We as a family have always been up for a little adventure. Every summer myself, my wife Sarah, and our two kids, Ben (age 12) and Emma (age 9) at the time of this writing, do a camping trip. A couple of years ago, we chose Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada. For anyone reading, if they are unfamiliar with this area, it is a vast wilderness with dense forests, lakes, and rugged trails. I had read stories about the park’s natural beauty and the network of interconnected lakes, and that is what drew us towards choosing it for our annual camping trip.
The morning we set out was calm; the sky was bright and clear and we began paddling on Canoe Lake. The plan was to follow a well-known loop, camping at specific spots along the way. On the second day, I was feeling very confident so I suggested we take a little detour off the beaten path. I had spotted a narrow, unmarked channel that to me at the time seemed like a shortcut to the next lake.
My wife, Sarah was hesitant at first and voiced her concerns, but trusting my judgment, agreed anyway. My argument was that it would cut a couple of hours off of paddling and give us more of a chance to explore.
While we started okay, the “shortcut” turned into a lot of twists and turns through marshland and as we ventured further off the planned route, we got disoriented. I tried using the GPS on my phone but lost the signal. I then turned to the map of the region and realized that without recognizable landmarks, the map was not very good to us.
The sky was turning overcast, and the further we went, the more dense the forest got and the waterways were just one maze after another.
As the night started to set in, we were all on edge about how we were going to get out of this mess. The temperature had dropped and it started drizzling and we were all getting wet.
I knew we needed to get off the water, and I found a small clearing along a muddy bank, and we set up camp there. For the kid’s sake, we tried to stay as calm as possible. My wife and I knew we were lost and had no idea which direction to go.
We made a fire and tried to quietly figure out our next move. I knew we had enough food for 3 days, and we brought along a couple of water filters, so getting potable water would not be an issue, but the thought of wandering aimlessly with our kids was terrifying. We knew that if we made a wrong move, it could take us even further from rescue.
The next day, my wife and I decided the best course of action was to stay put. I had read a long time ago that “Rule number one in survival is: don’t wander,” staying in one spot makes you easier to find. In an effort to keep up hope and keep the alarm level down, I told Ben and Emma to look at this like a wilderness lesson. And so they started to collect firewood and we all set up a signal fire in a clearing.
I found myself scanning the sky constantly in hopes of seeing any plane or helicopter but the clouds were thick and the park vast.
On the third day, our spirits were starting to dwindle and then while Emma was wandering near the edge of the camp, she noticed something in the woods, it was a moose. But it wasn’t the animal that caught her attention; it was the feint sound of rushing water. A river.
My heart felt like it skipped a beat when Emma came running over to tell me what she was hearing. Running to the outer edge of the camp, I too heard that unmistakable noise of a river. I quickly gathered the troops and followed the noise through thick underbrush while keeping alert for any sign of danger. After about twenty minutes, we came upon the bank of a fast-moving river.
Sarah and I realized that it was risky, but with no other option, we decided to follow the river downstream. We took turns navigating around rocks, praying we would not hit a snag of any kind. After what felt like an eternity, we rounded a bend in the river and saw a campsite marker on the far bank.
The feeling of finding that marker was indescribable. We pulled the canoe ashore and within hours, a ranger came and took us to the ranger station.
I felt a mix of great relief, and also guilt for taking them off the mapped route.
Everything changed after that, a few days later I was telling my friends, “You think you know what you’re doing out there, but the wilderness is wild for a reason. It doesn’t care if you’re experienced or not. We were lucky,” None of us will ever forget that more than an adventure, it was the most humbling experience of our lives.
Tom McAllister
