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Observations From My First Trip

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Hello all, but especially anyone who has yet to go on their first backcountry trip:

I've just returned from a four-day trip in Algonquin Provincial Park. I'm a moderately experienced backpacker and a former big water sailboat owner. Most of the navigation on my just-completed trip was as easy and straight forward as you'd expect -- the lakes are small (at least compared to Lake Huron) and the portages are well-trodden and point-to-point.

However, I did encounter two challenges that I believe are worth mentioning. I was never "lost", but I did resort to the GPS in my phone for the most efficient direction to a portage on one occasion. On another occasion, I spent 15 minutes needlessly paddling upwind into a dead-end bay I had no desire to get into.

First lesson learned: navigating on even a medium-sized inland lake (Burnt Island Lake in this case) can be a bit challenging. From a distance, it can be hard to clearly discern the features of the lake from the height of a canoe seat because the points, bays, etc, can blend in to the surrounding background hills. I was using a compass and map but...and here's a key lesson...I had not checked to see if my map was oriented to true north or magnetic north. I did not do the mental gymnastics ahead of time to know how to compensate for deviation. As a consequence, I was always suspicious that my direction of travel could vary by as much as 30 degrees if I got the calculation backwards. It was somewhat late in the day, and the worst that happened was that I wasted time and energy paddling to a distant campsite instead of the portage. If I'd had confidence in my compass/map bearings, I could have saved myself some much needed time and energy by knowing my desired direction of travel was ENE instead of ESE.

Second lesson: when you're paddling (as opposed to sailing or motoring), your "fuel supply" is very limited on any given day and accuracy is essential. I was using a smallish square of a map printout wrapped in plastic wrap stuffed in my hip pocket instead of a see-through plastic bag or even better, a plastic sheet protector that I could just leave out in front of me, tied to the thwart. I found that it was easy to forget small features on my small map when I was focused on, say, finding the best campsite. In this particular instance, I didn't bother retrieving the map from my pocket when I should have and forgot I was supposed to skip past a particular inlet on Littledoe Lake and turn left at the next. As a consequence, I wasted 15 minutes of good energy paddling needlessly into a headwind up a dead-end bay I had no interest in seeing. I'm going to figure out a way to have my map more accessible and convenient.

So navigation was not difficult and I was never close to being lost, but accurate and precise navigation is important when your energy supply is so limited.

FWIW

Jim
 
I am wondering why your energy supply is so limited.. Part of the reason I like trips is exploring off the track places.. My trips are hardly ever linear.. As far as discerning features and adapting your eyes to the scale of the landscape, that takes time and experience.. Usually there is a small difference in the movement of trees on islands in reference to the background and a small difference in shading
I've never worried about orienting my map exactly to magnetic north in Algonquin.. I follow the shoreline rather than cut across the less interesting open water so I am piloting. With time you will think like a portage. You will say something like "If I were a portage, where would I put myself?". This comes in so handy in remote parks where the last time anyone did a particular portage was some 50 years ago.. You look at the lay of the land.
Its very true that psychologically there is a leap from big water to small water. Features seem out of scale and our mind wants to put it into the frame of reference it knows , In your case big water.

In the Everglades things look much like a boreal forest and my mind says,.. this is some 10 km across. My mind is used to trees 20 meters high.. Not 3 meters high. That 10 km looking crossing is only 2 km
Many of us eat all the time on the water to avoid "bonking out" Thats one use for a thwart bag...pantry.
 
Knowing where you are on the map will come with time... since it was your first canoe trip, there will be some orientation time. Eventually matching the map features with the actual landscape on smaller lakes will be automatic.

As for the fifteen minutes...

“Never underestimate the value of doing nothing”

Winnie-the-Pooh
 
I am wondering why your energy supply is so limited..
Yellowcanoe, I didn't mean to imply that I was running out of energy, I wasn't. This is just an old guy being conservative and always trying to have a reserve in the bank for the unknown...and there were lots of unknowns. Accuracy and precision is a holdover from my sailing days when being off course by a few degrees would equate to miles off target over a substantial distance. And, I admit I enjoy being precise and the sense of accomplishment I get from nailing down my navigation. It was as much a personal disappointment that I had failed to take a preparatory step I knew should be done and did not do.

One huge unknown for me was how the headwind was affecting my progress. I didn't know if I was doing one mph over the ground or four when I was any appreciable distance away from shore so I was really putting my back into it. I have since learned that I was actually moving quite quickly and could definitely have backed off the effort a bit.
 
