Hubbard Rock
Robert's solo trip
July 2008
(Click on image for larger view)Just a reminder that those who want to know more about the Hubbard expedition that I've been revisiting should check out Philip Schubert's website http://magma.ca/~philip18/Hubbard-Rock.html
The day before my scheduled departure I deposited my trip plan with the RCMP at Sheshatshiu.
Saying goodbye at Vankleek Hill Left to right
Beth, Philip, Amelia, Robert, Silvia. Tana the
Chessie in front.
After an overnight stay in Baie Comeau and another
in Labrador City I say goodbye to Philip at the edge of the Ossokmanuan Reservoir as he begins his nearly -700 km epic journey which will take him across Ossokmanuan and Smallwood Reservoirs and down the George River to Ungava Bay.
Dan launching his boat at the public boat launch beside
the Hudson's Bay Post. That's my canoe and gear aboard. He dropped me near the mouth of the Susan Brook. In just a few hours we completed the run up Grand Lake, that had sometimes in the past, taken me as much as four days.
Initially the Susan was shallow and the current was easy to paddle against.
There was just enough water to float my canoe through this stretch.
The weather remained beautiful all day and I camped early on a gravel bar.
My second day on the Susan the current increased and he the gorgeous weather gave way to overcast conditions.
With the weather closing in I hung a large tarp in the bush and then set up my tent beneath it.
I enjoyed a leisurely supper beside the Susan while waiting for the weather to clear.
Given the relatively high water levels which made tracking my canoe up upriver slow, I decided to leave my canoe and most equipment and explore further by hiking with a small tent and minimal gear, along the south shore of the Susan. Progress there was even slower. I eventually slept about 1 km south of the Susan.
The next day began with blowdowns and deadfalls. And I seemed to fall into a different bog hole every few minutes
Some obstacles were simply too difficult to climb with a fully-loaded pack and as the day progressed I spent increasing amounts of time lifting my pack over downed trees.
There is beauty everywhere in the Labrador bush. I don't know much about wildflowers so maybe someone will give me a name for this one.
The blowdowns in this area seemed endless and I continued going over them or trying to work my way around the affected areas.
Towards the end of the day I had to climb down about two hundred metres to the Susan to get drinking water. To reach the river I worked my way along this dried up waterway.
The Susan is one of the most beautiful rivers Ive ever explored ...
What a pleasure to walk along gravel bars like this: no bugs, bog holes, or blowdowns!
It wasn't completely however. Just around the corner I gambled on the river depth and lost. The current grabbed me and swept me along for a short distance before I was able to grab some brush on the passing shoreline.
This one is strictly for former campers and staff at Montreal YMCA's Kamp Kanawana.
I began my return trip down the Susan at sunrise.
It's hard to describe the almost mystic scenes that ...
... greeted me at every ...
... turn in the river.
Farewell for now to the Susan. I'll be back.
Since I was already in the neighbourhood it seemed like a good idea to check out the lower Beaver River...
which followers of Hubbard and Wallace adventures will know well.
The Beaver is much wider than the Susan and the ...
current is almost immediately more challenging. ...
Still with a little patience it's very easy to use the ...
shore eddies to make your way up a the first few kilometres.
Looking east as I paddled out into Grand Lake from the Beaver River. At this point I encountered nearly ideal canoeing conditions with just an occasional headwind. Grand Lake is always a gamble and the opportunity to cross the wide confluence with the Naskaupi River without any significant winds was a real bonus.
The mouth of Naskaupi begins at the end of the sandy point on the left and continues to the far shore where the mountain rises up from a shallow area behind the shoreline. Distance from the point to the far shore is about 5km.
Grand Lake treated me to excellent conditions the next day and I reached The Rapids above Little Lake around supper time.where I stopped to clean up and have a swim. The Michelins showed up in their freighter canoe after checking their salmon nets. It was such a gorgeous evening that we sat and talked until it was nearly dark. A little more than an hour later I reached North West River where Dan and his son were waiting with my vehicle.
I spent the next two days catching up with friends in Happy Valley before heading back to North West River for their annual beach festival. I dropped in on Louie Montague a man I've learned a lot from during previous canoe trips in the area. I joined him on his boat while he checked his salmon nets out in Lake Mellville. Then we returned to his house for lunch.
Before the meal was over Louie's brothers began dropping by. The Montague brothers are popular musicians. They held a little practice in Louie's living room before heading over to entertain at the beach festival.
Here are the brothers on stage joined by a doctor from the local hospital. Musicians came from as far as Nain. The festival is the highlight of the year in NWR. It provided 20 hours of Labrador music