Temagami

Or… “Why Langskib is like Mongolia”, by alumni Dave Roberts.

It has been over thirty years since I lead my last trip from the dock at Langskib canoe camp for boys.  I was a camper on the first Temagami Trip the year Dave Knudsen bought Camp Windshift which became Langskib. I was one of the first leaders, I co-lead the first Dumoines River Trip. I lead CG on his very first canoe trip; he later became the best assistant I had the pleasure of working with.

A lot has happened since I left Langskib;  some good, some not as good. I moved to the West, I worked as a cowboy on several cattle ranches in Colorado, I lead elk and deer hunters on horse pack trips into the Rocky Mountains for 11 years, did many other jobs, lived in several places. I married, raised kids, divorced and ended up with a desk job shuffling paper. I soon plan on changing that desk job to something more exciting.

Last year, life was getting a little too slow and too domesticated, I was missing the adventures I had leading canoe trips, the traveling into the unknown, not knowing where camp will be until evening comes. I missed the nomadic life I lived as a cowboy. So I packed some belongings and traveled to Mongolia for three weeks. The people there still live the same as they did 800 years ago when Genghis Khaan ruled. They live in tents called Gers, they move their livestock with the season, packing all their worldly belongings onto ox drawn carts and live off the land. Mongolia is great, just what I was looking for, people with a nomadic spirit. The entire time I was in Mongolia I never felt alone, everywhere I went people treated me as a friend. I spent days galloping a horseback across the Mongolian Steepe with nomadic horseman, I stayed in their Gers, I learned their culture and shared experiences with them. I am learning their language and plan to return to Mongolia next year to visit with Mongol friends and other friends I have yet to meet.

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We are having a great winter here at Northwaters and Langskib off season  headquarters. Everyone is healthy, summer camp enrollment is at record levels and a steady stream of visitors has made cheerful the dark days of November and December.

Summer Camp in the Winter!

New to the mill (and NWL) this winter is Jen Zahorchak.  Jen comes to us with many years of experience working with children and their families in camp settings throughout the US.  She and her husband Gregg moved back East from Oregon to work for Adirondack Camp in Lake George.  Recently, they purchased a home just a mile down the road from the mill.  Jen and Gregg come to us with much experience in outdoor adventure.  Each of their girls, Wren and Luna, have been on canoe trips in-utero and out, but Otis (4 months) is waiting for the spring thaw for his first out of belly adventure.  In addition to helping out with general administrative work, Jen is focusing her expertise on managing our website and online presence.  She’s the person to contact if you would like to contribute news, photos or stories to the blog or website – jen@northwaters.com

Once summer camp programs are finished and base camp is closed, (October 2 last year) our focus turns to planning for the coming season. In November, directors and senior staff spent 3 days with Rod Napier and Chris Cavalieri of The Napier Group. (more…)

Well, it’s finally happened.  Winter is here, and my thoughts now begin to shift from rivers and giant pine trees to cross country skiing and hot chocolate.  I live in Toronto where winter really never completely sets in.  While there are people running around in minus 40 celsius rated down jackets and there is talk of storms of the century, its really not much compared with the rest of the county.  Even though here in Toronto we don’t really “do” winter, the same sentiments arise once the weather turns colder.  People slow down a little bit, nest a little and eat a little more.

One of my winter traditions is to thumb through my pictures of the past summer.  I look at them fondly and think about the long days and warm nights in Temagami.  This picture in particular brings back memories of this past summer. In June 2009 I stepped into a new role as Program Director at our Northwaters Basecamp.  Along with this amazing new challenge I was also planning a wedding, my wedding for the end of August.  (more…)

Returning to base after paddling the Harricanaw River and crossing the James Bay

Hopefully, you will interpret the fact that we have managed to go the whole summer without blogging as a testament to our belief that summer is the time for many things, none of which can be done indoors. I’ll start out with something short here, so as not to risk injury to either of my blogging  fingers.

We are pleased to report the season was a success; Everyone is home safe. We enjoyed strong enrollment despite the economic malaise. (more…)

By: Kate Kerrick, NWL Alumni & Staff

In the language of the Tema-augauma-anishinabi people, Temagami means, “deep waters.” Temagami is a lake, as well as a town of the same name. To some, Temagami is a place of vacation, somewhere to run a houseboat and go fishing. To others it is a livelihood. To me, it is the place where my heart is at peace, the home of my spirit.

Temagami is feeling, an experience. It is like a smell, something that will never be completely explained. The definition of Temagami (more…)

The Temagami area covers about 12,000 square kilometers from Elk Lake in the north, where the Montreal River broadens on its way south, to River Valley, west of North Bay at the confluence of the Sturgeon and Temagami Rivers, and from Lake Timiskaming and the Ottawa River in the east, westward to the Sturgeon River. In the middle sits Lake Temagami. Lake Temagami was once described as looking like a flower, with Bear Island as its center. The six petals of this lake cover 20,210 hectares, and there are 1,259 islands, the largest being Temagami Island, followed by Bear Island. Estimates of the shoreline length vary from 512 to 616 kilometers. The total island shoreline is perhaps another 340 kilometers. Temagami country is a rocky upland plain with a shallow soil covering. This is a border zone between the great boreal forest system to the north and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence forest system to the south. Trees are a mix of northern evergreens and hardwoods. White and red pines tower on rocky shores and ridges while jack pine flourishes on burned-over areas. White and black spruce and balsam fir are plentiful. Northern hardwoods such as aspen and white birch may be found adjacent to southern hardwoods like yellow birch and maple on more protected sites. There are wetland communities—scrublands, marshes, floating bogs and black spruce bogs. (more…)