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Location: TheRuckSack
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Sierra Club Wilderness
trips and expeditions
Chapter: Michigan (Mackinac)
Group: Central Upper Peninsula (CUPG)
Leader: Michael Neiger, Marquette,
Michigan (Web site; e-mail;
bio)
Review trip
journal and photo
ablum from this completed trip
August 4-15,
2005
19th
Annual (Fall) Canadian Backpacking Expedition
On this year's 65-kilometer, 11-day autumn Canadian Backpacking
Expedition, we'll explore the rugged coastal trail and inhospitable, but
rewarding bush along Lake Superior shoreline between the North Swallow
River and Hattie Cove located in Pukaskwa National Park.
Along the way, we'll do some canyoneering
in search of hidden waterfalls and pristine bivouac sites. We'll also
be keeping an eye out for massive moose, or possibly even caribou, sheds
dropped the preceding winter. We will also watch for ground spoor (tracks
and scat) from the ever-elusive timber wolf.
Destination:
Pukaskwa
National Park
Thunder
Bay District
West of Wawa, Ontario
Experience level:
-- Expert-level,
high-skills backpacking
-- Only suitable for the hardcore, extremely-fit expeditioner
-- Requires prior backpacking experience with leader
Difficulty:
-- Extremely
strenuous
-- Extremely remote, seldom-traversed, cross-country
route
-- Extremely rugged, steep/high-angle, mountainous terrain
-- Extremely bad bug conditions
...black flies, no-see-ums, mosquitoes,
beach flies
-- High heat & humidity
-- Heavy rucksack due to ration load
Off-trail/on-trail rating:
90 percent on-trail;
10 percent map & compass recon
Participant requirements:
-- Notice:
please review the homepage on this Web site
for general wilderness tripping requirements
-- 18 years old or older
-- non-smoker and non-drinker
-- very physically fit (very good aerobic endurance)
-- adventurous spirit
-- proficient swimmer
-- prior wilderness tripping experience
-- fully equipped with lightweight backpacking gear
including rucksack, bivouac gear,
survival gear,
foul-weather gear, rations, stove,
etc.
Evac advisory:
Evac will require watercraft or helo support,
depending on location
Bivouac
advisory:
This
is not a basecamp trip. We will move each day
and bivouac in a different location each night,
often deep in the bush and far from roads,
dry & level campsites, potable water, toilets, and
fire rings.
Trip info:
-- 4 p.m. Thursday
to late afternoon on Sunday
-- Club fee: $20 (U.S. funds)
-- Pack access fee: equal share of $56 group permit
(Canadian funds)
-- Park
camping permits: $8 per night or $80.00 (Canadian funds)
-- Boat shuttle fee: equal share of $460 (Canadian funds)
-- Sign up
by July 13 required
-- Contact trip
leader for sign up
-- Review journals
and photos from similar wilderness trips
Specialized equipment required:
-- In-pocket survival
kit (knife, matches, firestarters,
compass, whistle); Sierra Club survival
kits can be
borrowed free of charge
-- River-fording footwear
Rations required:
-- Breakfasts--10
-- Snacks--10
-- Lunches--10
-- Dinners--10
-- Backup rations--1 full days
-- Rations and stoves info
Additional destination info:
-- The Complete
Guide to Walking in Canada, by Elliott Katz (Firefly Press, 2001)
-- Voyageur Hiking Trail Guidebook, (Voyageur
Trail Association, 1998)
-- Guide to Sea Kayaking on Lakes Superior and Michigan:
The Best Day Trips and Tours, by Bill Newman, Sarah Ohmann, and Don
Dimond (Globe Pequot Press, 1999)
-- Teasing
the Spirit--A Comprehensive Guide to Paddling Pukaskwa National Park's
Coastal Waters, by Craig S. Zimmerman (Words for Wildlands, 1996)
-- Pukaskwa National Park (Friends of Pukaskwa, 1990)
[$8.95 non-topographic park map]
-- Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario (Parks Canada,
2000) [free fold-out non-topographic
campsite and trail map]
-- Pukaskwa National Park of Canada--Visitor Guide
(Parks Canada) [free]
-- Exploring
Superior Country--The Nature Guide to Lake Superior by Craig Charles
(1992, NorthWood Press, Inc.)
