Rivière du Lièvre Day One START HERE

Day 1—Sunday, July 18, 2010

Drive through the Laurentians to Mont-Saint-Michel and Zec Normandie where Eric shuttles us to put-in 662 miles from New Jersey home; whitecaps and storm on Lac la Culotte.

After overnight in Plattsburgh, New York, breakfast north of Montreal and then five hours more drive through the Laurentians and Mont Tremblant where the towns get small and smaller. After a turn off of 309 north of Mont-Saint-Michael, the road becomes gravel, albeit cars and trucks are travelling at 40 mph. We check out the take-out, which is on the way to Zec Normandie where we will meet our shuttle driver at the prearranged time of 3 p.m. Pay $37.50 camping fee (CAN$) and $75 for the shuttle. What a deal! Chemain Parent (road to Parent) is the road to the put in (mostly, there are a few turn offs toward the end that you have to navigate). Gets narrower and narrower. Only passable in a truck, in our opinion. Could wreck a small car. Pass through interesting little collection of cabins called Waterloo. Very very bumpy ride.

Arrive at put-in on schedule, and are in the water by 5 p.m., paddling across Lac a la Culotte. Nice and calm—for the first 45 minutes—until the wind picks up and we are in a rainstorm, whitecaps and all. A hard paddle the rest of the 5 miles to the first night’s campsite on the far side of the lake. Rain stopped enough to get tent up and dinner made—dried Italian sausage enhanced by a pacakge of sauce and spaghetti noodles, freeze-dried vegetable medley.

Rivière du Lièvre Day Two

Day 2—Monday, July 19, 2010
Long (and only real) portage in difficult mud around a Class IV ledge, rainy lunch, Lac Adonis, A-rated campsite, swimming in rapids.

Woke early to the sound of the white-throated sparrow. Usual morning prep but skipped the fire and used camp stoves instead. Came upon rapids on the river right away. Scouted a few and lined two. Ran the rest; some good whitewater. Scouted part of a series that was to be Class II, III and a IV ledge. Took the portage trail to try and see the bottom of the series. Trail was long, boggy and muddy. When we got to end with one trip of gear saw a true IV ledge (falls) with very very fast water and not at all runable. Finished the portage, during which it rained heavily. Took shelter under a cedar tree with a moss floor for lunch of soup and cheese and crackers (our usual mid-day sustenance). Some fishermen were tryig their luch at the bottom of the ledge and then a grandpa and kids and poodle with a powerboat. With the river going into and out of lakes, we saw more civilization that usual or than we would later in the trip where it was all river-only access.

Finished the day with two hours on Lac Adonis, a little headwind but an early day into camp and a beautiful A campsite (our rating) on top a ridge with good water access and great swimming in the nearby shallow rapids. Later that night, around 8 p.m., we heard a ruckus on the lake side of the camp, just before the rapids. Two guys had anchored and were yelling in French to other boaters. One guy held up a huge lake trout, three feet long, possibly 25 pounds, showing off his catch before releasing it back into the lake. Before long a few more boats joined the festivities, fishermen talking loudly and casting lines every which way. As sun set, they left around 9. It got quite cold overnight and we slept in caps. A couple degrees cooler and we would have wanted to have 35 degree bags instead of our 45 degree ones.

Rivière du Lièvre Day Three

Day 3—Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Series of Class I, II and III rapids, Lac Bacon and Lac de la Table, lined Class IV ledge.

Usual morning fog and haze over the water. Two quiet fishermen where the boisterous ones were night previously. On the river before 9 for a series of I, II and III rapids as well as two lakes with pretty long flat water—Lac Bacon and Lac de la Table. Scouted the IIs and ran a couple. Would have been rougher and more standing waves if there were just 6 inches more of water. Scouted a IV drop on nice big flat rocks. Had lunch at the top, lined part and then ran the bottom, which was a Class III. All told, paddled 20k or about 12.5 miles.

Missed a recommended campsite and found discrepancies in the map we were using. Ended up in a decent one on an old logging road, a little narrow but interesting. Rock area for a bath. Hearty dinner of chili (from all dry ingredients—hamburger, red beans, white beans, tomatoes and Doug’s secret spices).

