Info on Mileage Rates, Rental Rates and Use of Club Equipment on Private Trips
Mileage Rate 2023 The Club operates on a "friends driving friends" model. Based on this model, before any trip, driver and passenger(s) should make mutually agreeable financial arrangements to share the costs of driving. If a guideline is necessary, the Club recommends the cost of the trip be calculated at $0.50/km ($0.60/km for carrying two or more canoes), to be divided equally among the number of travellers, including the driver.
Rental Rates 2023
Kevlar FW Canoes - $15/day $8/evening
Ultra-Light Kevlar FW Canoes - $20/day $10/evening
Sea Kayaks - $15/day $8/evening
WW Tandem Boats - $30/day $15 Evening
WW Solo Boats - $20/day $10 Evening
WW Boat Skirts - $5/day .
Guest Membership 2023
Members are encouraged to bring guests on trips. A member may bring up to two guests on a RACCC trip or a private trip. Any non-member in a club boat on a private trip must purchase a Guest Membership.
• Adult Evening and one day: $10.00
• Adult Weekend (2-3 days): $15.00
• Adult beyond a weekend: purchase annual club membership
Paying Fees
Boat rental and guest fees are paid at the RA East desk. Payments can be made in cash by credit card or with a bank card. Take white copy of the trip report to the desk with as they will need it for their records.
Use of Club Equipment on Private Trips The rule for private use is, "it is a privilege earned through active participation in the Club" and must be approved in advance by the appropriate co-ordinator. Please refer requests for private trips to: WHITEWATER REQUESTS must be approved by the Whitewater Coordinator (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). FLATWATER REQUESTS must be approved by the Flatwater Coordinator (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Note that club trips and training events get priority over private trips in terms of equipment. It is best to turn up Tuesday evening at the shed between 7pm and 8pm to see what boats are available and make arrangements with Boathouse Volunteer. Failing that, contact the Assets Coordinator (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to determine the availability of equipment.
Club Handbook: Click on the attachment for more information.
Club Website Blocked if Membership Expired
On April 30 2023, access to the member only portion of the club website will be blocked for any person whose membership expired prior to April 1 2023. Then, for the rest of 2023, access to the member only portion of the club website will be blocked one month after a membership expired. Note that to participate in club trips or training, you must have renewed your membership.
To determine when your membership expired, login to the club website. Scroll to bottom of Home Page to Online Members. Click on your user ID. Click on the About tab in your profile. Scroll to bottom of your profile to see your Membership Expiry Date. Also, members will be notified by email of the month that their membership is expiring.
For instructions on how to renew your membership, click here.
Executive Meeting Minutes March 7th, 2023
Log in to see minutes from the meeting of the executive March 7th, 2023. Minutes of other meetings can be found here.
Winter Seminar Series 2023 Completed
Click here for a complete list of the winter seminars plus click here to view recordings of seminars from this and previous years.
For the seminar on food dehydration, they were kind enough to create a website that people can use as a reference in the future. The website is here. It includes a selection of some of their favorite cookbooks and selected recipes.
Aubrey and Shoals Provincial Parks
August 2022
Please click on the attachment to read the trip report.
Encounter with a Bear on French River Trip
I was asked to put together a few notes regarding an unusual situation that occurred during a club French River Provincial Park canoe trip that took place from August 29- September 4 this year.
On our only night camping at the Obstacle Island campsite, a large bear (estimated 400 lbs) came into our campsite about 9:00 pm and bit onto a 60 liter full food barrel which was on the ground and proceeded to walk away with it. The barrel was about 15 feet from the campfire that four of us were sitting around while chatting (two people had gone to sleep already in tents). It dropped the barrel after being yelled at and it ran off a short distance. Myself & a fellow camper retrieved the barrel and took it back to our site. When we shone our headlamps into the woods, the bear peered back at us; obviously it was not afraid, which didn't bode well for the rest of the night. It was a big surprise to see this bear as we kept a very clean site, all barrels were sealed and all our meals were dehydrated therefore low food odour.
All of our tents were set up with quite a distance between us all; some on rocky points, others off in the woods. We decided it would be wise for all of us to camp close together near the shoreline, and so we moved our tents into close proximity.
