West Side Strokes

Are you looking for a challenging canoe trip? It can be found on the West Side of Algonquin. This trip will follow a route from Kevin Callan's excellent Paddler's Guide to Ontario (Pg. 35). It promises great opportunities for wildlife spotting and abundant solitude. Additionally, at White Trout Lake there is an old fire tower trail and many KM of shoreline to explore.

On the down side, the route is a ways off the beaten path, so the condition of the portages may be more challenging than most. One section is labeled as muddy. There will be a fair bit of portaging, about 7-8Km over the 4 days. Given the number of portages (22-24), no kayaks will be permitted. It is recommended that everyone coordinate with their boat mate to insure they can perform single carry portages. Finally, I have never explored this part of the park, so this trip may be harder (or easier) than I have listed.

Participants should have prior paddling experience. Knowledge of bow maneuvering strokes (sweeps, draws, and sculling) may come in handy. There are spots where portages may be skipped if the bow person can successfully keep the boat from getting dashed on shallow rocks. A fair bit of conditioning is required as the days will be fairly long.

The itinerary is as follows.

Friday June 27th

• Drive up and camp near Kearney. The campground TBD.

Saturday June 28th

• Get an early start!

• Pick up permit in Kearney.

• Head to the MagNeTaWan Lake Trailhead (Labeled as put-in #3).

• Paddle over to the trail to Hambone Lake and portage.

• Paddle over to the trail to Daisy Lake and portage.

• Paddle up Pentawawa River

• Paddle over to the trail to Little Misty Lake and portage.

• Paddle over to the trail to Misty Lake and portage.

• We camp on Misty Lake

Total Distance is 12.3 KM of paddling and 2130m of portage broken up over 6 trails. The longest carry is 935m.

Sunday June 29th

• Paddle through Misty Lake to continue along the Pentawawa River.

• Follow the Pentawawa river taking the portages (6) as needed.

• After arriving in Grassy Bay Bay paddle out into White Trout Lake and set up camp.

• If we have time, check out the fire tower trail or explore the old farm depot.

Total Distance is 17.6 KM of paddling and 1640m of portage broken up over 6 trails. The longest carry is 850m.

Monday June 30th

We are returning to Misty Lake. We can either come back the way we came on Sunday or take the following suggested alternate route back:

• Paddle Through Grassy Bay to McIntosh Creek

• Take McIntosh Creek to McIntosh Lake

• Cross the lake and portage over to Timberwolf Lake

• Cross the lake and portage over to Misty Lake

• Make camp on Misty Lake.

• Total Distance is 19.3 KM of paddling and 1790m of portage broken up over 4 trails. The longest carry is 745m.

Tuesday July 1st, Canada Day

• Reverse the route from Saturday.

• Drive home.

• We will return fairly late. I estimate 11 PM.

Total Distance is 12.3 KM of paddling and 2130m of portage broken over 6 trails. The longest carry is 935m.

All portages are worst case estimates. Several portages may be skipped in higher water conditions.

Reservation fees are being gathered to cover the following
$13 split evenly between all those who are coming. Assuming $11.87 per person per night X 3 nights in the backcountry = $35.61
$10 deposit towards the your Friday night accommodations.
$1.71 PayPal transaction fee
= $48.76

Additionally there will be cash needed for Friday nights accommodation (TBD) Gas money. Each car will split gas expenses equally between all passengers and driver. Cash for snacks for the drive

Carpools, boat and gear sharing

Please use the following spreadsheet to coordinate carpools, boat sharing/rental arrangements, and gear sharing.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1vjSp8zQwHDfa1ITbXvdTJbuA21uyxOfEjardXpfWAIQ/edit?usp=sharing