July 5-8 2013 - French River Provincial Park

Route: Figure Eight Loop (French River Provincial Park)

Distance: 40km

Time: Day 1 (15.3km) Day 2 (7.1km) Day 3 (13.3km) Day 4 (4.6km)

Canoe: 16'6" Kevlar Prospector

Map:  http://goo.gl/maps/gKZY6

Figure Eight Loop - French River Provincial Park

Liz and I were pumped for our first camping trip of the season, and especially excited to visit a new park and a new region of Ontario.  Our route was to follow the Figure Eight Loop as described by Kevin Callan in his book A Paddlers Guide to: Killarney and the French River. The A Paddlers Guide to: series of books are a great source of information on routes and planning tips to many different regions and parks in Ontario.

Day 1

Day 1 started at 4.30AM.  We woke up, showered, packed up food and gear, headed over to the Harbour Front Canoe and Kayak Center to pick up LF7, scooted over to Gill&Rems, loaded the van and hit the road.  Driving to the French River Provincial Park took about 3 hours, with a quick breakfast break at McD's in Parry Sound and a short side detour to the park’s brand new visitor’s center.  We arrived at the Hartley Bay Marina at around 11.30AM.  From their offices, we were issued park permits, arranged a canoe rental for Gill&Rems and obtained overnight parking for the partay-van.

A quick unloading of the van and transfer of our packs to the canoes and we were on the water within half an hour.

Everyone is gung-ho...azn stylz ding!

First strokes along the French River

Our original plan for Day 1 was to paddle out of Hartley Bay, through Wanapitei Bay, turn east after Canal Island, paddle south down the Eastern Outlet, find the Whale’s Mouth and turn west again to link up with the Main Outlet.  From there, take the Main Outlet to Dallas Rapids and out to the Northeast Passage and on to Georgian Bay.  I estimated a light three hour paddle or so.  Turned out I was way off in my estimation of what we could achieve on the first day.

The first problem we encountered almost immediately after setting out was navigating the French River.  The area is dotted with loads of small islands and little passageways that can completely confuse your orientation.  Gill and Liz were our dedicated navigators for the trip, and both did a formidable job, but tracking our location on park map and the numerous "rafting" of our canoes to converse about our location slowed us down.  

Two hours in and not having been able to locate a single campsite in order to irrefutably confirm our location in the park, it was time for some lunch.  Good call Gill.  Lost, hot, hungry, and thirsty...time for a break.  

Liz...where are we?

Scoops of orzo salad made by Gill&Rems, a few gulps of water, reapplication of sunscreen and a long discussion on our location and we were good to go.  But not before admiring a view of the beautiful area. 

There is a cottage on that island...so nice!

Take a load off and have some lunch

After getting us on the right track, the ladies directed us past Canal Island and towards our first campsite (#628) which was occupied by an elderly couple who confirmed the site number.  This is where we discovered potential problem number two: locating campsites.  What we discovered from our first located campsite was that the markers for sites were 5"x5" faded orange squares placed on trees set back from the water's edge and often hidden by the foliage of other trees and plants.  Unless you were right at the campsite, it was unlikely that a paddler would be able to spot a campsite marker. Here is an example.  This is our campsite from the water on Day 2.  Can you spot the marker?

Rems eagle-eyed this site, and pretty much every site we ever found on the trip

Paddling west for another kilometer we found campsite #629 and made a turn south onto the Eastern Outlet and into strong head-wind.  Unanticipated problem number three: head-winds.  Probably because the wind was coming off of Georgian Bay and straight up the main channels of the park, most of our day was spent paddling into a head-wind, none stronger than what we encountered on the Eastern Outlet.  Expecting a quick 45 minute paddle to the Whale's Mouth turned into a tiring 1h30m paddle through choppy water.  A little worried by our navigation skills, and nervous about finding the Whale's Mouth (a small passageway linking the Eastern and Main Outlets), we were relieved to find a grouping of cottages that signified the location passageway. 

Ta-da!  The Whale's Mouth. Keep this picture for future reference

Gill&Rems paddling through Moby Dick

Getting tired and losing the day, our ambitions to reach Dallas Rapids and Georgian Bay were fading.  Recognizing our depleting energy levels, Liz tabled the idea of altering our Day 1 goals and start looking for a campsite around The Elbow (the main junction between the Main Outlet and the Eastern Outlet).  We all agreed to this plan and started looking for a campsite in the area.  Approaching The Elbow, we could see that the two closest campsites were occupied.  What we also saw coming down the Main Outlet was another group of paddlers looking for a campsite for the night.  Amazing race time!  Good thing we already formed an alliance with Gill&Rems.  

