Fw: Magnetawan Canoe Route
Andy Vurma
It was a full 3 days to complete. (see attached map) The last time (8
years ago) that I did it with a friend, was in late September and the water
was low. We drove from London and arrived at the our cottage on Monday and
did our prep work. Then we left Tuesday morning from the cottage and spent
3 days on the canoe trip arriving Thursday afternoon back at the cottage.
Friday was packing up and going home.
If I were doing it again, I would definitely add another day to make the
trip more relaxing and not so much of a push to get finished. There are
some tough portages (Deep Bay to the Mag- 2km, Wilson Lake to
Miskokway-0.9km uphill all the way and Miskokway to Bolger Lake- 1.4km). If
you run into rainy weather, it can slow you down quite a bit.
A shorter version is to have someone drive you and start at Naiscoot Lake on
Hwy 69. My son Jason and I did that trip in 2 days.
Another interesting version of a shorter circle trip is to go west on the
Mag from Deep Bay and then south through a creek that flows out of Kashegaba
Lake into the Mag and then back to Wahwashkesh through Maple Lake. I did
that trip a number of years ago with Wes and Laura overnighting on a small
island in Kashegaba Lake. The challenge is the navigation through the
creek. This could be done in a single day, if you wanted to push.
Be aware of rattlesnakes. I have come across them several times on the
portages. On the portage from Wilson Lake to Miskokway, the snake was
curled up on the trail sunning itself. It went one way and we went around
it the other way. In all cases they have given off a warning rattle if you
get too close. Just be cautious and keep your eyes looking downward and
forward.
As for camping spots, most are over-grown as the MNR have not maintained
this canoe route for years. One of the ones we liked, was on a small island
at the western end of Bolger Lake. It had been used and maintained by
others, so it was well equipped with a firepit, benches, tenting area, etc.
Take along Topo maps of the area. They are very helpful.
Have a great time.
Cheers,
Andy
----- Original Message -----
From: "Pat Ferris" <patf...@rogers.com>
To: "The Lake Wah-Wash-Kesh Sounding Board" <ww...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 24, 2007 4:44 PM
Subject: Magnetawan Canoe Route
>
> Hi All
>
> Sara and I are planning a canoe trip down the Mag from Deep Bay for
> the first week of September this year. The plan is to go to the
> western end of Trout Lake, head SW through Big Bay, Wilson, Miskokway,
> Bolger, Maple, and come out at the Hogsback. Anyone have any tips?
>
> Andy I know you have done some paddling on the Mag, have you taken
> this route? Anything we should look out for? any memorable campsites
> or historical sites?
>
>
>
Pat Ferris
of September, will check out the campsite on Bolger you mentioned,
looking forward to it.
> Magnetewan River Canoe Route.pdf
> 128KDownload
Pat Ferris
pretty much the same as the one you did. I'm going to be tracking the
trip on a GPS. Andy, did you try and run Graves Rapids? I take it
that since you didn't mention much about rapids they weren't really a
concern, I have very little rapid experience (what little I have was
in a Kayak with no gear)