Rivière du Lièvre Day Four

Day 4—Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Toughest day, flat-water Lac Pine, rain, together ran Class IV rapid, Class IV ledge, bushwhacked campsite.

Seems like there is always a tough day and this was it. Lots of flat lake paddling and relentless rain. No rain jacket is 100 percent but fortunately the rain was not cold. Come midday and we are looking for anywhere we could have our hot soup lunch out of the heavy rain and wind. As if answering a prayer, we come across a fishing/hunting camp. If anyone was there we would have asked if we could just shelter for 20 minutes on the screened porch. But no one was about and fortunately the porch was unlocked. Thank you, thank you.

Somewhat fortified, we paddled Lac Pine, which was interesting with many islands. We checked the grasses to make sure we were going with the flow of the water. Ran the rapids at the bridge fine and then started a Class II, III, IV succession of rapids ending with a ledge that came up so fast we had to take it. Scouted and sucessfully ran a Class IV ledge that at first looked impossible but with planning proved a hoot. Checked out the “grand campsite,” (as termed by others at 280 km) and didn’t find it grand at all except that it could accommodate many tents. Poor fireplace. It was still raining so we decided to go a mile and a half to another campsite that was supposed to be at the end of the island on the left. Never found a sign of it. But, en route we did see two bull moose. Wonderful peaceful creatures that let us get close since we were so quiet. Also interrupted a beaver who had pulled a fresh branch to the lodge.

Came to a Class III ledge and started looking for anywhere to camp, briefly considered a sandbar in the rapids but them came across an abandoned site, all overgrown with moss and shrubs but with the vestige of a fire ring. Didn’t really like it but could not get back upstream past the ledge to reexamine where we might have missed the other site. Quickly set up tent on the bushwacked site and cooked on camp stoves, eating on the rocks because there was no place else. Tent was on very lumpy ground but tried to situate bodies to accommodate. A worn-down tree stump makes a pillow if you are tired enough. Rained hard that night but at least we were dry. In the morning we found an inch of water in the drinking cups.

Rivière du Lièvre Day Five

Day 5—Thursday, July 22, 2010
Doug ran Class V ledge with duffle, great whitewater II, III and IV, dramatic IV ledge, sunny private lake and A-rated campsite.

First thing in the morning, had a class V ledge with good portage on the rocks to the right. We were going to carry the whole thing but Doug decided to sneak it with one duffle as his seat and the rest of the gear carried. Ran fine but got briefly stuck on a rock at the bottom. Ran a good ½ mile of II, II and IV (brief) whitewater with only minor snags due to rocks and the water level. Some big waves, too. Fast going. We were determined not to miss the campsite around 268 km. There wouldn’t be another one until the take out. Scouted and ran a couple IV’s Ran series of II, III, all a hoot, culminating in a big IV banger at bottom boat scouting only. Scraped a small rock , but no sticky. Pulled over into an eddy because we had taken on some water. Sure enough, as promised, just around the right bend, was our campsite, the best yet, we rate it A.

An early day off the river, beautiful lagoon, no other boats around, sun to dry the gear on the huge expanse of high rocks. Took a dip in the deep refreshing water. Enjoyed log seats and a work table. Time to relax before salmon croquettes with Teriyaki rice and vegetable medley. Another cool night. Good sleeping weather.

Rivière du Lièvre Day Six

Day 6—Friday, July 23, 2010
Fantastic five miles to takeout, ledges and 1.5 miles of great Class II and III whitewater, would have been IV with more water.

Last day on the river, just five miles to takeout and we will be sorry to see it end. Used the camp stoves for breakfast and were on the river before 9. What an exciting stretch of river. A great reward for coming this far. An “easy” IV with a tricky sneak on the left. Then 1½ mile of endless excitement Cl III rapids that kept going and going. Heart-pounding beaucoup d'excitement! What a great way to end a fantastic river adventure. Mileage at takeout was 707. Picnic lunch (soup again) at Ferme-Neuve town park. On to Mont-Tremblant for a hot shower, rest at great B&B called Au Bois Jolit, and dinner in the old village at Milly’s (highly recommended.)

