Norm Hann navigates the offshore islands and narrow waterways of B.C.’s north coast, en route to Kitkatla at the end of the expedition. | Feature photo: Bruce Kirkby
The notorious waters of Hecate Strait separate the islands of Haida Gwaii from British Columbia’s northern coastline. Renowned for strong winds, powerful tidal currents, frequent storms and shallow waters, Hecate is listed by Environment Canada as the most dangerous body of water on the entire Canadian coast and the fourth most dangerous in the world.
John Vaillant, author of The Golden Spruce, describes Hecate this way: “The Strait is a malevolent weather factory. During winter storms, waves can reach 10 to 20 meters and expose the sea floor. The result is one of the most diabolically hostile environments that wind, sea and land are capable of conjuring.”
Generations ago, the Haida First Nation crossed the Strait routinely in great cedar canoes, up to 60 feet long and six feet wide. Carrying as many as 100 men, they were able to disappear back across Hecate’s moody waters where none dared follow.
The recent history of human-powered Hecate-crossings is scanter. Masset kayaker Chris Williamson made two attempts in the 1990s. One was successful; the other turned back at night by changing winds. Legendary painter Stewart Marshall from Sointula Island sailed a homemade kayak 200 nautical miles across southern Hecate in a storm, surviving for three days on popcorn and coffee before arriving at Cape St. James. In 2008, a group of four young Haida Gwaii men crossed in double sea kayaks as part of a fundraiser.
Norm Hann navigates the offshore islands and narrow waterways of B.C.’s north coast, en route to Kitkatla at the end of the expedition. | Feature photo: Bruce Kirkby
To put the challenge in perspective, in the 70 years since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first climbed Everest, another 12,000 climbers have stood on the summit. In the same span, you could count on your fingers the number who have paddled across Hecate.
A first, unrealized attempt
I first met Norm Hann at a storytelling festival in 2016. Quiet and confident, Norm was a successful SUP racer, well-known for long coastal journeys in support of First Nations issues. I’d recently paddleboarded from Port Hardy to Tofino, and we had lots in common. When Norm called a few months later and asked if I’d consider trying to paddle across Hecate with him, my reply was an enthusiastic yes.
The next June, we met in Prince George, with plans of carrying on toward Haida Gwaii, and tackling Hecate. But with one storm after another crashing into the B.C. coast—and no end to the foul weather in sight—we reluctantly turned around.
Thank goodness because we weren’t ready. Not even close.
A few months later, I herniated a disc in my back. Unable to even walk for months, I was devastated. The dream of crossing Hecate seemed impossible. Little did I know, the five-year recovery journey would be a gift that left us a much stronger team, and much better prepared to tackle Hecate.
A key to crossing Hecate is choosing the right weather window. No one conquers the Strait. Rather, they sneak across in a rare moment of calm, always aware conditions could change in a heartbeat.
For summer after summer, we watched Hecate’s weather patterns, recording forecast wind and wave heights versus actual buoy observations. We learned what conditions preceded rare calm periods and how long the smooth waters lasted. Entire seasons would pass without a single favorable paddling day.
As my body healed, Norm and I tackled increasingly challenging SUP expeditions together, first retracing a Gitgat Grease Trail in the Great Bear Rainforest, then rounding Cape Scott, Brooks Peninsula, and finally Cape Caution. We grew comfortable paddling side by side in rough waters, aware of what the other was thinking without words, and able to make decisions even while battered by wind and waves.
As the seasons passed, we trimmed our gear to the barest minimum and learned to load our boards so they could ride downwind swells, push through chop and land safely in surf. We experimented with a vast constellation of different boards before eventually designing our own expedition paddleboards: Norm with Sunova and me with Starboard.
At last, setting out across the Strait
In May 2023—six years after first planning to cross Hecate—Norm and I arrived in Prince Rupert by ferry, long after midnight. With rain pelting down, we pitched our tent in a dark corner of a parking lot, listening to the marine weather forecast on a crackling VHF radio. The frontal system lashing the North Pacific would dissipate over the next day, and just as we had hoped, a brief period of light and variable winds would follow. Game on.
Twenty-four hours later, we stood on the desolate shores of Rose Spit. Few words were shared as we loaded boards and double-checked GPS waypoints. Then we were off. With a brisk west wind at our backs, we knew there would be no turning back.
Bruce Kirkby, safely tucked ashore on a rocky islet north of Banks Island, stares out across the eternity of Hecate Strait. | Photo: Norm Hann
Gusty winds pressed us over smooth waters, and we covered 7.5 kilometers in the first hour—great progress for fully loaded boards. Then Hecate began to show her capricious nature. Ocean swell built from the north, hitting us on our rear quarter. Then the ebb tide turned to flood, and an aggressive wind chop arrived, mixing with the swell and turning the ocean into a confused mess. Our progress slowed to five kilometers per hour. Then four. Then, a painful three and a half.
The minutes and hours crawled past. We spent a lot of time alone with our thoughts. I struggled not to concentrate on our speed—for it felt dishearteningly slow. Snacks and gulps of water were stolen between strokes. On those lonely waters, we saw nothing save a few gulls. Not a single whale or boat. For 12 hours, we never stopped paddling.
Eventually, the peaks of Stephens Island appeared through mists, inching closer. Twenty kilometers to go. Then 10. Dusk had descended by the time we reached the first rocky headlands. When we crawled ashore at last, neither of us could walk very well—or form complete sentences. But we shared the overwhelming joy of having finally achieved a long-sought-after goal. After setting up a tent, we used our last reserves to cook a freeze-dried meal, then collapsed into sleeping bags.
This article was first published in the Spring 2024 issue of Paddling Magazine. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions, or browse the archives.
Norm Hann navigates the offshore islands and narrow waterways of B.C.’s north coast, en route to Kitkatla at the end of the expedition. | Feature photo: Bruce Kirkby
This is the wave that never ends, it surges on and on, my friend. | Feature photo: David Jackson
A few days upstream of James Bay, over the seething volume of a flooded Nottoway River in mid-June, Benny Marr hollered from a boat length away, “In my imagination, it goes on forever.”
Finding the forever rapid on Quebec’s Nottoway River
He was referring to the seemingly endless rapid we were entering. It’s the sort of whitewater this region is famous for, where waves can be measured in stories and holes appear that could devour a house. His voice faded into the river, and for a time, he was right; this was a never-ending joy train of towering waves, a river he’d only visited once before, featuring the type of high-volume wilderness whitewater he’d searched the world for.
When holes began to open mid-river—ones I looked up at and down into—Benny opted to go river right. When the horizon disappeared, the river appeared far below some hidden gradient, and Benny hit the gas hard to the middle. It was a ferry not for the faint of heart in fully loaded long boats. With each of his strokes, he flashed a little thumbs up to where he was going next.
This is the wave that never ends, it surges on and on, my friend. | Feature photo: David Jackson
As the tongue unraveled below, so did my stomach. All I could discern in the chaos beneath was a needle of water moving through a two-sided hole of destruction. It was Benny’s line, but I missed.
Back to the beginning
Four days earlier, we had left a rough gravel road behind and begun a 260-kilometer paddle that would end where the road meets the ocean in the Cree community of Waskaganish. Benny and Dan Sutherland were fresh from a big wave scouting mission in Quebec, and I was here to experience the mighty Nottaway I’d heard so much about.
For days we navigated the large stormy lakes that provide the Nottoway River’s volume. At this flood level, the water wasn’t just lapping at the tree trunks but well into the forest. We paddled until the last touch of pink in the sky before tucking into a sad highwater hovel each night.
In the wake of the lakes came horizon lines so wide they induced both joy and nausea. Looking downstream, we saw plumes of mist half a kilometer wide. The riverbanks didn’t lend themselves to shoreline scouts. In lieu of a view, Benny launched a drone to scout for lines. We huddled around the tiny screen, following Benny’s finger down the obvious course. It always looks breezy from above.
Upon entering, the lines disappeared, and holes greeted us. Afterward, Benny proclaimed he was still “figuring out this drone scouting thing.” This wasn’t the Congo River, where Benny and a legendary team of expedition kayakers used helicopters to scout Inga Rapids and where he was later airlifted off a small island above an unfathomable cataract. On the Nottoway, there was no chopper or big team, just Benny reminding me to “only look where you want to go, ignore the rest, and stay away from the edges.” I watched as he left the obvious lines to prospect for joy, trying for bigger, making meaning from chaos, using his boat like a painter’s brush to explore the canvas of a wild rapid.
A Google search of Benny Marr reveals glimpses into his life. An Ottawa Valley youth toting a mullet. The first descent of Site Zed on the Stikine River. The viral Lions Bay drainage ditch descent. Canyons in Papa New Guinea, among others. He is one of whitewater’s most well-known paddlers and nabbed the cover of Rapid magazine three times.
One evening, I pointed out a small, deep pool with walleye in it out front of camp. Benny was all smiles when they pulled, and his face focused when I instructed him on filleting them. All these years on the water and the river still has more to teach.
Drama and deliverance
But back to my missed hole. When I rolled up, I could hear Benny high above and behind me screaming, “You’re a warrior, Dave!” But I needed out, I needed air, and this hole was too big to escape. Next thing I knew, it was violent, then I was hanging onto Benny’s bow, blood pouring from my knuckle, fending for myself through holes, catching glimpses of Dan with my boat. It was a long 15 minutes before Benny nudged me into a shoreline eddy. Lying amidst boulders under the warm sun, the guys were laughing. Dan narrowly escaped the hole opposite me, and the good fortune of one swimmer instead of two was a wholehearted relief.
On shore, Dan emptied my boat of water as I lay exhausted, staring at the blue sky. I pointed to a piece of chaga on a birch tree up the bank. Benny grabbed his river knife and removed it, smiling. He’d never found the fungi responsible for the earthy tea before. Sitting around the steaming steeped brew that evening, we talked about the big rapids still to come and the 50 kilometers of windy James Bay we would have to paddle to get to the road; we reminisced on bad swims, and Benny shook his head at the day’s drama.
He was there in his happy place, beside a rapid he had searched the world for, one that stretched pulsing into the horizon, a ride that goes on forever in his mind. He talked about coming back next year, and it dawned on me this big, obscure river wasn’t just another expedition; it was the epitome of his life, intertwined with the pulse of wild water.
This article was first published in the Spring 2024 issue of Paddling Magazine. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions, or browse the archives.
