#wolfmaan

Summer Camp Experiences

By Wolfmaan

August 30, 2015  

 Each year around the globe, tens of thousands of children flock to summer camps to build memories and experiences that will last them a lifetime.  In the day and age of connectedness, we find that we are living in an age of smart phones, and dumb people. Camp gives young people the opportunity to connect with their deeper, inner self. It allows young people to remove the gender roles of what they feel needs to be done. When building a shelter, starting fires, or painting - there is no gender advantage. As an adventurer and outdoor instructor I have worked at dozens of camps around Ontario, Canada. I have held many jobs from entry level counsellor to camp director. I have even helped not-for-profit charities build camp programs from scratch. In summer of 2015 I hosted my own summer day-camp experience at my outdoor school Barefoot Bushcraft. Barefoot Bushcraft Wilderness Archery Camp is a progressive and modern camp. With parental permission we created a video to showcase the experiences the children had at the camp.

By Wolfmaan

Mar 4, 2016

On a fairly cool day in February of 2016, I had to unexpectedly drive from Niagara Falls, Ontario to Toronto, Ontario. A distance of about 140km. In the Niagara Falls area is was slightly below freezing. I had on an insulated vest, and regular street clothes and moccasins (I don't wear socks). By the time I got to Toronto it was after midnight and -14C. My vehicle was running low on fuel and I stopped to pay-at-the-pump. I inserted my bank card and noticed that fuel was very expensive ($1.06/l) and just across the street it was only $0.89/L. I proceeded to go across the street and try to fuel there. Something went wrong with the system, and it kicked back my payment and would not authorise. In my freezing cold state, shivering uncontrollably I drove off and left fuel pump. Some time later my fuel light came on, and I was forced to leave the comfortable +25C truck cabin and go out for fuel. As I pulled up to the pump I realised I had made a horrible mistake.  I left my bank card about 50km behind me at the last fuel stop. I had no cash on me. I had no bank card. It was after midnight, and I wouldn't be able to make it home. I was faced with some difficult choices: 1) Spend the night in my truck and visit the bank in the morning 2) Call someone wit a credit card and hope they would answer 3) try to make a 100km trip with the fuel light on in the vehicle None of these options seemed to make me feel any better. Just like that, I was in a survival situation. I wasn't properly dressed to be outside. I had no money, no fuel, and nowhere to go. As I picked up my mobile phone to call someone to borrow a credit card for fuel, it donned on me that I had done something to assist my situation a few months ago. I had put $40.00 cash in the back of mobile phone case! I was saved! I bought fuel, and headed home warm and unscathed. This brings us to a bunch of innocent mistakes that are made daily in bad weather that cause people to get injured or killed each year. Women, in particular are very bad for dressing to look amazing, but not to stay warm. It's very common in cold, snowy conditions for women to wear high heel sandals.

There is nothing wrong with wearing open toed shoes in the freezing cold weather, or being under dressed, as long as you are prepared. A few simple steps can ensure that inappropriately dressed people can survive in an unfortunate situation and life can go on unchanged. The first step is to get a gym bag from a thrift store. Do not buy a beautiful new sexy tactical bag with MOLLE on the sides as it can become a target for theft. The older and uglier and more common the bag is, the more it will go unnoticed. This bag will serve as your winter survival bag and can save you and your partners life in the cold weather.

Pack your bag with at least the following items:

 - Blanket or sleeping bag 

- Candles - Lighter & Matches 

- Food such as freeze

-dried camping food or pull-tab can of food 

- Electric torch (flashlight) 

- Foldable Shovel 

- Pocket heaters 

- Pocket / Swiss Army Knife 

- Extra Socks 

- Winter boots 

- Toilet Paper 

By Wolfmaan

September 16, 2016

What could be better? A canoe trip with a new lover into the back country. The smells of the clean, northern air. The cool mornings. The complete desolation of camping on a deserted island. Arriving at George Lake campground in Killarney, Ontario we booked in for 8 days of "day pass" parking. This means the vehicle can stay at the park, but we cannot. This was planned as the idea was to head out into Georgian Bay through Collins Inlet and camp on the islands that dot the area. At the time of this writing the cost to leave your vehicle at the park was $14.00 per vehicle, per day.

