Rocket-Powered Rafting on the Rocher Fendu
The Ottawa River may be over 1400 kilometres in length, but for whitewater canoeists, kayakers and rafters, there are only about 12 kilometres that really count. They are the kilometres that still run wild and free, untouched by the hydroelectric dams and man-made diversions that have tamed many of the insurmountable rapids and waterfalls of the river's voyageur days.

Downriver of Pembroke, Ontario, in the archipelago-like labyrinth of islands and channels that characterize the river in the area of Beachburg (on the Ontario side) and Bryson (on the Quebec shore), a stretch of furious whitewater known as the "Rocher Fendu" (split rock) attracts both thrill-seeking first-time rafters and challenge-seeking kayakers and canoeists. Mother Nature has been especially kind to the Rocher Fendu, giving it the unusual, but highly appealing, combination of big rapids and warm water. The Ottawa's tropical temperature touch can be attributed to sunlight absorption by the Precambrian rock that surrounds it - heat flows into the large lakes that have formed above hydroelectric dams, and is transferred to the waters below.

The Ottawa's whitewater corridor hasn't always been an eco-adventure attraction. It was the mid-1970's when a young whitewater canoeist recognized the potential of the wild-water stretch as a rafting destination, and just a few years ago that the rapids became part of the rodeo circuit for competitive freestyle kayakers. Today, paddlers from around the world are recognizing that this last untamed section of the Ottawa River packs a mighty wallop, and offers a world-class challenge - without the bone-chilling temperatures of other northern waterways.

Canoe Camping in La Vérendrye Wildlife Refuge
In a country filled with wilderness vacation opportunities, a canoe camping holiday in La Vérendrye Wildlife Refuge, the province of Quebec's 2nd largest wilderness area, is one of the world's most authentic outdoor adventures. It is also - surprisingly - an Ottawa River adventure. Although many people consider the waters of Lake Temiskaming to be the source of the Ottawa River, geographers know that it actually begins in the almost-uninhabited wilds of the Quebec interior. From deep within the wilderness, it flows hundreds of kilometres westward through a jagged chain of natural lakes and man-made reservoirs before joining the narrow strip of Lake Temiskaming near Notre-Dame-du-Nord and starting its southeastern run to the St. Lawrence.

Land of Lakes: Not far from its inland source, the Ottawa courses through the 13,615 kilometre territory of the La Vérendrye Wildlife Refuge, a vast area of protected wilderness situated between the upper Gatineau town of Maniwaki and the northern mining community of Val-d'Or. Originally established in 1939 as the Mont-Laurier - Senneterre Hunting and Fishing Refuge, the area was renamed La Vérendrye Park in 1950, in honour of the 200th anniversary of the famous 18th century explorer. Now designated as a Wildlife Refuge, La Vérendrye offers a recreational district filled with over 4,000 lakes and rivers, more than 150 bird species, and 40 species of mammals. The land of the Refuge is relatively flat, forested with spruce, pine, white birch and balsam fir. Fishers can expect to find yellow walleye, northern pike, lake trout and speckled trout.

Catering to Canoeists: In 1993, the Quebec Canoe and Kayak Federation and the Société des éstablissements de plein air du Québec (Sépaq) joined forces to establish a service centre for canoe campers at Le Domaine, base camp of the Refuge. The centre now offers equipment, services and up-to-date information about the 800 kilometres of marked routes and 1,400 kilometres of unmarked routes that make up the La Vérendrye canoeing network.

While La Vérendrye can be reached by road - Highway 117, northwest from Montreal, and Highway 105, north from Ottawa, connecting with Highway 117 - the canoeing routes of the Refuge are genuinely remote. Canoeists can expect to spend days without sighting a fellow camper, and should be well-versed in wilderness survival skills. The rewards of their isolation will be many, including the privilege of witnessing the Canadian wilderness in its most raw and pristine state.

