What's Next?

After our arrival into Kingston, which marked the end of our Great Lakes Canoeing Expedition, many friends, family and supporters have asked us, “So ... What’s next?” Looking forward to hearing about more adventures, we have been asked if we will continue our route along the American coastline or if we would follow the St. Lawrence and paddle to the sea - all very tempting journeys that we hope to consider in the future.

Although it seems that we have completed our journey, it is far from over. We have learned so much about the Great Lakes over the past 4,000 kilometers and we are passionate to talk to fellow North Americans about the Great Lakes and our journey.

Our hope is to educate and create heightened awareness about the health of the Great Lake's ecosystem through film. So, although we may have to put our paddles down for now to secure some support for video production, we are very much looking forward to the spring and getting back on the water, wherever that may lead.

Seeking the Shelter of a Twisting Bay

At the tip Presqu’ile Provincial Park there is a tall white lighthouse that leads mariners from the open lake into the sheltered waters of Presqu’ile Bay. It was strange to be rounding this point because this was the last time we would be on unsheltered Lake Ontario.

We were about to take a historic route that was carved through the land to provide ships safe passage through the Murray Canal into the Bay of Quinte, thereby avoiding the treacherous waters of the eastern end of Lake Ontario.

Small victories are encouraging as we work toward a goal that has been far on the horizon for 3 years. The remarkably straight course of the Murray Canal delivered us into Trenton. Over the next few days we enjoyed the Bay and shared the waters with a multitude of other boaters as there was a fishing tournament that weekend.

The shelter we expected to find was elusive as the winds that funnel and create interesting sailing conditions often made our progress difficult but the scenery and our sense of impending conclusion drew us forward to see what was around the next bend of the twisting bay.

Journey into the Big Smoke

The old saying that, "you can only truly appreciate what you have until you don’t have it anymore" held true for us as we paddled towards the growing Toronto skyline. We missed the solitude and serenity of the wilderness. As we approached the largest city in Canada and one of the busiest ports on the Great Lakes, we were undoubtedly overwhelmed.

Instead of otters, moose and eagles we were now sharing our surroundings with pleasure craft, commercial ferries and ships and...airplanes. The Toronto Island airport was directly to our right as we passed through the western gap into Toronto Harbour, where there is a sizeable section of the harbour that is marked with large white buoys marked with flashy no trespassing warnings.

Being curious, Jon steered the canoe straight toward the no trespassing signs, snuffing my cautions to stay well clear. "What are they going to do? Arrest us!" Jon scoffed at the signs.

Just then, a plane approached the island airport and swooped in near the water surrounding the buoys. Realizing the significance of the buoys, we stayed well clear and as we later found out, if you enter into the restricted zone the water police are dispatched immediately and boater are fined $4,000 with a chance of imprisonment! A pretty serious consequence for the sake of a few paddle strokes.

It turns out that if any vessel is spotted within that area no plane can take off or land creating a jam on the ground and causing planes to circle in the sky above! Needless to say this is one time it was definitely better to play it safe.

Updates Soon!

The end of our journey has been quite a busy time. We have recently been on the Weather Network and we have just completed two interviews with CBC radio in Northern Ontario - Points North in Sudbury and Voyage North in Thunder Bay. I will post more updates and important post-trip information very shortly. Please check back soon.

Target Practice

Canoe trips have a way of creating adventure for those who dare to pick up a paddle. Often, we can imagine the experiences that will send adrenaline pumping through our veins. Paddling alongside moving freighters, navigating through rough seas and negotiating through heavy boat traffic were all predictable sources of uneasy excitement for us this summer. But nothing was more unexpected and terrifying than hearing the sound of bullets being fired in our direction.

I ducked as the guns fired in unison unleashing a dreadful “Pow-ppp-pow” sound. We were paddling with our friend, Dave Patterson, and with a glance towards the shore, we noticed that we were approaching a Canadian Forces Firing Range past Grimsby on Lake Ontario. Target practice was being held onshore, too far away for us to see, but we did notice that they were aiming towards a towering berm that was built at the base of the shoreline. Yellow buoys marked, into the distant horizon, a large caution area for mariners to avoid when the firing range is in use. It was windy and the waves were building so together we decided it would be safer to sprint 200 meters through the buoys instead of paddling 2 kilometers out into the building seas of Lake Ontario to cross over. Besides, we were in Kevlar boats (don’t they make bullet proof vests out of the stuff?) and the large berm would protect us. For the moment, the firing ceased and we knew this was our chance. We built up our courage and started to sprint towards the buoys when another fearsome round of “pow-pppp-pow-pow” knocked some common sense into us. Deciding not to be a moving target, we headed towards shore. A guardsman informed us that we would have to paddle around the buoys. With a little convincing, he radioed other officers and we were given special permission to pass through.

