Henley Pond

Google map of Henley Pond

(Search "Henley Island Drive, St. Catharines")

Henley pond is a very interesting place to paddle. It may be familiar to you as the home of the Henley Regatta Rowing course, but away from the course there is a lot of great area to Canoe and Kayak.

First off getting there. Henley Island is accessible via "Henley Island Drive"(makes sense methinks) which you can get to via "Main Street" in Port Dalhousie.  Once you get on to Henley Island Drive, you'll go over a bridge, and just after the bridge there's a parking lot on the right side. This is where I launch from. It's not the easiest launch in the world but it's pretty doable, there's a little trail down to the water which is pretty easy to find, there's also another spot with a bit of a rock "beach" area which would probably work well - although I've never tried it.

So now you're in the water, where do you go? Well there's lots of options, You can head back under the bridge you just drove over and head towards Port Dalhousie or you can head into the opposite direction out into the open section by the race course, or you can head south and go into the "swamp". Or if you're feeling adventurous - and have the energy you can head up towards the 12 Mile creek and fight the current.

"The Main Pond"
The main pond is pretty easy water to paddle. You can go around the island, and head all the way down towards the main town of Port Dallhousie or you can go paddle over by the rowing course. This is where the major downside of this area comes out. The pond can be extremely busy with Rowers. While I haven't had any issues yet, I've found you need to keep your eyes peeled for the coaches in the power boats.. they don't seem to be to interested in "sharing the water" and more or less also don't respect the law of giving way to paddle craft. I can't also imagine you'd be very popular if you paddled into the rowing course during a race either.. So it's probably a good idea to make sure there's no regattas on, and if there is maybe go to another body of water, unless you don't mind the traffic (both on the water and the roadways)

"The Swap Route"
This is my favorite way to go. From the island head more or less due south but stay to the right (west side) From here you'll go under Martindale Road,  and into "the swamp".  Go under the bridge for the bike path and you head into an area where there's lots of paddling to do. After you go under the bridge head to the left and there's a creek that runs for what seems like miles. There's lots of wildlife to see (birds, turtles, etc). Eventually the creek runs out, but it's a good distance. The only downside to this route is the weeds.... once the summer comes and the water level dips a bit the weeds can make it a pretty slow crawl, but it's worth it.

Last summer my buddy Rob and I took my gopro out with us and I cut it into a cheesy video.

"Twelve Mile Creek"

If you head out from the island to the East (towards the rowing course) and then start heading south once your out in the main section eventually you'll hit the Twelve Mile Creek. First thing to keep in mind.. the Twelve Mile Creek has one hell of a current, and you'll be paddling against it. I don't recommend this for an absolute beginner. Just before you get to the mouth of the river you'll see several large concrete "blocks" in the water. Avoid these. They are weirs to break the current so it doesn't affect the rowing course. If you go into these be aware that there a lot of strange currents that flow through them that will grab your boat and slam you into the weirs if your not careful.. so if you do try to paddle over there, keep your head on a swivel (so to speak). 

The biggest warning I offer with the Twelve mile creek is that Ontario Hydro owns most of the land on either side of it after a certain point (I can't recall exactly where but I've been told it's best not to pass the old bridge piling just below the rapids) and they don't like (ie: will charge you with trespassing)  if you go up too far. (so I've been told)... Plus if you go up past the old bridge piling you will hit massive rapids... so probably not the smartest idea to go up that far unless you are experienced with whitewater and such.

Overall this is a great place to paddle. It's got a few drawbacks, but what spot doesn't. 

As always, please feel free to ask questions or leave comments.

See you on the water.

Ryan.

Places to Paddle: Welland Recreation Canal

One of the least interesting places to paddle in Niagara but also one of the most accessible is the Welland Recreation Canal. The "rec" canal is a retired section of the old Welland Ship Canal (Part of the St. Lawrence Seaway) that goes right through the heart of the city of Welland. The reason I feel that this isn't that interesting of place to paddle is simply that it's a narrow concrete lined channel through a small city. So if you like exploring nature while paddling, this really isn't the place to do it. But if you want nice calm and mostly quiet water to paddle, this is the place to be.

