The Happy Camper: The Best Books About Cross-Canada Canoe Adventures
There have only been a handful of recorded adventurers who have paddled a canoe across modern Canada since Alexander Mackenzie made his way in 1793. Some have filmed their journey, some blogged about it and a few have written books about it. After a glance up and down my bookshelf, I gathered the ones I had read. Here is a short review of each.
Canadian Canoe Expedition: 5200 Miles from British Columbia to Quebec
In 1967, a brigade of 25-foot canoes, each representing a Province or Territory with a crew of 8 men, retraced MacKenzie’s route from British Columbia to Quebec. It was labelled the Cross Country Canoe Race and was organized, and paid for, by the Federal Government to help celebrate Canada’s Centennial. A gentleman known as the “Chief” (Adolf Inert) organized a crew but was turned down by the government committee. So, he formed his own rag-tagged crew to paddle across Canada, ending at the Expo in Montreal. The author, Jon van Tamelen, was the bossman for the 5,283-kilometre (3,283 miles) trip.
This is an old book. I have the original which has a large typewriter-style font and a few low-quality black-and-white images of the crew and their dog “Lobo.” It’s a good read though, and has been reprinted.
Read it here.
Where Rivers Run
The media called it the longest honeymoon in history. Joanie and Gary McMuffin embarked on their two-year canoe journey across Canada shortly after their wedding in the Spring of 1983. They went from the incoming tides of the St. Lawerence to Central Manitoba the first year, and then all the way to Tuktoyaktuk on the Beaufort Sea. They claimed it took them 10 million strokes.
The story is written by Joanie herself, so I’m not entirely sure why her husband Gary’s name is added on the cover. The book was the catalyst for the couple’s full-time career as adventurers. They’ve done some amazing wilderness treks over the years and have been recognized nationally.
The book is a celebration of youthful enthusiasm and an excellent overview of Canada as a whole. It touches on the friendliness of Canadians they met along the way, as well as environmental issues they witnessed en route. It’s a good book. However, some readers might find Joanie’s writing style a little fluffy.
Read it here.
Coke Stop In Emo: Adventures of a Long-Distance Paddler
It took Alec Ross three consecutive years to complete his canoe journey from Lachine, Quebec to Vancouver, British Columbia. The trip was from 1987-89. However, the book didn’t come out until 1995.
Alec is a full-time writer and the book is put together in a journal entry style. It’s not one of those typical A to B canoe trips. The author adds dialogue and deliberation throughout, making for a read. I remember when the book came out though some critics bashed him for including too many negative comments about some of the people he met along the way and some of the environmental destruction of the country he witnessed. He’s still not welcome in the small northern town of Emo. At the same time, Canadian renowned author Farley Mowat called it “A Great Yarn.”
Read it here.
Canoeing The Continent: On The Trail of Alexander Mackenzie
Author Max Finkelstein was the Communication Expert for Canadian Heritage Rivers. The guy did a lot of paddling for his work, and he loved every minute of it. He’s also a little obsessed with Alexander Mackenzie’s canoe trip across Canada, in a good way. His book revolves around the renowned Canadian explorer more than any other author who paddled across the continent.
The author retraced Mackenzie’s route from Ottawa to Cumberland House, Saskatchewan, and paddled the Blackwater, Fraser and Peace Rivers. There are some obvious differences between Mackenzie’s and Finkelstein’s journeys. Max packed a GPS, paddled a closed-deck canoe, used a lightweight carbon-fibre paddle, and did the trip in three separate stages. However, it’s still a joyful read.
Read it here.
Canoe For Change: A Journey Across Canada
A recently retired couple made the decision to paddle across Canada from coast to coast and at the same time raise awareness for their local charity, Loving Spoonful which provides access to fresh and healthy food.
Glenn and Carol take three years to complete their adventurous journey, separating it in three sections: Ottawa to Sydney (Nova Scotia), Vancouver to Fort Frances and Fort Frances to their home town of Kingston, Ontario. It’s a unique route to say the least but the book reads well and their trip gathered attention for a great cause.
Read it here.
A Canoe Quest in the Wake of Canada’s Prince of Explorers: One Day at a Time
I give the author credit. John Donaldson started his paddle across the country at the age of 60, with his wood-and-canvas canoe. He had little canoeing experience but in his five-year journey, he paddled more than 12,000 kilometres across Canada to the Arctic and Pacific oceans from MacKenzie’s starting point at Lachine, Montreal.
John’s got a good handful of yarns to keep the reader interested, from a near-capsize on Lake Superior due to a wake from a massive freighter to having a gun pointed at him by a madman somewhere along Buffalo Narrows.
Read it here.
Mike and Spitzii’s Great Canadian Adventure: Cross-Continental Coast to Coast Record-Breaking Solo Canoe Expedition
No one’s journey across Canada can compare to Mike Ranta’s. First off, he has done it three times. He’s also the first person to travel the route solo, in one season. His book details the trip he (and his dog, Splitzii) did back in 2014, a 4,750-mile canoe trip from the mouth of the Fraser River in B.C. to Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia. And he completed it in only 214 days!
I’ve listened to Mike present on all three of his across-Canada canoe trips. He’s a pure poet when it comes to describing the beauty and ruggedness of Canada’s wilderness. His speaking abilities are probably the reason why he chose to write this book by using speech recognition software. It worked perfectly!
A hard copy of Mike’s book isn’t easy to find. I’ve only seen it available in his hometown of Atikokan, Ontario. But there’s a Kindle version on Amazon.ca.
Read it here.
Check out my video book review on my KCHappyCamper YouTube channel.
