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One of the craziest collections you could hope to find of canoeists, kayakers and stand up paddleboarders (SUP) descended on Muskoka earlier this month for the longest single-day paddling expedition race in the world, the Algonquin Outfitters Muskoka River X.
Hailing from as far away as Holland and Hawaii, the group of 83 teams of paddlers took to the local rivers and lakes for a marathon race through cottage country that tested both their physical and mental endurance.
“It’s incredibly demanding, every year there seems to be a new challenge,” said Steve Herr of Huntsville, who has been racing with friend Mike Crouzat under the Muskoka X-Men banner since the inception of the event in 2013. “This race is like getting in a fight. No matter what the outcome is, it’s gonna hurt.”
Operating in its third consecutive year, the Muskoka River X course began at the Huntsville Town Docks and wound its way through Lake of Bays to Bracebridge before returning to town through Port Sydney.
The River X course featured 20 portages breaking up long sessions of river and lake paddling
What makes the River X different from similar events is the expeditionary nature of race, where paddlers must bring with them a complete survival kit and are not able to receive outside assistance or resupplies.
Guided only by an approved map and compass, teams from around the region and around the world began their arduous 130-kilometre journey on a chilly, September Saturday with a 24-hour time limit to complete.
“It’s the ultimate Canadian experience,” said Crouzat through chattering teeth as he and Herr finished their race just before midnight, nearly 17 hours after leaving the town dock that morning. “It’s beautiful paddling around the rivers of Muskoka, just beautiful scenery. You enjoy the camaraderie before the race, you enjoy it after, and it’s an excuse to get together and train all summer. It’s a good gut check; you put yourself out there and see if you have it in you.”
New this year, for even the more adventurous of competitors, was the addition of the 220-kilometre Coureur des Bois course, which began a day earlier in Whitney and travelled through Algonquin Park to Oxtongue before merging with the River X course the following morning. Building on the heritage of the canal expeditions of the 1800’s, the Coureur des Bois is a stiff challenge for even the most experienced expedition and marathon paddlers.
The race showcased the breathtaking beauty of the Muskoka rivers and lakes to competitors from around the world
“There is a lot of heritage in this watershed with the canal route expeditions that occurred in the late 1800s, and then the populating of the Muskoka region with the steamships,” said Rob Horton, one of two Race Directors who co-founded the event along with friend (and Race Director) Mike Varieur. “The course itself follows those expedition and steamship routes. For example the Coureur des Bois follows an expedition route that used to come in from the Ottawa River Valley and would traverse what is now Algonquin Park, and then down through Lake of Bays and the Muskoka River into Lake Muskoka.”
According to Varieur, the event draws a variety of teams coming from a wide range of ages and backgrounds, one of the many characteristics that makes this race so inherently Muskokan. The winner of the inaugural event, Bob Vincent a.k.a. the Yoda of expedition paddling, is well into his seventies.
“You have teams of fathers and sons, friends, couples, who typically go and paddle Algonquin park every summer. They’re competing alongside pro marathon paddlers, where all they do is race. As a result of that, it’s a really nice community.”
One such team, competing for the first time this year, was made up of sisters Kim Thomas and Julia Demianiuk, who grew up in Huntsville and were one of two all-female tandems in the River X.
“We wanted to do something together and we both used to canoe trip a lot, so we were looking for more of a challenge,” said Kim the morning of the race. “Now it’s a personal challenge.”
Julia Demianuik and sister Kim Thomas (green canoe) were first time competitors in this year’s race
“I’m a little shellshocked, but I’m excited,” added Julia. “We just gotta finish, it doesn’t matter what time. It’s a competition against the clock, not the other paddlers.”
Hugging their husbands and saying cheerfully nervous goodbyes, the two took their place amongst the dozens of other boats in the water, as a cool September breeze blew away the last of the morning fog from the surface of the river.
“I’m not as ourdoorsy as either of them; they’re from Huntsville, I’m from the city,” laughed Kim’s husband Kevin.
“This would probably break me,” agreed Ben wryly.
For the third consecutive year, Algonquin Outfitters was the title sponsor of the race – entirely fitting, given the company’s involvement both in canoe tripping expeditions and outdoor adventure competitions, such as supporting the Ironman triathlon that took place in town at the end of August.
Algonquin Outfitters provided staff, equipment, vehicles and expertise as the title sponsor of the race for the last three years
“They were a natural organization for us to link up with,” said Varieur during the race registration. “They are experienced in paddling and canoeing and tripping, and have a lot of infrastructure to support an event like ours. We wanted to keep this local as much as possible, and Algonquin Outfitters was just the perfect fit, especially in terms of a heritage standpoint as they started off as a tripping company and truly embody the spirit of wilderness tripping in Muskoka.”
As for the future of the race, things look overwhelmingly positive. According to Horton, the event has continued to grow year after year as word spreads about the beauty – and challenge – of the cottage country course. In fact, if numbers keep increasing at a rate seen in previous years there may come a time where only limited spots are available.
“We’ll grow, but we don’t want to make it too big, because we still want to have that connection with the individual paddlers,” said Horton. “This year 83 teams have registered between the two races. Last year there were 61, the year before that was around 40. So it’s getting bigger every year, but I don’t expect that we will allow it to go more than 100-120 teams at the most. One of the goals we had in starting the race in the first place was to grow a bigger community of marathon paddlers in Ontario and Canada, and I think we are starting to succeed in that.”
For a full gallery of photos from the event, visit the Muskoka River X Facebook page here.
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