After we hung the barrels and other food bags in a tree, the bear came back about 11 pm when we were in our tents. We heard something loudly bang the canoe stored near the barrels. The bear likely fell/slipped on the canoe trying to reach barrels thus putting a crack on both sides of the hull (which we didn’t discover until later). As we watched, it climbed the tree that had barrels, ripped one nylon bag & chewed up a Nalgene bottle with oatmeal inside. It tried to swat at various barrels but couldn't reach them. It did rip one strap off someone's small barrel.
WHITEFISH LAKE TRIP SEPTEMBER 2022
Please click on the attachment to read the trip report.
Crotch Lake Trip Report September 2022
Four club members launched into a challenging headwind on Crotch Lake, North Frontenac Parklands during the morning of September 14th. Our island campsite was a short 2 km away. There had been several inches of rain before we arrived so our canoes were loaded with dry firewood in addition to our usual gear. We expected temperatures between 5 and 15 degrees Celsius that day, so we had packed warm sleeping bags, hats and ski jackets.
We safely reached our campsite and took a look around before putting up our tents. Due to the strong cool wind, we camped in the low-lying shelter of trees and rocks. We had rocks to block the wind as we cooked and they helped to keep us warm. Hot drinks were used regularly. Some of us hiked and bush-whacked around the island for daily exercise. We put up a tarp, in case it rained, but we didn’t need it. Our campsite was a good smallmouth bass fishing spot. There was success with smallmouth bass but they were thrown back into the lake for others. The coveted walleye did not appear despite attempts to catch it from land and water.
Appleton to Almonte Trip Report
Labour day 2022 offered the perfect conditions for a leisurely paddle along the Mississippi River. The temperature was a lovely 18 C, and allowed paddlers to wear light sweaters. Our group of paddlers Alice, Daniel, Mark and Karen started from the Appleton Bay boat launch, around 9 am. We were lucky and managed to get the last couple of parking spaces. The group canoed down to the Almonte beach for lunch before making our way back mid-afternoon. The round trip was approximately 18km.
ALGONQUIN PARK (GALEAIRY LAKE) EXPEDITION
AUG. 17-21, 2022
Four RACCC members set off early August 17th for the east Whitney entrance to Algonquin Park. Xuan Qi, who counts Algonquin Park as one of his favourite trip destinations, led the group. Among the four were Brian F., Sergey K. and Jane M. We truly hit the jackpot in terms of weather….we were blessed with warm, sunny skies and calm winds, with just enough breeze to keep us cool. The fine weather lasted until Sunday but thanks to continued internet reception at our campsite (Hwy 60 was not far away), we were able to track the weather on a daily basis, including the big rain forecast for Sunday. We packed up early and made it back to our Whitney dock put-in by 11 a.m., well in advance of the rain.
Burritts Rapids Family Report
Sunday, August 14, 2022
Highlights of our trip on the Rideau Canal:
- We learned how locks work and we got to paddle through the lock at Burritts Rapids!
- We watched several great blue herons, Canada Geese, an osprey, and a frog.
- We saw cattails and Black-eyed Susan flowers.
- We saw what seemed like a loud bi-plane but we think it may have been a drone!
- We paddled 5 km to Nicholson lock station and then 5 km back to Burritts lock station.
EXPLORATION OF PETRIE ISLAND
SAT. AUG. 13, 2022
Saturday, August 13th offered perfect conditions for a leisurely paddle around Petrie Island. The day dawned warm and sunny with minimal wind; in short, a gorgeous paddling day. Ten paddlers – Alice G., Adam G., Chihung (Henry) L., Kim M., Jane M., Daniel T., Tracey V. and kayakers Wendy C. and Louise G. set out for Petrie and the challenge of first navigating the 417 highway closure.
Our Day at the Beach
On July 30th seven of us enjoyed a family day trip to Anniversary Park, Kemptville. We paddled down Kemptville Creek against a head wind. We saw a turtle on a log, several sets of ducks and three great blue herons. We saw cattails and waterlilies. We crossed the Rideau River. A short distance west, we took a look at Second Beach and the Main Beach of Rideau River Provincial Park. We decided to stop at Second Beach which was very quiet.
Sand toys appeared thanks to our parents! We built a castle with a moat, went swimming and played catch with beach balls. After a few hours we ate our lunches. Second Beach became more crowded. We spun around on a novel play structure. We got back into the canoes and paddled back to Anniversary Park with a light tail wind. Some of us blew bubbles and some of us took a nap. We travelled about 10 km in all.