Don River

With a weather forecast of 18ºC and a full day of sun, the occasion was perfect to get outside and try my Alpacka Caribou packraft for the first time. If urban packrafting is such a thing, then I was embracing the movement for the day. My plan? Paddle the Don River in Toronto. Not exactly what I had in mind while in terms of packrafting adventure, but the mountains will have to wait for a weeks still. For now, I was to take the public transit up the river and put in just after the first dam at near the junction of Overlea and Don Mills for an 8KM descent.

I noticed right a way that the water level was pretty low. But as far as I knew, the packraft would be ok as it doesn’t sit too low on the water.

I inflated my Caribou under a bridge with a bunch of kids looking at me with a big question mark on their face. I couldn’t blame them. The Don River is often cited as the dirtiest river in Canada and you almost never see anyone paddling on it. But the idea of using my packraft at least once before heading into the backcountry with it was worth it.

My first reaction when I jumped in was “WOW!”. It’s hard to describe but the packraft is really comfy. It’s like sitting on a puffy couch! The inflatable seat kept me high enough to paddle comfortably and the oversize stern acted just like a giant back rest.

The interior length is perfect and I was able to fully extend my legs even with my shoes on (with neoprene socks inside!). I tested a few rigging setup over the last few days and I was able to confirm how secure my guy-line system was even with an empty pack.

A few sections were shallower and I had to walk with the packraft for a few meters. Not a big dealer as the only sections I had to do this, the water was crystal clear.

As opposed to some murky sections… As I got closer to Lake Ontario, the water turned somewhat nasty with a bunch of storm water drains dumping right into it. Instead of focusing on this disagreement, I looked up at all the bridges I was paddling under.

And the one on Bloor/Danforth was spectacular from under as the subway trains kept flying by, sending a wave of vibrations on the structure that could be felt on the water.

I completed my descent of the Don River near the same exit I take every evening on my way back from work on the Don Valley Parkway, the highway that follows the river. Quite funny!

I pulled out of the water near Queen Street on a muddy “beach”. It made rolling the packraft a mess but that’s when I realized that the sil-nylon stuff sack that came with it would be useful on some occasions. I packed everything up and enjoyed a streetcar ride on my way back home. Thirty minutes after pulling out of the water, I was home. I was quite happy with how things went. The Caribou is a really nice packraft and I was surprised how well it tracked even with also no weight on the bow. The Alpacka Ninja paddles were a little too small and gave me blisters on both hands because of the thin shaft (Aquabound paddles are in the mail!). I really look forward to all my future adventures with my Alpacka packraft.