It was 7Fast7Furious to find the next two campsites before the second group of paddlers did.  Paddling on, Liz and I bombed through The Elbow in search of the next closest site.  Thinking we had found it, we docked our canoe and Liz jumped on shore to check out the area only to realize we were in the wrong place.  Behind us we watched the second group paddle by and soon after Gill&Rems.  Liz and I were sure we had lost out on the next campsite.  Disappointed, Liz jumped back into LF7 and we resumed our paddle behind Gill&Rems, losing valuable time and not knowing where we would find a campsite for the night.

However, to our surprise, the second group made an unexpected stop on shore to review their map and orientation.  As confused as we were earlier in the day, we were able to gain a short 5 minute lead on this group.  It was all up to Remil and his eagle-eyes to spot the next two campsites.

The next site was occupied by two old ladies.  Briefly chatting with them, they mentioned they had seen no other paddlers all day long, until the last hour when four groups had gone by.  Nice.  Paddling on in search of the last campsite before the Dallas Rapids portage, we had the second group drafting in our wake trying to catch up to us.  Coming around a bend in the river, Liz and I were relieved to see Gill&Rems docking their boat on a large beach area.  Success!  Gill&Rems had found the last site and we had a place to stay for the night.  Liz and I quickly docked next to Gill&Rems' boat and were thankful to rest.  We never did see the second group of paddlers again, and they most likely perished on the open water, driven mad by the maze of islands and channels. 

 

Not a bad sunset for Day 1

Glad to stop for the day, we realised some failings at our campsite.  Murky algae water, a swamp area next to the site, random poops scattered around (probably from a dog at the campsite previously), a weird stank (probably from the poops) and no box at the crapper.  Just a hole.  Never settling, Remil and I paddled on to the Dallas Rapids portage to look at one more potential campsite.  It was worse, so it was time to deal with what he had and get our squat on.  

First night camping tradition called for too much steak on the BBQ...so not to disappoint:

Steak it up

Time to relax

Our first day on the French River turned out to be much harder than I anticipated.  Strenuous paddling, frustrating navigation and an unremarkable campsite left me dejected and unmotivated.  Running on only a few hours of sleep did not help either.  Tomorrow was a new day, but for now, the French River had failed to impress and I was not excited about three more days paddling the French River. 

 

Day 2

Our revised goal for Day 2 was to make it to mouth of the Eastern Outlet where five campsites were located, if they could be found.  We had about half the distance to paddle this day, so we were aiming for a shorter day on the water and a longer day enjoying a more remote campsite.

Packed up and ready to go

Our first obstacle of the day was a short 180m portage around the Dallas Rapids.  Approaching the portage we saw the remnants of old logging machinery that was used to move timber down the French River.  Looked to me like the remains of the Iron Giant.  

Maybe the Iron Giants shoulder?

It was tough to get a good look at the Dallas Rapids and see whether they were runnable, but not taking any chances, we used the portage to get around them.  After completing the portage, it was a straightforward paddle down the Main Outlet to its mouth at Georgian Bay where we would hang east and search among the campsites for a place to stay overnight.  Although we were still paddling into a head-wind, this day allowed us to take in more of our surroundings.  The Main Outlet’s rocky banks were beautiful.  We passed numerous private cottages and saw an old church originally built for the families of the French River’s logging settlement. 

View from Dallas Rapids looking back at where we set up camp on Day 1

Passing another canoe and confirming our location near Bluff Point, we quickly located a couple of campsites.  Both had their failings: an island site only had space to set up one tent, and the site at Bluff’s Point was also quite small and unremarkable except for its views of the Northwest Passage.  Time to keep shopping.  We checked out one more island site which was too rocky to stay on, and debated whether it was worth paddling onwards or settling for a campsite we had already found.  “Keep going!” was the group’s decision, and straight into round two of our French River navigational nightmare.   

