Centennial Lake Trip Report Oct 2021
On Oct 8th two club members drove one hour and 40 minutes to Centennial Lake, south of Calabogie. We found the launch on County Rd. 65 (Centennial Lake Road) just as it crosses the lake. We arrived to find a heavy mist covering the lake. After getting everything ready to go, we sat in our lawn chairs and waited for the mist to clear before turning on our solar flashing light and proceeding.
This was an exploratory trip so we carefully read our maps and watched the scenery. We did not have a GPS with us. We headed towards Big Island and intended to circle it in a clockwise direction. Twice we had to stop to figure out the way forward -- once, because the fog blocked our view across Wilson Bay and once because the way to go was not obvious to us. We followed the shoreline closely. Usually it was easy to follow our map.
RACCC YouTube Channel!
As the days get shorter and cooler, you may want to check out the RACCC YouTube Channel. It contains seven seminars from the canoe club's 2021 winter seminar series. For example, get ideas for weekend flatwater trips or day whitewater trips.
Claim PC Membership Fees/Eligible Expenses
Any Instructor or trip leader that has PC membership fees or eligible expenses they wish to claim for 2021, MUST submit a receipt and request to the training coordinator NO LATER THAN Monday 01 Nov 2021.
All emails MUST be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Even if you sent the PC membership receipt earlier this year, it would not hurt to send it again to make sure it is counted.
If you are unsure about the eligible expenses, review the club guidelines or email/call the training coordinator.
Dan
902 441 9199
EXECUTIVE MEETING MINUTES SEPTEMBER 23RD 2021
Log in to see minutes from the virtual meeting of the executive on September 23rd, 2021.
Ted Blake Award Nominations 2021
Your club executive is looking for nominations for the Ted Blake award which is a beautiful paddle inscribed with the names of the winners. This annual award is given to club members who have made outstanding contributions to the club, usually over the course of several years.
Even with the restrictions caused by COVID the club is fortunate to have a number of people who have gone the extra mile (kilometre?) to help club members. Do you know someone who has made a really big difference to the club? If so, please submit your nomination to any member of the club executive. Nominees should be current members of the club and cannot have won the award in the past. In addition, nominees should not be members of the current club executive.
Nominations can be submitted to any member of the club executive not later than Tuesday October 19 2021.
History of the award
The award was created 2003 in recognition of the long and dedicated service given to the club by Ted Blake. He joined the club (then the Y Canoe Club) in 1978 – before the club even had a boathouse. It was he who negotiated a deal with the YM/YWCA to get the club’s first boathouse and to organize club members to build it. He remained active with the club until his death in 2011. Click here for more information about him.
Club member Dot B created the beautiful award paddle.
Previous Ted Blake Award Winners:
Barron River Trip
September 30 2021
Imagine a perfect fall day when the air is fresh and cool, the breeze is gentle, and the leaves are just coming into their autumnal glory. Now imagine a fantastic canoe trip through a spectacular canyon in Algonquin Park. Now put them together and imagine it’s your first ever trip with the RA Canoe Camping Club, your first paddle in Algonguin Park, and your longest-ever canoe trip. That was my experience when I adventured with trip leader Mark S, Karen H and guest Marcia H when we explored the Barron Canyon recently.
CROTCH LAKE TRIP
SEPTEMBER 15-17, 2021
Sunny blue skies and warm breezes greeted the five members of the RACCC on Wednesday September 15 as we headed west along Hwy 7 to Crotch Lake, a short drive north of Sharbot Lake along Hwy 509 and Ardoch Road. Karen H, canoeist extraordinaire, led our group consisting of Lynn O, John F, Bridget D and myself, Jane Maxwell. After 1 ½ hours on the highway we reached Tumblehome Lodge where Karen had arranged for us to leave our cars and begin our journey.
Bill and Ann’s ELF Petawawa Adventure
The plan was for four days on the Petawawa over Labour Day weekend from Lake Travers to McManus. Early in the week came the email, “Pet soooo loooow... :(“. From the graph for the river gauge, sure enough. It was lower than when Ann and I did it last year. But, a call to Becky Mason reassured me. She said the river had never been too low to travel on. You had a couple of options, step out of the boat and walk beside it or bring a pole to pole the canoe along.
Well the river was low and we blazed a trail of red vinyl as we went down the river but we only portaged the canoe at Crooked Chute. Pretty much a mandatory portage. It was a fantastic solo trip for Ann and I, but I missed my paddling partners of old, Scott, Jaclin, Isabelle, and Brian to name but a few.
