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Trip Planning » My interior canoe/fishing trips are now officially over! » 8/09/2019 9:15 am

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 13

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Hey Bo.... You may not like campgrounds, but as you say, you gotta do what you gotta do. As long as you are still on the right side of the grass, I am sure you will find a way to get that paddle wet, even for a little while.  There are still many trout calling your name...



 

Trip Planning » Advice for a first time SOLO canoe-tripper? » 3/05/2019 3:42 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 22

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I have solo tripped in both a tandem and a solo canoe. Swift Prospector 16 and a Swift Osprey solo canoe. I use a single blade in both, although I have seen people use a kayak paddle in the Osprey.

I sit in the bow seat facing the stern seat when paddling solo in the Prospector and find I have a lot more control over it if I am kneeling a bit closer to center, but not at center. The Osprey has a sliding seat which allows me to adjust myself over the center of the canoe and take into account the weight and placement of my gear.

As for portages, do what you find most comfortable for yourself. I lash my paddles to the front of the canoe and my bail bucket safety kit and life jacket to the back. They sort of offset each other weight wise. With my Osprey, I let my SeaLine pack slip back a bit on my shoulders, taking the weight on my hips. This lets the canoe rest across my shoulders and the pack, which allows me to walk without holding the canoe if need be.

Safety First should go without saying. There is no one there to carry your carcass out of the woods.

NEVER be too proud to call a trip off early. If something is not working correctly, you are not enjoying yourself, things are not going as planned, or you need to start doing things that make you uncomfortable, then call it a trip. It could literally come down to living to paddle another day. Been there, done that, still paddling.

Bring a book to read in the evening. That is the time when I have found most people get turned off with solo tripping. There is no one there to talk to so they don't know what to do with themselves. Bring an evening activity.

Sean
 

Ethics » Doug Ford's "clean up our parks" promise » 6/19/2018 1:11 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 58

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Hey Methye... It seems that once John Winters retired as Superintendent of Algonquin Park, the voice of ABR slowly became ignored.  We put in many hours on behalf of those that use the back country but the powers that be did not seem to care any longer. Eventually it was quite evident we were just talking to a wall and ABR was dissolved.

Sean

 

Trip Planning » Reverse Brent Run? » 3/12/2018 8:36 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 11

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Yes, when we were looking into doing the Brent Run a couple years back, the starting point was a bit of an issue.  As MartinG said, Ahmek wanted nothing to do with it and would not allow us to camp on their grounds at all, so we decided we would camp on Joe.

We started from the island campsite just north of the portage from Canoe Lake early in the morning, paddled down to the portage into Canoe, paddled to Ahmek and slapped the boathouse and then back to the portage and into Joe. We continued on up to Brent then back to our island site on Joe. We timed the Run to coincide with the full moon for added night light.

As for ALL the rules (cedar canvas canoe, etc) times have changed and not everyone has access to that type of canoe these days.  As well, a birdie told me that one of the original records may have happened because there were 3 paddlers in the boat, where we only have 2.

Put a team together, start from Joe Lake, and have a blast whether you beat the record or not. That is the modern day point of the Brent Run IMHO. It may take you 27 hours, it may take you 40, or it may take you 3 days. It doesn't matter. It took us 40 hours, we had a bunch of highlights along the way, lots of laughs and we are still talking about it 2 years later.

Sean (of Ajax)

Drive-in Campgrounds » Esker 10 X 10 Classic hot tent at Mew Lake » 2/27/2018 9:02 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 2

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As many of you know, I host the podcast Paddling Adventures Radio. So on Family Day weekend I decided to head up to Algonquin's 'Winter In The Wild' event and hopefully spread word of the show while camping in my new hot tent at Mew Lake. So I loaded up the truck with all my gear and set off.

My new winter tent is an Esker 10' X 10' Classic, which is a 4 sided hot tent. Inside I had my Kni-co Alaskan wood stove. A tad big for this tent but if I ever upgrade tents, I won't have to upgrade the stove at the same time.

Now, back on New Years I went up to Mew Lake to check out a bunch of tents before I bought one of my own. I saw a lot lot of tents with carpeting, and mats as flooring. I assumed, wrongly I would later discover, that people had laid down wood flooring and then the carpet. Nope. Using my smarticle particles, I decided I would lay down a tarp, then my custom made 10 X 10 floor and then set up my tent. Worked like a charm As other campers saw what I was doing, that was when I found out that they were not using a wood floor. They were placing the carpet directly on the snow.

Somehow I became part of the Demo Tour as about 30 people came through my tent to see my flooring and setup. Okily Dokily!!

Anyway, I had my cot set up plus a chair, which I didn't use much, and small square cooler that fit nicely between my cot and the stove so I could use it as a table and kitchen counter and the stove was still close enough for me to reach over and cook. Was a great set up indeed. A massive palace for one person. For two people I would not bring the cot.

When I wasn't giving tours of the humble abode, I spent the days meeting a chatting with an absolute ton of people, did some hiking and enjoyed nature. Was a great weekend to try out the new tent and great weather too.


Big empty plowed out site when I got there



Putting the floor down


Staking out the corners with spikes i

Catch-all Discussions » Anyone going to the Outdoor Adventure Show this weekend? » 2/23/2018 9:42 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 7

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I will be wandering around tomorrow (Sat)... I like to look at some of the gear, but yes, a lot of travel companies. There are some speakers I like to check out as well.

 

Drive-in Campgrounds » Mew Lake » 2/14/2018 4:08 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 4

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Day tripping or camping for the weekend?
 

Drive-in Campgrounds » Mew Lake » 2/13/2018 11:03 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 4

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Gonna be a whole ton of people up there. Myself being one of them.
 

Equipment » Dumb question time: Do you like this colour in a kayak? » 11/27/2017 7:48 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 30

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I think plaid is highly underrated when it comes to canoe colours....

 

Catch-all Discussions » Outdoor Adventure Show & Toronto Sportsman Show » 2/27/2017 12:24 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 26

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Got there when the doors opened on Saturday morning and did not leave until the doors closed that evening.  Did not stop the entire time I was there. Window shopping, listening to speakers, watching demonstrations in the pool, and actually buying a couple things sure filled up the day.  Unfortunately I didn't get to hook up and meet with everyone I was hoping to. Was a long fun day though.

Sean
 

Catch-all Discussions » Outdoor Adventure Show & Toronto Sportsman Show » 2/22/2017 11:33 am

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 26

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May head over that way Saturday. Love window shopping...

Sean

 

Catch-all Discussions » Paddling Adventures Radio » 2/15/2017 9:33 am

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 8

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Well, there should be enough there to hopefully keep the cabin fever at bay till spring and then you can get out there and do some paddling of your own. 
Enjoy!!

Sean
 

Catch-all Discussions » Paddling Adventures Radio » 1/22/2017 11:10 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 8

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Well, we have been doing this show for almost a year now and have received a lot of support and encouragement. With 49 episodes done, we have made the jump to iTunes as a Podcast. I know cabin fever season will soon be upon us, so here is a link to the podcast on iTunes. While there tends to be a lot of Algonquin mentions and content, you may want to check out Episodes 29, 30 & 31.

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/paddling-adventures-radio/id1195459962?mt=2&ls=1

 

Catch-all Discussions » Algonquin Park Webcam - Moose Carcas » 1/17/2017 2:05 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 13

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Man, all I see when I watch is a bunch of crows...

 

Catch-all Discussions » what did ya get for christmas? » 12/29/2016 2:00 pm

SeanOfAjax
Replies: 16

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There was a sale at Walmart on them.... Hahahaha....

 

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