Green said that each year his business grows as more people seek the experience we were having. “Everyone has an innate longing to be in nature,” he explained while cleaning our dishes. “I want to be the medium that brings them to it. It's so good for the soul and we can't replicate it in any form, so we come out here.”
Green spent years as a fishing guide at local fly-in lodges. Now, with an honours degree in outdoor recreation and geography from Lakehead University, plus wilderness, food safety, first aid and paddling certifications, he said Green Adventures will be his life's work. Clearly this strapping 29-year-old is in his element.
By morning, our nervousness was replaced with confidence and camaraderie. Green piled into our canoe with us and we paddled five kilometres to witness Right Lake's spectacular falls, a thundering wall of whitewater stretching 15 metres high and 30 metres across. It's a sight few people have seen. On our return to camp, we collected driftwood as campfire fuel. Then, on a gently turbulent chute of water that we had easily navigated the day before, the now-overloaded boat's front dipped. In a heartbeat, our canoe was underwater and the three of us, the firewood and the canoe drifted apart. The warm water (I later coined it “boreal bathwater”) had a calming effect, but fear flashed through my mind. Were we safe? Could we get the boat back?
I waited for Green to shout the directions that would save us, but he did something better: He raised his waterproof camera and snapped pictures of his flummoxed, floating guests. We burst out laughing. Then, as Green retrieved the canoe and drained it on a rocky shoreline, we bobbed in the lake and frolicked like middle-aged kids at camp.
By day three, we felt like we had lived out there our whole lives. Fuelled by a swagger you just don't get from strategic planning sessions or PowerPoints, we paddled along Sturgeon River past the sagging remains of a trapper's cabin, and under Fletcher Lake's 30-metre rock walls. We made camp on an unnamed island and enjoyed an orange and violet sunset reflected on a lake whose smooth surface began rippling with jumping fish for as far as the eye could see. All through the starry night, a loon and whippoorwill called, their duet punctuated by the tail slaps of a curious beaver circling our island. About 2 a.m., I looked about the campsite, and saw hundreds of brilliant fireflies floating silently, like helpful spirits. A look crossed my face: half bliss, half wonder, it was the expression of someone who has become a regular at the world's most laughably affordable luxury spa.
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If you go
Green Adventures Kayaking Company
Lake of the Woods, Kenora, Ont.; 807-467-8535; www.greenadventures.ca.
How to get there
By air Fly to Winnipeg on most major airlines, and take a connecting flight to Kenora through Bearskin Airlines (1-800-465-2327; www.bearskinairlines.com). Bearskin departs from many northern towns in Manitoba and Ontario, including Ottawa.
By train Via Rail does not stop in Kenora, but you can disembark in Redditt or Minaki and take a taxi to Kenora.
By special arrangement Green Adventures will provide transport from Winnipeg.
What to bring
Each trip is tailored to the customers' abilities, but in all cases Green Adventures supplies tents, canoes or kayaks, paddles, life jackets, sleeping bags, dry bags, satellite phone, first aid kit, etc. Customers must bring clothing and personal items sufficient for a range of weather and terrain.
Special to The Globe and Mail
