Explore every episode of the podcast The Canadian Canoe Podcast

On August 5, 2025, the Government of Nova Scotia banned public access to the woods in the name of fire prevention. As a result, anyone canoeing, hiking or camping etc. in the province now faces a $25,000 fine - even if they never have a fire or light a camp stove etc. 

New Brunswick has since done something similar. 

Josh Dehaas is a lawyer with the Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF) which is working to reverse these bans. He joined me on the show to discuss the recent prohibitions on enjoying the wilderness, why they are unconstitutional, and the work of the CCF. 

If you're interested in assisting the CCF, see here: https://theccf.ca/ccf-warns-premier-houston-hiking-ban-threatens-freedoms-petition-demands-repeal/

Jeffrey Cederwall is an aquatic quality scientist working with, among other things, blue-green algae. He's also a paddler. 

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Chris Giard is a veteran expedition paddler and maker of quality outdoor gear. He recently completed an 8-week trip down the Hood River in Nunavut. 

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Calem Watson is a fishing guide, adventurer, and speaker. In 2023, he paddled 3000km across the Northwest Territories. 

Calem's instagram is here: https://www.instagram.com/calem_watson/

Tickets for his upcoming speaking tour can be purchased here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wv3ZTZ39Rm2RiQ4lPh8jhw#/registration?fbclid=PAAaZZ4311_76m3LpLGkgYs0tXdFMLl9Zkb-3Jk4DXLxlattlOUm7UMomgIpo_aem_AUKdLmOdfavr30p2wkf_e3HAV8b5yazOU1kQLImjDAat-hMyC_Ymlr8zXxPog0oCxtw

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Matthew Boyd is an award winning cinematographer-filmmaker based in Oakland, California,  working in feature film, short film, documentary, and television spaces. His upcoming documentary, Barren Grounds, chronicles the ill-fated subarctic Moffat Canoe Expedition of 1955. More on the film can be found here: https://www.barrengrounds.com

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John Little is the author of Who Killed Tom Thomson?: The Truth About the Murder of One of the 20th Century's Most Famous Artists. Tom Thomson, one of Canada's most famous artists, died under mysterious circumstances in July 1917 while setting out for a multi-week canoe trip. 

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Noah Booth is co-founder of Northern Scavenger, a social media platform that documents its outdoor pursuits and canoe trips.  He recently  completed a kayak expedition along the Nova Scotia coast. 

The blog referenced in this episode is: http://iron-bark.blogspot.com/p/iron-barks-travels.html

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Dave Greene is the founder of Night of Adventure and Greener Adventures. He recently completed Akilineq, a 1600km expedition across the NWT and Nunavut sponsored by the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.

For more on Dave see here: https://www.nightofadventure.com/

The fantastic podcast mentioned in this episode about the satellite crash is Operation Morning Light: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/operation-morning-light/id1646497997

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In 2015, Nuka kayaked from Montreal to Mexico. His most recent expedition, 1000 miles through the Inside Passage from Lund, BC to Skagway, Alaska is the subject of a mini-series available on Youtube called "Kayaking the Inside Passage".  It's available here: https://youtu.be/8E5MFcwGzyk

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Seth Wotten is an outdoor educator and explorer. Over the course of 3 summers (2006, 2007 and 2008) he paddled across Canada from Montreal to Inuvik as part his  Water For Future Generations project. He's also done several other major  expeditions in Canada. 

More about Water for Future Generations can be found here: http://wffg.ca 

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Jodi Alderson is an explorer of northern Canadian rivers. She  joined me on the show to discuss her 35-day solo trip down the Clarke and Thelon rivers in 2022. 

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Stephen Mooney is a director and past winner of the Yukon River Quest, a 715km paddling race from Whitehorse to Dawson City. For more information on the race, see here: https://www.yukonriverquest.com. 

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Tom McLennan is a commercial pilot who spent several years flying as a bush-pilot. 

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Dan Wong is the founder of Jackpine Paddle, a canoe expedition company offering guided trips in some of the remotest parts of northern Canada. 

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Bert TerHart is an accomplished paddler and sailor. In 2022 he canoed across Canada from British Columbia to New Brunswick navigating by map, compass and sextant only. 

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Walt Humphries is a lifelong prospector, outdoorsman, and renowned graphic artist. He also writes a regular newspaper column titled "Tales from the dump". His art can be found here: https://www.walthumphries.ca. 

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Bob Henderson and Morton Asfeldt are the authors of Pike's Portage: Stories of a Distinguished Place. Pike's Portage is a ~45km portage in Canada's Northwest Territories connecting the boreal forest to the sub-arctic tundra. 

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Brad Farquhar is an entrepreneur and adventurer. He completed the Iditarod, a 1500km dog sled race in Alaska, which is the subject of this episode. 

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Nora Casson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Winnipeg. She is also the Canada Research Chair in Environmental Influences on Water Quality.  Among other things, she studies the changing hydrology of Canada's rivers. 

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Noah Booth is co-founder of Northern Scavenger.  He recently  completed a 30-day canoe trip through Labrador, his second major trip in the region. 

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In 2013 Jan Sebastian LaPierre paddled from the Nova Scotia mainland to Sable Island, a small island about 200nm off the coast. Jan is also co-founder of A for Adventure, an organization that aims to get people outside. 

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Mike Lancaster is a forestry consultant, arborist, and conservationist. He also works as the Stewardship Coordinator for the St. Margaret's Bay Stewardship Association. In May 2021, he is canoeing across Nova Scotia in a single day to raise awareness for the proposed Ingram River Wilderness Area. 

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Chris is a former lighthouse keeper. He has also authored two books on lighthouse-keeping history. He now lives in Ketch Harbour, Nova Scotia where he works for the Canadian Coast Guard. 

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Dwayne and Leanne live North of Yellowknife, NWT. They've completed several multi-month trips in Canada's North, including many with their two kids. 

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John Konecny is a teacher. In 2018 he moved from Whitby to Ottawa by canoe - a 6 day trip - and successfully deducted his expenses relating to that trip at tax time.   

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Noah Booth co-founded Northern Scavenger, a social media platform that documents its outdoor pursuits and canoe trips. His most recent trip was the Boreal to Barrenlands crossing of Eastern Labrador. 

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Oliver Duret is a commercial fisherman in the Northwest Territories. He lives off the land in a cabin he built about 200km from Yellowknife. 

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