UpNorthica Canoes Wabakimi: Plotting The Route

How do you choose a route in a park that covers 2 million acres? See how we did it for our upcoming adventure.

Ontario’s Wabakimi Provincial Park is not the Boundary Waters. There are no map series or books that cover all its canoe routes. Only some of its primitive campsites and lonely, overgrown portages are even formally documented at all. Of those, their very locations differ, depending upon whom you ask. And of course, nobody has been on every route (if you have, please write a book.)

Additionally, there are no official “entry points”, so you can enter where you please… although no roads lead directly to the park. So, your best options are to enter via canoeing through neighboring lakes, via float plane… or by train. That’s right.  For more details on park entry, check here.

So, where *do* you start?

We’ve put together some of the resources we’ve used for planning our 9-day route; one that will take us through winding rivers like the Ogoki, and big waters like Whitewater Lake. Some of the information we’ve come across is fairly current; some of it is unavoidably dated. Compare your notes and keep in mind: What one traveler experiences, the following traveler might not (like blowdowns and varying water levels). Expect to plan your route using a number of maps; you’ll be better informed.

Here we go:

• Have no experience? Get someone else’s. As with any first-time visit to a wilderness area, recommendations are vital. But with Wabakimi’s many particulars and variables, all the more so. Ask about a route that matches your experience level, whether by combing discussion boards or seeking an outfitter. Which, in our case, would be Don and Ann of Mattice Lake Outfitters, who will also be flying us into the park.

• Customize and print your own topo map. There are helpful online resources here and here for doing just that. Customize your map by scale, measure distances, plot compass headings or find GPS coordinates. When you’re ready, print out the map. They are accurate and detailed (though they don’t list portages or campsites.)

• Use Wabakimi Project maps. The Wabakimi Project is a passionate grassroots effort to document historical canoe routes of the area. These maps, compiled in booklet form, provide current information on routes, portage and campsite details.  Although they do not cover every area of the park (yet), they are helpful in planning.  You can also contact the Wabakimi Project for route recommendations.

• Purchase maps from an area outfitter. They can also provide route recommendations. The maps we received were published in the early 80′s and are scaled 1:50,000. We have five maps just for our route. The outfitter annotated the portages and campsites.

• Now, compare and contrast. Got yourself a nice collection of maps now? Good. Carefully review the information you receive and cross-check with other maps if you can. One source may place portages and campsites in differing locations. Implied here is that you be ready to improvise when you’re on location.

• Finally, get familiar with your route. Since portages and campsites are trickier to find here, we’ve been studying the layout of our mapped route much more than for a BW trip. Find out all you can about each body of water – hit up YouTube for videos from other paddlers. Try photo-sharing and map-sharing sites. Every bit helps.

In our next feature, we’ll be highlighting some of the extra gear we’re bringing on our Wabakimi adventure. Good luck in planning your route!