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Last week I completed a loop out of Rain Lake. I spent my final night on Brûlé Lake and returned to the access point at Rain Lake just before noon on Tuesday. As soon as my canoe touched the shore, an elderly woman (I'm guessing between 60 and 70 years old) approached me and asked if "I could help a couple of old women out."
I said that I would help them if I could and asked what they needed. She said that her and her friend had been stranded at the access point for over 24 hours and had run out of food and water, that they were now dangerously dehydrated and hungry, and that their car wouldn't start. She then asked if "they could bum a ride with me to Toronto or at least to Huntsville."
I explained that I didn't have that much room in my vehicle because of all my gear, and definitely didn't have enough room for 2 more adults + their gear. I was somewhat flustered (plus tired from my own journey that day) and asked her to give me a second to think about the best way I could assist them. I said that although I couldn't provide a ride, that I could do the following:
1. Filter a few litres of water for them;
2. Take my remaining food I had leftover (I had 3 dehydrated meals left + hot chocolate + electrolytes) and boil water for them to prepare the meals;
3. Use my Garmin in reach to contact someone for them or press the SOS if they were in dire need;
4. Call Ontario Parks as soon as I had a cell signal and let them know they needed help.
The woman declined my offer which made me question how desperate they actually were. I asked more what the problem was with their car. She said "it was a rental car that only starts when it is within range of cellular service and that this was the second time they have rented that car and had this happen."
In disbelief, I asked why on earth they would rent that type of vehicle again knowing they wouldn't be able to start it without reception, to which she had no valid answer. She then asked again if I could just drive them to Toronto if they left their gear in their vehicle and didn't bring it with them. I told them I was happy to help, but that I couldn't give them a ride. She was visibly annoyed that I refused to give them a ride and started walking away towards another canoe who had just landed.
As I was putting my canoe on my vehicle, I overheard her telling the same story to the other guy who eventually agreed to drive them to Kearney. The access point was extremely busy with lots of people (including outfitters delivering canoes, etc.) on site which made it even stranger that they claimed to be in such distress. Would anyone else have given them a ride to Toronto?
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the situation does seem odd,,
algonquin park is a 4 to 6 hour drive , for 4 to 6 million people,, enough said.
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Scammers. You're lucky you still have your kidneys
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Yeah, while maybe they were using something like Communauto to get there and back it really doesn't sound like they were that worried about the car.
There's a healthy amount of weird in the outskirts of Kearney, wouldn't be surprised if it was some kinda scam
Either way I think you handled it right
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When leaving Magnetawan access point in August 2023 we encountered a couple ladies fitting the description who said their car wouldn't start and they had been stuck there for several hours. Same ones? Mostly my wife chatted with them and I think some guy was going to get them help in Kearney.
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Sounds c-r-e-e-p-y
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two stories come to mind.
One was, many years ago, I lived in a small neighborhood in a rural community. Two girls show up at my front door (late teens, early 20's), I think they were pollsters or maybe they were selling something, I really don't recall, but my scam radar went off super-loud in my head. The story was that the guy who was supposed to pick them up from this neighborhood hadn't shown up, could they use my phone. I offered to call for them. They provided the number, I got the phone and dialed up, fully expecting scam. I was convinced I was being set up, and I'm sure my body language conveyed that. Whoever answered the phone said that the driver had been involved in a car accident, so somebody else was coming to pick up the girls, and was 45 minutes away. I relayed that bit of news to the two young ladies, with a hint of I-don't-believe-the-story in my voice. But the reaction of the girls was so pure and stunned and worried for the guy that I immediately knew the girls were telling the truth.
The substitute driver was about 45 minutes away, I had an appointment and had to leave, so I couldn't really offer them help and they said they'd just go out and wait for him. A few minutes later I drove past the girls, they were waiting on the corner of the secondary road and the road that lead into our neighborhood....the rain was just starting and they were unprepared. I felt lower than dirt, and cynical. You just never know. The shakiest story can be straight as an arrow.
The other one was also in the 90's, when I took my one and only canoe trip with dad. We got out at the Magnetawan access point, and encountered two Polish couples. They'd taken a trip from Rain and exited a few days later here, thinking they could walk from one access point to the other. Nope. Could I drive the guys over to get their car. I looked at dad, he says "Its your car". That day it was pretty clear right off the bat their story was true. Gave them a ride, and we were almost immediately rewarded for the effort - a bear came out in front of us on the access road, ran the same direction as the car down the road, then turned and disappeared into the underbrush (I clocked it at 28mph btw). We got them to their car, and all was well. You just never know.
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