Kipawa-Dumoine Trip, Quebec, 1979
Aug. 19 - Party consisting of Dick Irwin and Bob Davis, Stew and Jane Coffin, met at Driftwood Provincial Park at noon, left one car there, and proceeded in other car to Kipawa (103 miles, 3 hours). Parked car in lot across from boat landing, and paid $1 per day for parking. Paddled across Lac Kipawa and camped at well used site on small island.
Aug. 20 - Paddled all day through chain of lakes for 25 miles, and made camp on the east shore of Lac Grindstone. These lakes have attractive shores, but cabins and sporting camps are scattered all along the route, with speedboats darting every which way. The terrain is hilly, and there were practically no insects.
Aug. 21 - Bypassed the main body of Lac McLachlin by a shortcut, passed under a bridge, and started up the Kipawa River. After 10 miles of mostly slow current, came to rapid with 15-foot drop and portaged right 300 yards over an old logging railroad bed. After passing up Lac Sairs, came to rapid with 8-foot drop and portaged left 250 yards. In another mile, camped on the right on top of a wooded esker, having covered 20 miles of easy travel. Still no bugs.
Aug. 22 - In 1 mile, came to falls with 50-foot drop, not marked on 1:250,000 sheet, but shown on 1:50,000 sheet as Turner Rapids. Portaged left 650 yards. In 3 more miles, left the Kipawa River and took what we judged from the map to be a shortcut up a small stream and chain of ponds running northeastward. Several short rapids were easily dragged up or portaged. Met two parties going the other way, and found fishermen with outboards on one of the ponds. Camped on a small lake just over a height of land, having covered about l6 miles. 1:50,000 maps useful here.
Aug. 23 - A small stream out of our lake led back into the Kipawa River at Lac aux Foins. Paddled, poled, and dragged 10 miles up river to its source at Lac Dumoine, which has two outlets. Paddled part way down Kipawa Bay and camped on the left. Covered about 20 miles, fairly easy going for the most part.
Aug. 24 - Paddled down Lac Dumoine to its main outlet, which marks the start of the Dumoine River. Camps, motorboats, and float planes abound on this lake, as well as nearly everywhere else along the route that is accessible to them. Found smashed canoe and body of canoeist at foot of first falls. (The story we later got was that a couple capsized their canoe in the first rapid, she swam to shore, but he stayed with the canoe and went over the falls). Passed through Lac Brulart and camped on Lac Laforge in a nice site among red pines.
Aug. 25 - Continued down-river, and camped at mouth of Mason Creek, in a nice site atop a wooded esker. (All of the rapids and portages on the Dumoine River are covered in detail in my 1962 report, so are not repeated here.)
