Temagami

Temagami holds one of the largest remaining stands of old-growth red and white pine in North America, trees over three hundred years old and up to forty metres, in a country of interconnected lakes with a canoe route network of roughly two thousand four hundred kilometres of portages and waterways, some of them nobicheninj trails used by the Teme-Augama Anishnabai for thousands of years. Logging of the old growth was contested through the 1980s and 1990s, with blockades and hundreds of arrests, including of the Teme-Augama Anishnabai asserting unceded title. A fire tower on Caribou Mountain gives a view over the lakes.

What you actually see

• The old-growth pines - some of the last large stands of ancient white pine.
• The canoe network - about 2,400 kilometres of linked routes and portages.
• The fire tower - a lookout on Caribou Mountain over the lake country.
• The ancient trails - portage routes used by the Teme-Augama Anishnabai for millennia.

When to go

June to September for paddling; blackflies are severe in June and mosquitoes into July. Autumn colour on the lakes is excellent. Winter is used for dog sledding and skiing.

Honest expectations

Routes are wilderness with no facilities and portages that are steep and long. Weather can pin parties on lakes. Outfitters and float planes need booking well ahead.

Nearby

North Bay lies south; Sudbury is southwest.