Those Guys Need a Car!

The much anticipated portage finally arrived and, as we started walking towards Niagara Falls, we laughed nervously about the 26 kilometer portage ahead. “What were we thinking when we signed up for this?” I wondered out loud. To be perfectly honest, we had never been on a portage longer than two kilometers and up until this point we avoided them like the plague. Even if it meant swimming through the frigid spring waters on a previous French River canoe trip, we felt that anything was better than the dreaded “P” word. Fortunately for us, portaging technology has advanced since the fur trade and we were well equipped with a C-Tug canoe trolley that proved invaluable for the next 26 kilometers.
We opted to take the scenic route around Niagara Falls by pulling our canoe through the Niagara Recreational Trail instead of the following the historic route on Portage Road. As we approached the falls, people looked at us suspiciously and we were soon approached by the Niagara Park Police. Two well-dressed officers stepped out of their vehicles and after discovering that we had no ambition to canoe over the falls told us that they had received several calls about us that morning. They were very helpful and told us to call them if we needed any assistance.
At table rock, we stopped at the brink of the falls to meet Ray and John from the Niagara Falls Review. I asked them if they had heard of anyone portaging the falls in recent years. They chuckled and told us with certainty that we were the first ones to portage this route since the early explorers. We continued pulling the canoe through the thick Monday morning crowds. As we made our way through the tourists, we couldn’t help but laugh when one person commented, “Those guys need a car!”
John, one of the policemen, arranged for us to stop at the Whitewater Walk which is where the river is at its narrowest point. We travelled down an elevator to see the incredible class six rapids at the bottom which reminded us of why we have to portage such a long way. After lunch, Geoff Elliot, Dave Patterson and Jon’s father, Chris Pratt, came to help make the portage more manageable. We took turns pulling the canoe and, in the end, I don’t know how we could have completed it without them. To celebrate the long day, wine tasting and dinner followed at Peller Estates.

Historic Portage Route

Hmmm... a two kilometre portage across the base of Long Point or a seventy kilometre paddle around the tip. Which would you choose? After waking up to throbbing wrists at 5:30 in the morning, the portage sounded a lot better. Besides, it was used for centuries by First Nations people and early European explorers, in order to evade the lengthy paddle and often treacherous waters around Long Point, making it historically significant. Jon, on the other hand, wasn’t convinced. “Come on, it’ll be fun!” “Aren’t you sore?” I asked in an attempt to save my wrists from paddling an extra 70 kilometers. He passed me the pill bottle while swallowing two pain killers himself. “The lake is too calm to pass up this opportunity. Let’s get going!” Whether it was because the medicine started to kick in or that the lake was as flat as glass, my initial reluctance subsided and we were soon paddling past the beautiful fine sand beaches of the UNESCO Long Point Biosphere Reserve.
It was indeed a long point. Each time we approached what we thought was the tip of Long Point, another appeared. It continued like this for awhile until at last we saw the Long Point Lighthouse. We were greeted by employees of the Long Point Bird Observatory where we were given the opportunity to visit nesting boxes of tree swallows. Sarah, one of the ornithology enthusiasts of the point, allowed us to hold the baby tree swallows. As I cupped them in both hands, a big grin appeared on my face. They were so cute. As Jon captured the moment on camera, he couldn’t help but add, “And you wanted to do the portage.”

Naked White-Caps

At one time, I regarded Lake Superior as the most dangerous of all the Great Lakes. Its ability to generate terrifying storms is legendary, especially when we remember the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald – the largest inland freighter of its time. On a map, Lake Erie appears much smaller than its sister lakes to the North, making it appear less temperamental. But according to mariners, it is the most dangerous. It’s relatively shallow depths, allow waves to develop faster, steeper and closer together making navigation difficult and sometimes, deadly. According to Wayne Grady, in his book, The Great Lakes – the natural history of a changing region, the area between Long Point, Ontario and Erie, Pennsylvania contains almost four times more shipwrecks than the Bermuda Triangle.
One mild-mannered afternoon, as we thought nothing could break the calm we were experiencing, we learned the true power of Lake Erie. Within a few minutes of checking our map and discovering that our next campsite was only eight kilometres away, the winds on Lake Erie suddenly shifted to the south causing the calm lake to develop white-caps within seconds. The waves quickly built in intensity forcing us to paddle further away from the clay-cliffs that lined the coastline. It took us almost an hour of paddling before we were within reach of a suitable landing spot. We were so far from shore that the people who were on the beach and playing in the surf appeared as small dots. As we approached the beach, I was too busy worrying about the next oncoming wave to notice something different about the beach dwellers. Jon, being the more observant, quickly realized that the beach we were about to land on was....A Nude Beach!