KOPKA SOLO CANOE DAY 10 addenum

So it's in the truck and home three days later.
A great river, a real gem .

Great trip!!

Some general notes
This was a demanding trip both physically and mentally. Travelling solo really ups the neccessary caution level. This is for experienced canoeists and campers only. TIP: bring extra cord to replace stakes for the tent. You'll be pitching on bedrock more than once and tying up to rocks, logs whatever.

This river isn't likely to kill you but you could get in a real jam if you don't know what your doing and don't have an accurate assessment of your real ww skill levels. Being able to read rapids and currents is critical as well as a thorough, practical knowledge of hydrodynamics and what that can do to you and your boat. The upper Kopka would be a tougher slog for tandem paddlers (but doable) at the low water levels I encountered. Higher water (say up to 1 foot higher) would actually have made things easier and less technical. River conditions are going to change yearly as downed trees get removed or deposited with the spring floods.

If you do this trip expect to be using your imagination and creativity negotiating many of the rapids as you paddle, line and maybe sometimes push, pull and carry your way down. (I left out swimming , but you never know. . . ) Yes , I'd definitely put this on my do again list . . . but there's so many rivers . . . Chimo!

Doug aka serge88

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 9 & 10

PHOTOS
TOP Photos L & R
The Mt. Goat portage. Don't trust that rope!iT'S 80 VERTICAL FEET
MIDDLE ROW PHOTOs : Me and third falls > a scene hard earned. LOOKING down over the abyss
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BOTTOM PHOTOS, LEFT :My truck at the takeout. Where's the nearest pizzeria?
BOTTOM :HELLO BEAR!

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The last of the three great waterfalls is just at the end of the lake on which I camped the night before. This biggy has the most difficult portage of the three, the famous "Mountain Goat " portage. It's the norm to do this portage river left, although another route exists on river right. I sort of wished I had at least checked out the other less-used side to see if it was indeed more difficult and longer (as said my old MNR trip notes). It may also have provided a better photo view from the top.

The portage is about 250 yards. Not difficult until the end where it drops a good 80 ft and is very steep, and vertical at the beginning for about 10 ft. I'm glad it wasn't raining. Operating solo the entire job was particularly arduous because I kept the pace really slow to ensure safety. After cutting up a tree that had fallen over the top that winter. (I was the first one on the Kopka in 2010!) I started lowering the gear down, then the canoe. the really steep part is the first 20 ft or so. Then it angles to a pitch that can be walked down by holding on to a rope. I didn't trust the existing rope for my own self, just used it for the gear. Sometime soon the rope tied to that top tree is going to break. It was good in its time . . . real kernmantle . . . but the years are wearing it out. If your going, bring your own rope -- the old stuff might be gone or if not, you probably won't trust it. A few carabiners are going to come in handy, too. The D-Roller tm is a nice one for using as a pulley. I had two with me.

I think the entire portage took almost three hours. In a group the time would be much less because things could be passed up and down. I had only myself there and when all the gear was lowered over the edge, boat too. I followed down on a one-way trip all by myself. The lowering was all done in stages. First a quarter of the way, then the rest. There's enough slope "platform" to keep things from going all the way down in freefall. I anchored a rope to a deadfall to hang on to as I moved down the rest of the way. The top part you climb down straight vertical.

When everything was at the river's edge at the bottom I paddled across to the other side and had lunch at the campsite there. You get a great view of the falls . The campsite though is used somewhat by locals (it's obvious) and a little on the blemished side -- trashy is too strong for it, but time may make it so. Not bad but glad I stayed at my little lake site upstream.