A few km from the George Lake park office was the Chikanishing Trail. The truck was parked in the lot, canoe unloaded, and ready to go. The unfortunate part about this dock is that it can often be busy. Most times power boaters believe they are "better" than canoe and kayakers, and will often ask kayakers and canoes to wait while they use trucks and trailers to load and load in the dock area.

After setting sail in the Chikanishing river inlet, we paddled out into Georgian bay. The bay was beautiful, filled with glorious flat water with no waves. Huge chunks of smooth pink granite rock with quartz veins rose out of the water.  In the distance the calls of northern birds could be heard echoing into the forest.

The Chikanishing inlet opens into the northern section of Lake Huron known as "Collins Inlet" near Phillip Edward Island. Our plan was to head into Collins Inlet and towards the West Entrance. The lake was a little rough, compared to the inlet. There wasn't much wind, and the weather said we would have two or three days before some light rain would move in.

Heading westbound through Collins inlet revealed dozens of smooth, weather battered small islands of solid pink granite. Some as small as a compact car, others the size of a house. The waves gently pushed up against them as we paddled by. There was very little noise except for the the roar of the wind pushing through the white, red, and Scotch pines that lined the inlet on both sides. When wind hits these pine trees, it roars like a waterfall. It's a beautiful and haunting sound.

Stopping on one of the many islands, we took a well deserved break. Paddling can be challenging, especially when there is a little bit of chop to the water.

My girlfriend, Amanda took some time to relax on the island, we had some food, and let the dogs run loose to explore.

This is the point where most of the troubles on our journey began. After spending time on the island, we decided to leave and head westbound for a few more hours paddling.

Upon entering the water, she slipped and landed right on her butt, with a hard thud. This caused her extreme pain. She rested for a moment. I was sitting in the stern of the canoe, helpless. She then attempted a second entry into the boat, and again her bare feet slipped on the smooth, slimy rocks causing another set of injuries.

Angrily, she decided that it was a mistake to be barefoot and put her shoes on, which made the situation significantly worse and she not only slipped, but slid into the water and under the bow of the canoe. At this point, I exited the canoe which was in chest deep water and clambered up to assist her.

Sore, soaked, and banged up we headed along the inlet to find a great little bay. In the bay was good sized island. The best part of camping on a deserted island is there is no chance of bears harassing us or stealing our food.

Like something out of a storybook, the island was incredibly beautiful. Large, smooth rocks jetted up out of the water. Porous grey rocks dotted the landscape. Thick, lush moss covered the ground and was a real pleasure for bare feet to walk on. The centre of the island had a large set of Scotch Pine growing in a circle around it. Perfect for camping.

Sleeping on deserted islands in a remote wilderness is an amazing experience. The stars are incredible and hang light light bulbs suspended from an eternal ceiling. The quiet is something that few people can comprehend. The secluded bay allows many freedoms including the opportunity to go skinny dipping, and basically do whatever you wish. The lack of human traffic allows these islands to stay in their natural state. The moss grows thick. There is rarely any rubbish from visitors, and a certain calmness will befall you spending time there.

Three days into our trip, the weather report said slight rain. Lies. Large, dark clouds loomed overhead. The air was alive with electricity. It made our situation feel very ominous. There was very little wind, but the electric air and dark clouds spelled trouble. We packed up and headed towards land.

Heading out into the Collins Inlet towards the Chikanishing inlet the waves started to white cap. The canoe was thrown about on the water like a paper cup. While paddling as hard as we could, the boat repeatedly got thrown up out of the water, and slammed down, bow first. We took on some water. My canoe instructor once gave me some of the best advice I have ever heard for canoeing: Never be further away from shore than you want to swim.  Follow this advice.

No one was on the water. The waves crashed hard against the shore. We could actually hear the waves hitting the rocks.  Paddling as hard as we could, we took rest in some covered bays between paddling the rough waters.

At one point, we were approached by a small aluminium fishing boat. He said he had rescued a couple of people already, and asked if we would like to be towed back to the inlet. We graciously accepted his tow as he threw out a stern line and towed us back into the dock.

Unloading the canoe we heard stories of other canoers, kayakers, and other adventurers and travellers who said that the lake was angry. It had capsized several canoes, pushed kayakers into the rocks, and just wreaked havoc on everyone on or near the water that day.