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Jim,

If you can afford it, get yourself four things: the best detail map available of the place you are canoeing (preferably showing campsites and portages), a quality map case to hang in front of you, a waterproof mapping GPS, and topo maps to load into the GPS. Paper and electronic maps are available for the just about any place in the USA and Canada, although not all will have the ideal detail depending where you are.

Using lithium batteries, I have my GPS permanently on during my entire trips, although that's not really necessary. I get about 50 hours of GPS on time with backlight off. Bring extra batteries. I also use the GPS in my vehicle and when hiking. I have dubious compass skills, but never need them with this system.

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My phone also has a GPS and mapping program, but it's not waterproof and I don't want to burn its battery, so it stays in a waterproof case inside my waterproof day bag. I would only use it for canoe GPS purposes as a backup to my Garmin.
 
[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]When using your map and compass. Once you have found and set your point to navigation locate a visible terrain feature as your reference. It could be a dip between to hills (coincidentally that is where most portages are located), a mountain top, etc rather than following a compass needle while paddling. Canoes drift and that can be troublesome.[/FONT]
 
...a quality map case to hang in front of you...
Glenn,

I'm shopping map cases today. Just having the map unfolded and easily accessible may well be all I need. The picture you've included appears to be the Sealline map case I'm presently viewing!

As for the GPS, I'm holding off a bit to see if Garmin releases some new compelling upgrade to the Delorme devices now that Garmin has purchased the company. I had been thinking I only wanted the satellite messaging capability but after this trip, I now know that I also want to know how fast I'm going. I could have backed off my effort a bit if I'd known how fast I was actually traveling.
 
Its interesting to hear a sailors view coming to the world of canoeing. No doubt on open water you have to pay attention to your instruments and a degree mistake has big consequences. And you have to pay attention to your depth finder. The instruments require human interaction ( I watched a 50 foot sailboat ground as the skipper drank cocktails ..oblivious)
But canoeing is so low speed that really does the few minutes matter? Errors are easily fixed.
GPS is a bane in tidal areas.. When ferrying across current I know I am going backwards.. Fixating on the 2.5 knots reverse speed rather than keeping an eye on the goal is for me utterly miserable. A friend paddling with me across Long Island Sound gleefully pronounced our reverse speed as we neared the shore of Long Island.. I could have doused that GPS gladly

I've never even considered a GPS for Algonquin as its got easily discernible features( including those annoying portage signs).. No doubt it is very useful on the ocean and in fog ( where I use mine).

But me thinks jm0278 is liking collecting gear!
 
A good Garmin GPS has a lot more features than I ever use, but which might be of interest to sailors. Mine has Blue Charts for all of the USA and parts of Canada. It can measure wind and tidal drift. It has all tidal stations and can make tidal calculations. It has a 3-axis compass that orients itself. An altimeter, which can be used to measure river drops. I always use my GPS to keep track of my top speeds, average speeds and distances traveled, time stopped, and all sorts of other calculations. Plus, if you've got a good GPS topo map you're not going to end up in the wrong arm of a lake you see on your paper map.

Most seakayakers I knew when I was in that branch of the sport used GPS's as well as deck compasses to navigate on tidal waters. I have a clip for mine on my outrigger canoe.

The ability to put way points at put-ins and take-outs all over the continent, at portage routes, at pizza joints, and at churches and stores, are highly valuable to me. I can also download satellite photos from Google Earth, Bing and other sources -- and put way points on them either beforehand or during the trip -- which can be the best way to navigate swamps like Sparkleberry and the Glades where topo maps are unavailable or wildly inaccurate. I can also download "paper" maps.

For paddling, get a model that is waterproof and floats. While electronics are all going in the touch screen direction, I strongly prefer physical push buttons on an outdoor GPS that you may have to use when wet or with gloved hands in a rocking and rolling watercraft. Even my touchscreen phone is a pain in the pocket, as it dials 57 people every time I mow the lawn.
 
A word about maps: It always totally throws me off when I go between maps of different scales, i.e. Fisher maps (1:31,680), Chrismar (1:125,000), Voyageur (1:42,240), Canadian topo (1:50,000), and US topo (1:24,000). As in: "I've got to turn at the next point."
 
From a distance, it can be hard to clearly discern the features of the lake from the height of a canoe seat because the points, bays, etc, can blend in to the surrounding background hills.

Discerning some landscape features at a distance is difficult. Forested islands in the foreground blend into the forested shoreline background. I frequently paddle open water in salt marsh bays and Spartina grass blends even better into Spartina grass, to form one unbroken line at any distance. From a mile away it is hard to tell where one forested pine hummock is distinct from another, even when they are widely separated.