Lookout on Bluff Point's campsite...windy

Island site across the water...had potential..but a fail

The area we were paddling into had numerous little islands and when paddling in the midst of them, it was extremely difficult to tell which one we were next to on our map.  After a long rafting session, the group picked a direction we thought would take us to the next campsite.  However, after rounding the next island we felt lost again.  Noticing a tiny rock passageway, the width of my outspread arms, I suggested we paddle through and see what was on the other side.  I vaguely remembered a similar passageway on a Youtube video, but mostly thought it would be fun to go through such a narrow spot.  Too shallow to paddle through, Liz and I used our hands on the rock face to pull ourselves through the passageway.  

Squeeeeeeze

Once through the passageway, we resumed our search for the next campsite.  It was not too long when Liz and I heard comforting words from our alliance teammates behind us, “There’s a site!”  Eagle-eye-Remil had pulled through again.  It was a good looking site, but was it the best site?  There was one more campsite close by and never ready to settle, we decided to check it out before making a final decision on where to stay the night. After a short search through a further maze of islands we found the final campsite are were rewarded with a 5-star resort.  Flat rocks to sit on and sun, clear water to swim in, two level areas to set up our tents, a nice fire pit with a grassy area to walk around, a table to prepare food on and even a poop-box.  This was the high life, no squatting tonight (unless preferred)!  This site was “the one” and there was no way we were moving.  

A literal oasis

Beautiful rock outcroppings around the site to explore

Tree-hammock...pretty convenient

We settled in for the day at the campsite, got a fire started and made lunch (tuna melts).  Afterwards it was some swimming and reading and soon it was time for dinner (burritos).  A wonderful sunset, full bellies and a nice camp fire burning was an amazing end to the day. 

After-dinner dip

Sunset over our campsite

Entity

But there was one more unexpected visitor that evening.  As the sun dipped below the horizon, a friendly buzzing started around us.  And as the twilight became more faint, the buzzing turned from friendly to frenzy.  Mosquitoes.  Swarms of them emerged and began attacking everyone No exposed skin was spared.  Even covered body parts were not saved as my elbow suffered over 40 bites through my long-sleeved shirt.  Impossible to enjoy the fire, we made a frantic dash to our tents.  That was the end Day 2 for all of us, but I think we all had a great time exploring and experiencing the French River.

Rems fully prepared for Pitch Black 2

Day 3

Day 3's plan was to paddle as much as we could back to Hartley Bay and find a campsite close by in order to make our final day’s paddle back to the marina easier.  We had one portage to find and a long-ish paddle back up the Main Outlet, but we were finally going to have the wind at our backs. 

Using directions from canoeists we met on the water the day before, we were quickly on route to the portage. The passageway through the rocky banks of the Eastern Outlet towards the portage was probably some of the most delightful scenery I had seen on the whole trip.  

  

Paddling our way back

Easy does it through the shallow river

Both easy to find, and easy to cross, the portage turned out to be cinch.  Originally created as a route for loggers traveling through to Georgian Bay, the portage was a 250m wooden walkway. 

Gill&Rems Camping...matchy matchy

JizFree posing...who has more beard, J or R?

Hazah!

Packed up on the other side

Easiest portage evah!

After the portage, it was quick paddle across the serene Bass Lake and up towards The Elbow.  After another hour of paddling we were at Canal Island; so much easier to recognize having passed by two days before.  From here, it was up into Wanapitei Bay where were decided to search for a campsite for the night.  After checking out several disappointing campsites, we settled on a large site set high up on the rocks.  We were now on a much higher traffic area of the river and while the views were still nice, there were private cottages in sight and regular boat traffic along our waterfront. 

French River from the rocks at our campsite

After some swimming, reading and making wood (my favorite) we made dinner (couscous with tuna) and set ourselves up to play some cards on the rocks overlooking the river until sundown.  As sundown passed and the light disappeared our mosquito friends come out to join the party.  We were prepared this night and after quickly packing up our gear , we were back in our tents.  And great timing too…within five minutes of zipping closed our fly, the rain started in for the evening.

Day 4

The rain of the previous evening had not completely disappeared, and Day 4 started with grey skies.  After a quick breakfast, we broke down camp, loaded the canoes and we were on the water paddling towards home.  We were only about an hour and half away from the marina and we took a leisurely pace getting back.  We passed some amazing cottages built on the French River, including one cottage that had its own canon for defense.  

Last time we pack up of our gear

Overall, paddling the French River over four days was a fun and exhilarating experience.  One route alternation I would make is to skip the Eastern Outlet, and gun for The Elbow or Dallas Rapids portage on the first day.  For another trip, I think exploring the islands in the Northeast Passage or paddling and camping in Fox Bay would be a fun addition.