The course out of the canyon is beautiful and a fitting farewell path from the falls. Wigwasan Lake is large and uneventful. It's obvious that heavy winds could wreak havoc on any canoeing on this lake and Lake Bukemiga, but I was fortunate. The narrows into Lake Wigwasan are easily negotiated. About 2 miles past the rapids of the narrows, still in the SW arm of Lake Wigwasan, there is an island with a nice campsite on the south side. I took a break there and noticed a raven had built a nest in one of the nearby pine trees and her little darlin's would make a real racket when she came in with a mouthful of groceries. They probably nest there every year, so you may not have missed out my friend. Also this island would be a good place to stay on overnight if the winds were bad and going to tear you up when you hit the open water of the main lake. It was actually more pleasant than the more humanized campsite at the Lake Wigwasan/Lake Bukemiga connexion trail.

The course can be run easily between lakes Wigwasan and Bukemiga -- by now your an expert, right? Just stay to the right hand channel at the end where the water is deeper and you'll be fine. I checked out the campsite there, where I had originally planned to camp for my last night and decided it wasn't that great, so I just kept on. On Bukemiga, it was raining and I was concerned about the wind picking up the next day so I decided to camp at the takeout and drive off the next morning. In retrospect I should have spent one more night in the real bush instead of the very civilized camping ground/trailer park of the takeout.

There is actually a nice little campsite nestled in the woods on the right bank of Lake Bukemiga in the southeast arm just before it bends right and south for the last 1/3 mi. of paddling. Camping here the last night would just have meant a 20 min paddle in the morning in a protected inlet of the lake, and a fast exit.

Be that as it may, I proceeded to the takeout where I was met by a great furry dog of one of the local fishermen. There were some summer locals camping out in their trailers and they were a friendly bunch who insisted on giving me a few free beers and ultimately a great chili dinner to boot. There was plenty of grass, not rock now, on which to pitch a tent and I knew I wasn't in the wilderness anymore when an electric generator got going. But I had my earplugs, which I use anyway when sleeping near a rapid or waterfall, and I slept like a baby. In the morning I was offered a mug of steaming mocha by my buddy in the trailer and I know I'm back in civilization for real.

The truck gets loaded up and I say my farewells. On the way out I pass a black bear half sitting, lazily eating grass by the road. I roll down the window and say "hello bear !" He doesn't move and looks at me languidly, the expression on his face saying , "You must be new around here , Cheechako. "

I drive off . . . what a trip!

KOPKA SOLO CANOE DAY 8B photos

MORE PICS!!!
Top: Indian Moccassin orchid . . . springtime delight in the north.
Middle: This is the rapid for which I discovered a portage trail after lining became decidedly risky. That current is moving fast and the end drop approaches Cl IV for sure.
Bottom: Checking out #2 falls. I would camp on that little "way down there" lake in the background.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 8

PHOTOS
Bottom: First falls from the boat.
Middle: Second falls. Note canoe to left, bottom of portage.
Top: End of a perfect day, enjoying the solitude and beauty.
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I wake up anticipating the day for this day I will arrive at the BIG Drops where the river plunges 250 feet in 1/4 mile. I paddle to the end of Lake K. and note the campsites on the bluff . . . they look "A" grade appealing. The lake turns east and the sides close in and the river begins again.

I'll note now that no one has to worry about being swept over a huge waterfall on this river .All the three major falls have plenty of still water before them to spot the portage and easily navigate the boat safely. The rapids that precede all the three falls however are in some sections significant and will require more than just paddling. Leaving the lake there is an easy shallow rapid that can be boat scouted, then quiet sections with current. The next significant rapid is rocky and will probably need scouting as there is no direct route down it. After zig zagging down it I ended up lining the last bit on the right. With higher water levels this rip would change dramatically, so the next guy will have to do what I did . . . take it as it comes.

The final pre-falls rapid starts easy and quickly becomes a nasty technical Cl III+ nightmare. I figured I could go down as far as I could, then line it the rest of the way . The shore is essentially useless for movement however and any lining you do is going to be mostly in the water -- slippin' and a slidin', ho ho. I decided to go to river left and head inland to see if there might be a portage trail I had missed, since this place is such a mean dog to line and risky, too, for man and boat. The water is pushy enough here that if your "Queen Mary" or "Henrietta" gets away from you she's likely to get pinned good and you've got some serious Z-dragging to do to get her free.

