I came back Tuesday from a North Tea/Biggar/Three Mile loop and had a few mosquitoes around but no black flies. With these warm temperatures I expect they'll be out very soon though.

I have a brown tent, and a grey tent. However I'm not too worried about visibility as my canoe is bright red, and my tarp (if up) is orange. So I guess I'm saying the tent colour doesn't have to be bright if some of your other large gear is.

I could totally do this trip........in my dreams!

Or perhaps my nightmares  - judging from some parts of your trip description.

Good on you guys for doing this old route. I totally agree that the Park should be reopening areas like this.

I really enjoyed reading this!

MEC has a $100 off sale on Garmin Inreach Minis. I just checked and they still show them in stock.

goneagainjon wrote:

Many thanks Thamesman!

Maybe a dumb question - I can't paddle my Souris River canoe backward from the bow seat when soloing as there is an aluminum thwart in the way...do people just remove this temporarily while soloing?

 
Interesting,  looks like Souris River changed their design of the Prospector. The interior of mine looks like the current Quetico 16 model -  ie with no metal bar preventing use of the bow seat to solo.

Having watched your videos I think you would like the Madawaska between Hogan-Philip-Radiant with 3 caveats: 1) I did it from Hogan last June and water levels were a bit low (had to walk my canoe through a number of gravelly swifts),  2) the Radiant end of the 3565 portage is just a cut riverbank with no portage sign visible from the river if you're going upstream, 3) you may hear logging trucks on the road parallel to the river. Overall though, I like all of your "epic" route options!

I was in the Brent area last week if that helps. A few black flies still around, some deer flies, but mainly mosquitoes. As long as it was windy, my campsites were almost bug free. Out of the wind however, eg on portages and small rivers, the bugs could be ferocious.

I have a reservation starting June 3 and just received this "maybe yes, maybe no" email from Ontario Parks:

Dear reservation holder,

This email is regarding your upcoming reservation with Ontario Parks.

Ontario recently announced a reopening plan, Roadmap to Reopen, a three-step plan to safely and cautiously reopen the province and gradually lift public health measures based on the provincewide vaccination rate and improvements in key public health and health care indicators.

Step One of the roadmap may begin after 60 per cent of Ontario’s adults receive at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and if public health indicators, such as hospitalizations, ICU occupancy and new admissions and case rates indicate the province can safely move to this step of the roadmap.

As part of Step One, Ontario Parks will be reopening overnight accommodations.

You have an overnight reservation between June 3-June 14, 2021, however, we don’t know the exact timing that the province will move to Step One. Therefore, we are writing to notify you that your reservation may be cancelled as a result of public health measures if we have not entered Step One at that time.

If your reservation is affected, you will be notified in advance of your arrival date, and your reservation will be automatically cancelled. You will receive a full refund. If you wish to cancel your reservation arriving anytime up to June 30, 2021, Ontario Parks will provide a full refund. Reservation and penalty fees will not apply.

Currently, Ontario Parks remains open for day use and continues to provide facilities and services to support local and safe activities like walking and hiking. Please check www.OntarioParks.com for a list of available activities.

We know how much our customers love spending their vacation and leisure time with us, and we look forward to welcoming our overnight campers back to park spaces when it is safe to do so. The safety of our visitors and staff will always be our top priority.