Saskatoon's River History Canoe Tour - September 2007
A keen, but diverse group including several University students, a young German couple, and several mid-aged friends offered their reminiscences of a perfect fall day - paddling, roasting corn, watching migrating birdlife and viewing the valley colors.

Indian Head Agricultural Students Ply the Scenic South Saskatchewan River
By Holly McLean

We were ready for a day of canoeing as the late morning sun welcomed us onto the South Saskatchewan River. We were inexperienced, but willing to learn under the direction of our guides. For being not far from the City of Saskatoon, the morning atmosphere by the river was relaxing and quiet. It was beautiful with blue skies, gorgeous fall colors, high river banks and sandy beaches. We were entertained by migrating birds and chatter with fellow paddlers on the river. The mid-day stop for lunch was enjoyable with a delicious corn roast cooked over a camp fire. Jeff, our local historian shared "10,000 years of history" on the South Saskatchewan River as well as interesting facts about the area. The end point of the trip was at the scenic Berry Barn near Saskatoon. All told, the day proved to be a great opportunity to get outdoors and experience the Saskatchewan landscape!

 I got to experience the gorgeous Saskatchewan scenery by canoe – Holly McLean  Newport, Nova Scotia

The relaxing river and peaceful environment was a great get-away from everyday life – Erin Zahradka  Winnipeg, Manitoba

It was a great adventure to finish off a glorious Saskatchewan summer – Natalie Ryan  Edmonton, Alberta

The guided tour was an excellent way for me to discover the South Saskatchewan River and spend an enjoyable day outdoors – Thomas Ernst  Edmonton, Alberta

Three Good Friends Try a New Adventure
By Doreen, Colleen & Lee

Three young women (50ish) looking for adventure set out on a canoe trip.  On a beautiful September morn, you could not have asked for a more perfect day.  The air was warm, the sun was bright and the water offered a calm and peaceful welcome.  Cliff Speer and his highly organized crew started us off, 22 km up river with the safety do’s and don’ts of canoeing.  After a short period of time, we learned to keep our legs in the canoe, balance and maneuver our vessel.

There were eight canoes in the water ferrying seventeen individuals; experience ranged from first-timers to well experienced voyageurs.  We enjoyed the tranquil sound of the paddles as they entered and exited the water enabling us to power our own means of transportation.  We witnessed sand owls, shore birds, majestic eagles and more.  Part way down river, we stopped for a well earned delicious shore lunch, and enjoyed listening to Jeff our local archivist giving us the history of the river and its surroundings. 

This is certainly one adventure we will be taking again, as every bend in the river offered us a breathtaking new view!

Silence, Nature & History - A German View of Canadian Canoeing
By Gunnar Triltzsch

Although we have been to Saskatoon many times for business, we have never had the chance to visit the surrounding area. A canoe trip on the South Saskatchewan River, as advertised on the CanoeSki website, sounded like the perfect opportunity to see the scenery away from the city centre and the highway.

With only little canoeing experience, we started our trip with an introduction to the basic canoeing techniques and what to do if we were to fall into the river (As the river was at low water at that time of the year, standing up would have been sufficient to escape). All equipment was provided for the tour and seeing each other wearing brightly colored life vests was already the start of the fun.

Once we embarked on the river and managed to stay on course using our newly acquired paddle strokes, we could relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery adorned with brilliant fall colors and blue sky. The view from the river really was a different perspective and the absolute silence around us was quite an experience. When we booked the tour, we were hoping to see some of the wildlife living close to the river and we were not disappointed: many migrating Canada and Snow Geese were taking a break on the river banks and it was quite a sight to see a flock of them take off or land on the river and to hear their chatter. Moreover, we saw a bald eagle sitting in a tree right next to the river and a kingfisher flying by.

For lunch we stopped on the river bank and Cliff, our guide, prepared a fire for a traditional corn roast together with his team. This was our first corn roast and we found it extremely delicious! After the meal we listened to a "Short History of Time", a summary of the local history of the river and its people from the ice age to the founding of the City given by Jeff, a historian from Saskatoon. Also, for the remainder of the trip, Jeff entertained us with short stories about historic events connected to the section of the river we were paddling. Whoever said that history can't be fun, hasn't met Jeff yet!

On the last part of the trip, Cliff did an excellent job guiding us through the maze of small channels and sand islands, which offered lots of dead end opportunities to follow. Apart from one or two times, when our canoe got grounded on a sand bar (which added a good part of adventure to the trip), we made it quite smoothly through the low water and finally landed our canoes at the exit point, which came much too early for our taste. It really was a wonderful day, close to nature as we hoped it would be and a truly Canadian experience for us. We're looking forward to doing a longer canoe trip one day and can definitely recommend this trip to anyone.

Read Christine's account of the Cranes & Colors Day Trip with a nature interpreter and a corn roast!
Story below...

Everyone helped unload the canoes and distribute gear, packs, and paddling partners. Cliff matched up the eight people in four canoes with an eye to experience and skill, which ranged from absolutely none to several very experienced canoeists. He led us in a review of paddling strokes, which also warmed up the necessary muscles. One by one, the canoes loaded up and my spouse and I took our first strokes out towards the river channel, pausing just before reaching the main current.

While waiting there for the rest of the canoes, I saw two harbingers for the rest of the trip. A jewel-bright kingfisher flew above our heads -- a reminder to look up and away at the sky, the shorelines, and the horizons. A couple of red ladybugs rested on the horsetail stems poking up through the water around the canoe -- a reminder to look down and close at the water and earth nearby.

Cliff led the canoes out into the river channel and we started downstream. The paddling was easy as the current was strong and contributed greatly to our speed. Within an hour, we headed to shore at our lunch spot. We scrambled up a sandy bank to grassy, level ground carrying coolers, campfire tools and a bag of fresh corn. After stretching our legs a bit, Cliff organized us into preparing for the cook-out. Some scythed tall grass, some dug a fire pit, while others wrapped corn cobs in foil or collected firewood and kindling. We feasted on roasted corn, smokies, salads and deserts.

After a delicious and filling meal, Anna took us exploring down a forest trail. We were fortunate that Cliff was able to get her to come along. She is one of Saskatchewan's foremost botanists and had just co-authored a book on the western red lily. She pointed out flowers, shrubs, and trees, giving us their names and other tidbits such as local First Nations uses. The highlight for me was a wolf spider den. What we could see was a hole in the ground, about the size of a penny. The impressive part is that the hole was a foot deep -- a huge task for a spider in sandy, shifting soil.

We returned to the canoes and to our downstream drifting. A small line of swift, white Tundra Swans flew over the river and us. At times, the river stretched out broad and lake-like, once it cut through a glacial moraine, giving us startling high sand cliffs. A Bald Eagle circled over the cliffs, placing the bird and the cliffs in perspective. We saw flocks of Sandhill Cranes and Canada Geese, some flying overhead or resting on sandbars. Astonishingly, we paddled past a second eagle, sitting on a sandbank not far from the seemingly nonchalant Sandhills.

The trip was full of sensations, far removed from my everyday patterns. The heat of the sun, bursts of scent from sage and dry grasses on the nature walk, deep guttural tones of the cranes and all around the smells and vivid colors of fall in full bloom. I finished the day tired – the current and the paddling spouse didn’t do all the work to get our canoe back to Beaver Creek – but thoroughly satisfied. Cliff’s leadership experience, the surprisingly hot weather, and the river with its wildlife and colorful landscapes had packed all of a short Canadian summer into one long memorable fall day.

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