Sure enough 50 ft from the river I came across the portage trail. Where it starts is anybody's guess because it got past me. I hauled the boat and gear to the trail through the bush and performed the required grunt work. All in all, better than lining.

The first falls of the" big three" appeared after a short quiet lake section and there's plenty of time to spot the portage, river right. The 350 yds is pretty easy until the last 100 feet then gets interesting. The trail itself goes down a very steep "path," the last part of which involves some short vertical drops. This is not too difficult with packs. I worked it out without using ropes . . . except for the canoe. Two people working together could probably get a tandem boat down the normal trail ,but by myself it would be more problematic. So I chose to lower the boat right over the adjacent cliff, about a 25 ft drop. This I did using a carabiner and pulley to get some increased mechanical advantage (and not lose my grip!). It worked out well. Some great views and photo ops here and at each of the other falls.

Note there are campsites at each of the three falls portages ...so you can quit for the day wherever you want. My choice was to do two falls/carries on the first day and the final one the next. Turned out to be the right choice. The best campsite by far (IMHO) is on the small lake just below the second falls.

The next (#2) big falls also has portage on river right . It's shorter( 150 yds ) and also at the end has a step drop ( the "cave"). There was still a big chunk of winter ice in the cave when I looked in. Check it out. The second falls is the narrowest of the three. Watching all that water come ripping down a 20 ft wide slot is awesome, an appropriate use of that very overworked word.

The little lake that you then enter has a "A" campsite on the right, just as you leave the falls canyon. Prettiest lake I've ever had the pleasure to paddle ...quiet , intimate ..with big picturesque cliffs on three sides ......and check out the waterfall tumbling down to the right as you enter. The campsite as I said is a honey. Easy access, level enough, fire ring ready, not too buggy, plenty of wood, nice rock shelf for swimming . . . and a decent place to set up the kitchen -- plus a great view!

I pitched camp, swam, cooked dinner and enjoyed this bit of heaven . . . and wouldn't you know it, after a full day of paddling and 'packing it was such a perfect little lake I had to get in the canoe and paddle around a bit just to take it in even more.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 7

PHOTOS
Top: Scene from my pretty Lake Kenakakaniss campsite (A).

Bottom: The Long Mean rapid leading into Lake Kenakakaniss.
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DAY 7
I got up and struck camp and carried the gear to the end of the portage where I had yesterday paddled the canoe. I would be heading generally east today until I got to Lake Kenakskaniss. There was supposedly a 36 ft waterfall indicated on my topo map 1/2 mi. downstream from camp but it turned out to be an easy Cl II run ! . . . go figure! My map was official Canadian government. They must have had a few Labbatt's Blue that day . . . but map is old . . . wonder if they've fixed that error.

In a couple of miles the river drops over a significant, wide 15 ft ledge, taking various channels . It's an easy 100 yd carry on river right. Nice campsite there, too. After that it's an easy few miles to the rapid entering Lake Kenakskaniss. Portage is on the left, 400 yd, and everyone is going to walk this one. This rapid is a 1/4 mile of hard technical Cl IV with a few deadfalls randomly tossed in. If it were in PA or NY it would be a "WW Mecca "site and all the hardcore OC1's and yakkers would come to play all day and get to know every rock. But this is the wilderness. Your first time down and Pizza Hut is a long way away, so you walk. Could you line it? Sure. But it would probably be riskier and take as long. Take the cannoli , leave the rapid.

Lake Kenakskaniss is long and for the first time I was heading south over distance so I was concerned about headwinds, but they were light and not a problem. There is a nice small campsite 2/3ds of the way down the lake on right, but if you're keen you can go to the south end of the lake and a couple of very nice larger sites are on the cliffs overlooking the lake. I chose the first small campsite, perfect for one or two tents.