This is the wave that never ends, it surges on and on, my friend. | Feature photo: David Jackson
When disaster strikes, guides’ livelihoods are often among the most immediately impacted. Think hurricanes, wildfires and, of course, the shutdowns of a global pandemic. When the public spaces and waterways we enjoy are inaccessible, guides are left without work. Combine this with the already limited benefits that accompany the fact most guides are contractors or seasonal employees, and you have a recipe for hardship.
Photo: Courtesy Guide Relief Program
The relief program rescuing guides in times of hardship
These reasons are largely what has motivated Mollie Simpkins to found the nonprofit organization the Guide Relief Program, which is now running a specific fundraising campaign called Guide Across America.
“We all choose our professions,” shares Simpkins. “Because we’ve chosen to be guides that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have access to benefits.”
Simpkins, who also serves as the executive director of the program, works in various management roles at Sweetwater Flyshop, in Montana’s Yellowstone country. When the world went into lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, Simpkins’ boss wanted to put together a fundraiser to help Montana’s guides through the trying time. Utilizing a background in the nonprofit sphere, Simpkins stepped up to lead the fundraising effort, and took it beyond a singular event by founding the relief organization.
The Guide Relief Program offers grants to guides facing hardship through a straightforward application process. The relief program also assists guides with access to needs including mental health and well-being services. To date, Simpkins shares that the fund has awarded $36,000 in grants. An example of the program jumping into action was following the June 2022 Yellowstone floods, when guides lost work due to the destruction.
Now, in an effort to take the work of the Guide Relief Program mainstream throughout the U.S., the nonprofit has partnered with Sawyer Paddles and Oars and the Fly Fishing Film Tour in a fundraising sweepstakes, Guides Across America.
“Everybody in the paddle industry and everybody in the outdoor guiding industry are really good at responding after catastrophic events devastate these communities that really rely on a tourism economy,” believes Sawyer CEO Zac Kauffman.
“When an event happens, everybody kind of rallies around to get food, water, power, infrastructure, and then tourism isn’t even a thought. And it’s really like that’s the last thing to come about,” Kauffman adds in reference to the precarious state of local guiding communities hit by disaster.
Kauffman, whose company is based in Oregon, was involved with support for guiding communities in southwest Florida following Hurricane Ian, when he got to thinking—if his small business on the other side of the country can help out, maybe a larger campaign of guides helping guides throughout the U.S. could be formed.
Kauffman conjured the Guides Across America sweepstakes, then found Simpkins and her existing organization bent on supporting the guiding community. The pair, along with the Fly Fishing Film Tour, have now combined their efforts to strengthen the funding the Guide Relief Program has accessible for those affected by catastrophe.
Feature photo: Courtesy Guide Relief Program
A good cause and a chance to win a hefty prize
The sweepstakes includes a long list of sponsors, and by donating, entrants stand a chance to win a prize package worth $17,000 and includes a set of Sawyer Oars, an Outcast Sporting Gear raft, a Downriver Equipment frame, and a guided stay at the Royal Big Horn Lodge in Montana. Best of all, entering the sweepstakes supports the guiding community many paddlers have worked in, and continue to work, in as part of the lifestyle we all hold dear.
“A lot of our team, myself included, come from the guiding industry. I was a guide for 30 years and that’s basically how I ended up with Sawyer,” Kauffman adds of the significance of supporting the community both personally and as a business. “No matter where you are, we have a common element, we are all water guides.”
“Some are fast. Some are slow. Some are high. Some are low.” —Dr. Seuss | Feature photo: Peter Bowers
My first canoe was a junker. A generation older than me, this hand-me-down was just 14 feet long and weighed a hefty 80 pounds. It was all fiberglass, aluminum and paint. The multiple cover-up jobs had taken it from blue to green to rubber duck yellow in half-assed attempts to hide its many scratches, chips and gouges.
Car topping it solo was out of the question—the missing passenger side mirror of my parent’s van was a testament to why—and solo lifting to portage was a feat of both acrobatics and athleticism with a 50 percent chance of success or chiropractic failure.
My first canoe took me to places that had previously only been a smattering of blue and green on folded paper. It carried me through morning mist to reveal moose grazing and caused a happy little lurch in my stomach whenever I lifted the garage door—the promise of adventure woven in layers of tired fiberglass.
“Some are fast. Some are slow. Some are high. Some are low.” —Dr. Seuss | Feature photo: Peter Bowers
In waves my first canoe may have taken on more water than some, and yes, its oil canning hull ensured it always felt like I was paddling a barge, but it was mine and it floated and I loved it. Her name is Nessie.
An old flame for new paddlers
When we all started canoeing, it didn’t much matter what we were paddling. Aramid, polyethelene, Spectra and Royalex were words without meaning—a foreign language spoken only by older, bearded and flannel-wearing fellows we met on the portage trails. An appreciation of how materials and design affect performance is irrelevant when there’s no concept of what performance feels like.
Nowadays, it’s a different story. I have a sexy red lightweight tripper that is far more suited to the type of paddling I like to do. I can car-top it solo and announcements of upcoming portages aren’t followed by a sad sigh of resignation. My tripper isn’t ideal for every occasion though. I’m lusting after a sleek solo racer for lunchtime jaunts, and a traditional wood canvas design for Sunday afternoons.
It’s been years since I’ve paddled Nessie. She still hits the water a few times each summer, borrowed by friends who are unencumbered by such considerations as tracking and tumblehome. Nessie is a vessel to adventure. And I’m sure if you asked them, each and every one of my friends would say that Nessie is a great canoe. For the rest of us, this is this year’s Paddling Buyer’s Guide.
This article was first published in the 2014 Paddling Buyer’s Guide and was republished in the Spring 2024 issue of Paddling Magazine. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions, or browse the archives.
“Some are fast. Some are slow. Some are high. Some are low.” —Dr. Seuss | Feature photo: Peter Bowers
Are we in the most innovative age of river-running design yet? The latest whitewater boat from Dagger, the Indra, makes a solid case in this video walkthrough.
The Indra is a boat built for high-volume creek runs. It’s a design that blends two of the most loved whitewater kayak concepts today: long, skippy, high-rocker creek boats, and the play the river half-slice movement.
What you have in the Indra is a boat designed to carry speed while also having an enormous amount of bow and stern rocker to ride over and skip out of drops. Its planing hull is 26.5- or 27.5-inches wide, keeping it floating high in big water, and capable of deftly slipping around the river with a playful confidence.
Profile of the new Dagger Indra. Image: Dagger Kayaks
The Indra also utilizes perhaps the most sought-after element in boat design today, a tapered stern. While a kayak like the Rewind has a very low volume tail to stand on end for days, the Indra’s half-slice stern is geared toward river running performance.
In the words of the Dagger crew, “A tapered deck allows the boat to slice through currents load the stern and skip through rapids. The ability to slice the stern beneath the water transforms the Indra into a sporty creeker. A camber in the wide tail turns the momentum of a climbing bow into controlled and playful downstream momentum.”
The Indra also sports Dagger’s new Contour Ergo Engage thigh braces—the brand’s first redesign of this outfitting component in decades.
Dagger Indra Specs
Small / Medium
Paddler Weight: 110 – 190 lb / 50 – 86 kg
Volume: 75 G / 284 L
Kayak Weight: 51.5 lb / 23.5 kg
Length: 8’ 11” / 272.5 cm
Width: 26.5” / 67.5 cm
Medium / Large
Paddler Weight: 140 – 250 lb / 63.5 – 113.5 kg
Volume: 90 G / 340.5 L
Kayak Weight: 53.5 lb / 24.25 kg
Length: 9’ / 274.5 cm
Width: 27.5” / 70 cm
The Paddling Mag team is thrilled to announce it has been shortlisted in the special interest category at the prestigious 46th annual National Magazine Awards. This nomination underscores the exceptional work of our contributors and staff, whose dedication and passion for paddling have shaped the magazine’s success.
Judges praised Paddling Mag for its user-friendly design and engaging content, noting, “From the very first turn of the page, Paddling Magazine was easy to navigate, fun, and informative to read.” They were impressed by the magazine’s ability to “draw us into its world of technique, cool gear, and—most impressively—breathtaking photography of the places to be discovered.”
Being shortlisted at these distinguished awards, known for recognizing excellence in magazine journalism and creative design, is a significant achievement and we are grateful for the recognition. The award also celebrates the vibrant community that makes our magazine what it is. A huge thank you to our writers and photographers—your stories and visions bring the spirit of paddling alive on our pages!
We are also immensely appreciative of our readers and the paddling community for their continued support and enthusiasm, which fuels our ongoing mission to deliver the best of paddlesports.
Category winners of the National Magazine Awards will be announced on June 7, 2024.
If you’re not already a subscriber, you can dive deeper into the world of paddling with a subscription to Paddling Magazine. If you’re passionate about paddling adventures and value top-notch storytelling, subscribing is the perfect way to ensure you never miss out on our exclusive content. From thrilling expedition stories to expert tips and the latest gear reviews—Paddling Magazine is crafted for enthusiasts by enthusiasts. Subscribe now and let us bring the adventure to your doorstep. If you love paddling, you’ll love Paddling Magazine.
Known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes, it makes sense there’s a lifetime’s worth of incredible kayaking in Minnesota. From the vast horizon of Lake Superior to storied rivers and immense networks of interior lakes, there’s something to suit every kayaker.
The world’s largest freshwater lake is an unparalleled destination for sea kayaking, with the Lake Superior Water Trail boasting 150 miles of rugged bedrock coastline and hidden agate beaches. Paddling the beginnings of the Mississippi on its visually stunning tributaries such as the iconic St. Croix River. Pushing up against the Canadian border, Voyageurs National Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness feature sprawling, interconnected lakes and idyllic campsites for overnight kayak excursions. Finally, the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul offer some of America’s best urban kayaking.
From easy day trips to challenging weeklong sojourns, we’ve just scratched the surface of all the beautiful kayaking you’ll find in Minnesota, which boasts more than 13 million acres of waterways.
9 magnificent kayaking destinations in Minnesota
Kayaking Minnesota water trails
Whether you are searching for a relaxing family float or exciting rapids to get your adrenaline pumping, Minnesota’s countless rivers promise a memorable kayaking experience for everyone. State water trails offer easy access to over 4,500 miles of exceptional paddling.
