What an amazing place to paddle, if I'd just had my Folbot!

[hrhpj1]

Well, well, guys and gals--It's been some time since I've graced ya'll with my rattlin' presence ! I've kinda been a busy camper for a little while, but looks like I have three spare weekends---FINALLY!!!

I finally finished exams the end of June and then had to frantically work to get ahead at my job, so that I could head North for a week and a half. As I told you earlier, my brother, sister and I inherited some land along the Goulais River in Ontario and not one of us had set foot on it since 1974, when my dad died. Well, I woke up one mornin' and decided that I reckon it's gonna be me or nobody---And I have to admit, it was well worth the trip, because I was pleasantly surprised.

When I was a child, we used to head up from Ohio and spend three or four times a year either camping in the park next to the property or pulling our trailer right down on the riverbank. I remember many lazy, warm summer days along that river bank playing in the clear, cold water or jumping in the Super with my Dad for a nice paddle. I was a little nervous about returning, because I had visions of every tree being gone.

The only detrimental thing about the whole trip is that I did not take my Folbot with me. I was not sure what I was up against, and also wasn't sure if I wanted to risk Nessie being handled by the baggage people. I've seen them do some pretty doggone nasty things to pieces of luggage! The worst part of the whole trip was when I was standing on the bluff overlooking this beautiful river soaking in the splendid sight of this ground that I had played on many years ago, relishing in the amazing strength of the memories, when two woman in a doggone canoe rounded the bend. When they got below me, they hollered, "Good Day!" I asked them where they had put in and they said a couple of hours upstream and that they were headed to Lake Superior, 15 miles downstream. Well, people, don't think that Juanita wasn't fit to be tied!!!!! I turned to my husband and blamed him entirely for me not bringing "Nessie." (Typical woman! )

Anyway, there will be more trips...the whole thing was a learning experience and I have to revisit soon to post the property. One day soon, I'm gonna plunk my own Folbot directly from by own piece of the Northern wilderness and paddle down that river---it will be amazing to view the area from the boat! It makes my heart quicken just to think of it.

I've included a few photos for ya'll to view. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed standing there taking them---minus the apprehension from the possibility of a bear visit, that is!! I sincerely hope that many of ya'll have had tons of opportunities to just paddle around and enjoy life! I can't think of anything in the world better to do!!!

[PeteS]

WOW, that looks like a great place to hang out. Are you sure you want to post it? The folks that use it aren't really hurting the property and they keep it open for you to visit. In Florida, if someone uses a trail across your property for 20 years, it becomes a "right of way" and you can't stop them by fencing it off......strange huh? Look at all the pleasure you are affording the ATV folks, you are a real humanitarian...
Your pictures are great!

[flatwater]

Wow!
Massive envy!
You could move there and build a cabin.
Oh yeah, there is the matter of jobs. Sigh.
Meanwhile, you might want to work on contacting the ATVers, find out if there's a club and form an alliance with them. Give them access to your land in exchange for them patrolling and maintaining it. Meet with them and agree on trails (how many and where) and preservation. Most clubs are willing to talk preservation because they know if they don't, they can lose access. If you show them you're not out to throw them off your land, in fact you like the idea of people watching over it for you, they'll probably be happy to work with you.

There are several types of off-roaders. There are the responsible types who work to preserve access because they see it shrinking. At the other end of the spectrum are the pirates who care for no one but themselves and will trash any land they can get to. In between are many amateurs and wannabes who mostly need guidance and education to become responsible off-roaders.

Since I'm both a paddler and a 4-wheeler, I'm very concerned with responsible land use and preservation. In Illinois, we're fighting water use battles as land owners are trying to assert rights over waterways flowing through their land. This flies in the face of federal law so it's an interesting battle.

Meanwhile, in Illinois there is only one (1) place near Chicago to go off road. You have to trailer your rig out of state to get to any good places. The nice thing about Moab, Utah is there's 4 wheeling, mountain biking, hiking, paddling, the works. Mecca for outdoors types. I'm going there some day and do it all - well, most of it.

[hrhpj1]

Actually, I did toy with the idea of offering the woman that owns the park (who is promoting ATV trails and beaches that aren't hers) the opportunity to lease the property for now, especially in light of the fact that she is charging $39.00 per trailer and the trailer park was full of trailers and ATV's when we were there. I even considered letting her lease it for dirt cheap, provided she would purchase an acceptable amount of liability insurance to cover any problem that might arise.

[bagboater]

Juanita, I know how you feel. I just posted my land today. I hated to do it but -some people- are shooting anything that moves. They shot the semi tame doe who used to eat out of my hand and most of the rabbits and squirrels. I hear them long after dark shooting (poaching) deer. They rutted up the very steep power line access with their 4 wheel drive pickups and it's eroding badly. It's going to cost me $50.00 an hour to hire a bulldozer to
clean it up. I like to hunt and go 4 wheeling as much as anyone but I don't do it on someone else s land without asking permission or repairing the damage done. Your land is very beautiful especially having water frontage on that river. It's too bad a few bums have to spoil it for everyone else. You'll need to know the rules for posting property in that area. Here you only have to spray purple paint on the trees along your property lines and stick up a few signs. Some places require a 4 or 5 strand fence and signs ever so many feet. Good luck with it.
73 Gary

[hrhpj1]

Thanks, Gary...Ontario does have a Trespassing Law, thank goodness, so that makes it much easier than if they did not, but I still intend to read all of the fine print. Realistically, there is no way I can fence the entire property, and, no matter what I do, they'll just cut it down or tear it down. The same will happen with signs, but I still intend to make an effort and take pictures with date and time stamps to prove that I made the effort. I really have no choice.

A logger contacted me yesterday that is interested in either purchasing the timber or the property, but we are not ready to make that decision, yet. I suspect that I might keep 10 acres or so on the river, as more than likely that would not be land that would ever become available, again. And, I'm just dyin' to paddle down it in that Yukon!

Sorry to hear that you are having such trouble with hunters with no concern for owner's rights. I can easily see the very same thing happening on this property, too. Hope they heed your notices and give you some peace. That is such a dangerous situation, all the way around, and probably happens way more than we know!

I would have been especially devastated over the loss of the semi-tame deer....I've been reading Helen Hoover's "The Gift of the Deer" (for the 4th time since I was a teenager) and I suddenly realized why I could never shoot one. I fully understand and accept the need to keep the populations under control, and my younger sister is an avid deer hunter, but I now suspect that this book filled me with a sense of wonder at their beauty and I really have no choice in that matter, either. It's the way I am and the way I will always be. I just hate to hear of the loss of your animal friend. Hopefully, you won't have any more problems.

[bagboater]

Juanita, there seems to be three types of loggers and logging. The worst is the clear cutters. They take down -everything- and leave hundreds of slash piles and quite a fire hazard. The next is the selective cutter. They take out the biggest and best timber which brings the most money but leave some to grow back. The problem is that the huge machinery they use cuts the land to pieces. The best (and rarest) are the horse loggers. They go in and take the most marketable timber but haul it out with horse teams. They do the least damage to the land. Selective logging with care for the land can be done continuously especially if you replant in the open areas left by the logging. I am planting deer friendly crops in the open areas of my property such as the power line right away. Best of luck with it. 73 Gary