Little Current & Killarney, ON

PADDLE ON

The Current to Killarney CanoeFest returns after a two-year hiatus to take to the waters of Georgian Bay. BY ANDREW HIND

During the 17th and 18th centuries, voyageurs plied the northern waters of Georgian Bay in their namesake canoes, which measured up to 36 feet in length and were crewed by as many as a dozen FrenchCanadian or Metis fur traders. On July 2, voyageur canoes will return to these waters as part of the second annual Current to Killarney CanoeFest, an adventure race that tests the endurance and mettle of participants.

The event is the brainchild of Blair Hagman, president and owner (alongside partners Joet Dhatt and Nishin Meawasige) of Manitoulin Brewing Company, a Little Current, Ontario-based craft brewery founded in 2015. Iconic features of the island that Hagman loves so deeply have become immortalized in the names and flavors of the beers his company brews: Bridal Veil Pale Ale, Swingbridge Blonde Ale, Cup and Saucer English Ale, among others. A Blind River-born teacher by trade, Hagman has an appreciation for history, which makes recreating the voyageur journey of yesteryear — or, at least, a 40 kilometer (25 mile) portion of it — particularly appealing. The birth of an idea Paddlers begin in Little Current, on Manitoulin Island, passing under the iconic swing bridge and going past Strawberry Island Lighthouse before hitting the big water. They will then travel along Heywood Island, across the big water again to Partridge Island, then follow the more protected North Channel waterway past Centre, Badgeley and George islands to finish at Killarney, which was home to a furtrade post for many years.

For Hagman, bookending the race with Little Current and Killarney felt natural.

“Killarney has a great connection to Manitoulin going back more than a century, and people boat over to Killarney all the time. It’s sort of a mainland neighbor,” he explains.

The race was conceived in the autumn of 2018 when Hagman and other members of the Manitoulin Brewing Company team paddled a voyageur canoe along the same route to deliver the first batch of the brewery’s Killarney Cream Ale to Killarney Mountain Lodge. The event generated a lot of attention, as much for the crossing as for the beer launch. What began as a promotional ploy gave birth to the idea of an adventure race.

“The thought occurred to me that a canoe race from Little Current to Killarney had a lot of appeal,” Hagman explains, “so I enlisted Rob Mellan of Manitowaning — a craftsman who builds his own voyageur canoes and a veteran of many adventure canoe races — to help plan the race, and we partnered with Killarney Mountain Lodge to host it.”

Bigger and better The waters from Little Current to Killarney are rated as one of the top paddling destinations in Canada, and the distance between the two communities makes for a hearty but perfectly manageable day-trip canoe adventure, so it seemed obvious that there was real potential.

After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the event is back for 2022 and is expected to be bigger than ever. The inaugural race in 2019 was an immediate success, with a dozen voyageur canoes from all over Ontario participating. There were entries in a variety

of other classes as well, including traditional canoe, tandem kayak and solo kayak.

“There hadn’t been that many voyageur canoes paddling together since 1967, when the Centennial Voyageur Canoe Pageant traveled from Alberta to Montreal for Canada’s 100th anniversary,” Hagman says. “And this year, the race will be even bigger, with as many as 15 voyageur canoes and 250 participants, making it the largest canoe race in Canada.”

Depending on the weather, paddlers may be in for a daunting five-hour challenge. During the last event in 2019, fi erce north winds battered the crafts relentlessly throughout the journey and caused swells of a few feet in height. Safety, naturally, comes fi rst. In the event of winds in excess of 25km/h (about 15.5 mph), the race is canceled. Regardless of weather conditions, racers will be accompanied by nine volunteer support boats throughout the journey, and three boats from the Ontario Provincial Police will be on hand as well in the event of a problem. Finally, there are four checkpoints along the route.

“The award ceremony will be held at Killarney Mountain Lodge in Canada’s largest log conference center,” Hagman says. Honoring the region New sponsorship for 2022 has allowed the race to develop more depth as well. Hagman is particularly thrilled there will be a major First Nations component, refl ecting the proud First Nation population on Manitoulin and their vital role in the fur trade of the 17th and 18th centuries. There will be a sunrise ceremony in Little Current before the race, a full Indigenous culinary experience in Killarney, and workshops at Killarney Mountain Lodge, where the public can try their hand at drum-making and learn about traditional medicine.

Hagman is proud the event generates interest in the region he calls home.

“The economic impact of Current to Killarney for both communities is considerable, as the event brings close to 1,000 people for the entire weekend,” he says. “They stay at our hotels, eat at our restaurants and shop at our stores.”

The 2022 edition of Current to Killarney CanoeFest takes place on July 2, when you can head to the waters of Georgian Bay and enjoy the sight of 15 voyageur canoes hearkening back to earlier times. ★

For more information,

visit CURRENTTOKILLARNEY.COM