Kattawagami River (July 2014) - Prologue

I’m sitting at the dining room table with the kids as they eat their breakfast, having returned last night (July 28) from the longest and most intense wilderness experience of my life. It is nice to have one of the kids randomly walk up and give me a big hug. Being home is nice.

Before posting the blog posts from the trip, I thought it would be useful to add a prologue to set the context of the blog. This post will also be an introduction to the trip. The next will provide some basic information about canoeing that might be useful for readers unfamiliar with some of the terms that I use in the posts. Then I will post the nightly blogs from the trip itself.

For friends and family that have read my blog in the past, the style and tone will likely be familiar. I will not edit what I wrote on the trip, although I have read them over to ensure that any spelling or grammatical mistakes from typing on the iPad have been removed. I’ve also added some clarifying points here and there. Occasionally, I might add some links to some of the blogs or videos that I reviewed prior to our departure.

For any potential paddlers of the Kattawagami (Lawagamau) River that happen upon this blog looking for information, please note that it is primarily personal reflections blog. Our little group intends to post a trip blog, pictures, and videos that detail some of our experiences and thoughts on the river that will be useful for planning trips. A link to that blog, with pictures, maps, etc., will be provided once it is up. Should potential paddlers have questions, feel free to contact me to discuss the river and my experience on it.

It was a grand adventure, and I hope you enjoy reading my attempt to catalogue my thoughts and reflections.

Introduction to our Adventure

In early June, my friend Tim talked to me about a potential 10-12 day white water trip on the Kattawagami River in Northern Ontario with his friend Buck, who I met in 2012 when visiting Tim in Moosonee. After some back and forth, and several times indicating that it was just too long and I couldn’t possibly go, I was convinced to go. Two important factors in the decision: Tim suggested we might be able to get the river done in 8 days, thus shortening the time away, and Leia fully supported, even encouraged me, to go on the trip.

Four of us would be going – Tim, myself, Buck, and Shane.

Well, you probably know me if you're reading this - unless you're looking for information on the river or if you are friends with one of the other guys. I'm a father of three beautiful little girls, have a wonderful wife, and happen to be a jaded grad student (as if there are any other kinds!). I'm first and foremost a fisherman, but I do love canoeing. I wouldn't normally identify as a whitewater paddler … but I suppose now I probably have earned my bona fides. I also was a reluctant participant in this trip given recent travails in my life (read earlier posts in my blog to learn more - or just keep reading …).

Tim is a teacher in Moosonee, and he often spends a good portion of his summer in Southern Ontario, often as a guest at our house. Tim and I have done several trips over the years, including on the Saugeen, Madawaska, and Grand. He loves to paddle, and loves to help others be able to paddle. In fact, he could probably outfit the entire trip himself. He owns eight canoes, I think. Tim is the most enthusiastic I’ve ever known him to be when he’s on the water.

Buck is the maintenance man at the high school in Moosonee, and as true of a woodsman as there can be this day in age – but he’s not the stereotypical woodsman! He’s cultured, has travelled, has had some pretty unique experiences (including racing bikes professionally, even participating in some races with the now-disgraced Mr. Armstrong), and is knowledgeable about a whole bunch of random things. He’s also full of piss and vinegar and has strong opinions, which means he’s a riot to hang out with. He can also sing beautifully, and treated us continually to folk tunes while on the river.

Shane and I met at a local coffee shop, Death Valley’s Little Brother. He’s a pastor in town – although, he’s not your typical pastor …. or even close. He and Tim met during one of Tim’s visits in the Spring, and because the three of us got along (Shane and Buck met for the first time the night before our departure), and because we knew Shane was into paddling, he was the first choice as the fourth. Shane likes to go dive right into things, and showed no hesitation with any of the rapids, despite primarily being a kayaker. Shane also used to race bikes, and built me my city commuter this spring.

One thing I really appreciated about this trip was that there were no issues or any real tension. We all got along. We all pulled our weight. Being alone for nearly ten days (twelve if you include the travel back and forth for Shane, Tim and I) and getting along all the time is a testament to how great this group was.

