Indigenous Tourism at Point Grondine Park and #GoSmallCanada

The?name “Canada” likely comes from the Huron-Iroquois word “kanata,” meaning?“village” or “settlement.” Our land and history starts with the "first people" and the more than 630 Indigenous communities spread across Canada. The land that has been occupied for tens of thousands of years is made up of some of the most pristine and beautiful scenery that can be found anywhere in the world.

Since my daughter was 5, I have been taking her on canoe trips that have included Algonquin Park, Temagami, Killarney, Massassauga, and completing the Voyageur route along the French River to name just a few of the memorable trips we've completed. Every region was Indigenous, but it was at the end of July, 2022 that we completed our first ever trip on unceded land as part of our desire to truly embrace #Indigenoustourism. This meant a 5 day canoe trip navigating Point Grondine Park (https://www.grondinepark.com/about-us/history/). This is also my selection to highlight this incredible land for the eQuo #GoSmallCanada Challenge.

Point Grondine Park is owned and operated by the Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory as a backcountry wilderness park.

It is located between Killarney Provincial Park and French River Provincial Park and Wikwemikong is the ancestral home of the Odawa on what is known as Odawa Mnis or “Manitoulin Island”. In 1968, an amalgamation took place between the Manitoulin Island Indian Reserve, South Bay West Band, and Point Grondine Band to form what is now the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve.

Point Grondine was used seasonally for harvesting berries, wild rice, and game but also had a permanent settlement along the Beaverstone River. Logging camps at Collins Inlet were a primary source of employment for families living in the Beaverstone village. Upon closing of the mills in the early 1900’s, families had vacated the territory and moved to Wikwemikong and other neighbouring communities. Wikwemikong citizens still utilize the land to harvest berries, rice, fish and wild game.

As you begin your trek through the coast trail you will travel the traditional routes of the Odawa and Amikwa Nations of Manitoulin and the French River. The abundance of fish species, game, berries and wild rice attracted our people to the Point Grondine and Collins Inlet area. Located at the eastern entrance of Collins Inlet, the Beaverstone Bay is sheltered with wild rice beds, cranberries and was the major east-west canoe travel route, in ancient times as well as during the fur-trade era.

The Mahzenahzing, Beaverstone and Chikanishing rivers allowed passage into the interior lakes and wetlands where beaver and moose were plentiful. It is believed that Samuel De Champlain met with a large band of Odawa what he described as “Cheveux-Releves” or “high hairs” at the southern shores of Point Grondine in 1615.

It is with tremendous heritage, and incredible vistas that were far more pristine, with fewer other campers that we began our 2022 annual canoe trip. It also began with a 1.5 km hike from the road. To be fair, Henry from Point Grondine Park did drive most of our gear close to the put out, but if you don't book ahead, you should be prepared for a long portage at the start of your journey.

The vistas and the views are incredible. We have paddled this area for a long time, but I've never experienced an area with so few people. The area really is pristine and peaceful. Our group included my Father, who I've been canoeing with for 41 years, and my Daughter who has joined us for the past 13 years. We were joined by Naz Njeru, a close family friend who joined us for a French River trip previously, and two new paddlers, Giancarlo Sessa and Alex Rattasid.

We began with a short portage that led from Mahzenazing Lake to the river leading to Lylle Lake and our first campsite for the trip, C7.

The route was very peaceful, and in spite of bad weather forecasted to be thunder storms, we managed to avoid the rain for most of the day, and trip. But before we got to our site, we did have a 50 meter portage beside a waterfall, which was the worst portage of the trip due to a very steep incline and decline full of rocks.

We got to the first site, and it was a premium site, containing a raised deck for a tent, and a picnic table. This made setting up fairly easy, and we had our first community campfire to take in the day.

The next day found our group in some trouble. The weather had picked up, and the waves were beginning to swamp our canoes. We stayed close to shore and island hopped to stay safe, rest and wait for the waves to ease up. They didn't.

We knew we wouldn't make it safely to our campsite, where we were booked for two nights, so we made a tough decision to make our camp near a cabin rather than risk going further. After knocking on the doors, it appeared that the owners weren't there. That was until a boat appeared around 6:30 to a surprise group of campers who had set up two tents near their dock...

But the owners were amazing, and the Mom was a guide in Killarney and an avid outdoors person who completely understood and welcomed us to stay safe on their property. (Thank you so much!)

We left the next day very early to ensure calm waters and pushed toward Georgian Bay. We ended up making a site on Crown Land on a point that provided incredible views on Toad Island.

The next morning, we left early again to ensure calm water, and managed to go from Georgian Bay back to the portage in less than 4 hours, having struggled the entire day before and only getting a part of the way. But there were benefits to getting up at 5am.

We made camp back in Point Grondine Park on another peak as the campsites were full, but it worked out even better given the site we made across C2.

The next day, we pushed through some beaver dams, a couple of portages and even more amazing scenery. What is incredible about the area around Georgian bay are the tall rocky walls and changing waterways that are very different from Algonquin Park or more Eastern areas. You feel like you are in another world.

I'm fortunate that I can continue our tradition of canoeing across three generations, to involve new and old friends, and to be able to explore this fantastic country which has such a rich Indigenous history.

I can highly recommend Point Grondine Park, and you should explore this land and to find time to take part in the many cultural events and guides that the Park offers. Go to https://www.grondinepark.com/. You can also find other Indigenous experiences by visiting https://www.destinationontario.com/en-ca/indigenous-experiences. #GoSmallCanada #GoIndigenous