-- Coastal Hiking Trail & Maps booklet (Friends
of Pukaskwa)
-- Exploring the Coast paddling guide (Friends
of Pukaskwa)
-- Search destination in http://www.google.com
search engine
--
Marathon Tourism Information Center 1-800-621-1029
-- Pukaskwa National Park
PO Box 212, Highway 627
Heron Bay, Ontario P0T 1R0
807-229-0801
E-mail: Ont-Pukaskwa@pc.gc.ca
Web site: http://www.parkscanada.gc.ca/pukaskwa
Travel
info:
-- Driving maps
-- Road conditions and weather
reports
-- Tourism info
-- Road trip gear
Wilderness skills and resources info:
-- Backpacking
skills
-- Land nav skills
-- River fording skills
-- Water purification
skills
-- Lightning safety
-- Low-impact skills
-- Backpacking links, books,
& vendors
-- Ultralight backpacking
links, books, & vendors
--
Dressing warm skills
-- Sleeping warm skills
-- Winter-camping skills
-- Ice-crossing skills
-- Snowshoe links, books,
& vendors
-- Winter-camping
links, books, & vendors
Emergency contacts:
-- Ontario Provincial
Police 1-888-310-1122
-- Ambulance 807-229-2232
-- Hospital 807-229-1740
-- Pukaskwa National Park Headquarters 807-229-0801
-- Sierra Club Outings Department 24-hour help line:
1-888-outings
Provisional itinerary:
Total approximate distance: 64.7
klicks (km)
- Thursday,
Aug 4, no hiking
6 p.m. departure from Hattie Cove by 28-foot motor boat for late-evening
insert and bivouac at North Swallow River (sand beach)
- Friday,
Aug 5, 2.0 klick recon of North Swallow River rapids and 3.0 klick
trek along coastal trail to Hideaway Lake (rocky) bivouac
- Saturday,
Aug 6, 6.8 klick trek along coastal trail to White Spruce Harbor (sand
beach) bivouac
- Sunday,
Aug 7, 3.1 klick trek along coastal trail to White Gravel River; establish
provision cache; 3 klick canyoneering up North Branch of White Gravel
River to falls bivouac
- Monday,
Aug 8, 4 klick canyoneering down South Branch of White Gravel River
to White Gravel River-mouth (gravel and sand beaches) bivouac
- Tuesday,
Aug 9, 7.1 klick trek along coastal trail to Fisherman's Harbor bivouac
(sandy coves; deep harbor at 5356300mN
- Wednesday,
Aug 10, 7.2 klick trek along coastal trail to Oiseau Bay (long sand
beaches) bivouac
- Thursday,
Aug 11, 5.1 klick trek along coastal trail to Fish Harbor (long sandy
beaches) bivouac
- Friday,
Aug 12, 9.0 klick trek along coastal trail to Willow River (sand and
rock beaches) bivouac
- Saturday,
Aug 13, 8.6 klick trek along coastal trail, with suspension-bridge
crossing of White River Canyon, to lower White River Falls bivouac
(Playtor Harbor, with nice sand beaches is 1.8 klicks further along
coastal trail)
- Sunday,
Aug 14, 7.8 klick trek along coastal trail to Hattie Cove; optional
post-trip dinner, overnight, and breakfast in area
- Monday,
Aug 15, Travel day
Land Nav Team Info:
Topographic maps:
1:50,000
Marathon 42 D/9 (required)
1:50,000 Oiseau Bay 42 D/8 (required)
1:50,000 Otter Island 42 D/1
(required)
1:20,000 20-16-5500-53500 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5500-53600 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5500-53700 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5500-53800 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000
20-16-5600-53300 (Ontario base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5600-53400 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5600-53500 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5600-53600 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5700-53300 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5700-53400 (Ontario
base map, optional)
1:20,000 20-16-5700-53500 (Ontario
base map, optional)
--Topo map ordering
information
--Topo map waterproofing
& GPS prep
Park maps:
-- Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario (Parks Canada, 2000)
[free fold-out non-topographic campsite and trail map]
-- Pukaskwa National Park
of Canada--Visitor Guide (Parks Canada) [free, informative park guide]
--
Coastal Hiking Trail & Maps booklet ($8, Friends of Pukaskwa)
--Order at 1-807-229-0801
2005
Magnetic declination specs:
Magnetic declination
for Lat 48° 25'N, Lon 86°12'W:
06° 15' west
UTM easting grid line to meridian
line deviation:
00° 34' east
UTM easting grid line magnetic declination:
06° 49' west
GPS
configuration specs:
Grid coordinate
system
1000-meter Universal Transverse
Mercator (UTM) Grid
UTM grid horizontal map datum:
1:20,000 edition maps:
1983
North American Datum Canada (NAD 83 Can)
UTM grid zone:
Zone 16
UTM grid hemisphere:
Northern hemisphere
Unit of measure:
Metric
Battery type:
Lithium, for deep
cold, or long-range use
Alkaline, for 3-season
use
Battery type setting:
Select type of battery
(lithium, alkaline, or Ni-Cad);
battery discharge-rate
differences affect meter accuracy
Misc nav setup:
Roamer
UTM plotter scale(s):
1:20,000 & 1:50,000
Ranger pacing
beads:
Metric--9 100-meter
beads; 4 1-kilometer beads
Magnetic declination setting on compass:
0° of offset
More land
nav team info
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trips page and read about another trip
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