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Hi Everyone,
I have some ideas but looking for other suggestions. My OH and I plan to spend most of the summer in a canoe but then he never gets his 'projects' done so I am thinking of doing a 7 day solo. These are my parameters:
- I am in my 30s and in middling shape - I am not in horrible shape - I love portaging - but I do have some injuries (hip, knees) so I try not to overdo it
- I prefer longish days and prefer to move most/everyday
- I usually double portage - last year I tripled on my 7 day but brought too much - working on that - but I will not be single portaging
- 1 dog will be coming - prefer not overly busy routes (which I know is a challenge in the summer)
Other solos I've done lately
- 7 day - Canoe - Teepee - Little Doe - TT - McIntosh - White Trout - Big Trout - Otterslide - Little Otterslide - Burnt Island - Little Doe - Teepee - Canoe - had a rest day on this trip - was a bit too slow
- 4 day - Smoke - Ragged - Big Porcupine - Little Coon - McGarvey - Lemon - North Grace - Louisa - Laurence - Kirkwood - Phillips - Bonnechere - Big Porquipine - Ragged - Smoke - 1 day on this trip was a bit too long
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Which "edge of Algonquin Park" do you hail from? Might be some good routes on your end besides the Hwy 60 corridor.
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Hi Dan,
I am willing to drive to whichever access point - for 7 days the drive is not an issue - for the record I am on the east side.
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After paddling it this year tandem, I think the 90km from Whitney to AO Oxtongue Lake would make a nice solo trip over a week or so. A mix of populated areas and not so populated. Really enjoyed the Oxtongue river. Hadn't paddled it in 15 yrs. Get dropped at whitney access point and get picked up at Oxtongue 7 days later. Not the most remote trip nice route. Can pit stop at canoe lake for re stock, lunch and a few beers before jumping on the Oxtongue river. We did the MRX coureur des bois route but running further to the south in to Louisa and big porc area would feel more remote perhaps. Could even stay south of 60 and cross at park lake go access the river. A few options . Paddling a solo boat? Or Killarney green swift algonquin still?
Last edited by Shayne74 (12/30/2015 11:31 pm)
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Hi Shane,
We still have way too many boats 
The solo I most frequently take is my Shearwater. I have debated replacing it with something like a Mattawa. I hate the removable yoke but as a boat I really like it.
Thread StarterHow about Cedar - Nipissing river - Burntroot lake - (Big Trout?) - (La Muir - Hogan?) - Catfish - Cedar? Except may be for the Catfish-Cedar leg it's a medium to lightly used route.
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So in terms of the ideas so far. They both sound like great routes. For me:
I think the southern route is just a bit too busy. My dog is great around people and well behaved but he is friendly so he is more work in busy areas. I am okay with it being busy at the start but would like to get into the 'backcountry' so to speak.
The route Eddy suggested is a great route but I did most of it as part of a 23 day trip last year so I'm thinking maybe somehing different.
Any other suggestions?
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Canoe - Brule - Shah - Blue - Happy Isle - Otterslides - Canoe
Low maintenance version of Main Street. Add a further twist by doing Brule to Shah via Lilly Pond and Timberwolf Cr.
Last edited by MartinG (1/01/2016 4:10 pm)
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We attempted Timberwolf cr a couple years ago trying to avoid portages from misty to Brule. Wasn't as through of a route as we had hoped. Had to back track and stick to main route . Probably a reason it's not mrked as an official canoe route. Became un navigable pretty quick. Brule is one of my favourite lakes though.
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Was that in the Spring Shayne?
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August. Spring I guess could be a different story. Didn't really think of that. Would want to know for sure before attempting it solo. A scouting drone could come in handy . Lol.
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Haha yeah. I only brought it up because of Jeffs map. OK Christine maybe don't do that bit.
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If you don't desire crowds ... Avoid Hwy 60 start but really after any 2-5 km portage they are left behind. You've done Big Trout I see so unless you yearn to go there and it is attractive... I'd suggest start Kiosk and from there do a loop
Going East , West or SouthWest You can easily fill a 7 day loop , just open a map and plan it !
Just my 2cents
For the 5 cent version start anywhere but loop thru Big Trout
Racoon
Last edited by Raton_Laveur (1/03/2016 12:04 am)
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Raton_Laveur wrote:
For the 5 cent version start anywhere but loop thru Big Trout
If you're up for revisiting that area, there are plenty of great loops starting from Magnetawan (access point 3) or perhaps Tim (2), but that really is the farthest part of the park from you in terms of driving. Great area for wildlife and a mix of rocky lakes and marshy creeks. Think of the Tim and Petawawa Rivers as the two main corridors you can make a loop out of in that area, with McIntosh Creek and the Longbow-Stag route providing additional alternatives for part of the way, and Burntroot, La Muir, Merchant etc as additional destinations if you feel Big Trout doesn't give you enough distance.
I also agree that Kiosk has some good options... the Kiosk-Mouse-Maple loop is probably too short for 7 days at your pace, but you could extend it out through Three Mile and Manitou, or even go from Erables through Birchcliffe and Biggar before heading back north. Winds can be challenging on Kioshkokwi and debilitating on Manitou so plan accordingly.
Now although I've never done the area myself, if I were in your shoes I'd probably look at a route heading southwest from Brent... like going up the Nippissing and back down the Petawawa or vice versa? Lots of options for different loop lengths it seems.
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