Like Gerald said identifying some reference point helps keep true, but in flatter country, where there is no readily identifyable dip between the hills or a mountain peak to fix on it gets trickier. I’m not a GPS user, so a map and compass are essential, and I feel kinda naked if I don’t have both easily readable at a glance.

To that end having a map case and compass secured at a reference readable distance is a boon. If the map case won’t stay in place in reasonably flat readable condition, or I can’t read the compass through the rain spatter on the lens, neither is much use.

Fog or even hard rain can obscure landmark points. A couple of years ago we had a delightful dead calm paddle into Assateague. In a dead dense fog. Zero reference points, and none needed. I’ve done that trip often enough, and often under sail, that I knew holding due south past a large island, then turning 30 degrees to the east and holding that line until I hit land would put me in the vicinity of camp.

Actually, I did need a reference point. The compass. I can easily hold due south in that bay with barely a glance at the compass in clear weather.

And even with the compass I found landfall several times; in the fog I found myself constantly wanting to veer slightly left off course. With the visual sense gone my auditory sense took over; I could hear the ocean surf on the far side of the island to the east, and was keeping comforting sound steady within earshot.

In the Everglades things look much like a boreal forest and my mind says,.. this is some 10 km across. My mind is used to trees 20 meters high.. Not 3 meters high. That 10 km looking crossing is only 2 km.

Same for easterners seeing big water out west. That 100 foot tall cliff face a half mile way isn’t getting any closer. It’s 1000 feet tall and still several miles away.
 
Map cases (and compass)

I'm shopping map cases today. Just having the map unfolded and easily accessible may well be all I need. The picture you've included appears to be the Sealline map case I'm presently viewing!

Well, maybe not “unfolded”. I strategically quarter fold my (preferred) topos, and stack them in a double sided map case so I can read the continuation on the flip side without rearranging quads, and have the next needed maps pre-folded and ready to switch when I run off the charts.

I have two different Sealline map cases, one a fold-over dry bag style closure, one a Zip-lock style. I’d say don’t bother with either. Both of those Seallines are too flimsy floppy, the fold over version is a PITA when changing maps and the Zip-lock style will be less than semi-dry once it gets some sand, mud or crud clogged in the closure.

The flimsy floppy can be resolved by sticking something thin and lightweight inside as a stiffener panel, but I’d as soon use a giant sized dual-seal Zip-lock baggie, and relegate it to trash duty when the “water proof” closure craps out.

The Gaia map case is the best I’ve found for my quarter folded topo dimensions and two-sided window viewing. Discontinued of course.

http://www.canoetripping.net/forums...ussions/navigation/376-looking-for-a-map-case

Redoleary’s DIY map case, which is much like the Gaia case I use.

http://www.canoetripping.net/forums/forum/general-paddling-discussions/navigation/27086-map-case

Tie-outs on at least two corners of the map case are an essential. And, of course, some easy place to attach/hook/secure those tie outs on the canoe.

About the compass. I know I am paddling peculiar, but having a dome shaped kayak-style deck compass, designed to be easily readable when covered with rain or spray without peering intently through cheaters, strapped to the front thwart alongside a decently rigid map case, is the best thing since carbon fiber paddles. At least for us dinosaurs without a GPS.

I’m still a USGS topographic map guy; after 40 year of topo use I can visualize “dropping into” a pinpoint on a topo and recognizing what is around me from the map.

That is a special memory treat when map looking back at places I have been, “dropping into” the topo, looking around and “seeing” what I remember was actually there at that time and place in my history.

I just don’t think I’ll capture that feeling on a GPS screen.
 
Mike.... any idea about Copious Glass? Coronaboy.... hope Ed didn't dis me to much......
 
Interpreting topo maps is a skill that is nigh on to being an artform. Especially when the last survey was done 50+ years ago. We usually go to google maps and look at the satellite view to attempt to discern current ground conditions...burns, river courses changed, roads or damns built, etc. Then we decide which one we are going to use and print and mark them, often with notes on the back. Usually they get laminated too. We then keep notes and post the info. It's half the fun of doing the trip.

Oddly enough, although we have karins GPS, it mostly gets used for time checks unless we are hopelessly fuddled. I take my compass but hardly ever bother with it. We mostly navigate on local features and of course follow the river. It's hard to get lost, unlike hiking. We got turned around on a portage once though and that was quite a cluster.

Part of the enjoyment for us is travelling the way the great explorers did...every day is a new adventure and as long as a bear doesnt rip your face off its all good.

