It had been a busy spring
and I hadn’t managed to get a canoe trip in at all. I finally blocked out a few
days in mid July for a trip. Of course the decision then becomes where to go?
It had been quite awhile (2005) since I had been on the Spanish River, so I thought
I’d use the Via Rail Budd Car train service from Sudbury.
I planned taking the train
up to the Forks to access the river and then run all the way down to Agnew
Lake, where my wife could pick me up at the Agnew Lake Lodge, north of
Webbwood. Agnew Lake Lodge
This would be a 4-day trip
– Thursday to Sunday.
Day 1
I was at the Sudbury train
station in plenty of time to purchase a ticket and pay the extra fee for the
canoe. Travel on the Budd Car is quite reasonable; it cost me about $65.00 for
a one-way ticket plus canoe from Sudbury to “The Forks” where I planned to
start my trip. The train was quite busy with a couple other canoe groups heading
out as well from different starting points.
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and so it begins |
A couple hours later the
train let me off at “The Forks”. It’s a short walk down to the river from the
tracks and I was quickly loaded and pushed off at around 11:30. It’s a gorgeous
sunny day with a few clouds floating around. The forks access point to the
river is on the west branch of the Spanish just north of the “fork” where the
east branch meets it. The river is fairly wide and moving along nicely.
The first sets of rapids
for the day are the Upper and Lower Athlone rapids about 5 km. from the put in.
In spring conditions these can be quite pushy with large standing waves etc.
but today I run both sets with no problems other than a bit of water over the
bow. I stop at the bottom of Lower Athlone and take a lunch break and a quick swim
to cool off. There are some small swifts between Athlone and the next set,
Railway Rapids, which are just south of the trestle over Pogamasing Creek.
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trestle at Pogamasing Creek |
Again it’s a short paddle
to the Bridge Rapid just north of the old town site of Sheahan. This rapid runs
under the railway bridge and I run it on the right hand side of the centre
abutment. The river deepens and widens here for a section before you get to the
Pogamasing siding area which is a series of swifts which parallel the railway
tracks for 4-5 km. There is an old logging camp from the late 40’s, early 50’s
on the east bank of the river just below a marked campsite where the river
bends away from the tracks. I have stopped before both summer and winter and I
don’t bother today.
I spend some time just
floating with the river’s current and eventually I stop at the campsite on
river left at Cliff rapids for the night. There is a new campsite on river
right here as well that the MNR canoe rangers have established since the last
time I stayed here. I putz around camp, set up my hammock and my small bug net
and settle down with supper and a book. It’s been a great day on the river and
a good way to relax from the pressures of work and daily life.
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food barrel |
Distance traveled – about
30 km.
Day 2
The morning dawns warm and
muggy with some clouds in the area. It’s going to be a hot and humid day and
there’s not much of a breeze to speak of! I eat, pack and head off for the day.
There’s a small swift downstream of cliff rapids and then the river broadens
and slows somewhat as I move along. I reach Mogo Creek and there are 2 chaps in
residence at the cabin plus 2 canoeists camped just past the mouth of the
creek. These would be the last people I saw till I reached Agnew Lake in a
couple days. The morning is warming up quickly and there are some convective
cloud activity in the area, possibly bringing a thunderstorm or 2 later in the
day.
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Mogo Creek |
The next signs of human
activity is the several camps on the shore of Spanish Lake, however there is
no-one in residence. The next bit of excitement comes at Zig Zag Rapids. As the
name implies you set up mid stream and then zig and zag right then left as you
transit the rapid, always fun. The river narrows here and picks up some speed
as you pass through some small rapids and swifts before the next larger set –
Tofflemire Rapids. Past this set and you are now approaching the area known as
the “Elbow” where the river makes a sharp bend as it heads to the “Graveyard
Rapids “ area.
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The Elbow looking towards the Graveyard Rapids |
Graveyard rapids is
actually strung out over about 1.5 km. of the river and consists of Little
Graveyard, Big Graveyard and the Cascades rapids. These rapids can be Class 3-4
in certain water levels but some parts also can be partially run in some
conditions. The water levels are not to bad this trip and I run some parts,
line some parts and lift over the larger drops all the way down to the Cascades
area. It’s about 2:00 and I decide to spend the night here. I set up camp and
then swim and read the afternoon away. I check my small thermometer and it
reads 28 Celsius, hot day-no bugs, you gotta love that.
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campsite at the Cascades |
Distance traveled – about
30 km
Day 3
Dawn brings some mist on
the river and the promise of another beautiful day. After a leisurely breakfast
I’m on my way again. Just downstream of the cascades is a large boulder plunked
into the river. It’s huge and must be the remnant of the last glacial age!
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now that's a boulder! |
Just
past the boulder is the mouth of the Agnes River and the start of the Agnes
Rapid. In the logging river drive days a rock dyke was built here to direct the
logs downstream and keep them out of the shallow areas. This can be a tricky
rapid as well but I have no problems today.
Carrying on downstream you
come to Cedar Rapid. The river makes a
sharp right then runs on gently curving path to the left. Another kilometer
brings you to a small rapid with a nice campsite nestled into some large pine
on river left. The next section of river is known as the “Royal Ride”. It runs
for about 20 km. down to the Wakonnasin River area. The river gains speed as it
flows through here but in low water conditions it can be called the bumpy or
rough ride due to exposed boulders and shallow areas. The water levels are high
enough that the river is flowing quite fast but there is lots of water and no
bumping at all.
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along the Royal Ride |
It’s another hot day and I stop at the Reynolds creek campsite
for a bite to eat and a cooling dip. In fact it’s so nice I also have a 45
minute snooze! Feeling refreshed I head
off again and poke along to the Wakonnasin River delta area. I spend some time
exploring the swampy delta area and surprise a couple of Great Blue Herons.
There is a campsite on river left, up on a bluff at the mouth of the Wakonnasin
and I decide to spend the evening here as it’s a short run out to the lodge on
Agnew Lake tomorrow for my pickup.
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campsite at the Wakonnasin River |
Distance traveled – about
30 km.
Day 4
It’s a different morning
when I wake up – overcast, muggy and buggy and threatening to rain! I quickly
eat and pack and shove for Agnew Lake. The river has broadened and slowed again
and sure enough I get about 4 km. downriver and it starts to shower. I pull
over and put on my rain jacket and sit under a tree till the worst of it is
over. As I continue on my way the skies clear and the temperature jumps up to
the hot range again. As I enter Woods channel on Agnew Lake I spot a deer swimming
across the channel.
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swimming deer |
I head out into the main part of the lake and head for an
island with a beach where I stop and have a bit of bath/swim and put on a clean
shirt. It’s about 2 km. to the lodge and as I pull up to the dock there’s Jan and
our dog Lily sitting in the shade enjoying the view! I load up the canoe and
gear and we head for Sudbury.
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Agnew Lake - view from the lodge |
Distance traveled – about 16
km
Total distance – about 106
km.