Temagami Houseboating Trip Report August 2019

When I told a few people that I was planning a houseboating trip in Temagami, most friends asked "Where is Temagami?". So let's answer that question right away. Temagami is considered to be in Northern Ontario and by that it is a 7 hour drive mostly north of Montreal and 6 hours north of Toronto. Just keep in mind that you can still head much further north. The lake has a maximum depth of 109 meters or 357 feet, a high elevation of 293 meters and a max length of 47 km. The lake and shoreline have been well protected and preserved as there are over 1200 islands and only on islands were cottages allowed to be built.

Crew Members: John Wright, Darrell Helyar, Roxy

Houseboat Rental: Tamar Island Cottages & Houseboats

Day 1 - Aug 19th

The first day starts by getting up at 6am to get ready for leaving Montreal at 7am. Montreal to Temagami is about a 7 hour drive and of course you have to factor in a few stops like Mr Sub and Tim Horton's no doubt. You more or less have to drive here unless you are arriving by sea plane. That said the drive from Montreal to Temagami is a nice one. The only main highway you deal with is Trans Canada highway. The drive for the most part seems the same except when you head north of North Bay. This is where phone reception just stops working so no more internet, Google, Instagram and all those necessary things in life. We did make arrangements with Tamar Cottages & Houseboats to be there around 3pm to be picked up.

As you drive north, you'll want to turn for the Temagami Access Road and drive to the very end. Our instructions were to drive to the end and wait by the phone booth. By the water you'll see where the phone booth is. Just keep in mind cell phones at this point are only good for pictures and going in the water so no more texting or any messaging.

We got picked up by Dave in a powerboat which had enough space for all our stuff for the week including Roxy the dog. The boat ride to Tamar Island was about 20 minutes. The thing that I notice about Temagami compared to anywhere else I've been in a big enough lake is you really feel remote. It was odd to see the shoreline filled with trees. If this was the Kawarthas, it would be all cottages everywhere. Even in late August, there wasn't a lot of boat activity on the water. The only cottages you saw were on islands and many islands could have fit 10 cottages but usually you would see just 1.

The first destination was a spot in Outlet Bay as it seemed an hour getting there and would give enough time for sunset, dinner and to finally have a drink. Mooring the boat on shore was very easy and tying up the boat to trees was fast enough. Probably 10 minutes after getting sorted we noticed a large snapping turtle was on the same rock and we must have bothered it as it took off.

At night the sky was very bright with stars. Sometime after 9pm the moon came out which was almost full and very bright. It is really difficult staying up late in the wilderness.

Day 2 - Aug 20th

The first morning starts bright and early. You wake up feeling like you have slept in forever but realize it is something like 630am. The specific spot we picked happened to be a nearly unobstructed view of the sunrise. You could see steam off the lake and everything was just quiet and calm. This day was the sunniest day of the trip but still high winds of around 20km/hr so the plan was to head into Cross Lake and find a spot that was a bit shielded by wind.

Upon getting into Cross Lake, you have 3 options for directions: south, north and north-east. We chose north-east mostly because it looked like it had parts of a more narrow bay and could be shielded by the winds. We found an island to moor on. The island had a lot of smooth rock for shore so made it almost a perfect spot. We had a giant part of a bay to ourselves and it really was very quiet. Roxy did jump in the water quite a few times with her ball.

Day 3 - Aug 21st

Leaving later that morning was not as much fun because when we untied the ropes and gave the engine some gas in reverse, the front part of the houseboat wasn't coming off and we were really wedged on land better than we thought. It took more work but eventually I had to push the boat off while in water and after about 10 minutes we got it free.

We got very heavy rain, a wicked lightning show, but it only lasted for about 30 minutes. After that was over it meant it was time for fishing again. I caught a few more smallmouth after the storm. At night the sky was clearing up but you could still see a lot of lightning flashes in the distance.

Day 4 - Aug 22nd

We knew that Thursday was meant to be the coldest day of the week and could drop down to 9 degrees in the morning and a high of 18. After a few days on the houseboat, there are just not any trails you can find to walk so getting back to Tamar Island was nice to be able to walk around and relax. Everyone there just seems to be like in vacation mode and it is worth a night being there.

Day 5 - Aug 23rd

Last day isn't as much of a day other than to make sure you have everything with you, off the boat and ready for the barge that takes you back to the service road. The barge back took over 90 minutes to get back and the morning was also very cold.

Despite how long it takes to get to Temagami whether from Toronto or Montreal, I think it is well worth it. The air is as clean as it can get, the waters are pristine, you'll lose your internet which I can't remember spending this many days totally disconnected. I didn't miss the internet or social media.

All the people at Tamar Cottages & Houseboats were amazing. The boats you get are rustic but you do get electricity, a stove, fridge, sink, bathroom, shower and all the other basics.