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Algonquin National Park - July 2009
You know how it is, the best trips always come from a really odd direction, somewhere unexpected and this one is no different. I discovered Algonquin through a friend at a Hen do, another story for another time. It’s a national park NE of Toronto, Canada. It’s a huge wilderness of lakes & forest with some extra lakes thrown in for good measure. The Canadians have turned this area into an outdoor haven for people wanting to camp, fish and generally get away from it all. There are designated campgrounds around the various lakes most of which can only be reached by canoe. Some are close to the road/exit-entry points and some are 10’s of km and multiple days paddling away. You generally get around the park by canoe and when there’s a section of river that’s too shallow or rough then there’s a portage to get you to the next bit you can paddle.
Hannah and I decided to do a 17 day paddling tour of the park carrying all of our food for that time and building in lots of rest days, not only to rest ourselves but also because you can get ‘wind bound’. Essentially trapped in your campground because the weather is too bad, the wind too strong and the waves too high to paddle to your next campground or the exit points. We booked the trip for the summer and hoped for good weather. And oh boy did we get good weather. There was also a bit of truly horrible weather but that’s just how it goes. The country was incredible. The forest went on forever and the wildlife was the stuff of dreams. Otters, beavers, turtles, all sorts of birds, wolf tracks, bear poo and best of all, real in the flesh, moose. Amazing!
We had a campfire almost every night and slept under some of the most star soaked skies I’ve seen. Carrying everything, and I mean everything, for 17 days is a challenge but one that’s worth doing. At one point in the middle of the route we didn’t see a single person for over fours days. At the end of it all Hannah raised the question 'How much would someone have to pay me to go straight out and do it again?' The answer was not as high as you might think.
For a great little photomotion film of the trip follow this link - http://vimeo.com/7480051
And if you have the interest here's a more detailed report on the trip with all the nitty gritty facts and figures - http://teampickle.co.uk/2010/11/23/algonquin-backcountry-paddlign-trip-2009/
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Our list of stuff that really worked |
Stuff that didn't work/would change in future |
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Lightweight thermarest seats |
Would have taken more tea bags |
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rucsacs - new arcteryx Bora pack |
Another bottle of whisky |
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new lightweight hammock from MEC |
Less clothes - only because the weather was so good. |
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exped drybags with rucsac straps |
More variety of food ie couscous |
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army ration biscuit browns with squeeze cheese |
Less sausage |
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Dehydrated dessert |
A plastic barrel with straps for food |
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hydrated main meals - ‘look what we found’ |
More stove fuel as it's quicker and cleaner than fire |
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Attempt to go more lightweight overall |
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titanium cutlery - I got bored of bendy sporks |
Not go for such a long trip although we both enjoyed it |
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Lantern |
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water filter - steripen would have been better |
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mashmellows |
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long sleeved shirt |
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ALGONQUIN 17 DAY PADDLING KITLIST
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General stuff |
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First Aid Kit |
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Camping/team kit |
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large pack (Bora 65) |
1 |
pain killers pack of |
1 |
tent |
1 |
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Medium pack – food |
1 |
BS Anti biotics pack of |
1 |
tarp |
1 |
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exped daybag (15lt drybag) |
1 |
Anti Histamine |
1 |
sleeping bag |
2 |
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Hydration bladder |
1 |
Plasters pack of |
1 |
sleeping bag liner |
2 |
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Approach Shoes |
1 |
melolin patches pack of |
1 |
waterproof stuff sacs |
2 |
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Sandals |
1 |
gaffer tape lots |
1 |
pillow case |
2 |
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Socks |
4 |
self adhesive bandage |
1 |
thermarest |
2 |
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Underpants |
4 |
tweezers |
1 |
chair converter |
2 |
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Trousers casual |
1 |
scissors |
1 |
Stove – multifuel |
1 |
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Trousers travelling |
1 |
Immodium pack of |
1 |
Pans/kettle |
1 |
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Shorts |
2 |
second skin / blister kit |
1 |
fire starter |
1 |
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Thermal top thin |
1 |
Dioralite pack of |
1 |
Spork/utensils |
2 |
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thermal top thick |
1 |
Sun cream |
1 |
Mug/plate/bowl |
2 |
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Powerstretch top |
1 |
aftersun |
1 |
large water container |
1 |
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Power stretch tights |
1 |
Triangular bandage |
1 |
washing up tub |
1 |
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Waterproof jkt |
1 |
Sam splint |
1 |
line to hang food from tree |
1 |
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Waterproof trousers |
1 |
cable ties pack of 20 |
1 |
maps + compass |
1 |
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t-shirts |
3 |
needle and thread |
1 |
Reading books |
2 |
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L/S Travel Shirt |
1 |
speedy stitcher |
1 |
head torch |
2 |
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Primus Lantern |
1 |
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Softshell jkt |
1 |
thermarest repair kit |
1 |
cameras |
3 |
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Insulated jkt |
1 |
Knife/muti-tool |
1 |
Spare camera batteries |
2 |
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rain hat/salomon |
1 |
Water purification pump. |
1 |
gorilla pod |
1 |
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sun hat |
1 |
Spare mantels |
3 |
spare SD cards |
5 |
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sun glasses/keepers/case |
1 |
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Pens/pencils |
6 |
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Fingerless gloves |
1 |
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playing cards |
1 |
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Ipod + speakers |
2 |
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travel adapter |
1 |
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journal |
1 |
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trip plan / documents |
1 |
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matches |
2 |
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Food - two people 17 days |
lots |
Rate:
patrick bird at 5:57 PM January 20, 2012
Rachel at 11:48 AM January 20, 2012