Photo: Twin Cities Kayaking
Rum River
The picturesque Rum River State Water Trail is perfect for a kayak trip that feels remote but is less than an hour’s drive from Minneapolis-St. Paul. With a significant current, the river’s final 11 miles offer an exhilarating day trip with easy class I and II rapids, wonderful natural scenery and great fishing. The water is clear and clean, making for great swimming and picnicking spots en route.
Twin Cities Kayaking offers kayak rentals with free delivery and pick-up, as well as guided Rum River fishing excursions.
Photo: Paul Vincent
St. Croix River
One of the first National Scenic Rivers protected by U.S. Congress, the wild St. Croix River is also a state water trail capturing all that paddling in Minnesota has to offer. Kayak the lower St. Croix near Taylors Falls for quiet, wildlife-filled waters flowing through a heavily wooded, steep-sided valley with sandstone and limestone bluffs. Spend a full day meandering 15 miles down to William O’Brien State Park Landing. Or turn your outing into a weekend escape with one of the dozen free watercraft campsites along this route available for camping on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Root River State Water Trail flows 85 miles through the rocky landscape of southeastern Minnesota’s Driftless Area, before draining into the Mississippi River. This unique area escaped the scouring effects of the last Ice Age and features massive limestone bluffs and cold-water springs, which create perfect conditions for trout species. Flows along most of the river are gentle to moderate, making it ideal for families.
With nearly 12,000 to choose from, it’s little wonder the word “lake” conjures many different images in Minnesota. Lakes here range from tranquil interior gems perfect for a quiet day of kayak exploration to the wave-tossed bedrock shores of Lake Superior—the world’s largest freshwater expanse.
Lake Itasca
The serene birthplace of the mighty Mississippi, paddling on Lake Itasca feels both peaceful and momentous. Nestled within Itasca State Park, this small glacial lake marks the beginning of the great river’s 2,552-mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico. Kayak beneath old-growth pines and watch for abundant bald eagles while exploring the Itasca Wilderness Sanctuary located along the western shore of the lake.
Kayak rentals are available from Itasca Sports at Itasca State Park, where you’ll also find more than 200 campsites and the historic Douglas Lodge, should you wish to extend your stay.
Photo: Paul Vincent
Chain of Lakes
In a city spoiled for blissful paddling opportunities, Minneapolis’ Chain of Lakes stands out as some of the best beginner-friendly kayaking in the state. Five sapphire gems—Bde Maka Ska, Harriet, Lake of the Isles, Cedar and Brownie—stretch 13 miles across Minnesota’s largest city. Three of the five are connected and can be paddled as one. From your kayak, downtown skyline vistas alternate with areas of serene natural beauty as you paddle through protected wildlife refuges and explore small beaches.
Launches and free parking are found around many of the lakes. Rent kayaks from Wheel Fun Rentals at Bde Maka Ska and Lake Harriet.
Photo: Ryan Taylor
Lake Superior
Crystal clear and famously frigid, Lake Superior offers a plethora of exciting day trips for more seasoned kayakers. Popular destinations include paddling out of Grand Marais to the Fall River, where you can swim beneath a 25-foot waterfall. View a shipwreck and explore maritime history at Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. Or try Tettegouche State Park, where you can kayak around ancient rhyolite lava flows, paddle through sea caves and view the spectacular 200-foot cliffs of Palisade Head.
You’ll need a calm day to enjoy these coastlines safely. Lake Superior is a veritable inland sea, meaning it behaves more like an ocean environment than a regular lake. Conditions can change quickly—so come prepared and always get a forecast before heading out.
For kayakers looking for a more immersive escape, overnight paddling trips in Minnesota offer the best of everything this beautiful state has to offer. You can awaken to a spectacular Lake Superior sunrise, and end your day with superlative stargazing from a wilderness campsite, before falling asleep to the soothing rhythm of lapping waves.
Comprising four vast, interconnected lakes sprawling 56 miles along the Canadian border, the interior of this unique national park is best explored by kayak. In fact, most of the park is only accessible from the water, including its hidden waterfalls, scenic trails and some 500 rocky islands. Even better, 150 well-appointed paddle-in campsites invite you to linger as long as you like.
On lovely Lake Kabetogama, Northern Lights Resort and Outfitting rents out single and tandem sea kayaks. Nearby Arrowhead Lodge also offers sea kayak rentals for trips departing from the resort, and the owners are able to assist with trip planning.
Photo: Paul Vincent
Boundary Waters
Boasting 1,200 miles of canoe routes and 2,200 wilderness campsites, Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is the most popular tripping area in the world for single-blade enthusiasts. But many of its large lakes—all blissfully free of motorized traffic—also offer great overnight getaways for kayakers. On Hegman Lake you can spot centuries-old Indigenous pictographs adorning granite cliffs. With a few short portages, kayakers can also access the larger bodies of water of Saganaga, Knife and Crooked lakes along the U.S.-Canada border.
Most Boundary Waters outfitters are based in Ely, including Piragis Northwoods Company, which offers kayak rentals and complete outfitting. Sawtooth Outfitters and Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply rent sea kayaks and run guided Boundary Waters kayak day trips—a great way to ease into overnight tripping in the area.
The Lake Superior Water Trail runs 150 miles from Duluth, Minnesota, to the Canadian border. Along the way, spectacular backcountry campsites every 10 to 15 miles let you experience the shoreline at a relaxing pace. Allow three days to explore the breathtaking coast between Gooseberry Falls and Tettegouche state parks, or a full week to continue paddling all the way to Grand Marais. Highlights include Palisade Head, Split Rock Lighthouse and the Manitou River waterfall.
It is strongly recommended that everyone wear a life jacket when on the water. State law requires one U.S. Coast Guard-approved, properly sized and easily accessible life jacket for each person aboard a kayak.
Children less than 10 years old are legally required to be wearing a properly fitted, U.S. Coast Guard‑approved life jacket when aboard any watercraft—including kayaks—while underway.
Additionally, always carry a whistle and a white light—especially if you will be on the water between sunset and sunrise.
Find more paddling safety information on the Minnesota DNR website.
Do you need to register a kayak in Minnesota?
Kayak owners in Minnesota must purchase an annual watercraft license ($42 in 2024) from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, with some exceptions.
A watercraft license is not required for nonmotorized watercraft 10 feet in length or less. Registration is not required for out-of-state (or country) kayaks, provided the owner’s state or country of residence does not require licensing of that type of watercraft, and it is not within Minnesota for more than 90 consecutive days. Kayaks licensed in another state do not require registration in Minnesota for durations of less than 90 consecutive days.
A rendering of the new Canadian Canoe Museum located on the shore of Little Lake in Peterborough, Ontario. The museum has stewarded the world’s largest collection of canoes, kayaks and paddled watercraft over the past 20 years. | Feature photo: Unity Design Studio
A west wind blowing across Little Lake delivers a steady chop into the thin beach on the east shoreline. Just inland, four midsize white pines have created a small clearing underneath. Jeremy Ward remarks on how the flat carpet of pine needles would make a good campsite and Carolyn Hyslop agrees, noting the trees are perfectly spaced for a few hammocks.
It’s easy to imagine a canoe overturned on the beach and a campfire crackling. A far greater imaginative feat would have been to look at this former woodlot on the edge of the small city of Peterborough, Ontario, and envision it as the site of a marquee museum and draw for 87,000 visitors a year. And yet, three years and $40 million later, the Canadian Canoe Museum is about to move into a new home showcasing and celebrating the world’s largest collection of canoes and kayaks.
But to say the process took only three years would be a gross understatement.
From its inception as the private collection of summer camp director Kirk Wipper in the 1950s, to its years on occasional life support in a vacated outboard motor factory, to a gut-wrenching about-face during initial relocation plans, the job of running a niche museum has never been easy. But with the May 11, 2024, grand opening coming into view, two individuals at the center of what one past executive director has called a “triumph of leadership” are eager to show off the new museum.
A rendering of the new Canadian Canoe Museum located on the shore of Little Lake in Peterborough, Ontario. The museum has stewarded the world’s largest collection of canoes, kayaks and paddled watercraft over the past 20 years. | Feature photo: Unity Design Studio
Building a bigger, better Canadian Canoe Museum
Recently, when not on-site overseeing the construction of a major large-artifact museum, executive director Carolyn Hyslop and curator Jeremy Ward were plenty busy trying to run the Canadian Canoe Museum in the site it had occupied in south Peterborough since 1997.
The 1960s-era location cost the museum one dollar, which was generally considered to be a good deal. It consisted of the office building and factory of the bankrupted Outboard Motor Corporation (OMC), a manufacturer of outboard motors. Appealing irony aside, it was a barge of a location to house a collection that had grown to 600 examples of, arguably, the finest form of watercraft. With room in the office building to display only 20 percent of the collection, most of the canoes were hidden away out of sight in the factory building.
Its exterior did not hint at the beauty inside. You could drive around the two-story exhibit building and be forgiven for not knowing where the front door was. The facing property was the backside of a big box dollar store.
Despite this deficit of curb appeal, the two buildings had sheltered the museum for a quarter-century while the volunteer-based organization found its governance footing and hatched its plan to launch itself into the upper echelon of Canadian museums. In late February, a billboard sign explained the lack of cars in the parking lot below: “Closed While We Move to the Water.”
Pro: The former museum site cost just a dollar. Con: Its exterior did little to hint at the wonders inside. | Photo: Canadian Canoe Museum
At the former museum site, 80 percent of the canoes were kept in storage and inaccessible to the public. | Photo: Destination Ontario
Hard hats have been part of the job lately for museum executive director Carolyn Hyslop and curator Jeremy Ward. The teal canoe to their right belonged to Farley Mowat. The orange canoe above was Gordon Lightfoot’s. | Photo: Heather Coughlin
In search of a suitable home
With white hard hats gleaming, Hyslop and Ward don’t know which way to look to contrast the new property with the old. They stand on a portion of the Trans Canada Trail that traverses the new museum site and look to the public docks 200 meters north, where 10,000 vessels a year travel in or out of the mouth of a canal as part of the Trent-Severn Waterway. Straight across the lake the view is of downtown Peterborough. The peninsula making up much of the visible shoreline to the south hosts a wooded cemetery off-limits to development. To the immediate south is a pedestrian bridge spanning a sheltered creek and leading to a playground and public park. At the back of the property is free parking at a public sports field complex.
