Eight Days and Eight Women On Canoe Quest In Temagami , Canada
Caryn Colman - March 23, 2002

Like a tiny butterfly migration, it happens each summer. A handful of women set aside their workday worlds, leave families to fend for themselves, and travel to the wilderness of northern Ontario for a celebration by canoe.

The women are drawn to Temagami, a region famous for ancient pine forests, 2,400 km of interconnecting lakes and rivers, Ontario 's highest mountains, and vibrant Anishnabe heritage. It was also the 'birthplace' Grey Owl, a.k.a., Archie Belaney who metamorphisized as an Indian Chief, and preached conservation before it was sexy.

Once there they gather at Smoothwater Outfitters and Ecolodge, a year round retreat specializing in various adventures for the body, mind and spirit. On this occasion it's the annual Women's Quest: a nurturing, soul awakening canoe trip blending adventure, spirituality, friendship with watercolour painting and yoga.

Temagami gave the women got more than they bargained for. In our mind's eye, there is a difference between telling someone they're expected to carry a 60 lb. pack over a portage and doing it. Sweat, sore muscles, and sometimes fear may dampen the spirit. But it is temporary. A big part of a canoe trip is doing things you didn't think you could do. You learn to push yourself and you begin to realize that there are no such things as limits anymore. "I had forgotten that I enjoy living physically and being outdoors; that I am stronger than I thought I was." On a canoe trip one does not get from A to B without muscle power. It makes one honest. The rhythmic dip of the paddle becomes a moving meditation. You must know where your feet are on a rooty and rocky portage, or you trip. Your body must balance your pack, the tump line taut. "A canoe tripping encapsulates the present. It is a very Zen experience." Your body continually reminds you that you are alive, a spiritual being having a physical experience.

If physical activity is a catalyst for bringing about self confidence and pride, it also sets a tone and rhythm that has the power to put one's life into perspective. You soon understand why we are not a nomadic society. Making and breaking camp daily is a tremendous amount of work. We are also a society of ownership; personal collections and accoutrements decorate our homes, define our existence. On a canoe trip, things are stripped down to the minimum because you must carry it all. "It was heavenly to be unfettered, free and for a moment, without the need of money." On trip, you are reduced to the essentials so you can travel to places that are inaccessible otherwise. Motor boats, coolers, aluminum chairs and lanterns are replaced by lightweight canoes, dehydrated food, rocks, logs and firelight.

Not that a canoe trip should be without luxuries; far from it. The quality of gear and the packing systems all contribute, in fact dictate, one's comfort level. But the one most important element on trip is the cuisine. It must not only be nutritious to replenish the bodies esssential needs, it must also have the power to lift the spirit, just as if you were at your favourite restaurant. "I consider myself a discerning cook but I never would have known that food on trip could be so creative and delicious; simply wonderful." Apple-ginger pancakes with real maple syrup, Chicken teriyaki stirfry, Spaghetti Bolognese with red wine, Braised onions, cabbage and salmon with Voyageur bannock, lemon poppyseed loaf, chocolate cake, extra old cheddar cheese and summer sausage, carrot and celery sticks, hearty black bean soup; mealtimes are delightful opportunities to rest and indulge. Lunches are usually on the go, taken on shore. But in the evening you can linger around the campfire, drinking Cedar or Sweet Fern tea picked fresh that night. We share personal stories, retelling tales about Grey Owl, the Anishinabe Wendigo or gazing above, mouth's open, at the Milky Way.