Paddling Woodland Caribou with a Bending Branches Viper Paddle
By Mary Middlecamp
Last summer I had quite an adventure when my husband and I went to Woodland Caribou Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada, which is roughly 150 miles north of the Canadian border. I was no stranger to camping, having tent-camped as well as camped in a minuscule trailer. I’ve done a great deal of hiking as well. But this was a totally new experience for me! WCPP is strictly fly-in with no cabins and no camping facilities whatsoever. After our pilot dropped us off on beautiful Royd Lake, we paddled around until we found a suitable spot to set up camp and it ended up being our home for the next eight days.
Over the next couple days I was surprised at how much physical exertion it takes to provide for every single need–food, water (we did use a filter although away from the shore we could drink it straight from the lake), bathing, entertainment, toilet needs… did I mention toilet needs? Though exhausted at first, I eventually built up strength and also devised more efficient methods for doing things; and so the days that followed I began to really have fun. Plus my husband, an experienced outdoorsman, had thought of everything which helped so much. Fortunately having mostly sunny weather, we fished, swam (brrrr), read, talked, watched astronomy DVDs, (my husband had a solar charger for his tablet) and canoed. We’d hoped to spot caribou, the park’s namesake, but unfortunately did not. However, we were treated to seeing some drop-dead gorgeous scenery as we paddled around the lake looking for them.
I’ll mention that I used the Bending Branches “Viper” paddle. While acknowledging that I’m a relative newcomer to the sport of canoeing, I liked it a lot. For one thing, it is ergonomically designed with two bends in the shaft. Also it is light-weight. I’m not quite sure why, but I suspect these two features had something to do with my not feeling so tired, even after paddling for hours.
I noticed that the edges on the wide “paddle” part were tapered and seemed to slice through the water with little resistance. Something else that was a plus for me is that it is very smooth to the touch and, besides that, was pleasing to the eye, really pretty, with a beautiful wood grain. It appeared to stand up to wear and tear quite well, but I must mention that it was used on a lake, not on rivers where you would be encountering rocks and debris. The paddle was a gift but I would definitely purchase it again.
I will admit that I was ready to climb aboard when the plane touched down on the water to take us back to civilization. But those eight days in the wilderness, with nothing but the sounds of loons calling in the night, wind in the pines, water lapping at the shore, and my husband’s laughter, will be etched in my memory forever.