Taking it all in, it’s hard to believe this was the second choice for the museum’s location. But similar to when a contingency campsite downriver ends up being an all-timer, this wasn’t Plan A.
As the museum matured in the OMC buildings, its board of directors faced existential questions about its future. Aluminum canoes are one thing, but the collection also includes wooden crafts hundreds of years old. Over the years, there wasn’t the money or the confidence in the long-term suitability of the site to properly invest in it. The buildings would need to be upgraded to care for fragile artifacts properly.
“There are so many different ways in which canoeing is an important part of lives and cultures. The more you try to pin it down, the more it slips through your fingers.”
—Jeremy Ward, curator
“We couldn’t stay where we were. It had been allowed to fall into disrepair,” explains museum curator Ward. The museum’s 2010 strategic plan identified a move to the water as necessary for the institution to take its place on “the national stage.” Money would be raised and the museum would move to a purpose-built waterside facility.
After four years, a site was selected, right beside the Peterborough Lift Locks in the nearby Trent Canal. The 120-year-old National Historic Site is home to the tallest hydraulic lift locks in the world, essentially big swimming pools raised or lowered 20 meters to let boats bypass part of the Otonabee River. The locks attract 25,000 tourists a year and would have been an appealing one-two combination for a museum looking to boost attendance numbers with walk-ins.
Architectural renderings sent far and wide in 2017 showed a sleek building with sweeping, curved walls lining the canal. The 90,000-square-foot building would have a 1.5-acre green roof, complete with a pollinator garden.
“It was a beautiful design. You would have been able to heat the building with a candle and cool it with an ice cube,” says the museum’s former executive director and Paddling Magazine columnist, James Raffan. The building would elevate the entire collection and piggyback on the busy tourist site next door.
The site had a lot going for it. It also had trichloroethylene going through it. The industrial degreasing solvent was leaching into the soil from the site of a former clock factory uphill. Initial environmental assessments carried out by consultants at the start of the process hadn’t picked it up, but new groundwater sampling conducted as construction approached in 2020 threw up a red flag.
“It was gut-wrenching, traumatizing,” remembers Hyslop. They were just months away from the scheduled ground-breaking when, all of a sudden, everything was in question.
“This is a passion project for so many people. It was never just about that building, or any building. The passion is shared by all the folks who want to see this thing grow and thrive.”
—Carolyn Hyslop, executive director
“It would have been a perpetual problem,” says Hyslop of the contamination, with the source on another property and beyond their control.
“There was a long period when we didn’t know if the project would collapse,” she says. “We had donors with expectations, we had government funding schedules to meet.”
In addition to private donors, much of the funding supporting the Canadian Canoe Museum has been provided by the Government of Canada, through both the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the Weston Family Foundation, the City of Peterborough, Peterborough County and the Province of Ontario.
But everyone Hyslop and Ward talked to said they were fully committed to a new museum.
“This is a passion project for so many people. It was never just about that building, or any building. The passion is shared by all the folks who want to see this thing grow and thrive,” says Hyslop. “When the wheels fell off, we had to ask, ‘Who are our people?’ We went to them and said, ‘You know us. We will find another location.’”
And then COVID lockdowns shut the museum. “Everything stopped all at once, just as we needed to keep momentum and scour the county for a site,” she adds.
The New Canadian Canoe Museum’s curved exterior and use of weathered steel make for an impressive view from the street. | Photo: Unity Design Studio
It was during this chaotic time the woodlot between the Parks Canada canal office and a public park on the east shore of Little Lake came back into consideration. “We knew about this property, and always thought it would be an ideal base for on-water activities, but we always understood it to be a flood plain,” explains Ward. After the canal false start, they took a closer look.
As Hyslop says, once it became clear a cooperative Peterborough city council would be willing to part with the land—for the market value of $1.575 million—there followed a process of reaffirming a few priorities that might have been lost sight of in the glint of the canal design.
“When forced to start again, we decided we had to go back to our values.” The core value? Staying within their means and being sustainable over the long term.
The square footage of the new building would be 65,000 square feet, one-third smaller than the canal design. The budget was similarly reduced, from $65 million to $40 million.
The new museum comes together
During a tour of the new museum with Hyslop and Ward less than three months before the springtime grand opening, the site is still very much a work in progress. A tarp covers part of the facade reaching 55 feet above the front door, scaffolding crowds the entrance and the mud around the building makes route-finding a necessity on approach. There remains much to be done, but the pair betray no nervousness. Instead, there is palpable excitement—and even what seems like a sense of relief at how things worked out. The design of the canal site might have gained more attention in architectural digests, but the lower price tag and, especially, the more flexible setting of the Little Lake site let Hyslop and Ward assert with convincing conviction they are in just the right place, literally and figuratively.
The five-acre site provides west-facing views of Little Lake. | Photo: Heather Coughlin
Immediately to the right of the western entrance is a fireplace built into the exterior stonework.
“A museum should be a sensory experience,” explains Hyslop. “We wanted visitors to be immediately greeted with the smell of woodsmoke.”
All well and good, but there’s another fireplace on the other side of the wall, inside the entrance.
“The architects said, ‘You guys are nuts. You want a fireplace in a Class A museum environment?’” Hyslop says of concerns woodsmoke and artifacts don’t mix. “We told them we’d figure it out.”
The fireplace they figured out animates a spacious atrium rising to the roof of the museum and serves as a grand entrance hall, but also an indoor space for the indoor/outdoor café, which is licenced for alcohol, caffeine and baked goods. The café’s serving counter slides seamlessly into the admissions counter, which doubles as the canoe rental desk.
“Every room is asked to do two or three things,” says Ward, explaining while the square footage and price tag were reduced, the result is a building “meeting all our needs.”
The first separated space from the atrium is a bright and spacious workshop, which Ward says will host builders-in-residence and be home to restoration work and hands-on workshops for visitors for things like paddle carving.
The ground floor hallway ends at a double door, behind which rests the most significant collection of historic canoes and kayaks on the planet. Walking through the door, it’s impossible not to be struck by the sheer size of the 20,000-square-foot room packed, wall to wall, floor to 25-foot ceiling with five tiers of canoes and kayaks spanning centuries and cultures.
More than 500 crafts lie in steel cradles. Ward points to one canoe, saying it once belonged to Farley Mowat, the author who introduced so many to the terra incognito of Canada’s north. Above it, a canoe donated by singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. It’s not the more famous canary yellow canoe he sang about (that one is upstairs). This one is a cedar canoe; one Lightfoot told Ward he had paddled through thousands of kilometers of wilderness. The sprayskirt snap fasteners underneath the gunwales, patches on the underside of the hull and a railway boxcar sticker on the bow suggest the inspiration for many of Lightfoot’s wilderness-themed songs would have been received in the stern seat of this ordinary-looking hull.
Canadian Canoe Museum staff unload a 28-foot bark canoe by Attikamekw builder César Newashish from a crane. | Photo: Canadian Canoe Museum
Jeremy Ward with the Snuneymuxw dugout racing canoe Blue Bird by Chester Thomas, the longest canoe in the collection at 54 feet, as it’s moved to its new location. | Photo: Canadian Canoe Museum
For now, it and the others are wrapped in clear plastic while construction finishes. Ward checks a sensor to note the temperature and humidity levels, factors controlled with help from the $11 million from Heritage Canada for artifact preservation systems. When the museum opens and the dust settles, the canoes will be unwrapped, and the hall will open for scheduled tours. No interpretive plaques, just a feast for enthusiasts’ eyes.
“We didn’t want to rent space off-site for the artifacts,” says Ward. “We wanted to have them under one roof where we could take care of them.” He notes there is room for the collection to grow by 10 percent. At which point Hyslop reminds him there is a moratorium on new acquisitions. They share a look like they’ve been over this before, and we all agree it’s time to go upstairs.
“A museum should be a sensory experience.”
—Carolyn Hyslop, executive director
The exhibition hall is situated above the lofty collection hall, a configuration giving the two-floor museum the height of a four-story building. To get there, climb three flights of stairs, the treads of which were milled from the white ash felled to make room for the building.
The atrium of the Canadian Canoe Museum features soaring ceilings and exposed timber. | Photo: Canadian Canoe Museum
The top floor is home to the library. In what will be a brand-new offering for the museum, it now has space to host researchers who want to get their (washed) hands on the museum’s archive of canoeing-related books, maps and catalogs. More than 1,200 books will be stored here, with rare and antique items available but safeguarded on 1,400 linear feet of shelving in the archives.
Across the hall is the wide opening of the indoor/outdoor event space, future home to weddings, conferences, galas and more. Its wall of windows offers a view of the lake through the treetops. The room will be an important moneymaker, a means to support the collection, which is waiting behind one last set of climate-controlled doors.
In contrast to the airy and expansive collection hall, the exhibit hall strives for intimacy. Within its forest green walls will be six permanent exhibits and a space for temporary displays.
While most exhibits are still being assembled, a feature called The Swirl has already taken shape and catches the eye. It’s a collection of canoes suspended in a circle from the central ceiling. It includes conventional-looking hulls, but also a dugout, birchbark canoe, plastic freestyle kayak, carbon fiber sprint racing hull, Grumman aluminum, early 20th-century courting canoe, solo whitewater boat and more.
“Wherever we go across the country, people take us out to the water,” says Ward. “They say, ‘You think you know what canoeing is in Ontario. Now you’re going to learn what it is here.’ And then we get schooled. There are so many different ways in which canoeing is an important part of lives and cultures. The more you try to pin it down, the more it slips through your fingers.”
Ultimately, the worth of any museum is in the interpretation of the displays. That storytelling material is not yet in place three months ahead of opening, but Ward points to stands of different shapes that will hold not just text but also audio and visual equipment. Over his 27 years with the museum, he’s crossed the country, with an emphasis on visiting the Indigenous communities that can be seen as the origin of almost all the designs in the building. It will be Indigenous voices and faces telling many of the stories taking shape in this room.
Canoes are hung from the ceiling as the Canoe Swirl takes shape three months before the grand opening. | Photo: Canadian Canoe Museum
Capturing the diversity of canoeing culture is one of the missions of the museum. The other is promoting it. And this mission will get the biggest boost of all from the move to this five-acre site, with its expanded capacity to let people not just see canoes, but also paddle them.
As dazzling as the canal design was, the waterfront there was the side of a canal. Peter Vooys, program manager since 2002, observes anyone launching a canoe from the museum would have been competing with yachts and motorboats lining up for a ride in the locks.
