St. Regis Canoe Area - 8/29 to 9/1

[Brly]

My wife and I and our two girls (10 and 7) got back Sunday from a trip to St. Regis Pond. It was the girls first canoe camping trip. They loved every bit of it. We had them primed with stories from our trips over the last few years, so they were excited. Had good weather. It rained on and off Saturday and ended with a pretty good shower at dark. No harm done and the kids did well either reading in the tent or sitting under the tarp with us.
Got camp setup on Site 6 Thursday and went for a short paddle to check out some of the other open sites. Friday was a little breezy but otherwise beautiful. We went through Green, Little Long, Bear and Bog Pond, took a look at Upper St. Regis Lake and headed back. Stopped for lunch at the Green Pond site. Kids went for a swim when we got back to camp. We paddled over to look at the fish dam Saturday afternoon between rain showers.
They got a kick out of the loons and mergansers. A barred owl carried on for quite a while early one morning. The frogs and toads were a big attraction and kept them occupied. I think their favorite part was cooking over the fire. They each have their own small cold handle fry pan and they cooked for themselves with a watchful eye from mom and dad.
It was a great trip. We were all sad to leave and girls can't wait to go again!

 

[Brly]

Last fall I bought a Northstar Northwind 20 with the intent of hauling kids and gear. We paddled it a few times this year just on day trips. I'm very happy with it. Paddles great loaded up and is very stable. I estimate we had about 620 lbs of gear and people. It could definitely accommodate more. Paddled into a fairly stiff wind on Little Clear heading out and it was fine.
It's also 40 lbs lighter than my wood canvas canoe making it much more pleasant to carry!

 

[Halpc]

Thanks for the report and photos. It brought back good memories of trips with my boys to the St Regis canoe area 40 years ago in our 18'6" Kevlar TW Special. We still reminisce often about paddling, camping and portaging in that beautiful area- un disturbed by motor boats or cars. Enjoy the kids now; they grow up way too fast.

 

[Erica]

Great trip report. It’s always good to see the little ones taking to the water. Reminds me of taking my little one out.

 

[Gamma1214]

Thanks for taking the time to post the TR and pics. Great to see the kids enjoying canoe tripping. While I agree w. Halpc that they grow up too fast, sharing your love of tripping may keep them tagging along into adulthood.

 

[Brly]

Thanks Folks. It was a blast for all of us. I was pleased that the girls said they want to go again. Hopefully we can continue going for a long time. My wife didn't grow up camping but loves it now and is a huge supporter of anything that gets the girls out. She's a very active person and pulls her weight with no complaints. It would be much harder to pull off without her!

 

[Seeker]

Looks wonderful... I have a lot of fond memories of my daughter and me south of there on Hoel, Long, Slang, and Turtle Ponds... we never got into St Regis or Fish Pond... she still likes to canoe camp with me, just still hates portaging (at almost 30yo now). But the St Regis (especially Fish Pond) is my favorite area.

 

[Modified Ottertail]

Awesome! That's a great location for a child's first trip. I love the idea of giving your kids their own frying pans and letting them cook their own food.

Last summer I took my son on his first canoe trip and we paddled from the Lake Kushaqua dam through the Seven Carries to Little Clear Pond of four and a half days. (One day was spent reading and playing games on Long Pond East as we sat out torrential rains.)

One of the great things about the St. Regis Canoe Wilderness is that you quickly and easily reach a wild-feeling setting. Along the Seven Carries route the portages are all easily done by children. On our extended route we had the two three-quarter-mile portages from Rainbow Lake to Jones Pond and from Church Pond to Lower St. Regis Lake. My nine-year-old son was able to relatively comfortably carry most of his own gear in a frame pack and not be over-taxed. We also chose this route, in part, because there wasn't really any big water. Even when we had a slightly stiff breeze crossing St. Regis Pond, it was manageable.

When a child finishes the trip looking forward to the next one, it's been a good trip.

 

[Brly]

Agreed. My wife and I had been to St. Regis Pond for the first time last year and knew it would be the perfect first trip for the kids.
The girls had their own packs also. Carried their sleeping bags, ground pads, clothes, shoes, frying pans and cups, which amounted to about 15 lbs. They had no problem carrying them and they liked having their own gear. I made them appropriately sized paddles a couple years ago and we just let them paddle whenever they felt like it. All around good stuff.