Canoeing The McLeod River - Cadomin To Forestry Trunk Road 

Thanks very much BD. It was a fun trip... no big rapids (at this water level anyway), but it felt quick and tight. Made for some excitement. Haha, you probably had better strokes in mind than I did, could've helped me miss a couple of those rocks :)

I always only paddled bow with my dad, but we did some really fun stuff in NW Ontario. I miss him and canoeing so much! Gotta get myself a kayak because I don't have a reliable paddling partner.

@@cattymajiv Missing your dad, your canoe partner is sad, so sorry. I was in the same boat so to speak when mine passed...years later I took a course in solo canoeing. Nothing better than a solo lake or river canoe trip to free you mind, body and soul. I don't get that same feeling in a kayak nor even on the trail. Canada has great canoe instruction available. Check wikipedia for a "list of paddlesports organizations in Canada" with Paddle Canada being at the top of the list. And if you know who Becky Mason is she has some wonderful videos out..great skill building. Take care!

Awesome man, glad to hear it!! Thanks so much.

Same here cheers fellow albertans

It's my pleasure!! Glad to hear it Bryan, it'd be nice to have you along. Thank you for watching.

Thanks very much David. It is a small river, but moves pretty quickly in this stretch. Other than a few obstacles, and one or two close calls, it was a ton of fun!! Thank you for watching and commenting.

Hey thanks very much. I'm glad you enjoyed the river view!! I paddled over many deep pools...How was the fishing?

Same here. I'm very familiar with that beautiful area, but I didn't think you could paddle it very far, since it's so shallow and fast moving. High water will move even faster, that close to the source, in the mountains. It's a wonderful area so full of great memories for me! ❤

Haha, no problem. I glad you enjoyed the view from the river. It was my first time to Cadomin, I will definitely be going back to that area again. Thanks for taking the time.

Hey Jason, it was a blast. Even in this lowish/medium flow, the river was moving pretty quick. It made for a very exciting day on the water. Thanks so much, take care man.

For me a kayak is definately the way to go! But not alone on a fast moving rocky river like this! I'm an old lady and a chicken!

Thanks very much. It is from 1988, and I bought it in 2014. I am the third owner as far as I know. It has had some repairs over the years, but otherwise has been well taken care of. I try to maintain it the best I can. Do you paddle yours anymore? If not, hopefully someday :) Thanks for the comment, take care.

I'm glad to hear that it brings back great memories. The North Saskatchewan River in that section is fantastic. I've done those trips many times and it is always a blast. Yep, the water is cold without a wet suit, it gets your attention quick!! Thanks for watching and commenting, take care.

Thanks very much. Yeah this was an exciting paddle for sure. I think there would be lots of good adventures in the Cadomin area.

Thanks very much Miller. It's always nice to hear from you. Summer is going good. I am well, and hope you are too. I hope you are having a great summer. Take care.

It's my pleasure. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It sure is a nice area , I will definitely try and get back there again to check it out more. Thanks for watching and commenting.

Thanks very much. Greetings from Alberta. Have a great day too!!

Lots of exposed rocks at this level, but otherwise it was a good level for canoeing. Less flow would be difficult. Higher water would bring other challenges. Indeed, a beauty of a river. I had a blast. Thanks for watching.

No worries at all... it's pretty safe to say that I am not the greatest at leaving comments. There were some tricky spots for sure, and I may have gotten lucky once or twice. Even though it was lowish water and rocky, I think I caught it at a good flow... any more may have been a problem. Thanks, take care.

It's a small river here, but moves pretty fast for most of the run. One definitely has to be aware of sweepers and other trees in the river, they could ruin your day pretty quick. Other than that, it was an exciting and fun section to canoe. Indeed, the weather was perfect... hot and sunny, with no strong winds to push the canoe around. Thanks very much Robbie, I hope you have a great summer too.

Thanks to you Sir. Yeah it is a tight run with a few obstacles. I definitely had to scout some sections. Yep, I got a little too close to that one tree :) All in all though, it was a great day on the water. Thanks for taking the time.

Thanks Gary. It was a nice day for a bike ride:) Yes it is a very pretty area... I hope to get back there again sometime. Haha, yeah she's a loud canoe when bouncing in the waves. I love it too!! Take care man.

It's cold water, but not glacial cold. I had a wet-suit on, just in case the river wanted to give me a bath :) Thanks for watching Udo, take care.

