Looking to get back to Wabakimi

[Keeled Over]

Hello all,

I am really shooting to get to Wabakimi for a month next summer. Did the west part last time - want to go north and west this time. Any intel on Dawn or Webster lakes to fly in and paddle back? I loved that Beaver. I have not been in one, but that upholstery looked like what I imagine covered the walls in a bordello in the 50's. As the song says, good place to get some thinking done.

I like the idea of paddling a loop from Caribou to Whitewater and Kenoji and back around through Smoothrock.

The key for me is I don't want to see anyone, not even a fishing boat. Probably due to the early June start we didn't see a soul this summer. I would like to replicate this but it will be tougher on the east side with the popular routes.

So being as vague and ambiguous as possible, how should I see the northern part of the park including Whitewater and still see the fewest number of people? I would like to avoid the train if possible. It was fun, but we talked to some people that have waited for hours for it to arrive, and that would bug me.

I don't hate people, but 14 days without seeing anything but mosquito's and pike hit me hard in a good way. I am very compelled to improve on that.

One more thing - what is the latest in the year anyone has tripped up there? I can see a fall trip up there being outstanding, but fall might start in August.

Thank you!

 

[recped]

I've done trips a bit northwest of Wabakimi in September (last three weeks), it's very nice to catch the colour change. The weather was mostly very nice (some windbound days) but I did have a tiny bit of snow overnight on the last day or two, it all melted away by mid-morning and by the afternoon it was back to mid-20's Celsius.

In September most of the lodges in that area are long since closed up for the season.

 

[memaquay]

September is doable, just be ready for anything. Low water will probably be an issue in some areas, and temperatures can rang from really nice to really bad.

 

[dogbrain]

I like the idea of paddling a loop from Caribou to Whitewater and Kenoji and back around through Smoothrock.

You'll very likely see people, motor boats and airplanes on this route. There are outpost cabins the whole way and a small native village and a lodge on Whitewater Lake, and a couple lodges on Smoothrock. If you want no human contact, you'll have to go further afield.

Mark

 

[jdeerfoot]

I have traveled in the greater Wabakimi area annually starting in 2007, except for the Covid years, to the current time. My trips have taken place from May through September. As previous posters have noted, your proposed route will take you past outpost fish camps. My experience has been that by much into July many of the outpost fishing cabins are mostly empty. We generally were never bothered by seeing fishing boats, we found them be a good source of cold beer.

My favorite trips were the Albany River, which we covered over several years from Osnaburgh Lk to Minimiska Lk and the Kopka Rv. Even on the Albany, located at the northern edge of what we considered the Wabakimi area, and the Kopka, the southern edge, we encountered fishing boats. But these encounters were fleeting and often separated by days of no human contact.