| Author |
Message |
grncnu
Member
Post Number: 392
Registered: 08-2010
| | Posted on Friday, September 11, 2015 - 7:38 pm: | 
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Strange to hear Brian call this "territory less travelled" as it's one of the most easily accessible loop routes- he's right though, as we didn't see a sign of another canoeist after Cross Lake. Not even any recent granola-bar wrappers... a sure sign of severe neglect.
I'm not sure why, unless it's reluctance to go upstream on the Sturgeon. (There is no problem going upstream on the Sturgeon, except for the severe state of portage-disuse caused by... people's reluctance to go upstream on the Sturgeon). Too bad, since the whole stretch is extremely beautiful and full of wildlife- I've never seen 5 golden eagles at once before, 2 of them bathing in the rapids like a pair of super-sized robins in a birdbath!
True, there are very few established campsites on the lower Sturgeon- however there are superb camping opportutities on beaches and clay-banks.
Anyhow hopefully some pictures will encourage people to make this a "route more travelled"!
Temagami River below Ragged Chutes- and possibly the best swimming hole in all of Temagami- top five anyway:
Lavergne Rapids, Temagami River:
Improvised campsite, Lower Sturgeon at Azen Creek:
Improvised campsite, Lower Sturgeon:
The devil's face, Manitou Lake:
Cliffs, Gull Lake:
Bald eagle, Gull Lake:
So the last 2 times we were on the Chiniguchi it was like Grand central Station... but this route is virtually unused.
Did I mention that the Temagami River is the best all-season whitewater route in the region? |
brian
Moderator
Post Number: 1718
Registered: 02-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, September 12, 2015 - 9:55 am: |
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I am jealous of your golden eagle sightings.
Chiniguchi: easy portages, few of them, no camping fees, weekend-trip lengths, a signature lake. Is this not a recipe for Grand Central?
Otherwise, backcountry paddling IS down across Temagami. The only thing that has stayed constant is the youth-camp trips. |
campheiden
Member
Post Number: 20
Registered: 05-2013
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 14, 2015 - 10:57 am: |
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shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh |
bigwolf
Member
Post Number: 70
Registered: 04-2005
| | Posted on Friday, January 22, 2016 - 10:45 am: |
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Thank you for this. Below is a link to a trip report I took down the Lower Temagami and then up the Sturgeon to Lake Temagami and down Cross Lake to Island Lake over 10 years ago. The portage trails were fairly inexsistant back then...
Great memories though. I need to do this one again but it was hard work going up the Sturgeon. Thanks for the memories. |
bigwolf
Member
Post Number: 71
Registered: 04-2005
| | Posted on Friday, January 22, 2016 - 10:45 am: |
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http://www.ottertooth.com/discus/messages/3/2868.h tml |
grncnu
Member
Post Number: 398
Registered: 08-2010
| | Posted on Sunday, January 31, 2016 - 11:33 pm: |
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Hey Bigwolf, thanks for posting that report from 10 years ago, which happens to be about midway between our 3 trips covering most of that route which were 1995 and 98 and 2015.
In 1998 all the portages from Thistle at the top of the lower Temagami to Murray Creek on the Sturgeon were in good shape with the exception of "the Elbow". There was no ATV access so very little trash.
Obviously by 2005 that had all changed radically because of ATV roads penetrating especially into the Cross Lake to Sinton Creek area.
In 2015 there was a lot less of that trashing you describe on the Temagami R.
In 2015 all the portages on the lower Temagami were reasonably clear, and the same goes for the portages from the Sturgeon to Lake Temagami via Manitou/Gull.
The portages on the lower Sturgeon were just as you described in 2005- the only reason we were able to find and clear most of them was because we remembered the old pathways from 1998!
Anyhow they are all now cleared as far as I described in my posting on the subject.
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wsmac
Member
Post Number: 4
Registered: 08-2010
| | Posted on Wednesday, February 17, 2016 - 6:34 pm: |
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Sounds interesting. We are ready to Temagami another try after a few memorable trips on the Chinaguchi. Could you give out the route as I am unfamiliar with Temagami |
Temagami canoe routes & backcountry travel