“We want to be the first step, giving inexperienced people the inspiration, but also the tools, to canoe in the backcountry.”
—Peter Vooys, program manager
At Little Lake, on the other hand, there will be an open lake and a sheltered creek for paddlers to explore. They will take to the water in rented tandem canoes or as part of scheduled 36-foot voyageur canoe tours. They will do it as part of instructional courses, summer day camps and school field trips, or as walk-ons at the end of a private trip to the museum, or on overnight trips to nearby Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park.
It won’t just be on-water activities visitors can expect. There will be workshops, ranging from basic camping skills all the way up to gourmet campfire cooking courses.
“We want to be the first step, giving inexperienced people the inspiration, but also the tools, to canoe in the backcountry,” says Vooys. “We imagine it being a very busy place.”
In addition to diversifying the ranks of canoeists, all these offerings will also diversify the revenue stream for this nonprofit that would like to be as self-sufficient as possible.
Hyslop estimates annual budgets of around $1.5 million, of which two-thirds will come from revenue and one-third from fundraising. At the old site, the ratio was reversed. She projects the exhibits and programs will bring in 87,000 visitors annually, a 2.5-fold increase over pre-pandemic numbers.
Whether it’s admission tickets, program fees, equipment rentals, event bookings, gift shop sales or the café’s annual lease, the site has a promising projected revenue stream that should address a reality identified by Raffan, “It’s relatively easy to get money to build a new building. What’s not easy is not closing it in a few years for lack of funds.”
A canoe from the Saint John’s School tragedy on Lake Temiskaming in 1978 that claimed the lives of 12 boys and one young youth leader. | Photo: Heather Coughlin
An HBC canoe rests in the rafters next to salvaged building beams from the mid-1800s fur trade post at Michipicoten River. | Photo: Heather Coughlin
A collection for all canoeists
When visitors do begin arriving, from Canada and beyond, they will be walking past the sign identifying it as the Canadian Canoe Museum. Ward acknowledges waterways don’t follow national borders, and while Canada has a special relationship with the canoe, it’s not an exclusive one.
Graham Mackereth, founder of Pyranha Kayaks, agrees. A collector himself, with more than 100 crafts of his own, he’s visited the museum three times from his home in England, claiming to be in awe of what has been achieved in Peterborough.
With the perspective of a European collector, he points out almost every nation has its own canoe history. “Ethnic canoes are a worldwide phenomenon. They were important in Europe too, but that was centuries before. In Canada, it was a major part of getting around and close enough in living memory to be appreciated.”
That makes this homegrown effort important on a global scale, says Mackereth. “Canoes are important to all of us, and without somewhere to look after the artifacts, the sport would be in a poor place. It’s the world’s museum, really.”
And it’s about to open its doors.
Ian Merringer is a former editor of Canoeroots magazine and the current managing editor of Ski Canada.
This article was first published in the Spring 2024 issue of Paddling Magazine. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions, or browse the archives.
A rendering of the new Canadian Canoe Museum located on the shore of Little Lake in Peterborough, Ontario. The museum has stewarded the world’s largest collection of canoes, kayaks and paddled watercraft over the past 20 years. | Feature photo: Unity Design Studio
Once a thoroughfare for French fur traders who traveled thousands of miles by canoe each summer, the interior of Voyageurs National Park in northernmost Minnesota remains accessible only by watercraft. Nearly 40 percent of this unique national park’s 218,000 acres is comprised of lakes and rivers, dotted with around 500 granite islands. Four vast interconnected lakes sprawl 56 miles along the Canadian border, and the Kabetogama Peninsula wilderness shelters chains of smaller lakes. So it’s no surprise the park is one of Minnesota’s most rewarding canoeing destinations. Tripping opportunities are diverse, with 655 miles of undeveloped shoreline to explore and 150 water-access campsites to pitch your tent on.
Often overshadowed by its famous neighbor, Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Voyageurs shares the same watershed, yet is one of the least-visited national parks in the Lower 48. Paddlers who visit will be rewarded with plenty of solitude, set amid a quintessential North Woods landscape. Loons trill haunting cries from one lake to the next, stately white pines mirror on tranquil waters, hidden waterfalls tumble over mossy boulders, and trophy walleye, northern pike and smallmouth bass swim just below the surface.
Unlike the Boundary Waters, motorized boats are allowed in Voyageurs, but exploring the secluded interior lakes is a quick way to leave the houseboats behind. Meanwhile, the park’s four big lakes—Rainy, Kabetogama, Namakan and Sand Point—offer scenic paddling and uncrowded camping for folks who may not want to heft a canoe from lake to lake.
In this guide, we’ll cover Voyageurs National Park canoe trips for beginners and seasoned backcountry pros alike.
First of all, where is Voyageurs National Park located? Minnesota’s only national park sits at the top of the state, east of Lake of the Woods and bordering the Canadian province of Ontario. The international border extends through three of Voyageur’s largest lakes—Rainy, Namakan and Sand Point—forming the northern boundary of the national park. In fact, with proper planning and documentation, you can paddle across the border on an extended canoe trip.
Since the park is water-based, you may be wondering, can you drive to Voyageurs National Park? The answer is, yes—it’s about a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Minneapolis-St. Paul (or a three-hour drive from Duluth) to reach park access points at Crane Lake, Ash River or Lake Kabetogama, all of which are easily accessible off U.S. Hwy 53. Add 45 minutes of travel time to the Rainy Lake Visitor Area, which is east of the city of International Falls, Minnesota.
Rather than trying to hurry from one part of the park to another, choose one area to explore for the most relaxing trip experience. There are no roads in the park interior, so plan to leave your vehicle at one of the visitor centers (parking is free) for the duration of your stay.
What makes Voyageurs National Park worth visiting?
Spectacular scenery, serene campsites, and a rich history make Voyageurs National Park a destination park that is well worth visiting. Voyageurs National Park canoe trips offer the best of both worlds—paddling the big waters of Kabetogama, Rainy and Namakan lakes, along with the smaller inland lakes on the wild Kabetogama Peninsula. Even better, paddlers who aren’t keen on shouldering their canoe between lakes can tap into the park’s supply of inland-lake canoes. This allows canoe trippers to explore the beautiful Chain of Lakes or Shoepack Lakes and enjoy pristine backcountry campsites, using a different canoe at each lake (you’ll still have to carry your camping gear across the portage trail).
Factor in the great fishing, access to hiking trails, and abundance of bald eagles and other wildlife—not to mention the astonishing nightly heavens of this International Dark Sky Park—and many canoe trippers find themselves returning to Voyageurs season after season.
Voyageurs National Park covers 341 square miles (218,200 acres), nearly 40 percent of which is water. The park extends 56 miles along the Minnesota-Ontario border, with four major lakes and 26 smaller lakes offering 655 miles of undeveloped shoreline.
The 1.1-million-acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is located just east of Voyageurs National Park. For a longer journey, experienced paddlers can plan extended Boundary Waters canoe trips that connect with canoeing Voyageurs National Park.
How many islands are in Voyageurs National Park?
There are more than 500 islands to explore in Voyageurs National Park. Less important than the exact number is the experience of paddling in this sprawling archipelago. Myriad islands stud the park’s four major lakes, inviting paddlers to explore sheltered channels and revel in the solitude of private island campsites. No two routes are ever the same through this island mosaic; just remember you’ll need to carry detailed navigational maps or charts to ensure a safe and enjoyable park experience.
How many waterfalls are in Voyageurs National Park?
Countless small falls spill over water-polished granite in Voyageurs National Park, inviting canoe trippers to discover as many of these hidden gems as they can find. One of the loveliest waterfall areas is accessible from the southwest corner of Namakan Lake, at the head of Junction Bay. Paddle up the bay to where the Johnson River flows into Namakan Lake in a series of cascades known as Junction Bay Falls. The falls are especially scenic in autumn when the surrounding forest is ablaze with red maples and golden aspens.
Another rewarding area for waterfall-hunters is the Gold Portage between Kabetogama Lake and Black Bay on Rainy Lake. This half-mile trail is also a terrific place to spot some of the park’s more elusive and iconic wildlife such as moose, bears and maybe even wolves.
Voyageurs National Park northern lights
With its northern latitude and inky nights, Voyageurs National Park is one of the best places in Minnesota to see the northern lights—so much so, it’s a designated International Dark Sky Park. Here in the farthest reaches of the North Woods, far from any light pollution, the aurora borealis glimmers brighter and bolder than anywhere else in the Lower 48.
Photo: Erik Fremstad
Voyageurs National Park offers sweeping vistas of the night sky from its expansive lakes, rewarding campers with unrivaled stargazing and—if your visit coincides with a bump in solar activity—aurora viewing. The luminous swirls and waves are the result of space weather, primarily the solar wind stream and solar flares of the sun. Use a northern lights forecasting site like Spaceweather.com to predict aurora activity during your visit.
The aurora borealis are in no way seasonal—you can witness exceptional northern lights at any time of the year. Still, the early sunsets and long, star-filled nights of fall can make autumn canoe trips especially rewarding. For the best views, choose a campsite on the south shore of any of Voyageurs’ large lakes; as their name implies, northern lights are often most visible in the northern part of the sky.
Wondering if you can bring your canine pal along on your canoe trip? Good news—dogs are allowed at the 137 frontcountry campsites located on the shores and islands of Voyageurs National Park’s large lakes. Pets are not allowed at the backcountry sites located within the Kabetogama Pennisula.
Leashes are mandatory to keep your dog under control. It’s critical to take responsibility for your pet in the wilderness to keep them from disturbing the experience of other visitors and harassing wildlife. Always clean up your pet’s waste; domestic dogs can spread canine diseases that are deadly to wolves and other park wildlife.
For overnight trips, pack dog food in waterproof packaging and be sure to secure it well away from bears, just as you would human food. Be sure your dog’s vaccinations are up to date and travel with the appropriate paperwork. Include a few dog first aid items; talk to your veterinarian for suggestions before setting off on a trip.
Does Voyageurs National Park have cell service?
Like any remote area, cell service in Voyageurs National Park may be limited. Main tourist areas of the park, including the visitor centers, roadways, and surrounding communities are places to seek out if you do not have reception.
For safety, it’s good practice to carry a satellite communication device, such as an inReach, SPOT or satellite telephone for backcountry Voyageurs National Park canoe trips. Be sure you’re familiar with the technology before setting out, and check that your batteries are fully charged.