Our destination was the Kattawagami River – which is often labelled as Lawagamau River on maps. The headwaters are Kattawagami Lake, about 180 kms from Cochrane. It eventually merges with the Kesagami River, which merges with the Harricana River before emptying into Hannah Bay, the lowest bay of James Bay. The total trip was to be about 205 kms. Most of the major rapids, of which there are many (some say 80+, but it will depend on water levels!), are in a 40 km stretch.

As we were planning, my experience in Uganda was at the forefront of my mind. I knew this trip would be different – and for so many reasons – but the thought of being away from the girls for that long weighed heavily on my mind. As you’ll read below, even on the trip, the trepidation I had about this trip lingered with me on the river. Home, safe and sound, I’m incredibly glad I went on this trip.

Packed up and ready to go!

To plan for the trip, we used a few Google documents. One main document discussed all the major trip details. Tim and I also spent a few days making an exhaustive gear list trying to cover all of our bases. Upon reflection at the end of the trip, there is nothing we felt we forgot or overlooked, although we identified a few items we would perhaps leave behind next time and a few others we would endeavor to bring. The trip blog intended for other paddlers will likely include these documents. Tim and I also spent some time preparing a meal plan, and a grocery list. We spent numerous hours shopping, packing food, and getting gear together.

Breakfast in Cochrane

We also spent several hours going over the maps. There is no one good topographic map for this river, and no guidebook like exists for other whitewater rivers like the Missinabi or Madawaska. Tim had previously a site called CalTopo.com and made our own maps, which we (foolishly) printed in black and white (colour copies would have helped avoid an error on day two!). Buck also had a partial topographic of the major rapid section, as well as his GPS. Tim and I mapped out the distances on our 22 printed maps, so we could measure how far we got each day, and highlighted the river and noted any marked rapids (there are far more rapids than what is marked on the map). During the trip, I tried to keep track of where we were on the map, but it was often difficult. There are enough major landmarks to make educated guesses, and a few (big bays or islands) that are obvious. Other paddlers have named rapids in their posts or videos – it is not clear to us if they had a better map, or if they made the names up. Perhaps more than a month’s planning would have allowed us time to find out some more information.

Driving to the headwaters.

The river is not travelled often. It is unclear to us how many people travel the river this year. For sure, two solo paddlers went down in early June. How many others, however, is not clear. We utilized a driver from Cochrane, named Terry (705.272.4994) to drop us off at Kattawagami Lake. He might be the only shuttle, but other paddlers have transported themselves the 180 or so kms to the headwaters (including, insanely, a guy who dropped of his gear, drove back to Cochrane, and then biked to the river, see here). 

Interestingly enough, even though only a few paddlers do this river a year (it might not even be paddled every year!), and there have likely only been a few dozen trips in the last few decades, the presence of other human beings was often noted. I often thought of Les Stroud’s (aka Survivorman) adventures, and his comment that wherever one goes in the world the mark of humanity can be found. In our case, it was mostly evidence of fire pits (some people made fancy ones with rocks), but we also found a few things, like the strap of a headlamp, and left a few things, like a spare paddle and half of my broken fishing pliers, both of which were lost at some point in rapids. Almost eerily, at least twice we set up camp at the same location as a previous paddler. At the beginning of day two, just before departing, I found evidence of a campfire about 10 feet from where my tent was set up. The same thing happened at our third campsite. This is testament perhaps to the lack of great campsites, or perhaps a reflection of the distance most people paddle in a day. Nevertheless, the odds must be small for being on a remote river without marked sites and twice picking a campsite within mere feet of one of the few previous travellers.

We didn't camp near this campfire, but we
found it full of poorly burnt garbage … not
all paddlers have the same respect for the
"leave no trace" mentality!

On Thursday, July 17^th, we left Kitchener around noon and drove to Cochrane. We spent the night at Buck’s sister-in-law’s place in Cochrane. Turns out she was moving the next morning, so we were able to help her out for a bit before we met with Terry who would shuttle us to the river. We were on the river around noon. There was no more planning, no more flip-flopping about whether or not I would go. There was only one objective: to paddle.

It begins.