Warm weather, another dip in the lake and I was (literally) a happy camper.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 6

PHOTOS
Top: Taken from the nice "A" campsite after dumping in the (unseen) upstream rapid . . . hey it was a hot day, I needed to cool off! I carried the visible C IV drop and ran the empty boat to the C II+ ledge downstream.
Middle: You can see all the lumber upstream , but I only had to lift over one river-wide log.That was a lot of effort with the fast current and slippery bank. The fun drop in the foreground I ran for my reward and made the eddy from which I took the picture.
Bottom: This is the rapid I ran below the bridge day 6. The portage was a mean one and after serious time consumed scouting, I took the loaded boat down it. The river really gets narrow here and the current is pushy. The top of the rapid was the hardest to scout . . . but there is a line down this sluice.

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To Lake Kenakskaniss (from my day 5 campsite) ascertaining the exact location is difficult (unless you take a GPS device). The water is a succession of narrow lakes and river and there is plenty of interesting whitewater. This is really a fun part of the river to do. . . lots of variety. After passing through a couple of small lakes the river cuts north for about 2 1/2 miles. At the point where the only bridge on the river is seen there is a little rapid. The bridge is in disuse but 4 wheelers are obviously still using it. Unfortunately an open space just off the road has collected some human trash, which can't be seen from the river I'm glad to say.

After the bridge a rapid with portage is approached. The portage is on the left. The rapid runs through a narrow little gorge and is worth scouting if you fancy running a solid C III to avoid the difficult rough 250 yd portage. I ran this section with gear and got through unscathed. In one place the entire river reduces to about 4 feet wide. I sure didn't want to do that rough portage! The top of the rapid is the crux. Get your alignment right there and you should be OK but you'll work hard to access the view and get the planning done.This was one of the the most difficult rapids I chose to run concerning execution and potential risk.

The river continues north a couple of miles and then generally heads east for about 8 miles through a series of small lakes and rapids/ledges before entering Lake Kenakskaniss. The first major rapid was tough as it has some deadfalls that went right across the channel. I ran the first 100 ft, had lunch on a rock, then lined down over a ledge to the deadfalls and carefully emptied the canoe and pulled it over the trees. This was demanding and tiring work as the current was strong and the shore offered little good ground. After negotiating the lumber I ran the rest of the rapid and lined the last 20 feet into a calm stretch. Hopefully next year's spring flood will clear that deadfall obstacle. There's no portage trail discernible.

A couple miles later the river has a nice series of drops of varying difficulty. I ran the first on extreme right (there were multiple channels to choose)--a tight exhilarating little Cl III. The next drop was a Cl IV with an interesting ledge river right that went hard left after an initial 4 ft drop. Since there was a reasonably quiet section just below it and it didn't appear to present much likelihood of a pin, I decided to go for it. The 4' drop went great but sluicing through the hard left maneuver I met water forces not foreseen and ended up capsizing. The current pushed me through the gap and I quickly self-rescued. I would have loved to try it again in an empty boat but I was tired after a long day and having discovered a nice campsite right there on river left, pitched camp and dried out.

The campsite was actually on a portage trail for this section. I carried the boat beyond another CL IV drop and ran it the rest of the way down to the bottom of the portage. Once again it was a hot day so I decided to take another swim, this time voluntarily. Everything dried out quickly. A good day had ended.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 5

PHOTOS
Top: Dinner on the bluff day 5.
Middle: wringing the water from my socks end of day.
Bottom: Typical portage 70 lb of packs.



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From the river campsite to Sandison Lake there are plenty more rapids. I saw a sow bear and two cubs an hour after leaving camp. Later around a left hand turn I encountered the only Cl III rapid in this section. It started with an 18 inch ledge and then required some technical maneuvers. The water was low enough that I had to drag the boat over the ledge since the boat would stick if I ran it loaded. If there was more water, other channels would open up and it would be runnable fully loaded by a good paddler. There is no portage here and it's going to demand the tripper's attention whatever the skill level. Any C III tech rapid in the wilderness being run for the first time is worth repect.

Sandison Lake is a brief interlude before getting back on the river. There are a couple of obvious tent sites of good quality that you will see here. On leaving the lake more rapids are encountered. My topo map indicates a 16 ft waterfall about 1/2 mi. after Sandison Lake . It is really a C IV- rapid , about 85 yd long. Portage on left. After this portage there is a quiet section then more rapids , then another lake about the size of Sandison but unamed. You'll pass a decent rocky campsite on a big island in this lake.

