鈥淲e are go canoeing!鈥 my two-year-old exclaimed, wriggling out of her sleeping bag. 鈥淕et up, Mommy! We are go canoeing!鈥
The sun had just risen on the first morning of our five-day wilderness canoe trip on Jackson Lake, in Wyoming鈥檚 Grand Teton National Park, and Josephine was more enthusiastic than any child should be before her parents have had coffee. To be honest, though, I couldn鈥檛 blame her. Our tent was tucked into a spruce forest above a pebble beach, and beyond the beach stretched miles of clear water,听framed by the serrated, snow-dappled peaks of the Teton Range. The day would consist of breakfast on the beach, a leisurely three-mile paddle to our next campsite, and an afternoon of swimming and playing in the sun.
It all felt just about perfect, especially compared to the previous week, which we鈥檇 spent car camping while driving from our home in Colorado to Wyoming. The front country was packed with travelers trying to escape in a COVID-responsible way, and securing a patch of ground to sleep on felt like a nightly competition. The campsites we did find were often dusty or loud. I craved the kind of exquisite views and deep solitude that only come听from schlepping your stuff deep into the backcountry.
But getting off the beaten path is challenging when you have a kid who鈥檚 too small to hike very far and too heavy to carry. Many families put backcountry excursions on hold during the toddler years, which is a shame, because spending time in the wilderness is rejuvenating for kids and parents alike. That鈥檚 why canoe camping is so great. It allows you to escape the crowds without having to haul a ton of gear on your back, and听to reach places as remote as anything you鈥檒l find backpacking, while still bringing luxuries like camp chairs, fresh food, and cold beer. Canoes are also the most versatile watercraft. Unlike rafts or kayaks, they can comfortably (and dryly) transport听a small family on rivers, lakes, or even the ocean.
To confirm that I鈥檓 not crazy for taking a toddler backcountry canoeing, I called up Scott Schell, a former mountain guide and director of the Northwest Avalanche Center in Seattle. 鈥淚鈥檝e basically spent my life moving around in the mountains,鈥 he told me. 鈥淎nd I knew enough to realize that going deep into the backcountry with a little kid was going to be arduous. So I started digging around听and realized canoes can carry a thousand pounds听and are more stable than most people think.鈥
After Schell and his wife took their three-month-old on a six-day wilderness canoe trip in British Columbia in 2016, they were hooked. They鈥檝e since taken their kids, one now four years old听and the other 19 months, on canoe expeditions every year. 鈥淚鈥檓 a proponent of any activity that gets kids outside, but I鈥檓 really a proponent of getting kids into the backcountry,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a whole other level above car camping, and canoeing is a neat way to get out there.鈥
Yet participation in canoeing听听over the past 20 years, especially compared to other paddle sports like kayaking, rafting, or paddleboarding. Perhaps that鈥檚 because canoeing isn鈥檛 intuitive. During our time on Jackson Lake, most of the people I saw in rental canoes were zigzagging awkwardly because the paddler in the stern hadn鈥檛 been taught the J-stroke, a maneuver that keeps the boat听gliding in a straight line without having to switch the paddle听to the other听side. So if you鈥檙e considering a canoe鈥攅ither as a rental or your next big gear purchase鈥攈ere鈥檚 how to do it right.
First, learn the basics by taking an introductory canoeing course through an organization like the听. Mastering the J-stroke will help you paddle more efficiently, saving energy and making the whole experience more enjoyable. And if you plan to paddle a river鈥攅ven a slow-moving one鈥攂e听sure you know how to read moving water and get in and out of eddies.
Renting canoes is easy enough in many backcountry canoeing destinations, but if you live near appealing waterways or plan to take semi-regular trips, it makes sense to purchase your own. Skip the clunky old aluminum models and spring听for听a modern boat: Mad River, Nova Craft Canoe, Old Town, and Wenonah are all trusted brands with quality听composite options. You鈥檒l听 that鈥檚 big enough to carry everything you need (at least 16 feet long)听but nimble enough that it won鈥檛 slow you down. Earlier this year, we bought a used听 with Tuf-weave, and it checks all the boxes. At 55 pounds, it鈥檚 light enough for one person to portage but rugged and steady听enough to handle mild rapids.
As for gear, start with PFDs for the whole family鈥 makes good options for every age. For paddles, I love the gorgeous wooden ones from听. And be sure to pick up some听 and cam straps for storing and tying down anything you don鈥檛 want to get wet. As Schell said, canoes are relatively stable, but with little kids on board听it鈥檚 always a good idea to make sure essential gear is secure and protected.
Once you鈥檙e set up with a boat and gear, the next step is figuring out where to go. One of the best places to start backcountry canoeing is Minnesota鈥檚 Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Its听lake-dimpled landscape requires a fair number of portages听but makes up for it with great swimming, established campsites, and stellar fishing. Other good flatwater trips include Bowron Lakes in British Columbia,听the Rangeley Lakes region of听Maine,听or Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Utah. For more of an adventure, try the 99-mile Wilderness Waterway Trail in Florida鈥檚 Everglades National Park.
Interested in a canoe-friendly river trip? Check听out the Green River as it flows through Labyrinth Canyon in Utah;听a听45-mile trip from Ruby Ranch to Mineral Bottom can easily be done in three nights. Or try Ruby Horsethief Canyon on the Colorado River, in Colorado; the Buffalo National River, in Arkansas; the Rio Grande through Big Bend National Park, in Texas; Black Creek, in Mississippi; or a portion of the Connecticut River Paddler鈥檚 Trail, in New England. If you鈥檝e got some canoeing experience and don鈥檛 mind minor听rapids, the North Fork of the Flathead River, in British Columbia and听Montana,听is hard to beat.
Or you could do what we did and paddle around Jackson Lake. After nearly a week of swimming every day and watching the sun sink behind the Tetons from our waterfront campsites every night, I felt relaxed enough to return to the world of COVID-19, climate change, social injustice, and the myriad other problems that can make daily life feel so brittle. Getting outside鈥攊n any way鈥攐ffers a chance to step back from these stressors. But getting into the backcountry is like taking an extra long step, one that gives you distance, solitude, and a fresh perspective.
So don鈥檛 let that challenging toddler stage hold you back. Plan a last-minute fall or winter trip, start scheming for next summer, or just rent a canoe and go for a long day paddle close to home.