Radiant Lake Trip Report 2019
September 7-12
The Route
We had a 3 hour drive from Ottawa to the Brent put in at Cedar Lake. Our first night was on an easterly, island beach campsite on Cedar Lake. Then, a 12 km paddle on Cedar Lake, the Petawawa River and Radiant Lake, including 3 portages: 960m., 690m. and 860m. The trick, we discovered on the last portage, was to use the decommissioned rail bed, found to the left of the marked portage. Our gorgeous campsite was the most northerly, on the west shore of Radiant. We remained there for 4 nights before our return.
The Team
Heather S., Trip Leader; Gerard R., mentoring Heather; Joanna D., Anatoly C.
The Physical World & It’s Splendors
Howard Gardner suggests that there are 8 dimensions of intellegence. They are: 1) word smart, 2) number/ reasoning smart,3) picture smart, 4) body smart, 5) music smart, 6) people smart, 7) self smart and 8) nature smart. The photo captions will refer to most of those 8 variables. I suggest that we explored them all during our Radiant Experience, though this report does not contain a music clip.
While base camped, we explored historical sites, found a tribute to deceased lumbermen, enjoyed the beaches and shallows, fished & caught Brook Trout, Bass and Fall fish,( large minnows). Poems were made and a water colour completed.
Executive Meeting Minutes 2020-03-28
Log on to see the minutes of the virtual executive meeting held March 28,2020.
Exec Meeting March 10 , 2020
Log in to see the minutes for the March 10 , 2020 executive meeting.
RA Closure March 15 Because of COVID-19
Out of concern for the health of members of our community, the RA has suspended many of its operations until April 5, 2020. The canoe club shares this concern so we have postponed our seminars and meetings until then as well.
The RA will continue to monitor the situation and will decide whether or not to resume activities close to April 5. The club will post updates on this site as we have them.
More information on the situation is available on the Ottawa Public Health Agency website, click here.
The RA policy on COVID-19 is available on their website at https://www.racentre.com/
Exec Meeting Jan 21st , 2020
Log in to see the minutes for the Jan 21st , 2020 executive meeting.
Winter Paddling in Florida
Can't wait for spring? Then head to Florida for some very nice paddling! One centre of paddling is Ocala Florida. It takes about 21 hours to drive there nonstop from Ottawa. Or you can take a direct flight from Ottawa to Orlando, about an hour south of Ocala. In Ocala, you can paddle the Silver River in Silver Springs State Park and perhaps see a manatee. Or you can drive east to paddle the somewhat challenging Juniper Creek. Alternatively, you can go further west into the panhandle to paddle Holmes Creek or the Blackwater River. At all four destinations, you can rent a canoe.
Ted Blake Award Winner
The winner of this year’s Ted Blake award is someone who has worked in the background of the club for many years.
The club is lucky enough to have a website that has an amazing number of different features that allow for the sharing of information, communicating with club members and even signing up for trips and events. It is hard to imagine our club functioning as well as it does without our website.
FW Introduction Solo Canoe Certification Weekend- Aug 23-25 2019
A report by Nathalie M
During this weekend course, participants of all ages and backgrounds from aspiring summer camp counsellors to RACCC instructors-in-training gathered at Gracefield Camp in Quebec to obtain ORCKA or Paddle Canada flatwater intro solo canoe certifications. Seventeen participants, instructors and assistants were divided into three groups with excellent instructor to student ratios. The camping weekend allowed us to paddle in calmer waters each morning and evening. In between paddling sessions, we learned course theory and joined in extracurricular activities like archery, napping in hammocks, hiking, kayaking, swimming, stargazing and singing by the campfire. Everyone participated in a synchronized solo canoe dance and some even discovered how to roll swamped canoes in the warm, shallow waters of Lac Castor.
Thank you to the ever flexible and resourceful instructors Karen H., Jennifer H., Mark S., Suze C. and Dot B. who volunteer their time and go above and beyond to ensure all participants are well fed, sheltered and have the resources and support required to get the most out of every course.
Click on Read more for a 2nd report on the weekend plus some photos and a video.
Algonquin NW Tim and Nipissing Rivers Loop Trip Report 2019
Main Objectives: Trout fishing, experience Algonquin, and travel a new route. SEE ATTACHMENT.
Chiniguchi 2019
The Chiniguchi route is on crown land northeast of Sudbury. Going after the middle of August allowed us to avoid the kids' camps that use this route earlier in the summer. The weather was remarkably good with just a bit of rain and not too much wind while paddling. On the way out, we had multiple passes overhead by an Ontario Government aircraft which seemed to be practicing water bomber manouvers.
Click Read More to see photos of the trip.
New Kayak
By now many of you will have noticed that the club has a new sea kayak. This is thanks to club member Margaret M. who kindly donated hers to the club. We are all very grateful to her for her generosity.
Mark Scott
Chairperson
French River 2019 Trip Report
Our 10 day trip started on Sat Jul 27 and we returned Mon Aug 5. It included Henry N (trip leader), Mike B, Xuan Q and Cory D. This was my (Cory) first time on the French River, with the other three having been to the area many times.
We had an amazing trip, with great weather and calm waters. Each day included some easy paddling, swimming, lots of relaxing and nightly campfires. I also enjoyed some fishing, photography, listening to podcasts, reading Dune by Frank Herbert, and watching the show Zone Blanche/Black Spot which I had downloaded from Netflix to my phone. I might not have had a toilet, running water or electricity, but there was no shortage of things to do!
For a funny story, read about the "barrel challenge" on day 9, which was a great way to end the trip.