The next river section has another C IV drop where there is a fair campsite on the bluff above the portage trail on left. That afternoon the sky turned ominously black and there was a severe thunderstorm. Being up on the bluff was unerving with the thunder and lightning all around. I put some extra guy lines on the tent and crawled inside. . . and survived. The storm abated and I made dinner. The moon came out and reflected on the water below. . . nice.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 4

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PHOTOS
Top: Lunch on Uneven Lake at good campsite.
2nd from top: Scene from river campsite.
3rd from top: Cooling off.
Bottom: The intimate Kopka.

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Awoke to another nice day and shipped out. I had camped at a narrow part of Uneven Lake and soon was in the last big part of the lake. . . it's a long body of water. . . glad to get it behind me. Thank goodness still had a tailwind. There was a complex of modern cabins in bay on the left which I paddled past. Near the end of the lake on the left (west) shore is a very nice "A" campsite where I stopped to have lunch. Soon I would be finished with lake travel for a while and getting into more river.

The forest fire area was past and the woods looked inviting again. The river between Uneven Lake and Sandison Lake is I think the prettiest part of the Kopka. Maybe not spectacular but seemingly the most pristine and intimate.

It was in this section that I saw a cow moose and the next day a sow bear and her two cubs. Lots of wildlife and old growth forest. There are lots of exciting Cl I and II rapids as well. I camped at a very nice "A" campsite about a third of the way to Sandison Lake. It rained a tiny bit but did not dampen my spirits. I had seen the cow moose earlier that day after running a little rapid and turning a corner in the river. She was old enough to expect a spring calf with her but early death by a bear or other misfortune may have claimed it. Despite being in the woods with lots of water, the bugs were surprisingly light.

Had a nice swim to cool off, made a fire and cooked dinner. What a great day.

KOPKA RIVER SOLO DAY 3

PHOTOS
TOP: The Kopka struggles to become a river.
MIDDLE : nice view from this campsite . Note skeletons of burned trees in background rising above the new stuff.
BOTTOM : My gear spread out on the rocks after a long day before I set the tent up.


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Day 3 and it's another nice hot day. Waterhouse Lake is a straight forward paddle and once again the wind is at my back. Just before entering Gaal Lake I note a really nice "A" camsite on the left on a rise of land. It has a great view. After Gaal lake the Kopka becomes a real stream. It's small, narrow and has quiet sections as well as occasional rocky little rapids. Still not big enough that you'd ever call it a river.

I was able to run most of these rapids, lining a litle bit of one and having to jump out and get off a rock I was hung up on another. No real portages. If there had been a little more water theses maneuvers would have been unneccessary and as I mentioned, fine for tandem boaters too. As it was, I was glad to be in the SuperNova with its agility. At one time(from old MNR notes), one of these rapids had a lot of deadfalls and was impassable but I encountered no such obstacles. . . .of course things can change from year to year. Some of these rapids deserve a CL II/II+ rating for their technical requirements, others strictly class I. They weren't steep enough to be considered dangerous however , just demanding. In a tandem canoe you'd maybe be doing a lot of jumping out at these levels because of the rocks. More water would resolve that problem.

The little unamed lake after Gaal Lake has a small "B" campsite on the south shore. After you enter the river again there are several more rapids again demanding some technical ability to negotiate. Some are quite rocky. All in all a lot of fun.

Day 3 turned out to be the longest paddle day (17 miles!) because I could not find a suitable campsite where I thought there would be one. The Kopka has a final rapid before it enters Uneven Lake and there I was expecting to find a campsite based on my 20 yo MNR notes. Nno such luck! I couldn't even find a remnant. Should have maybe pitched on the south shore 1/2 mile into Uneven Lake where I saw a sandy little beach where a stream entered but I thoght I could do better. . . not! So, I kept paddling 5 more miles. The landscape turned Outwordly as fire-devastated land took over, eerily quiet. Finally pitched camp on bare rock site, albeit with a decent view, and little trees and shrubby plants all around trying to survive another year. Had another swim; it was HOT; I was tired.