Bloodvein River 8 Day Expedition. 

Forest Knights are working with our friends at Northern Soul and EB Adventures to offer a number of trips to Canada and beyond.  Northern Soul is one of Canada's leading wilderness canoe trip providers.  Dave is a great character a first rate camp cook. 

Regions                  Boreal Forest, Canadian Shield

Skill level               All skill levels

Access                    Float Plane, Ferry and Van Shuttle.

Distance                 115 km

Put in                          Katunigan Lake on the Bloodvein River, Float Plane Access

Egress                         Lake Winnipeg, Pine Dock, Ferry and Shuttle

The Bloodvein River is a perfect introduction to remote-river paddling. As the float plane vanishes over the horizon, so too, do your links with city life. Get close to mother nature. Travel the Bloodvein River and re-energize your mind and body. The ochre rock paintings from the region's Aboriginal peoples are a silent testament to the long-standing importance of the Bloodvein for Canada's First Nation's peoples.

Background.

Adventurous souls participating on the Bloodvein River Trip should be ready for 8 days of superb wilderness canoeing and camping. You should possess a reasonable level of fitness and have the stamina to carry your personal pack and group gear when a portage is required. Expect to spend between 4 and 7 hours a day on the water, and although experience in paddling and moving water is an asset, it is not necessary. Our guides are excellent canoeing instructors and will help you develop your newf ound skill, or refine your paddle strokes.

Through years of experience our itinerary ensures the most scenic campsites on the river. Some are characterized by gentle rapids that are safe to jump in, others sit atop granite cliffs and offer a scenic panoramic view; all are beautiful. This is wilderness canoeing at it’s finest, surrounded by the pristine wilderness of Atikaki Park; wildlife spotting, fishing, cliff jumping and simply relaxing – all our campsites are a place for the adventurer to unwind.

 Pre-trip

Guests should arrive in Winnipeg at least 1 day before your trip starts. We will escort you from the airport to your hotel, and give you the waterproof backpacks you will need for the next 8 days so you can pack your gear and make preparations for the start of your trip. We will be on hand to answer your questions and notify you of your morning departure the next day. Hotel guests can leave suitcases or personal backpacks at the hotel free of charge until their return. It is our pleasure to pay for your hotel, so there are no unexpected expenses.

Day 1

We have an early morning departure from Winnipeg, and after the 2 1/2 -hours drive to Bisset, our float plane will take you to Katunigan Lake. Once in the air, you will be treated to vistas of an immense expanse of pine forest, rock outcroppings, and a matrix of lakes and rivers as far as the eye can see. On the final descent to Katunigan Lake, you will be awed by this immense landscape surrounded by nature that seems to

take you back in time. Smoother than any landing you will experience on wheels, the floatplane taxis its way to our rendezvous on the lake. Here you will familiarise yourself with the canoe and the equipment that you'll be using for the next 8 days. We will camp on the lake or at Drumming Sound Rapids depending on the time of our arrival.

Days 2-6

After a nourishing breakfast, you will set out to paddle down the Bloodvein. The river begins softly with a few rapids and many open tranquil sections requiring simple flat water paddling skills. By day 3 the Bloodvein changes moods as it twists and winds it’s way through narrow sections lined with steep granite cliffs.

Now rapids become more frequent and challenging. Over the course of your trip you can expect 25 rapids between class 1 and 3 with the majority being class 2. At typical water levels.

Throughout your trip you will enjoy a mix of tranquil flatwater and pulse-pounding rapids. Wildlife spotting, fishing, and cliff jumping - you will be seized by the challenge and exhilarated by the promise of mastering something you might never have done before.

Considered by many to be the most challenging rapid on the Bloodvein, Namay (Sturgeon) Rapids is a long Class 2-3 rapid that lends itself well to exciting water play. Similarly, test your mettle with Akeeko (Kettle) Rapids, named after glacial formations in the shape of cauldrons that cut into the granite along the portage trail, is a technical section of the river with big waves.  A few kilometres from the Bloodvein First Nations Reserve we will visit Aboriginal pictographs – ochre rock paintings in the image of moose, human figures, and others.

 Day 7

This evening we are the guests of Louis Young and Suzy Mercredi, we make our camp on an island just across from the ferry dock at Bloodvein Indian Reserve.  Louis the former Chief of this Ojibwa community will lead us through a sweat lodge ceremony, the foundation of many Aboriginal cultures. The closest comparison to a sweat lodge would be a sauna, but here the sweat lodge represents the womb of mother earth. The ceremony lasts approximately 1 hour, during the ceremony we pays homage to the four directions, the human race and the four-legged creatures. After the ceremony Suzy has prepared a feast featuring seasonal local cuisine, if we’re lucky, moose, pickerel, wild rice and bannock; a perfect conclusion to our wonderful journey down the Bloodvein.

  Day 8

Today heralds our return to Winnipeg. We will embark the J. Edgar Wood from the Reserve at 11h00 to transport us across Lake Winnipeg. The ferry crossing takes approximately 2 hours, where our van will be waiting for us. We load up the canoes and camping gear and drive back to Winnipeg. We will stop for lunch and arrive at the hotel in Winnipeg at approximately 16h00. After a hot shower, we meet for a last meal together at one of Winnipeg’s fine restaurants. It’s our pleasure to pay for your hotel so there are no unexpected expenses.

 Post-trip

In the event of arrival delays due to weather or other problems, guests should make flight plans to leave Winnipeg on the day after returning from the trip. We provide all transportation to the airport.

 COST      TBA

The price of your trip includes 

• Professional guides

• 2 nights stay in downtown hotel Ramada Malborough

•All transportation services.  (Ground shuttle from Winnipeg to Bisset and Pine Dock to Winnipeg, Float Plane Bisset to Wapeskapek Lake).

•Delicious food

•All canoeing equipment.  (Canoes, paddles, life jackets, safety helmets and equipment).

•Camping equipment.  (All cooking supplies, food packs, tent, tarp, waterproof backpack).

•Safety equipment

International flights are not included in the cost stated.