With hundreds of sprawling lake miles and over 150 canoe-access campsites, there are more than enough Voyageurs National Park canoe trip options to keep paddlers busy. Regardless of whether you plan to slip away for a week or two, or if you just want a taste of what the North Woods has to offer, you’ll find some great ideas for where to start below.
Remember that travel on the big lakes can be taxing or impossible due to high winds and waves, and weather can change suddenly. Be honest about your paddling skills and fitness when studying maps to plan a Voyageurs canoe trip. Think about your expectations; for example, do you want the focus of the trip to be fishing, relaxing, having fun as a family or pushing yourself to cover distance? Then develop an itinerary to match.
Visitor centers and local outfitters are excellent sources of route information. They know the lay of the land and can recommend the perfect route for your experience level and expectations.
Best Voyageurs Day Trips
Chief Wooden Frogs Islands
If you only have a day, explore the archipelago extending north to Chief Wooden Frogs Islands at the top end of Kabetogama Lake. Departing from the beach at Woodenfrog State Campground and Day-Use Area, the stretch offers scenic touring for all experience levels, including beginners. You might see loons and eagles, and the walleye fishing is superb. Pack a picnic to enjoy at the Hacksaw Pass day-use site just north of the islands. With good weather and a bit more time, you can continue on to the Gold Portage to stretch your legs and view the rushing rapids. Or make your way southwest into Tom Codd Bay to discover quiet, rocky wetlands and abundant wildlife.
Dryweed Island
For a rewarding day trip to Voyageurs National Park, launch from the Rainy Lake Visitor Center or the boat launch at the end of Highway 11 to reach this 2.75-mile-long island in Rainy Lake. With fair weather, you can paddle around the island in a day, taking a break at scenic day use picnic areas on the east end of the island and in Harrison Bay. Ridges rising up to 100 feet above the lake make up the core of the island, providing important forest bird breeding habitat. Stop off at Little American Island on your return paddle to walk the quarter-mile interpretive trail and learn about the mini gold rush that swept through here more than a century ago.
Photo: Matthew Przeslicke/Wilderness Inquiry
Photo: Julia Schweitzer/Wilderness Inquiry
Best 2- to 3-day Voyageurs canoe trips
Anderson Bay
Anderson Bay is one of the most photographed areas of the park, with exposed white granite cliffs soaring 80 feet above the water and spectacular views of the bay and Rainy Lake from a two-mile hiking loop. Charter a water taxi from Ash River to cut more than 20 miles of open water paddling off your journey and make this canoe trip manageable in a long weekend (or allow five to six days for the 44-mile round trip paddle from the Ash River Visitor Center). Along the way you’ll also pass through Kettle Falls historic area and the secluded island campsites of Namakan Lake.
Grassy Bay
This out-and-back paddle from the Crane Lake Ranger Station travels through the less-visited eastern reaches of Voyageurs National Park, passing through Sand Point Lake and culminating in one of the park’s most impressive sights: the sheer, 125-foot granite cliffs of Grassy Bay. Pitch your tent at one of the campsites in nearby Brown’s Bay to enjoy the view of the cliffs turning rosy pink in late afternoon.
Best 4-day Voyageurs canoe trips
Chain of Lakes
Rated moderate-to-difficult, a canoe trip into Voyageurs’ Chain of Lakes combines the challenge of big water paddling on Kabetogama Lake with a strenuous paddle-and-portage route through the Kabetogama Peninsula’s smaller inland lakes. Launch from Woodenfrog State Forest Campground and cross to the trailhead for Locator Lake. Here, you’ll stash your boat and portage your gear 1.9 miles into Locator Lake, where you’ll find the first of the park’s backcountry-specific canoes, included with your camping reservation. Paddle across the lake to the campsite and spend the next two days exploring the peaceful daisy chain of War Club, Quill and Loiten lakes—all of which have their own canoes, so no heavy lifting is necessary.
Shoepack Lakes
Accessible from the south end of Kabetogama Lake, the intimate Shoepack Lakes offer an easy and enticing alternative for paddlers intent on exploring inland lakes in Voyageurs National Park. Starting at the Ash River Visitor Center, this beginner-friendly, out-and-back journey follows a protected channel to Lost Bay and the trailhead for Quarter Line, Jorgens and Shoepack lakes. Stash your canoe on the shore and make the 1.7-mile hike into beautiful Little Shoepack and Shoepack lakes, where you’ll find backcountry park canoes—and two lovely campsites—waiting.
Best 7-day Voyageurs canoe trip
Kabetogama Peninsula circumnavigation
At 70 miles give or take, circling the wild Kabetogama Peninsula is the ultimate Voyageurs National Park canoe trip challenge. It’s also the ideal way to experience all this beautiful park has to offer; reap the rewards of hidden campsites, spectacular night skies and great wildlife viewing opportunities on the remote shores of the park’s largest lake. Plenty of big water and wind exposure make this route best for intermediate canoe campers.
Voyageurs National Park camping
The allure of camping in Voyageurs National Park is that all of the park’s more than 200 campsites are accessible only by water. Canoe trippers can choose from two main options: first, bring your own canoe (or rent one nearby) and camp at frontcountry sites on the park’s large lakes—all 147 sites are directly accessible from any park boat launch. Alternatively, plan a hike-and-paddle camping trip into the 14 backcountry sites located on the small, secluded interior lakes of the Kabetogama Peninsula.
Frontcountry campers enjoy sweeping vistas from the shores and islands of the park’s large lakes—Rainy, Kabetogama, Namakan, Sand Point and Crane—with the option to basecamp or paddle to a new campsite each night. The vast waters and myriad islands make for nearly infinite route options, with some campsites easily accessible within a half-mile of a park launch and others as far as 27 miles away from the nearest access point. Keep in mind that strong winds and waves on these large lakes can make it too dangerous to paddle, so planning extra time and having a backup plan in case of inclement weather is essential.
Frontcountry campsites at Voyageurs National Park offer a very comfortable experience, especially for experienced canoe campers used to “roughing it.” All frontcountry campsites feature tent pads, picnic tables, bear-proof food lockers, pit toilets and fire rings, and many also have a dock for easy landing. Even better, sites are well-spaced to ensure privacy and seclusion.
Canoe campers seeking a more rugged and intimate experience on smaller waters can combine paddling and hiking in the Chain of Lakes or Shoepack Lakes areas of the Kabotogama Peninsula. Backcountry campsites located on these interior lakes require travel by water from any mainland boat launch to access the trailheads that lead to them. Arrange a water taxi, board a park tour boat, or paddle and leave your canoe or kayak secured at the landing. If you reach the trailhead with your own watercraft, it must be left at the trailhead and not portaged in. To prevent the spread of invasive aquatic species, access to backcountry-specific canoes at each lake is included with your camping reservation.
The backcountry areas of Voyageurs National Park are wild, remote and breathtakingly beautiful. They offer more secluded and serene camping, hiking and canoeing experiences, since they are smaller, more protected and less traveled than the frontcountry lakes. Backcountry campsites offer limited amenities; you’ll find a pit toilet and fire ring but little else. Campers must bring their own bear-proof food containers or a length of rope to create a bear hang for food storage.
Whichever option you choose, visitors can camp in the park for 14 consecutive days and 30 calendar days each year. If you’re arriving by vehicle, it can be parked free of charge at a park visitor center for the duration of your trip.
Finally, if you’re looking for a drive-in campground, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources operates two vehicle-accessible primitive campgrounds just outside the national park—Woodenfrog State Forest Campground on Kabetogama Lake and Ash River State Forest Campground near the Ash River Visitor Center. Additionally, numerous resorts in gateway communities offer developed campsites for tents and RVs.
Photo: Andrew Parks
Reservations at Voyageurs National Park
One of the big differences between Voyageurs National Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is the fact that you reserve its campsites rather than claim them on a first-come, first-served basis. Knowing ahead of time which campsite you’re getting provides many visitors with much-needed peace of mind—although it also means you’re restricted to camping at that particular site. Fortunately, there’s no such thing as a bad campsite in Voyageurs; wherever you land, you’re guaranteed spectacular vistas and quiet seclusion. And, unlike some parks, apart from the busiest holidays, you should have no trouble finding a site.
Campsite reservations are available online at Recreation.gov. Here you can view campsite info and photos, search for campsite availability, and build an itinerary showing mileage between sites. You can also make camping reservations through Recreation.gov’s national call center at 1-877-444-6777. Print your camping permit and bring it with you; campers are not required to check in or out at the park.
Frontcountry campsite fees range from $22 to $32 per night from May 15 to October 15; backcountry campsite fees for the same period are $30 per night (with canoe) or $16 per night (hike-in only). A $10 reservation fee applies for all bookings. There are no entrance fees for Voyageurs National Park.
Canoe rentals at Voyageurs National Park
Canoe rentals and water taxi service are available from outfitters and resorts at each of the park’s four gateway communities—Ash River, Crane Lake, International Falls and Lake Kabetogama. Along with basic canoe and kayak rentals, some of these outfitters can provide all-inclusive, complete outfitting packages that include everything you’ll need for a wilderness adventure. They also have the expertise to assist with route and campsite selection. Many Voyageurs outfitters also provide (or can help you arrange) water taxi boat shuttles to reach farther flung areas of the park.
For canoe trips into Voyageurs National Park’s interior lakes and backcountry campsites on the wild Kabetogama Peninsula, the park has a limited number of canoes available for rent through the Backcountry Canoes on Interior Lakes program. The Park Service only rents canoes that remain stationed in the backcountry; these cannot be portaged to other areas. This is to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species from the park’s large lakes into the pristine waters of its backcountry lakes. It’s important to note that visitors arriving with their own watercraft—or canoes rented outside the park—are not permitted to portage these into the interior lakes.
Voyageurs Outfitters
With convenient access to the Rainy Lake Visitor Area of the park, Ranier-based Voyageurs Outfitters provides customized outfitting for canoe trips throughout Voyageurs National Park. Along with multiday canoe rentals, they offer complete outfitting packages, a water taxi service and trip-planning assistance. If you’re only visiting for the day, inquire about their self-guided interpretive day trip on Rainy Lake.
