H-01 Hayes River to York Factory
Geographic Location:
Northern Manitoba
Name of Trip:
Hayes River to York Factory
Major Lakes/Rivers:
Nelson R, Eschimamish R, Hayes R, Robinson L, Oxford L, Knee L, Swampy L, Joined by Fox River and Gods River.
Source of Information:
Nelson R, Eschimamish R, Hayes R, Robinson L, Oxford L, Knee L, Swampy L, Joined by Fox River and Gods River.
Duration of Trip:
18 days paddling minimum. Should add a few days for windy conditions.
Total Distance:
600 kilometres.
River Rating:
Up to Class 5.
White water experience is required of all paddlers.
Portages:
27 portages. Several are pullovers and several can be lined. Robinson Portage 1km.
Fair to good portage trails around significant whitewater.
Start (Put In)
Sea River Falls Ferry (on all weather road to Norway House).
Can leave cars at Wabowden and take the Greyhound Bud back to Sea River Falls.
Finish (Take Out)
York factory by Gillam Air to Gillam and then train from Gillam to wabowden.
Alternate Access
Norway House - adds 40km.
Remoteness
The trip is remote and only paddlers with wilderness experience should attempt.
There is a hospital and store at Oxford Lake and a lodge on Knee Lake.
Comments
The Hayes River can be a once in a lifetime canoe experience but it is a challenging trip. You are traveling a "highway" that provided a water route for mid-Canada Hayes explorers, fur traders and early settler. As you pass along this route, you cannot help but get involved with the history and the many artifacts along the way: Norway House, Hudson Bay Post, log-rock wing dams, Painted Stone Portage, Robinson Falls, wooden train lines, old grave sites, pictographs, Magnetic Island, Hudson Bay Post on Swampy Lake - somewhere!, goldmines, Brassey Hill, Hudson Bay lowlands and York Factory. Plan to spend a day at historic York Factory to soak up the history and take pictures.