A Warm Welcome!

It felt like summer had finally arrived as we rounded the bend onto Lake Erie. Our warmest welcome however didn’t come from the weather; it came from the friendly people we met along our journey. Our first night was spent camped out at Bob and Tracey’s house. Around a large pizza box, we shared stories about canoeing and the next day they joined us, being the first ones to do so by canoe, all the way to Kingsville. It was a nice change to have company along for the ride. Only a day later, I sustained a back strain and Mike, the owner of Pelee Wings, a nature and paddlesports store near Point Pelee, was an incredible help in getting us back on the water. He allowed us to camp on his property for the recovery period, lent us his vehicle for numerous chiropractic appointments and taught us about the amazing history of the region. We also had a nice visit from Jon’s parents and brother who brought us our food drop and packed a wonderful picnic dinner that we shared on the beach. Once well enough, we accepted an invitation from Holiday Harbour, a campground at the base of Point Pelee, to stay for the night. We were greeted and made a wonderful dinner by Grant and his wife Diane, both seasonal campers and avid paddlers at Holiday Harbour. Laura, the manager of this beautiful property, took us around to meet people who were interested in our journey and the next morning we felt privileged to have a crowd wish us well as we paddled away. That same day, about 20 kilometers further down the coastline, we were surprised to see a sign on a dock that read, “Freshwater Dreams Welcome – come in for refreshments.” Who could pass up such a friendly invitation? We met the Gillard’s, a canoeing family, who shared paddling stories, snacks and gave us a book to read along our journey. A few days later, while looking for a place to camp, we stumbled upon a marina in Port Stanley. Dave, the owner and an experienced sailor, let us tie up our canoe to the dock for the night. Because the town has a no camping bylaw, Dave lent us his house boat to sleep in for the night which was a nice change from our tent.
The kindness that we have experienced while canoeing the coastline of Lake Erie will remain with us forever. We were hesitant about paddling in more developed and populated areas but have found comfort in knowing that there are helpful people who have made this journey possible and truly enjoyable.

Just a Short Break

After 45 days and almost 1000km of paddling from Tobermory to Port Dover we have decided to take a little break. It was time for us to let our bodies recover and let our minds relax from the rigors of expedition life. This is also a time for us to sort out some issues we were having with some of our equipment and to prepare for the next leg of the journey on Lake Ontario. We are planning on being back on the shore of Lake Erie next week and will make our way to the Niagara River. Please watch for us as we complete the Niagara Falls Portage in the next while! Soon we will be on Lake Ontario and heading towards Kingston. Thanks for following the journey. We will be on the water soon after this short break.

CBC Radio One Interview

Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 16 @ 12:30 pm Jonathan and Stephanie will be appearing on CBC Radio One, Ontario Today, with Rita Celli to discuss their adventures on the Great Lakes. Please listen in. Thank you for your continued support.

Too Many Perogies for You

We spent the night in Windsor at our friends Bob and Magda's house. There they treated us to a perogie feast, hot showers, wonderful conversation and a comfortable bed for the night. After sleeping in the tent for the past month, I couldn't help but feel like I was floating on a cloud as I dozed off to sleep.

The next morning, as we started our journey toward the Detroit River, we heard a loud crack from the stern of the canoe with a troubling announcement from Jon, "I think my seat is broken again." I couldn't help but laugh teasing, "You ate too many perogies last night!" We examined the boat and found that the same seat bracket that broke earlier in the trip, which was repaired at Sauble Beach on Lake Huron, needed to be fixed again. We strung a loop of webbing around the canoe and through the seat to hold it into place until further work could be done.

As we paddled downstream, we were surprised at the number of people waving at us from the shore. One man persistently motioned us in, telling us that he read about our journey in the Windsor Star newspaper. His name was Terry and he was a member of the Essex County Canoe and Kayak Club. As we spoke to him, he was actively on his cell phone recruiting people for a barbecue further downstream. We were to meet a group of paddlers at Camp Swampy, where we would be able to set up our tent for the night at Don and Marlene's property, and be able to repair our boat with the expertise of Gilles, one of the most amazing skin-on frame boat builders that we have ever had the chance to meet.

The beauty of the Detroit River surprised us as we paddled further downstream near Fighting Island. While canoeing with several members of the club, Don enthusiastically told us about the success story of the region. The reclamation of industrial dumping grounds, the return of fish like the sturgeon and whitefish as well as seeing a young bald eagle in its nest, were all signs that the river is much healthier.

