In 2023, our first getaway was a canoe trip in Algonquin Park with three friends. Cathy and I decided to leave two days earlier to enjoy the park before meeting up with them at Canoe Lake on Sunday, June 18, 2023. We left Friday, June 16th, and pulled into Canisbay Lake Campground. Our campsite was spacious and well lit by the sun with some shade from the surrounding maple trees. We settled in by first putting up the kitchen tent and inserting the picnic table and placing our stove at one end and clipping down our tablecloth. We then set up the sleeping tent and arranged our mats and gear within. We opened up our chairs near the fire pit and hung a hammock off two trees nearby. Part of the fun of camping is setting up our little home away from home. Once everything was set up, we pulled out some snacks and drinks and sat basking in the warm sun, relaxing and enjoying nature. This was a great start before our big paddle to Tom Thomson Lake, which involved one portage and three hours of paddling. Sunday came and our friends decided to show up at our campsite super early to ensure our early rising to meet them that morning. They had driven through the night from Cornwall. Well, 5am was early and although the tapping on our tent started my day off irritated, I soon overcame my mood and packed up and looked forward to our adventure. It was a beautiful day, sunny, warm and calm winds.
Arriving at Canoe Lake Outfitters, our friends pulled up to the shoreline in their vehicle to drop off their canoe and supplies while Cathy and I, joined by another friend who was also renting a canoe, checked in at the dock near the supply store. Our canoe was carried out for us and placed in the water alongside the dock. We loaded up with our two waterproof duffle bags, one large bear barrel, and our individual bags carrying our day’s snacks and water. Our other friend renting, had a single canoe, much smaller and her first time trying it. She was a little nervous but fortunately the wind remained calm. It was fun getting ready and watching others load their canoes and head out. We left about 8:30 am from Canoe Lake and paddled north through different lakes. We had only one short portage. I had my first experience carrying the canoe over my head. Balanced from front to back, I made my way along a level old road, a short distance passed the dam where we pulled out. As we continued on, we were happily surprised to spot a bull moose wading in the water. Naturally the guys had to get closer and we followed behind. As we carefully approached, we snapped numerous photos. The moose just looked at us unaffected by our presence. The waters were shallow from here on as we continued, navigating around tree stumps hidden just below the waterline. By early afternoon, we arrived at our campsite. A beautiful spot on a point. It was rocky and had different levels. We arranged our cooking area on the lower level and climbed up the rocks to the higher level to set up our tents and hammocks. Time for supper.
In planning our meals, we had arranged to have our friend keep some of our food together with his in his freezer, as we had no space left in ours; however, when he was packing, he forgot to pull our bag out … and so he was apologetically gracious to share his meals with us … not quite the menu we were looking forward to. It was our first supper in the start of our week and by dusk we were all tired from the day’s paddle, especially our friends’ night-long ride that early morning.
As Cathy made her way to the tent, I followed behind warning her of the tent cord and sure enough her foot caught the cord and she went flying collapsing hard on the ground, her left shin crashing against a root. She let go a grunt which told me this is more serious. She had split her shin open, the skin cleanly severed and wide open like a shark bite. We needed to get her to a hospital, so I activated our SPOT device. This happened at 9pm and by 2am, we could hear the helicopter breaking the silence, its beam of light illuminating the sky as it circled around finding a way to lower the paramedics as there was no place to land.
The paramedics came from Trenton fully prepared for any type of rescue. As it was night, it was complete darkness with only a few campfires in the distance but by the time they arrived, camp lights started dotting the landscape wondering what was happening. The noise of the propellers and the brightness of the spotlight overwhelmed the night sky and awakened all the sleeping animals and campers. Given the tents were in the open area, the helicopter had to hover over the forest near the toilet box. The paramedics were lowered and made their way along the herd path to where Cathy was laying. They quickly assessed the wound, administered morphine for the pain and gravol for the nausea. She was then placed in a gurney with warm blankets inside a large sleeping bag. Her head and arms were braced for safety for the travel to the hospital. Unable to move, she asked someone to scratch her nose. Four of us carried the gurney back to where the paramedics were dropped off and they prepared the gurney with straps for the 2-minute lift to the helicopter. They had to zip up the entire bag Cathy was in, right over her head, in order to protect her face from flying branches caused by the downdraft. This process took a good half hour securing the straps, contacting the helicopter, and the helicopter circling into position to pull up the gurney. Cathy said it was the worst 2 minutes ride ever. They flew her to the hospital in Minden but had to stop along the way to refuel. This was another added stress for Cathy, who just wanted to be free of the confinement. The doctor stitched her up and within five hours she was able to be released from hospital. Meanwhile, it was 4am when the remainder of us went to bed and then up at 7am to pack up and paddle out. It took eight months for Cathy's leg to fully heal. A scar remains and at times she feels throbbing from the nervs but she still has her leg and is fully mobile. One map here shows our campsite in the red circle, the yellow our paddle route, the green “P” our portage and the purple being Highway 60. The other map shows the number of “pings” from my SPOT that was left on from the initial accident to when paramedics arrived. We all safely made it out. It did not dampen our spirits to plan our next canoe trip for the following year.
No comments:
Post a Comment