FLATWATER
Saugeen River
Information for planning a canoe trip down the Saugeen River in southwestern Ontario.
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If you're looking for a beautiful and easy paddle in southern Ontario with plenty of access options (and you're looking to find something other than the Grand River) take a look at the Saugeen River. Similar to the Grand, it's an excellent flatwater river tripping experience. There are even two public camping spots along the way so you can make it a two night trip if you'd like, or just do a day paddle between any two points of your choosing.
As a younger river that flows through farmland, the water is always mud-coloured. You can see the evolution of river erosion happening in real time. I'm sure the dirty water won't hurt you, but it doesn't make for the best swimming water.
Resources
Portages: None, other than some seasonal low-water areas you may need to drag your canoe through.
Your main resource: Saugeen Conservation is the site for the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority (but they like to call themselves "Saugeen Conservation"). On this site, you'll find maps to the access points and information about camping
Camping: The Saugeen offers two main camping areas.
The McBeath camping area is a set of free campsites with river-only access. It's basically a large lawn, but it sure makes for easy canoe camping. You'll be close to other campers if it's busy, but in the four times we've been down this river, it's always been great.
Saugeen Conservation operates Saugeen Bluffs, a park with paid campsites, four of which are canoe-access only sites. They are a little squished together so'll get to know your neighbours if they are all booked, but otherwise great sites and right on the river. You'll need to book those in advance.
River data: We have the real-time flow rate at Walkerton at the top of this page, but you can also check out the Collaborative Water Data Viewer to get all the real-time water data for several places along the Saugeen (and a lot more, which makes it difficult to interpret). All you likely need is to check out the "Lower water status" rating on the Saugeen Conservation site's main page.
5-7 m3/s is the bump-and-grind water level where you'll be dragging your boat. 10-25 m3/s is the sweet spot for a simple summer run. At +70 m3/s, you're getting into more dangerous territory.
Outfitter: Thorncrest Outfitters is the only business that services the Saugeen that we're aware of. They've been at it for decades and always deliver a decent service. (ok, I haven't used their services in over 20 years, but I'm sure they're still great).
Trip report/blog: Check out Canoe Daddy's very detailed account of his trip down the Saugeen.
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