At the camp, Gilles repaired Jon's seat with a very heavy duty bracket that even a large plate of perogies couldn't wear through. We happily enjoyed sharing canoeing stories as we feasted on a great many dishes free from the worry of breaking the canoe seat yet again.

A Pretty Great Lake

Nestled in between the St. Clair River and the Detroit River is a comparatively smaller lake. Named by French explorers in the late 1600's, Lake St. Clair has never been granted the same "Great Lake" status as the other five. Locals from the region, laugh as they say, "It's not a Great Lake, but a pretty Good Lake!"

From a bird's eye view, Lake St. Clair looks heart shaped and acts as a vital organ protecting the overall health of the Great Lakes ecosystem. The remaining wetlands of the northern shore act as important filters for the water flowing downstream. From our canoe, we could see the lake was teaming with fish as we watched dozens jump out of the water in front of our canoe. Sitting next to the lake one night, we made friends with a local fisherman who surprised us by catching the largest Gar Pike we had ever seen.

Before paddling Lake St. Clair, Jon and I assumed that the lake wouldn't be much of a challenge. After all, it isn't even a "Great Lake." One morning, as waves crashed over our canoe, we quickly realized that Lake St. Clair should be treated with as much respect and caution as any other Great Lake. That day we learned that the lake you don't respect is the one that will teach you to respect it. Fortunate to have found a safe harbour at Belle River Marina, we spent the entire windbound day exploring the area by bicycles which the friendly staff at the marina lent to us. The marina also provided us with a place to pitch our tent and we felt quite safe knowing that their security guard, Fletcher, was looking after the property throughout the night. We were actually happy to be windbound because it allowed us the opportunity to learn about a truly "Great" lake instead of just "a pretty good one."

Gentle Giants

Our first night on the St. Clair River was spent docked at Sarnia Bay Marina. The employees welcomed us in our little canoe and couldn't believe how far we had managed to paddle. The further we travel, the more we enjoy watching people's jaw dropping expressions when we tell them where we started our journey.
As I looked downstream from the marina, towards the industrial heartland of Sarnia, I couldn't help but feel apprehensive about the amount of ship traffic we were going to encounter. Our experience from previous summers has taught us to avoid paddling close to large freighters. The steep walls of the ship allow waves to reflect off of them producing large and confused seas. At this point, we had only paddled next to ships that were docked and I had no idea how we would manage to paddle with moving freighters.
The following day, we were surprised at the gentle wake generated by the passing ships and after having a large 1000 footer pass by our canoe we aptly named the freighters - "The Gentle Giants." As the day wore on, I even mustered up the courage to touch the bow of one of the freighters. It was docked of course.

Farewell Lake Huron!

Our last night of camping on Lake Huron was spent in Paradise Valley Campground. After periods of rain and cold winds, we enjoyed unwinding in their whirlpool and upgraded to a wooden cabin for the night to dry out our clothes and equipment. We felt happy to be completing the lake with the longest coastline of all the Canadian Great Lakes but a little sad that we were leaving its shores.

The next morning, the winds were fairly calm and we headed for Sarnia and the headwaters of the St. Clair River. As we paddled toward the Bluewater Bridge, we could see some concerned faces watching us head toward the swift current under the bridge. Although most motorized boats don't slow down for our canoe, one small boat containing eight passengers slowed to almost a halt just as we were passing through the current. After reading the sign on our canoe, 'Great Lakes Expedition', the group started to clap and cheer us on under the bridge. Wow, their gesture made us feel like we had crossed some imaginary finish line.

The Black Mask

In our first two summers of paddling the Great Lakes, we had very few problems with animals trying to get into our food barrels. We never had to hang our food barrels in trees and would often leave them in the canoe far away from the tent. The odd squirrel or seagull would beg us for little bits of trail mix but both these animals couldn't open our food caches. This year, while paddling into more populated areas, we have been surprised to encounter one cute animal that has, with their tiny fingers, opened the latch of our canoe barrels. While dozing off to sleep one night at Point Farms Provincial Park, we heard a loud bang as one of our barrels rolled off the picnic table onto the ground. We stumbled out of the tent and to find that a large raccoon had managed to open the latch but was struggling to get the lid off. Knowing that we would get little sleep if we left them there, we hung our barrels for the first time in 135 nights of camping.

The Joy of Being in the Bow

On our last windbound day at Sauble Beach we were fortunate to have our friends Dave and Jessie take us to their home in Owen Sound. It was nice to have a change of scenery, great company and lots of delicious food.

