Canoe tripping a the Massassauga Provincial park

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It's only April and i'm already itching to get out. Oastler Lake opens up on march 12th for the season, and we may be the first ones breaking ground that day.

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Itinerary

12th friday night camping at Oastler lake prov park.
13th at 10:00am saturday, put in at Three legged lake access point. camping on spider lake, site TBD
14th sunday depart & reach vehicles around 1'ish

What we will do

I haven't picked the site yet, but it will be in the north part of Spider Lake. Since it's my first backcountry paddle this season, i suppose people might still be waking up from winter hibernation too. So, you can either chill at the campsite or be adventurous, dump your gear at the campsite and make a big loop to the Georgian bay through Spider Bay.

Difficulty

beginner-intermediate. it's flat water, with not very long portages. Now it's the early season, the ice is just melting: even though the air is warm, water might be cold. Night temperatures can drop to 5C.

What to expect

This is a Backcountry trip folks, NOT your good ole family car camping trip! So... if it's your first time or you are a beginner, do your research! It's not difficult when you are well prepared. You are expected to be properly geared up, in decent shape, properly dressed and generally self-sufficient. If you don't have a paddling partner, ask. You will need to make your own arrangements for canoe rentals, transporting & return.

Check out Tim's Backpackers' Bootcamp Packing List (v2) (http://files.meetup.com/1606190/Backpackers%20Bootcamp%20Packing%20listv2.pdf) for a list of what to pack.

I also expect that you practice basic backcountry etiquette, so we can all have a good time. http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/back-tips.html

Rental places

Oastler Lake Provincial Park, 705-378-2401 (this is where we are camping the friday night)
Swift Canoes (http://swiftoutside.com/stores/rentals.php), Waubaushene, 705-538-0881
Sojourn Outdoors (http://www.sojournoutdoors.com/about-us/rentals-services/rentals/), Barrie, (705) 739-9694

Car pooling, tent sharing

feel free to do whatever you want. google groups is a good way to plan & keep track. At Oastler lake, they have a limit on tents per site, so we can either share or book more sites, whichever is preferred.

Cost

about $20-30/person in camping fees, parking, wood, etc.

• gas money for car sharing

Refund/cancellations

No refund less than 1 week prior to event. there are campsites to book, and cancelling fees and your paddling partner probably depends on you to paddle, so if you decide to back out the morning of the trip, that's not very reasonable.

See you on the water,

Asvin