There are a number of advantages to the canal, first of which is the fact that motorized boats are no longer allowed on it. This means that traffic is minimal and consists of like minded paddlers and occasional scuba divers. The second advantage is the accessibility of launches. There are several along the length of the rec canal, and all have parking which is free, and are nice and close to the water. Another big advantage is the fact you can actually rent Kayaks and Canoes (along with paddleboats) to use on the waterway, at a very low cost. (more info here http://canalcorp.ca/wrccaug2010_003.htm)

As always there are a few downsides, first off is the lack of scenery as mentioned above. The other is that because it is in the middle of the city there are usually a few people along the sides of the canal, and every now and again they are the unpleasant type of people who shout things at you, or have loud dogs and refuse to control them. But I should say most will ignore you, or inquire about your boat. One other thing to warn you about is the occasional "bridge jumper". Kids tend to use the bridges for jumping into the water, so keep an eye out for this, I had a kid miss me by inches a few years ago, scared him more than me. The biggest issue though is wind. Because the Canal is a narrow channel, it tends to funnel the wind, which isn't bad if it's at your back, but it can be a real pain if your paddling into it. But I would say that these issues are mostly minor.

One of the biggest advantages of the Canal however is Luminaqua. This is the city of Welland's summer concert series. The city has built an amphitheater with a floating stage. You can buy tickets to sit in the amphitheater seating (and they are fairly reasonably priced) or you can paddle up for free and enjoy the show from your boat. They've had some great acts over the last few years including the Niagara Symphony Orchestra, Ron Sexsmith, and Steven Page (formally of Barenaked Ladies). Plus it involves floating baskets of fire.. and lets be honest, who doesn't enjoy floating baskets of fire.  Check it out at ( http://www.illuminaqua.com )

All and all it's a great place for a short paddle, to practice rescue skills, to see a concert, or just enjoy floating baskets of fire.

As always, thanks for reading.

See you on the water.

Ryan.

Places to Paddle: Jordan Harbour (43.184437, -79.377237)

Google Map Image of Jordan Harbour

pin is at "Jordan Harbour Conservation Area

 http://www.npca.ca/conservation-areas/jordan-harbour/default.htm 

This year I discovered the Jordan Harbour as a great place to paddle. It has a great location - right off the south service road in Vineland (Just a bit east of Victoria Ave. RR#24), the launch is nice and easy with the options of a dock, a concrete boat launch, and grassy "beach like" area. The water is fairly calm, unless you decide to take a trip under the QEW and head out into Lake Ontario - I've experienced everything from flat water to 3-4ft rollers out there. The harbour itself tends to be extremely calm. I liken it to paddling on a smaller lake up in cottage country - minus the constant "hum" of the QEW traffic.. which goes away as you paddle out. 

Although the google map image shows brown dirty looking water, it's actually fairly clear, and is home to a fair bit of wildlife. Birds - including seagulls, cormorants, geese, and many others, Turtles, Carp, and others. There's also some neat man made scenery including a railway bridge and the pilings from a long removed bridge. 

All and all this is a great place to paddle. It's nice and quiet, there's not a lot of boat traffic, and usually one or two other kayaks or canoes out there on the water. Aside from the nice calm water of the Harbour, it's also a great access point to Lake Ontario. 

See you on the water

R. 

NOTES:

Keep in mind that the south service road stops at the Harbour from both the east side and the west side. So to get to the Conservation area your best bet is to get off the QEW at Victoria Ave (RR#24) and head east. But the website above has good directions. 

Welcome to my new blog

Hello, and welcome to my new kayaking blog. Here I'll post about places to kayak in Niagara, and elsewhere, gear I use, and anything I get to try out, the heads up on events and occasionally a non sensical rant.

Well that's about it for now.

See you on the water

R.