After being windbound for four days, we were very anxious to get back onto the water. The wind had subsided, and although we could see still breaking waves crashing onto the beach, we didn't think they would be a problem. As we started to paddle through the surf zone, I quickly realised we were wrong as a large wave hit me with full force breaking over the top of my head. I could feel the power of the wave against my body as I tightly gripped onto my paddle. Before I could compose myself, another crashed into my face burying me again. As I came out of a third wave absolutely soaked, I noticed that we were safely out of the surf zone. Oh, the joy of being in the bow! Jon, meanwhile, kept dry in the stern. Our canoe had taken on a fair quantity of water so I readily began pumping out the water to help keep us afloat. Jon dumped out the snack bucket and used it as a bailer which left granola bars floating all over. I thought the worst was over when I heard from the stern of the canoe, "I'm seasick! Can we go back to shore?"

If it's not one thing, it's another...

The wind finally calmed and we enjoyed paddling in the swell - a left over reminder of the storm. We paddled to Lyal Island, which is the largest island along this portion of the coast, and we were impressed by the tiny and intricate flowers growing amongst the rocks. Across the water, we could see knife island's lighthouse, a place we would like to visit later, but for the moment, while the winds were light, we needed to paddle further. As we crossed over from Lyal Island, about a kilometer from shore, we heard a loud and sudden "POP" from the stern of the canoe. At that moment, I hoped we weren't sinking. Jon knowing full well, as his seat was listing to the port side, announced in a disappointed tone, "I think my seat is broken." I couldn't help but laugh and was a little relieved to know that I wasn't the one who broke the seat. When we brought our canoe to shore, we assessed the damage. The L-bracket that holds the seat in place snapped into two pieces. While my first reaction was to bring out the duct tape, Jon was a little more creative and rigged up a webbing loop that went around the canoe to hold the seat in place. Luckily, in only a few short days, our friends at Adventure Guide pulled through and the Furey family came bearing power tools and parts for the boat repair in Sauble Beach. The canoe is now better and ready for the next calm day.

Windbound

A wise mentor of mine once commented, "It is better to be on the shore wishing you were on the water, than being on the water wishing you were on shore." This advice has been of tremendous benefit to us as we have watched, in jaw-dropping suspense, gale force winds drag our partially loaded canoe across the jagged limestone beach and three meter waves send frigid four degree spray into our faces. In our first week, we were windbound more days than all of our combined windbound days from last summer and this week isn't looking any better. Although we had anticipated being further down the coastline by now, we realize this is no time to take chances especially when the water temperature still hovers just above freezing. So for now, we are enjoying a little rest and lots of photography but still wishing we were on the water.

The First Day

Before canoeing away from the main dock in Tobermory, we decided that the best way to welcome in a new year of paddling and another two and a half months of dehydrated meals was to sink our teeth into some desserts from a local bakery. Our friend Mike Allen, who was our send off committee, photographer and driver, all rolled into one, watched us devour the desserts before taking our vehicle back home. Thank you Mike. It was nice to be back on the water as gentle waves welcomed us. That first night, however, wasn't so welcoming. The temperature dropped rapidly and by morning our canoe was covered in frost. Hoping for warmer nights - Steph and Jon

Time to Paddle

After a full week of packing food and equipment as well as making sure last minute details are in place, Jon and I are finally ready to dip our paddles into the Great Lakes once again! This year we are heading south from Tobermory, on Lake Huron and hoping to reach Kingston on Lake Ontario – 1,500 kilometers away. Without a doubt, this year will be different from the last two. We will be canoeing through the more urban and industrial coastline of the Great Lakes and we will be completing the largest portage of our lives – 25 kilometers around Niagara Falls! Although we will miss the quiet and secluded campsites of the northern lakes, I’m sure we will take pleasure in the warmer climate of the south and the amenities we will have at established campsites – showers, flush toilets and better cell phone coverage to keep you updated on this blog. Please join us in this adventure!

New Website - New Season

The new website is up and running.  Thanks Andrew Harris for all your help and continued support with hosting the site.  There is now just about 3 weeks to go until we start back on the water for another exciting summer of paddling on the Great Lakes.  We are very much looking forward to starting again from Tobermory, a spot that has been very central to our entire experience.  The amount of support that we have been receiving has been astonishing.  Thank you to all our sponsors who are helping us get ready for this season and all the wonderful people who have kindly offered us spots to stay along some of the most populated coastline sections.  We will be keeping you posted as often as possible as we prepare to get on the water the first week of May and throughout the summer as we paddle the shoreline of Southern Ontario.  Please keep checking back for more updates and photographs as the summer progresses.  

Thanks so much for checking in.