Read more: Bill and Ann’s ELF Petawawa Adventure: Labour Day Weekend
St Lawrence Seaway at Ingleside
Four keeners met at the boat house on August 29 despite a weather report for possible thunder storms for the St Lawrence Seaway where we were planning to paddle for the day.
We had a leisurely start (isn’t 9am leisurely??) and as three of us had not met before, a nice opportunity for introductions to our new friends whilst loading up a club canoe.
The second canoe has a lovely story. Its owner Bob is a retired minister and as his retirement gift his congregation bought the necessary materials and arranged for him to build himself a cedar canoe with an experienced canoe builder. The result is a 90lb beauty. It is red - they go faster don’t they? It has a flat stern to accommodate an electric motor. Bob has a great system to load and unload the canoe onto his car by himself with use of a small trolley and a rotating support that is attached to his tow hitch, and holds the canoe above the trunk of the car. The nose of the canoe is on the ground while Bob lifts the stern onto the support, then rotates it through 45 degrees as he lifts the bow around to the front of the car to put the canoe on the roof rack.
Family Camping Trip - Cedar Lake, Algonquin Park
August 15 to 22, 2021
On Sunday August 15, four adventurers and a dog set out for a week of backcountry camping in Algonquin Park. We had planned this trip to be easy and relaxing, which would be a great opportunity for families. We would be staying on Cedar Lake, also known as Brent Access Point, which is in the northern part of Algonquin Park. The weather all week was amazing, with basically no rain!
We left the RACCC boathouse shortly after 9am, and stopped for a picnic lunch and 1 km nature walk in Driftwood Provincial Park. Upon arriving at the Brent park office we found out that 26 of the 32 sites had already checked in! We were on the water by 3:30pm as planned, and after a very stressful 3 ½ hour paddle we found a site, ironically a 10 minute paddle across from the put-in. After setting up camp, we enjoyed a yummy prepared chicken and sausage gumbo dinner before a well deserved sleep.
Read more: Family Camping Trip - Cedar Lake, Algonquin Park - August 15 to 22, 2021
Queensway Ramp Closure
The exit ramp from the Queensway eastbound to Bronson is closed until June 2022. This means that people who normally take the Queensway to get to the RA from the west will have to find alternate routes.
The ramp from Lyon St to the Queensway is closed until the fall of 2025. This should not affect club access to the Queensway except that there will be more people using the on ramp by Bronson.
As of 2021-08-25 the right lane of the Queensway is closed from before Parkdale until Kent St.
Black Donald Lake Trip Report
After a failed attempt on August 6th, we made an exploratory trip to Black Donald Lake, a very large open lake, south of Calabogie, on August 16th. We met at 9:30 am at the Kanata Park N Ride and drove to Black Donald Tent and Trailer Park. The drive was about 90 minutes. We paid $10 to park and launch from the dock about 11 am. The staff at this park went out of their way to be helpful which was appreciated!
We paddled south, looking for crown land campsites as we went. We checked out some islands on the east side of the main part of the lake. We found two campsites on islands about 6 km south from the Black Donald Tent and Trailer Park launch. We believe these are privately owned.
THURSDAY MEECH LAKE PADDLE
By Jane Maxwell
On Thursday, August 5th, four RACCC paddlers – Helena Anderson, Heather Wiggs, Jim Young and Jane Maxwell – headed up to Meech Lake in Gatineau Park for an early evening paddle. Meech Lake is a jewell in the Gatineau Park system which may explain why so many homes and cottages line the lake. But if you head northwest from P12, the boat put-in, you will find a more naturalized, untouched area of the lake which makes for an enjoyable, quick get-away from the city hustle and bustle. These evening paddles have been my retreat into nature for many years. Our destination is a large flatish rock peninsula behind the island which sadly suffered fire damage several years ago. It is still out-of-bounds for paddlers. On this evening the water temperature was perfect – warm but refreshing – so some of us headed out on a swim around the island. Following supper we set out to explore the nearby bay and the one remaining cottage (discreetly hidden in the forest). After a nice chat with one of the owners (whose grandfather had refused to sell to the government in the 1940s), we headed for home enjoying a wonderful, classic Meech Lake sunset. We were keen to sample La Cigale’s outstanding ice cream in Old Chelsea but the long lineup deterred us. Note to paddlers: the NCC advises users that it closes P12 and P13 parking lots at 9 p.m. In reality that is probably pretty closer to 9:30 p.m. but best not to tempt fate. We hope more RACCC members will join us in the future for evening paddles at Meech Lake.