Rainy Lake Aquatics
Based in Ranier, Rainy Lake Aquatics is another fine option for canoe and kayak rentals on Rainy Lake. This outfitter works in partnership with Rainy Lake Charters to shuttle you and your rental equipment to the campsite of your choice—perfect for those who have limited time or are eager to explore harder-to-reach areas of the park.
Northern Lights Resort & Outfitting
On Lake Kabetogama, Northern Lights Resort and Outfitting rents out canoes, sea kayaks, tandem kayaks, fishing kayaks and paddleboards, with daily rates available.
Arrowhead Lodge
The family-owned Arrowhead Lodge on Lake Kabetogama offers canoe and kayak rentals for trips departing from the resort. The knowledgeable owners are happy to assist with trip planning and help you choose the best route for your group.
Anderson’s Canoe Outfitters
Based in Crane Lake, Anderson’s Canoe Outfitters has over 60 years of experience outfitting canoe adventures in the Boundary Waters, Voyageurs National Park and Canada’s Quetico Park. In addition to canoe rentals, they can rent camping equipment and have a shop filled with last-minute supplies to complete your trip.
AshKaNam Resort
Situated on the Ash River just a few minutes from Voyageurs National Park, AshKaNam Resort offers daily canoe rentals for trips departing from the Ash River Visitor Area.
Photo: Christian Hedstrom/Wilderness Inquiry
Photo: Christian Hedstrom/Wilderness Inquiry
Guided trips
First-time canoe trippers, families and experienced campers alike will enjoy a guided canoe trip in Voyageurs National Park. For those with limited time, a guided trip makes for a simple, hassle-free vacation. All gear and meals are provided, and the route planning and permits are taken care of. Perhaps best of all, you’ll gain the valuable insight of your experienced guide, with the opportunity to learn more about park landscapes, wildlife and history.
Voyageurs Adventures
Consider Kabetogama-based Voyageurs Adventures if you’re a die-hard angler looking for an all-inclusive, guided Voyageurs canoe trip with lots of great fishing and an insider scoop. Day trips and guided camping tours are available.
Voyageurs Guide Service
Based in Crane Lake, this outfitter offers personalized guided canoe and boat trips in Voyageurs National Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Their guides will teach you the camping and paddling skills you’ll need for future trips, while providing insight into the local history and your natural surroundings.
Wilderness Inquiry
Minneapolis-based Wilderness Inquiry is a long-standing Voyageurs National Park canoe guide service delivering five-day family and women’s canoe trips on Kabetogama Lake. Explore waterfalls, hidden coves, trails and wildlife hot spots along the way. Guests learn new paddling skills in fast and stable 24-foot North canoes, tracing the path of the 18th-century French-Canadian fur traders for which the park is named. Several departure dates are offered throughout the summer months.
Voyageurs National Park map
When it comes to hard-copy maps for canoeing Voyageurs National Park, paddlers have a variety of options: National Geographic produces an excellent waterproof map for Voyageurs National Park with all the campsites, portages, day-use and houseboat sites marked. McKenzie Maps and Fisher Maps also produce Voyageurs National Park maps as well as coverage of the adjacent Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Another unique option is True North Maps. These field-ready cloth maps are screened on durable, functional bandanas, providing an additional layer of versatility—and a neat conversation starter around the campfire.
All these maps can be purchased online and many are also available at park visitor centers or from local outfitters.
Paddlers looking for basic park maps to aid with trip planning can view interactive campsite maps and download a copy of the general Voyageurs National Park map from the park website. These tools provide a good overview of park geography and attractions, but should not be used for navigation.
Voyageurs National Park animals
When you venture into the North Woods of Voyageurs National Park, you are entering the domain of wildlife (and bugs!). But you need not be afraid of bears and mosquitoes—just be aware, pack the right gear, take a few simple precautions and feel fortunate to be part of the wilderness.
The park is home to nearly 50 species of mammals. Sun-basking otters, stately bald eagles, howling wolves, prehistoric sturgeon, industrious beavers, reclusive bobcats and many other types of animals live among Voyageurs’ diverse habitats. With more than 200 resident bird species, Voyageurs National Park is also a bird-watching paradise. Pick up a local bird checklist, bring binoculars and a field guide, and get ready to update your life list.
Voyageurs National Park serves as an important refuge for moose. The intimate lakes and wetlands of the Kabetogama Peninsula are the best places to see a moose—especially at dawn and dusk. Moose are most commonly observed during black fly and mosquito season, typically June, when insect pests drive them to seek respite in open areas. With warmer summers and less snow, moose face big challenges due to climate change—give them a wide berth and observe them from afar to minimize your impacts on their routine.
Several wolf packs also roam throughout the park, however encounters with humans are exceedingly rare. They are especially secretive in the summer months when packs are raising young. Hearing the stirring call of a wolf pierce the evening silence is a very special Voyageurs privilege, indeed.
Bears in Voyageurs National Park
Voyageurs boasts a healthy population of black bears, which serve as a good indication of a pristine natural environment. Black bears do their best to avoid humans, so encounters are unlikely. However, a few precautions will keep you and your food safe. Use bear-proof food lockers and bear poles where available, and read Bear Safe Hanging Tactics to learn how to safely hang your food.
Places to stay near Voyageurs National Park
Lodging options within Voyageurs National Park are limited to basic campsites and the historic Kettle Falls Hotel, both accessible only by boat. Just outside the park, however, you’ll find plenty of other accommodation options on offer in the nearby communities of Crane Lake, Kabetogama and International Falls. These are great places to stay before or after a trip, or serve as a base camp for day trips on nearby lakes. Choose from cozy cabins, waterfront lodges, resorts, boutique hotels and drive-in campgrounds.
Isolated in the heart of Voyageurs National Park at the junction of Namakan and Rainy lakes, the historic Kettle Falls Hotel lies 13 miles by boat from the nearest road. Built by a timber baron in 1910, the hotel was an epicenter of bootlegging during prohibition. Choose from antique-filled rooms in the main building or a cabin that sleeps up to eight. There’s also a dining room and the original on-site saloon retains its uneven wood floors with pockmarks from the loggers’ hobnail boots.
Crane Lake
Pine Point Lodge, Resort & Lakeview Motel
Paddlers exploring the eastern end of the park can choose from two lakefront locations at the well-appointed Pine Point Lodge, Resort & Lakeview Motel in Crane Lake. The Lakeview Motel offers easy vehicle access and waterfront cabins or motel rooms right in the community of Crane Lake. Alternatively, treat yourself to a lakeside housekeeping cottage, room or houseboat on a private peninsula one mile across the water and reached via boat shuttle.
Cabins on Crane
Cabins on Crane offers family-friendly cabins and cottages right on the shores of Crane Lake, with access to a private boat launch and free use of canoes, kayaks and bicycles for guests. Expect a rustic yet modern ambiance with all the comforts of home.
Scott’s Peaceful Valley Resort
Living up to its name, Scott’s Peaceful Valley Resort is a laid-back, kid-friendly option in Crane Lake. Cozy cabins, serene views, a sandy swimming beach and a playground make this a family favorite.
Voyagaire Houseboats & Lodge
Voyagaire Houseboats & Lodge offers top-rated luxury houseboat rentals for exploring Voyageurs National Park, as well as a comfortable new lodge with 14 pet-friendly guest rooms nestled among the pines. The lodge’s restaurant and lakeside patio also make a great place to grab a tasty meal before or after your canoe trip.
Ash River
AshKaNam Resort
Situated on the Ash River just a few minutes from Voyageurs National Park, AshKaNam Resort is a fine option for paddlers planning to start or finish their trip from the park’s Ash River Visitor Center. Family-owned and operating year-round, this fishing resort offers log cabin rentals, condos and hotel rooms, as well as a full-service restaurant.
Kabetogama
Overlooking beautiful Kabetogama Lake and within striking distance of the alluring wilderness of the Kabetogama Peninsula, it’s no surprise the community of Kabetogama supports a wide selection of well-established resorts and campgrounds. Start your search below, or find more options here.
Pine Aire Resort
Pine Aire Resort has a prime location right on the lake, just a six-minute walk from the Kabetogama Visitor Center. With 20 cabins, a campground and a sandy beach, it’s a perfectly located home base for visiting Voyageurs National Park.
Grandview of Lake Kabetogama
Grandview of Lake Kabetogama offers five quiet, cozy cabins with fantastic views of its namesake lake. All the cabins are steps from the water and have fully equipped kitchens, large decks and modern amenities.
Arrowhead Lodge
Located adjacent to Woodenfrog State Campground and Day-Use Area, family-run Arrowhead Lodge offers classic waterfront cabins and cozy rooms in the rustic log lodge. It also offers outfitting and canoe/kayak rentals for trips into the national park.
Idlewild Resort
For a bit of pre- or post-trip pampering, look no further than Idlewild Resort. Each of the resort’s 11 housekeeping cabins offers easy lake access, full kitchens and spacious sun decks. There’s also a heated swimming pool, spa and game room on-site.
The city of International Falls provides a convenient launch pad for forays into the west side of Voyageurs National Park. Choose from lakefront resorts and lodging just minutes from the Rainy River Visitor Center, or settle into a modern hotel in downtown International Falls.
Island View Lodge
The Island View Lodge is just a three-mile drive from Rainy Lake at the entrance to the national park. The resort offers delicious meals, lodge rooms with spectacular lake views, and private lakefront cabins to suit groups of all sizes. From the shore, guests can see Little American Island, the historic isle where a short-lived gold rush took place.
Cantilever Hotel & Distillery
The closest hotel to the Rainy Lake Visitor Center is the Cantilever Distillery & Hotel, which sits 10 miles (15 minutes) away in the historic village of Ranier. It’s a modern and upscale boutique hotel with just 31 rooms, a rooftop hot tub and sauna, free weekly yoga classes for guests, and an on-site distillery where you can enjoy a craft cocktail made from Minnesota grain.
Falls Motel
Looking for a more affordable place to crash on your way to or from the park? The Falls Motel on Highway 53 southbound in International Falls has some of the most budget-friendly rooms in the area. It’s a clean, no-frills roadside motel that gets the job done, with breakfast muffins and an airport shuttle service.
As you’ve seen, the depths of Voyageurs National Park are vast, and this is just a slice of all there is to explore in Minnesota.
The longest, most scenic or ambitious kayaking expedition in the world still cannot compare to the joy of paddling with your family. There’s something intrinsically special about being on the water with your family, besides all the obvious values of spending quality time in the absence of so many distractions and work deadlines.