Cruise the Temiskawa Waterway
Surely Samuel de Champlain, celebrated 17th century explorer, would shake his head in wonder. Since 1993, a fleet of state-of-the-art hydraulic boat trailers, located at 5 by-pass sites between the towns of Notre-Dame-du-Nord and Arnprior, has eliminated the rapids and portages that tested the mettle - and sometimes even took the lives - of early traders and voyageurs. The simple and ingenious by-pass system of the Temiskawa Waterway (formerly known as the Lake Temiskaming/Ottawa River Waterway) now provides boaters with the opportunity to cruise a full 500 kilometres of some of Canada's most scenic wilderness waterway.

As one of the earliest European aficionados of the modest birch bark canoe, Champlain would also be pleased to learn that the Temiskawa system is designed for smaller craft - "trailerable" boats up to 9 metres (30 feet) in length and 6,800 kilograms (15,000 pounds) displacement. At each by-pass site, boats and their crews are "lifted" around un-navigable areas by means of a truck-and-trailer combination. (Special bunk trailers are available to accommodate pontoon boats up to 8.4 metres long, but due to clearance and trailer design, houseboats and sailboats without retractable keels and quick-stepping masts cannot be lifted.)

• By-pass sites for the Temiskawa Waterway lifts are located at TĖmiscaming, Mattawa, Rapides-des-Joachims, Desjardinville, Chapeau, Bryson and Portage-du-Fort.
• Lift passes for the Temiskawa Waterway can be purchased at any lift location; a discount is available for a season's pass.
• Boaters can call ahead by telephone or VHF radio to arrange trailer pick-up.
• Temiskawa Waterway users should be equipped with appropriate Canadian Hydrographic Services charts, available from Fisheries and Oceans Canada. A portion of the Waterway is not charted by official nautical charts, but is covered by the Temiskwa Waterway Cruising Guide, available from the County of Renfrew. Look for suggested 3 and 5 day trips on each of the "Pioneer" (Notre-Dame-du-Nord - TĖmiscaming), "Voyageur" (Mattawa - Deep River) and "Trader" (Deep River - Arnprior) routes.
• Water levels on the Temisikawa Waterway can change quickly due to seasonal and weather-related changes, and the varying flows of several hydroelectric dams. Use caution when navigating through shallow waters or around obstacles.

Top to Bottom on the Temiskawa Waterway
With the Lake Temiskaming/Upper Ottawa corridor no longer fragmented by dams, rapids, and other obstacles, recreational boaters can now plan full-scale Temiskawa cruising holidays. Along the route, increasing traffic has resulted in the expansion of ramps, docks and marinas, and waterfront services such as hotels, motels and campgrounds. Plans to extend the Waterway further east, to Fitzroy Harbour, are now being developed.

Discover these Temiskaming/Ottawa River communities on your top-to-bottom Temiskawa cruise:

• Notre-Dame-du-Nord, Quebec at the head of Lake Temiskaming and its junction with the Des Quinze River. Community with Algonquin First Nations origins (shop for Algonquin and other First Nations arts and crafts). Site of the "Premiere Chute" hydroelectric dam.
• New Liskeard, Ontario with 2 marinas and 175 boat slips. Northern agricultural community, extensive retail and accommodation services, waterfront park. Optional travel up the Wabi River.
• Haileybury, Ontario (population 5,000) with a newly-developed, well-serviced waterfront that features a water slide into a Lake Temiskaming pool. Fully-serviced 120 slip marina, sandy beach, picnic, lodge and dining facilities.
• Ville Marie, Quebec (population 3,535), an historic Abitibi-Temiscamingue community and agricultural centre. Well-protected municipal marina. Visitors' docks are also available at the nearby Fort Temiscamingue National Historic Site, a former Hudson's Bay trading post.
• Témiscaming, Quebec (population 3,200), a picturesque pulp and paper town at the south end of Lake Temiskaming. Take a tour of the Tembec pulp mill, economic anchor of this planned community.
• Mattawa, Ontario in the upper Laurentians at the confluence of the Ottawa and Mattawa Rivers. Traditional turning point for western-bound fur traders. Take a 1-day rail excursion through the Ottawa River Valley to the town of Témiscaming. The waterway below Mattawa is wide, with steep banks, mountainous terrain and few services.
• Deep River Corridor, Ontario, stretching 80 kilometres from Deux-Rivières to Rolphton, Deep River and Chalk River. The "pays d'en haut," Canadian Shield territory and the heart of the Upper Ottawa River. Driftwood Provincial Park, with serviced campsites, is located on the river's west side, across from its confluence with the Dumoine River. Deep River features one of the river's most beautiful beaches. Pointe au Baptême, a sandy point located on the property of the Atomic Energy of Canada site at Chalk River, was a traditional stopping point for fur brigades and the "baptism" site for novice crew members.
• Island of Rapides-des-Joachimes, Quebec, surrounded by raging rapids, site of a former Hudson's Bay trading post and double portage. Known as "The Swisha" in local parlance. Accommodation, outfitting and dining facilities available
• Petawawa, Ontario (population 15,000), a well-serviced community of 15,000, with a municipal boat launch and Canadian Forces Base Petawawa Marina (open to the public). Located on one of the most challenging stretches of the Ottawa River, with many rocks and shoals.
• Pembroke, Ontario, the largest community on the waterway, with a well-serviced city centre marina and ample on-shore accommodation. Take a downtown walking tour to view over 2 dozen Pembroke Heritage Murals.
• Pontiac region, Quebec, including the villages of Rapides-des-Joachims, Desjardinsville, Chapeau, Fort Coulonge, Campbell's Bay, Sand Bay and Norway Bay. Look for an energetic mix of French, Irish, Scottish and Polish heritage. Fuel and docking services available, but no full-service marinas; overnight mooring at by-pass lift sites of Bryson, Chapeau and Fort Coulonge.
• Arnprior, Ontario, southern Temiskawa gateway at the confluence of Madawaska and Ottawa Rivers. Large waterfront area with sandy beach and full-service marinas and historic downtown.

Fishing the Ottawa: Anywhere, Anytime
Ask 4 Ottawa River sports fishers about the waterway's top catch, and you're likely to get 4 different answers:

• "Muskie. Big ones. The Ottawa has one of the best naturally reproducing muskellunge populations in Ontario."
• "Bass, largemouth and smallmouth, maybe even a tournament-topping 9-pounder (4 kilogram)."
• "Walleye. They're everywhere. No problem catching a hefty 2 or 3 kilo beauty."
• "Catfish. Try the hydro dam at Fitzroy Harbour, or creek mouths on the upper Ottawa. There are monsters up to 20 kilograms!"

While fishers do agree that the Ottawa River is full of fish (including northern pike, longnose gar, carp, crappie, stocked brown trout, sturgeon, and a wide variety of baitfish and panfish), they have another difference of opinion about where to fish:

• "Above Chat's Falls Dam."
• "Pontiac Bay."
• "Below the Chenaux Dam."
• "Just downstream from Quyon."
• "Buckham's Bay, Constance Creek, Shirley's Bay."
• "Rockland."
• "Montebello."
• "Anywhere on the Upper Ottawa."
• "Anywhere on the Lower Ottawa - it's the river's best-kept secret."

Guided fishing trips on the Ottawa - especially for muskellunge and bass - are easily arranged. Catch-and-release angling is both aggressively promoted, and commonly practiced. Several pro-circuit bass angling tournaments are held each year on the Ottawa, and in Arnprior, Ontario, just west of the city of Ottawa, the Ottawa River Catfest is both a fishing derby and a civic celebration. With an estimated population of 225,000 catfish on its 40-kilometre stretch of the river, the Ottawa River town attracts hundreds of anglers each June to the action-packed 4-day event.