Thanks very much Connie. Yeah nice clean cold water on a hot day is perfect. This was a pretty little river with great camping spots all along it's banks.

@@nickharland3795 I have camped in/on many of them, but I'm trying not to let that secret out! Thanks for the beautiful video. As a looong time paddler (long on time but short on skills), it made me feel so happy, almost like being there! Can't wait to checkout more of your adventures. 😉 ✌🏼

Thanks very much. It is a very pretty part of Alberta, I hope to visit there again sometime. Yeah it's a small river here, but has good current the whole way. I agree, I think high water would make it a bit scary. I'm quite happy to have paddled it at the water level that I did. Thanks for watching, take care.

You're very welcome. It was my pleasure. Thank you for taking the time.

Thanks very much David. Yeah I was anxious to see this part of the river for myself. It was a very exciting day on the water, in a beautiful part of the province.

Hi Terry. I'm glad you enjoyed. Thanks very much. All the best to you too my friend. Nick

I'm not surprised to hear that. There looked like lots of good deep pools.

As a non fishing swimmer who feels compelled to swim in every body of water I come to, but is now too old and injured to spend much time in water over my head, I just hate the fact that every river bottom is full of hooks. You need to wear need steel soled boots to swim in these rivers! I don't see the attraction of fishing. I love to hike around, or to sit and enjoy the sun, maybe read a book, or paddle around, but to me fishing is nonsensical. Fishermen also tend to strew their garbage everywhere. Few of them are true nature lovers. They are a different breed from paddlers. They want to drive right to the water's edge, with their beer, and to have a McDonald's within a 5 minute drive. I can forgive paddlers for throwing in a line now + then. But I see us a different breed entirely.

My pleasure!! I was anxious to see what this part of the river was like too. It was an exciting ride.

Well thanks very much, I appreciate that. Not at all, I'm happy to try and help.

Cheers!!

Lucky people who live within a reasonable drive of such beauty. For Edmontonians, a 3 hour drive each way (plus AT LEAST 1/2 day of preps + clean up/putting stuff away on each end) is not a doable 1 day trip. You need a sleep on either end, adding a huge amount of time and money to it! Not doable for an old lady like me, at least unless I have a friend to go with. Which is why I LOVE this video and others like it, whether it's paddling, skiing, hiking, riding, or whatever! ❤❤❤

I second hello from Edson !!!!our playground 🍻

My pleasure guys. Thanks for taking the time.

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

Thanks very much. It was an exciting day on the water. I hope you are getting some hiking trips in this year. Take care man.

Thanks so much Jim. I hope you are having a good summer.

Thanks very much Woods. It was a very nice day altogether. All the best Woods, Nick.

That sounds like a great place to have a cabin. This section of the McLeod was fun, but also had some hazards to be aware of. The section down from the Steeper Bridge is also fun, and safer overall. It was a nice ride in the canoe, stayed pretty dry and was definitely warm. Thanks for checking it out.

Yep, I am only into canoes. You are correct, the prices for canoes are very high these days. Unfortunate, as it is likely keeping many people away from the sport. Thank you for watching and commenting.

Yeah there are some really nice runs on the McLeod River. Just a great area overall, and good camping everywhere. Haha, yeah it'd be difficult with a heavy canoe. The old station wagon would make for it's own exciting trip:) Thanks for taking the time.

It was definitely exciting! Thanks very much Douglas.

It was my pleasure. I'm glad to hear that it brought back great memories. Thanks very much, take care.

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks very much.

Thanks very much Quinn, I appreciate it.

@@nickharland3795 You will get them. I know many people who watch horseback riding all day long. This is an excellent fit with that, so I will share your video with them, some are also canoeists/kayakers.

Hi Brian. This trip had class II rapids and many fast corners that required maneuvering, so I used this red Mad River ME. It is a whitewater canoe... great in the fast water, but not good in the slow flat river and lake paddling. The yellow canoe that I use on other trips (Clipper Prospector 16') is much more versatile and better for regular canoe trips. It is faster, tracks in a straight line better, and can haul much more gear. I think most manufacturers have a Prospector model, 14', 16' or 17'. The 14' and 16' could be turned around and paddled solo. Thanks for the comment, I appreciate you taking the time.

Thanks very much. No chance of me paddling this upstream :) I suppose it could be poled if someone really wanted to.

🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣

Thanks Tyler. I'm no trout fisherman, but there are rainbow, eastern brook, and bull trout in this river. Yeah, I love this old canoe. It's super maneuverable. Thanks for taking the time, cheers!

Thanks very much. It was about 23 km in total, give or take. That's based on the odometer in my truck. Including a lunch break, and some scouting along the way, it took 5 hours.

Its flotation. Keeps the canoe from completely filling up with water. Kinda like a life jacket for the boat

Like Gary said, they are flotation bags. They make recovering from a capsize or swamping much easier. I was pretty confident that I wouldn't be taking on much water during this trip. It is a small river here, and the water levels were medium to low. It was technical at times, but the rapids were not big. Thanks for watching Chris, take care.

Thanks very much John. Including a lunch break and some scouting, it took me about 5 hours to complete. There are some nice deep pools in there... I would imagine there is good trout fishing.

I haven't thrown a fly. Most of my fishing occurs on lakes in an aluminum boat:)

@@nickharland3795 Yes. It's a great place for trout! 😉 ✌🏼

I have never been to the caves myself. I heard they were pretty cool and interesting. Apparently they have been closed to the public since 2010 in order to protect the bat population.

This was my first time in Cadomin, so I've never seen it at high water. But I imagine it could be a bit scary. Although there would be more room to work with, it would also be pushing harder into some of the sweepers and rock faces. I was aiming to catch it between 10 and 20 cm/s. I'm quite happy to have paddled it at the level I did (11cm/s). Thanks for watching Jerry, take care.

Just enough indeed. It turned out to be a nice level for canoeing. A little more water would've been OK, but high water would be very challenging due to sweepers. Less water and I would be hitting bottom constantly.

Thanks very much Eric. I appreciate you taking the time.

@@nickharland3795 It was a great watch while I was eating dinner the other night. I was surprised how fast you were going with all those boulders in the water. That would have scared the crap out of me

Yeah it is a small river here, but has strong current the whole way. Many rocks and obstacles to avoid. Thanks again Eric, take care man.

Thanks very much Ian. Yeah I definitely scouted some of the blinds. All in all, it was a lot of fun and a good day on the water.

Thanks very much Ian. This was a great day on the water, in a very pretty part of Alberta. Including a lunch break and some river scouting along the way, it took me 5 hours to complete. Thanks, take care.

My first ever canoe trips were on the North Saskatchewan River between Drayton Valley and Edmonton. Genesee to Edmonton (Laurier Park) is a two day trip. Berrymore Bridge (Hwy 759) to Devon would be a two/two and a half day trip. Drayton Valley to Genesse is a two day trip, with a bit stronger current in the first half of the trip. Thanks Terrence, I hope that helps a bit.

@nickharland3795 Thank you very much! Looking to get out on the Athabasca eventually, and hunt from canoe.

The Athabasca is a great river!

@@terrencebrown6105 The places he mentioned are very good. Within Edmonton it's not hard to paddle down river (or up) and pull out at any of the many bridges. There are docks at a few places just south of the old dowtown power plant. The best one is just a few feet south of the old blue Dawson Bridge, on the northwest or left side facing downstream, just after downtown. I just wanted to add that Edmonton has some excellent clubs for paddlers, both canoe and kayak, and my favorite among them all is the Grant MacEwen Mountain Club. They meet monthly year round, and the large membership are involved in all of the outdoors pursuits, locally and in the more mountainous areas. In summer they obviously do a lot of hiking, but they don't limit themselves to that by any means. And in winter they do a lot of skiing, both downhill and cross country. But the members and the club are into all things outdoors, and at all ages and ability levels. Some trips are just day trips nearby, and some are several days long. Some require certain relevant safety certificates, depending on the activity and the area chosen. They have a website which you should check out. Just be sure that you spell MacEwen correctly. They are NOT affiliated with the MacEwen University in Edmonton, which was also named after the same guy. The club has been in operation for at least 40 years as far as I know, and they have an excellent safety record, which is very important for sports which do have inherent risks. If I can get a link to the website I will come back and attach it to this msg. If It's not here when you read this, that means RU-vid blocked me from posting it, and you will have to Google for the club's website. Last time I checked, the website wasn't that great, as they try not to spend big bucks on that stuff. But the club itself IS GREAT, so do go to a meeting and check it out!

There is a lot of great information here... thank you very much.