The best family kayak trips are different in their qualities, too. They must be just the right length and level of difficulty for your family’s time and skill. And beyond all else, the trips must be fun.
With these guidelines in mind, we toured the world for this article to pick out the best family kayak trips on lakes, rivers and seas to come up with destinations suitable for all levels of adventurous families.
The Saguenay region feels like it’s a world apart, with rich French-Canadian culture that’s matched by the area’s unparalleled biodiversity and fjord-torn scenery. Located a half-day’s drive beyond Quebec City on Highway 138, the historic town of Tadoussac is your family’s gateway to exploring the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park. The park offers some of the finest whale-watching in the world: 13 species of whales have been documented here, with minke, finback, blue, beluga and humpbacks frequently observed in August and September.
You will find plenty of options for renting kayaks and joining guided day trips on the big water of the St. Lawrence River or the stunning, fjord-rimmed Saguenay River. The region also boasts many family-friendly trails, interpretive centers and scenic vistas. Cabin, condo and camping accommodations are available, allowing you and your family to enjoy great paddling adventures while also discovering Quebec maritime culture and cuisine.
Between Parry Sound and Killarney, the clear waters of Georgian Bay erupt with some 30,000 polished granite islands. This freshwater sea is the perfect place for a family kayak trip on the Great Lakes. Franklin Island is the popular destination for an overnight family kayak trip with easy access from Honey Harbour, barely a three-hour drive north of Toronto. Or go a little farther to Philip Edward Island, launching from the Chikanishing River in Killarney Provincial Park. You can also access this isolated and scenic island-pocked area via Point Grondine Park or French River Provincial Park.
When it comes to whitewater kayaking, there are few better destinations than the Ottawa Valley in eastern Ontario. The mighty Ottawa River, the centerpiece of Canada’s Whitewater Capital, has served as a proving ground for the world’s best whitewater paddlers. Yet this mighty river is also a great destination to sign up for a family whitewater kayak course with expert (and fun) instructors. Located in close proximity to Canada’s national capital, many family vacation options are available combining urban activities and paddling.
Meanwhile, the more intimate and wild Madawaska River is home to some of the best kayak schools in Canada. Family packages are available for you to learn to paddle along a scenic waterway that’s lined with towering white pine trees and rugged Canadian Shield geography.
From the rugged coast of Cape Breton Island, to the tidewater of Bras d’Or Lake, the vast expanse of the Bay of Fundy and so much more, Nova Scotia is steeped in quintessential maritime geography. Located on the province’s South Coast, St. Margarets Bay is a great destination for a family kayak trip, with easy access from Halifax. The area is noted for its multitude of islands, which create relatively sheltered paddling conditions. While paddling around Tancook and Big Tancook island you will encounter the gamut of maritime attractions: lighthouses—including the iconic beacon at Peggy’s Cove—fishing villages, and marine mammals including seals, porpoises and whales. Local kayak rentals and guided day trips make the logistics easy.
5 Vancouver and the Lower Mainland, British Columbia
British Columbia offers some of the best kayaking in the world, and you don’t have to venture far from Vancouver to find great family paddling trips. There are multiple options to rent kayaks or sign up for a kayak day trip in Vancouver, where you can paddle English Bay and False Creek and admire the city’s incredible skyline. Do you prefer to paddle inland waters? Golden Ears Park, north of the city of Maple Ridge, offers stunning fjord-like scenery on the glacier-blue waters of Alouette Lake in the Coast Mountains, with a drive-in campground to serve as your family’s adventure base.
A well-established array of adventure tourism outfitters makes the wilderness frontier of Alaska accessible to outdoors families. Alaska is larger than life, a place where you can truly choose your own adventure. Family kayaking options abound in Alaska’s vast network of subarctic and alpine lakes, free-flowing rivers and coastal fjords at the northern end of the Inside Passage.
Check out places like Lake Clark National Park and Preserve for flatwater kayaking, Birch Creek for whitewater kayaking and the Ketchikan area for sea kayaking—this is just the beginning. Even though it feels like you’ve traveled to the edge of the Earth, Alaska kayak rentals and fully outfitted, guided family kayak trips will simplify the logistics and allow you to travel safely on trips of a lifetime.
Skip Disney World on your next Florida vacation and pack your paddling gear instead. With its warm climate, incredible biodiversity and abundance of water, Florida is a dream destination for paddlers. Many of the best family kayak trips in Florida are located in the Big Bend region, near Tallahassee. This forgotten corner of the state includes incredibly clear, spring-fed waterways like the Wacissa River, which make excellent family kayak day trips. Rent kayaks and float downriver with the lazy current and you’ll discover spectacular swimming holes and intriguing wildlife, including a wide range of bird species.
Experienced family kayakers can set out on the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico, along the 105-mile Big Bend Saltwater Paddling Trail. This wilderness water trail includes backcountry camping on wild beaches, great kayak fishing in nearshore waters and Florida’s finest sunsets. Historic Florida coastal villages like Suwannee and local outfitters offering rentals and shuttle services allow you to plan overnight trips up to 14-day expeditions.
Minnesota is a canoeing epicenter that’s home to the legendary Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which ranks as the most popular wilderness area in the United States. There are plenty of great family kayak trips in the Boundary Waters, but for a different experience try Voyageurs National Park, which features a similar water-rich landscape but with fewer portages.
Multiple kayak trip options start from the Kabetogama Lake Visitor Centre. The Woodenfrog Campground is a good destination for family kayak campers, and puts you in a good position to paddle deeper into Voyageurs National Park on kayak day trips, including sprawling Namakan Lake. Along the way, you’ll encounter classic Northwoods scenery and the potential for sightings of iconic wildlife like moose and loons.
Whitewater culture runs like a current through North Carolina, flowing with the many exciting rivers that spill off the Appalachian Mountains. The state is legendary for big class V creeking on rivers like the Green. At the same time, the gentler gradients of the Nantahala and French Broad rivers—along with the spectacular U.S. National Whitewater Center in Charlotte—are perfect places to introduce your family to whitewater kayaking. There’s a well-established network of kayak outfitters in North Carolina to set you up with all you need, from rentals and shuttles to family kayak camps.
Photo: Melissa MN
10 Wisconsin
Cradled by Great Lakes Superior and Michigan and bisected by countless waterways, Wisconsin is a dream state for paddlers. Door County is an easy getaway for a family kayak trip that’s an easy drive from Green Bay, Milwaukee and Chicago. Book a campsite at Peninsula State Park and take a day trip along the park’s diverse Lake Michigan shoreline, including sandy beaches and rocky headlands. Kayak rentals and guided trips are available throughout the summer from local outfitters.
The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore on Lake Superior is a little more remote and even more spectacular. The area is known for its sandstone sea caves, which can be intimately explored by kayakers. A day trip starting at Meyers Beach is most popular; you can have a similar experience (as well as the added allure of visiting an island) in making a day trip to Sand Island. You’ll discover not only sea caves, but also a historic lighthouse, great beaches and easy hiking trails. The scenic waterfront town of Bayfield makes a great base to explore the area.
Photo: Adobe Stock
11 Greece
Greece blends all the charms of the Old World—including great food, history and culture—with a warm climate and spectacular Mediterranean shorelines, all contributing to making it a wonderful place for an international kayak trip with your family. The island of Crete, in particular, has plenty of appeal. Here, the azure waters of the Mediterranean laps against sand beaches and rocky shores, interspersed with the ruins of ancient Greece and historic fishing villages and set against a background of arid mountains. Exploring this island state by kayak is a great way to discover Greece with your family.
Photo: C. Mouton/CRT Centre – Val de Loire
12 France
Opportunities to kayak in France are often overshadowed by the country’s cultured cities, incredible cuisine, art and cathedrals. Yet France’s diverse geography offers many great places to kayak with your family. For starters, check out the Loire River, which flows through a timeless landscape of vineyards in the heart of France. Rent a kayak and take a day trip from the riverside town of Amboise. Meanwhile, paddling the Dordogne River in southwestern France near Beynac takes you back to a medieval landscape of castles and ancient villages.
New Zealand is a renowned mecca of outdoor adventure for good reason. Just as backpackers rave about the country’s vast trail network, paddlers enjoy endless opportunities paddling the ocean, inland lakes and wild rivers on both the North and South islands. Abel Tasman National Park is a world-class sea kayaking destination, with great family kayak day trips available to such attractions as Split Apple Rock, Torrent Bay and the Tonga Island Marine Reserve. In terms of family-friendly recreational kayaking on freshwater, Lake Wanaka stands out for its views of the South Island’s Alps.
Photo: Luliia Sokolovska
14 Thailand
Thailand’s lengthy coastline is mind-blowing for its endless beaches buttressed by jagged, pillar-like sea stacks, creating an otherworldly vibe that draws travelers back year after year. It’s no surprise Thailand’s mosaic of exposed shorelines, tropical islands and unique limestone geology makes it a hot spot for kayaking. The beauty of kayaking with your family in Thailand often lies in the complementary activities of snorkeling, discovering great food and enjoying amazing beaches—so pack an open mind as well as your swimsuits.
You’ll find many options for family kayak day trips in Thailand: Phang Nga Bay is alluring for its sea caves and hidden lagoons, and the Koh Phi Phi Islands, offshore from Phuket, are like gems in the turquoise waters of the Andaman Sea. Inland, Khao Sok National Park’s Cheow Lan Lake, north of Phuket, features Tolkienesque “candlestick” islands with jagged hills radiating inland like shark’s teeth.
Photo: Juan Carlos Munoz
15 Costa Rica
Given its longstanding commitment to ecotourism, it’s no surprise Costa Rica abounds in places to kayak with your family. Manuel Antonio Park, located south of the town of Quepos, is known for its Pacific Ocean beaches and great snorkeling. What’s more, the park’s mangrove estuaries and inland waterways offer close encounters with monkeys, sloths and colorful birds of the tropics.
For family whitewater kayaking in Costa Rica head to the Pacuare River, which cascades through lush jungles and dark canyons before eventually draining into the Caribbean, east of the capital city of San José. Guided trips are available. Additionally, you and your kids can float beneath a volcano on Lake Arenal, high in the mountains of Arenal Volcano National Park. This adventure hub in northwestern Costa Rica also boasts rainforest trails, eco resorts and many other outdoor attractions.
This article was first published in the Spring 2024 issue of Paddling Magazine. 