Christy
 
I know this topic is now a year old, but I am new to the site, and wanted to try posting something. Hopefully it works as I hope! I am an old guy (70), and have been using topo maps all my life. I still prefer them to GPS, as it allows me to see and appreciate the entire landscape. In fact, I rarely use GPS, as I always seem to know where I am, using the map and compass (set for the declination). My tripping has all been in northern Canada, often a month long, and several hundred miles. I travel with a 1:1,000,000 for a broad perspective, 1:250,000 for general route information, and 1:50,000 where I think greater detail will be needed. I waterproof them in advance, and carry them in a waterproof Seal Line map case, which I tie to the spray deck. With the map in front of me, and the compass around my neck, I mostly know exactly where I am virtually all of the time. Note the word "virtually." There was that time on the Thelon River, at the confluence with the Dubawnt, that produced a lot of islands and bays. I wasn't paying close enough attention that morning. With the low, uniform overcast terrain, I got turned around, and we eventually realized we were going in the wrong direction. We got out on the highest island we could see, and took compass readings in all directions toward somewhat obvious points, and then matched them to the 1:50,000 map. It was a good lesson.
 

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I'm still a few years from 70, but close enough that 70 no longer seems "old". ;)

Month-long trips in "northern" Canada (sounds redundant, like "southern Florida") reminds me of a YouTube poster that goes by WinterTrekker. Awesome trips and videos. I get the impression he's up in the northwest corner of Ontario somewhere. What I like most about his videos is his detailed descriptions of the trees, plants, and entire ecosystem; I think the guy must be a teacher or professor.

As for maps and GPS devices, I definitely prefer using map and compass with the GPS as a backstop for those few times when, "I could be here...or maybe I'm there". Usually I'm in forests where you can't see any distinctive landmarks. But, on the other hand, I'm also usually where trails are marked and there is the occasional sign. The GPS is nice for keeping track of how far I've actually gone and occasionally for knowing exactly how far I have yet to go.

I recently added a new device to my kit, a Garmin InReach Mini. It's a tiny little thing that links up with my phone and is also capable of sending and receiving text messages, including a special SOS function, via satellite. My domestic management (wife) wanted me to always have a way to call for help and I always wanted a way for her to tell me she needs help so the device is a win-win on the communications front. Aside from that, the big appeal to me was the ability to have it be visible while I'm paddling so I can see how fast (or slow) and in which exact direction I'm going. Last year was my first for canoe tripping and when paddling into stiff headwinds on a couple of the days, I had no idea if I were doing one mph or four. I learned after the fact that I was actually going more than three mph so I could have eased up a bit if I had known.

I'll be heading back up and over to Algonquin next month for my first backpacking trip there and I'm also planning to get in at least one canoe trip there this year, hopefully two. I have a definite preference for cooler weather that is mostly bug-free as opposed to warmth, shorts, short-sleeves, and deer flies. I can almost imagine being out for a month...almost. But certainly not without fishing or hunting and the cost for a U.S. citizen to obtain Canadian licenses just isn't worth it to me given the time I actually spend there. Mind you, my complaint is not how much the licenses cost, but rather that I don't spend enough time there to make the expense worthwhile.

Welcome to the site. I hope you'll share some specifics about your northern Canada adventures. Someday...maybe...
 
Kathleen and I gave up backpacking for canoeing when we were still in our forties. With a canoe, we could go for much longer and farther, without having to carry everything on our backs, except for the occasional portage, which were like a short backpacking trips. There is some advantage to being older, though. Last summer in the Northwest Territories, I got a free fishing licence as a senior!

There is a southern Canada. I have tended to arbitrarily define northern Canada as rivers north of 60 degrees.

There was also a benefit for being temporarily misplaced on the Thelon River. When we climbed to the top of the highest island to view our surroundings, we encountered this caribou, standing in the wind to escape the hordes of bugs.

I am also happy to share specifics about our northern trips. Anything specific you would like to hear about?
 

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oh yes there is a northern Canada and a southern Canada

Ask anyone in Thunder Bay or Yellowknife about Toronto....you will get an earful

And I think most Canadians live south of me who lives in the US.. And there is of course much more Canada north of me than south. But Edmonton might have tipped the scales.. Jeez what a massive city with incredible traffic jams,
 
Utuber by the name of Winter Trekker......LOL, yeah that is HOOP. Great guy. He is a biologist out of Thunder Bay, ON. Our version here in Manitoba is Charles Burchill, and he has some good video on U tube as well...paddles a lot of the local rivers.


Christy
 
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