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We leave Oshawa in Terry's van around 9:00 and head north. After missing the by-pass, we grab a bite in Orillia and then proceed towards North Bay. We have lunch in Sundridge and make a few more stops on our 700 kilometer voyage before having supper at the Butler Lake truck stop.
Our destination for the night is the Glendale Motel in Iroquois Falls but they have no vacancy when we arrive. They get us three rooms at the Galaxy M/Hotel in Val Gagne 20 minutes away. After registering, I contact Chris Hall who is to be our shuttle driver again. He says he will join us at the motel after supper. Chris shows up and gets acquainted and has a few beers with everyone while we make arrangements for the next day.
The rest of the gang load the last of our gear while Ron and I go to get Chris. The seven of us piled into the van as soon as we return at 9:00. We stop in Timmins to check the tires and to get Chris some breakfast before heading to Chapleau. Our target is the Sportsman dining lounge for lunch.
After fortifying ourselves and checking for last minute purchases
we leave Chapleau on the last leg to the put-in. 85kms of logging road into
Missinaibi Provincial Park. With the canoes finally loaded and
equipment firmly secured we hit the water at 4:30 and paddle up
the lake. The trip up Missinaibi lake takes nearly three hours and
we see several moose grazing in the water.
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Next morning we arise to fair weather but there had been some rain overnight. We depart our campsite at 10:45. We have lunch on a rock in mid-stream where again I had stopped before. We see cranes, a beaver, one cow and one bull moose.
Long Rapids and the other unnamed rapids as well as Sun rapids aren't
cause for much concern, but Barrel Rapids is a larger obstacle. We hadn't
run this one the last time and I was apprehensive about it because the
rapid is not visible from the portage. Terry and Tim are ready to
run anything and go through while the rest of us try to get a look
from the portage. I was certain I recalled a large ledge at or near
the bottom but we go ahead anyway. There were a couple of drops
with the last one being quite large which caused us to take on alot of
water but both crews survived the ordeal. We make Peterbel by 4:30
under clear skies.
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We awake to a sunny morning and lots of bugs. Fed and packed we set off through Peterbel Marsh. The trip was quick and uneventful with a tailwind helping us and spotting only one cow moose with two calves. We run Swamp rapids and another unnamed rapid as well as Deadwood Rapids to arrive at Allan Island at 2:00 in the rain. As we pulled out of the canoes to examine the camp and/or the rapids the rain intensified and we decide to camp for the night.
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There was a heavy rain overnight but the skies are clear in the morning as we eat a leisurely breakfast and break camp. Marty and I portage below the first drop while Ron and Mark go below the second and wait for Terry to run the first. Due to a lack of communication while entering the current, Marty and I wind up swimming the second and third drops. All turns out well except for the loss of my belt knife which used to belong to my father.
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Throughout the day a tailwind has shifted with us as we rounded each
bend in the river. It also knocks down numerous trees in the forest.
Back with the original crews, we reach Splitrock Falls and camp at
around 6:00. There are two campsites here but the majority feels that
there is insufficient room for three tents on the lower one so we camp
in the trees at the top.
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Soon after leaving the falls around 10 am, Terry develops a migraine headache and is vomiting over the side of his canoe. We slow our pace as Tim paddles and Terry curls up. We make our way to Thunder Falls and set up a tent for Terry to recouperate for a few hours. The rest of us carry over the portage and spend some time next to the falls. To keep pace with my first trip we need to cover 60 km today, but that doesn't seem likely now.
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A fine drizzle greets us the next morning but the trees shelter our camp. Tim catches a Cisco, a type of whitefish, which spurs Terry to throw a few casts. He matches Tim's Cisco with a pickerel. Both are released. We depart about 9:45 and head for the logging bridge.
The phrase "How far to this bridge?", keeps ringing in my ears all
morning. After running a rapid and drifting, it appears we didn't
camp as far along as I thought. We finally reach the bridge around
2:00 and stop for lunch.
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Terry runs the 'falls' empty and solo taking a very long time to line up after the first drop. No one else thinks it's a good idea to try it but he makes it down. We paddle on to Pond Falls and set up camp after missing the side trail leading to the campsite the first time over the portage. We all go for a swim at the bottom of the falls before supper. We spend some leisure time on the rocks beside the falls after supper.
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The other party paddles over to us at the bottom and we chat for awhile. They are from Ottawa and are paddling their fiberglass flatwater canoes all the way to Moosonee. They started two days ahead of us but have picked a campsite behind the one we are aiming for tonight. We leave them behind and head for the Beaver Falls portage. Immediately afterward is Lower Beaver Rapid which we run. Next is Sharprock Rapids which I have to convince Marty not to run but to line. As we pull the canoe into a niche below the first bad drop and climb in we are pinned as Terry and Tim line their canoe into the same niche. This causes considerable friction and tempers flare but this passes soon after. Close quarters for this long usually makes for a bit of tension eventually but once it is vented things get back to normal.
It begins to rain lightly then heavily and then tapers off again as
we reach our last camp at Glassy Falls.
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Dusk sees the skies clear and the winds pick up. After hitting the sack we hear a chainsaw a couple of times but that is all. The winds get pretty fierce at times but calm down soon.
6:00 finds Marty and me out of our tent and starting to break camp. Soon everyone is up and making breakfast saying "What's the hurry?". We are on our way by 8:00 in bright clear sunshine just a little chilled. The day warms very quickly and we head for another rock garden called Crow Rapids. This used to be a smaller version of Albany Rapids but now I think the roles are reversed. There is nothing too severe except one ledge reaching from one shore to the other. There is only a narrow gap which is hard to see from the stern of the canoe. Tim and Terry find the gap but the other two canoes drop over the ledge. This is fun and has no ill effects on equipment or paddlers.
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