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Ontario
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| Ottawa
River |
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Spectacular
wilderness scenery and large and exciting rapids on its two
channels—Main and Middle—highlight Ontario’s most popular
commercial whitewater run.
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Quebec |
| Rouge |
|
Quebec's
most popular river, located midway between Montreal and Ottawa, has
rafting trips on two sections of the river—Harrington and Seven
Sisters canyons— throughout the spring and summer seasons.
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| Jacques
Cartier |
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Named
after the famed seventeenth-century French explorer, the Jacques
Cartier features excellent whitewater and breathtaking scenery just east of Quebec City.
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| Batiscan |
|
A
large-volume river features magnificent scenery and high-water
action with a seemingly endless series of giant waves just north of
the St. Lawrence River.
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Since the days of the
early North American explorers, countless rivers, lakes, and streams
of eastern Canada have provided valuable transportation routes for
hunters, trappers, and fishermen using birchbark canoes. In the
mid-1970s the sport of whitewater rafting was introduced into
eastern Canada. Since then the popularity has increased
dramatically, attracting large numbers of Canadians and thousands of
foreign visitors. A vast water wilderness has become a popular
recreational area for whitewater rafting, canoeing, and kayaking.
Two
of eastern Canada's favorite whitewater rivers are located in
Ontario. Along the Ontario-Quebec border, the Ottawa River was the
first in eastern Canada to be used for recreational rafting. Near
Barry’s Bay, the dam-controlled Madawaska River provides a scenic
and exciting introductory whitewater trip that is a family favorite.
Quebec's
outfitters have popularized whitewater rafting on three rivers. The
Rouge, Quebec's most popular river, located midway between Montreal
and Ottawa, has rafting trips on two sections of the river
throughout the spring and summer seasons. Just east of the old
capital city of Quebec, outfitters on the Jacques Cartier and
Batiscan rivers offer adventure-filled raft trips in predominately
French speaking areas.
While rafting has become in just more than
two decades a well-established sport in eastern Canada, many
professional river outfitters continue to explore the vast
wilderness of Ontario and Quebec for additional recreational
whitewater. Because of the Precambrian shield that covers most of
eastern Canada, waterfalls and low drops are prevalent. As the
northern frontiers become more accessible, new rafting locations
will undoubtedly emerge. |
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