big paddle venture of 2015 for us. I've already whispered it to our family and friends when they've asked "What are your paddling plans for 2015?" Maybe in that way things won't get complicated, and other plans overlap with this one. September is our favourite time of year to paddle and camp. We will still have some of my wife's vacation time left, so squeezing in a trip will possibly round out the soft water season. We'll see.
I know there's a lot of compromise in our plans. It is what it is. Robin mentioned in the ideal tripping partners thread that he puts family first, always ahead of personal tripping time. That sure rings true for me. Last minute family time like babysitting, back yard bbqs and impromptu potlucks have a way of cancelling our calendar plotted plans. I'm always okay with that, but this year will be a little different. It's been 3 years since I last slept under the stars and smelled wood smoke, made bannock and coffee over a fire, wet my paddle and my toes...it's been a long 3 years.

 

[Rippy]

I had two BWCA trips planned last year and I ended up canceling both for different reasons. I ended up spending a total of two hours paddling. Hope to do better this year. I am planning to go for a week sometime prior to memorial day and than a Fall trip. Fall trips are my favorite. Dave

 

[Guest]

plans

What have you?

I’ve been making a conscious effort not to say “plans”. I have hopes and wishes and want to’s.

I hope to get out for some unseasonably warm winter paddling on the coast, if the temperature and wind and tides provide an opportune window.

I want to get back to the Carolina’s in March and hope keep heading south on that trip to the Everglades. And then slowly work my way back north.

I’d like to get out west for a couple of months, to work on a cabin the SE Arizona and do some paddling. Maybe give Lake Powell a try this trip.

I kind of expect to get up to the Adirondacks in 2015. I didn’t make a trip in the ‘daks in 2014, for the first time in 20+ years.

That lack of “plans” has worked well so far. I was out for 127 days in 2013 and 111 days in 2014

 

[Alan Gage]

I’ve been making a conscious effort not to say “plans”. I have hopes and wishes and want to’s.

I try to operate the same way. I always have 2 or 3 trips that I'd like to do and a general idea of when I'd like to do them but I try to take it as it comes after that. They might come earlier and they might come later or if weather and other things conspire against me they might not happen at all. Sometimes I find, come that time of year, that I don't want to do it "just because" and I go do something else instead. It's a nice way to have it.

I'm going to try and skip my winter trip to SE Arizona this year. I can feel it pulling but believe I can resist. I think I'll have to go next winter though. Lots of local paddling, as per usual, in the spring and summer. Planning to do a big river trip in Canada late summer/fall that will eat up all my vacation time and then some. Maybe I'll just keep paddling and not come back.

Alan

 

[red langford]

I always itch to hit the bush spring time for at least a a few days. I want to do a fly in paddle out this year for sure and think August is the time for that. A few long weekend trips with friends is also a strong possibility.

 

[Iskweo]

While a I do like to do spur of the moment trips, it is best to put in some prep time for our longer ones. Once you are out there you are on your own. Some time I want to do a bare bones trip and try living off the land as much as possible. To that end I am going on my hunter safety course this month to be able to get a hunting licence.
We have some ambitious trips planned. 10 days is about our limit since that is as much food as we can carry. I will look to reduce our weights with more dried stuff and more fishing. I have this idea of trying to find someone to help me with an aerial recon of our route into Queen Hughes. The feelers are out.

Brad...make it out this way for Marshall Lake and I will make you some bannock, they way Kookum showed me.

Christy

 

[Odyssey]

Brad...make it out this way for Marshall Lake and I will make you some bannock, they way Kookum showed me.

Christy

Christy, that would be a pivotal moment in my tripping life. Thanks for that. My bannock making skills are a bit hit and miss.
Learning traditional skills first hand would be unforgettable.

 

[memaquay]

My wife should be able to come in for at least the first five days. If she has to go out at the bridge, I'll just swap into a solo canoe. I'm looking forward to this trip, hope you guys can make it!

 

[Mihun09]

Some of us still have to book for vacations and sometimes they are denied. I work for the world leading company in it's field but it still took me 3 years to get to 3 weeks paid vacation. I need 4 weeks this year so will likely put in some OT to bank 40 hours for the additional week. For the G'Town event we will likely make it a two week affair. No sense in rushing. This time I will actually have to go into town, never made it past your place last year Rob. I'll start saving for the Bud Lite which I will get there, a 15 pack here is over $30. I believe Christy gets 6 weeks each year.

 

[Odyssey]

Looking forward to it.



I included my French onion soup for scale purposes only. It's snowing here today, so soup was more appropriate than beer or quarters.

 

[memaquay]

Awesome! Gonna be fun!

 

[Rippy]

Looking forward to it. I included my French onion soup for scale purposes only. It's snowing here today, so soup was more appropriate than beer or quarters.

That's funny Brad. To me anyway.

 

[sweeper]

Nothing set yet, we are in a holding pattern pending the finalization of wedding plans on our annual start day and grandson's Driver Ed class at the same time.

'More' and 'Later' trips are in this year's planning.

 

[Robin]

Last trip first, I will defiantly be doing another canoe in small game/deer hunt in NY's ADK the last weeks in October, not sure if it will be back to Lows Lake or someplace else. I'm thinking about a late Feb winter camp up there to scout out a new area, pulling my gear in a short distance with my toboggan, taking advantage of the great non resident hunting fees now in place in NY to hunt small game in Feb while scouting likely deer hunting areas for the fall trip.

An April trip back to the ADKs with the wall tent for comfort while I try some trout fishing, finding open roads to my favorite lakes can be an issue then, so a last minute departure might be necessary. Looking for any local information then.

There is talk of a trip to the Aroostook River in Maine with a group of wood canvas canoe folks in late June I would be interested in, good tripping partners and I have never been on this river.

Will probably skip the WCHA assembly this year, it's fun, but here at home it's considered a "canoe trip" by my wife with it's related expenses, (I'd rather be tripping..ha)

Back to Maine in July for a first time trip with my daughter/sil, and their two boys, 5 and 4 yo, maybe a weekend car camp to break the boys in, or a small canoe in pond location. This is high on my list of priority's this summer.

I'm hoping the 3 plastic canoes I'm planning on restoring/selling are gone by August to pay for a trip to western Ontario(no doubt this cheap gas will be gone by then). Memaquay and Quinn have given me some great crown land destinations to plan for, 10 days is about my limit, then I start to get homesick. If I don't make it out to western Ontario, I will return to LaVerendrye for 8-10 days. (solo)

 

[DuctTape]

I have a growing list which includes both paddling and backpacking trips. My current issue/problem is I have so many places that I like to go, that the number of trips to "explore something different" are decreasing. One of my "plans" is to do more exploring this year. But I say that every year. For some reason I keep heading back to places I know I like. I do need to do more fishing regardless. Forgot to mention, just about all my trips are in the Adks.