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| Painted Turtles and one Map Turtle sharing a log |
For a paddle close to home (Almonte), the Mississippi from Blakeney to the rapids has become one of my favourite routes. This one-way route is about 7km return, but you can add a bit by going up the Indian River if the water levels are high enough. I paddled this route in the spring of 2020 and again this spring. On both trips, the highlight was the abundance of turtle sightings (Painted and Map Turtles).
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 | | Tracks (2020 in green, & 2121 in red) |
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 | | Google Earth view |
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From the launch point in Blakeney, it’s about 1.3km to the mouth of the Indian River. If able to, it’s worthwhile paddling into the Indian River to check for turtles, birds, etc. Upriver from Blakeney, the Mississippi starts to get more interesting as you get to the big bend in the river (past the long shoal). You have a shoal, back channel, islands, rock walls, and rapids to explore here. I did try to get through the back channel in 2020. It wasn’t wholly navigable but worth exploring from both ends.
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| Mississippi River (14ft Widgeon kayak) |
In 2020 and 2021, I found quite a few turtles on logs behind the sizeable middle island. I always expect to see Painted Turtles on the Mississippi River, but this was my first time observing Map Turtles. Map Turtles are common on the bigger Ottawa River. They are known to inhabit the lower Mississippi (at least as far as Almonte).
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 | | Painted Turtle, 2020 |
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 | | Map Turtle, 2021 |
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At the rapids, there’s a significant rock ledge and wall on the east side of the river that would be interesting to explore later in the summer when the water levels are lower and calmer!
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| Rock ledge & wall (east side of rapids) |
I should try to make a yearly spring trip to Map Turtle Island (my name) with the intention of keeping stats of nature sightings (especially turtles) for that stretch of the Mississippi River.
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 | | Canada Goose egg nest, 2021 |
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 | | Solitary Sandpiper |
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 | | Great Blue Heron (Can you find it?) |
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 | | Parked on Goose Island |
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03Nov2022, last paddle. For a short relaxing paddle on a calm day, this is a pretty nice route. Close to Almonte, and fairly undeveloped as you go up the Mississippi River. In early November, there wasn't much wildlife to see. A beaver was active around the big island close to the rapids. At the rapids, I did find a nice rock ledge for lunch on the west side.
ReplyDelete20Apr2025, Widgeon kayak, 10C and medium NW breeze.
ReplyDeleteI first tried to paddle below Appleton, but the current and winds were too much. So, I opted for a short paddle at Blakeney where I could hug the west shore for some protection from the NW winds. I made it to the Indian River mouth and back without any issues. With the high water level, the Indian River mouth was quite large and nice to explore. It was warm enough that some Painted Turtles were out getting some solar rays! I was also lucky to spot an Osprey, perched in a tree with a fish in its talons. Great short paddle, but a calmer day would have allowed getting all the way to the island & rapids.