View topic - Tripping in the age of COVID

Hello everybody.

Just wanted to hear your thoughts on whether it's appropriate or not to be canoeing in this age given the current circumstances.

Any risk we pose to ourselves through canoeing is now compounded and imposed to health workers who are under a lot of stress already.

Bystanders may see it as an act of ignorance toward the situation and get angry, or could become influenced by our actions and translate them to their own life; going to the grocery store more than needed, etc.

But canoeing does conform to all the distancing protocols in place and seems like one of the best places to be right now, from that standpoint. Who knows how long the pandemic will go on, and canoeing would be a huge mental refresh from being locked in the house for days.

Curious to hear what you guys think.



-Zev (Thanks to Ralph for the idea)

No, it's absolutely NOT acceptable. While it's true you would be alone......once you got to wherever you are going, you need to drive on a road. You risk having an accident where first responders would be diverted to attend to you. They need to be focused on assisting people with real , life threatening issues.

Planning a solo "getaway" under the current circumstances is selfish.

My .02c

MikeD.

I have no problem with it in principle but there are issues........

I have three weeks "booked" starting the last week of May but I can foresee logistics problems. All my trips involve at least one way road, rail or air shuttles. Road shuttles may be difficult to arrange, same goes for float planes. Trips that end beyond the road that would normally involve a scheduled flight and/or an exit by rail (Moosonee) are doubtful at this time (The train from Moosonee is making it's last trip today).

Perhaps by mid-summer things will be more reliable, the Spring isn't looking good.

Unfortunately if one were to abide by the Ontario Parks closure then the options are the more northerly areas where road access is limited.

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"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915

I wouldn’t say it’s anymore selfish than the myriad of folks going to the grocery store EVERY day. Or definitely not more selfish than those who think it’s ok to ride a motorcycle currently. Two wrongs don’t make a right but to say it’s “selfish”...probably is a bit. It sure would be good for my mental health though.

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"It's healthy to be dirty" - Lars Monsen

It's not an essential trip and it is most definitely selfish;

adjective: selfish
(of a person, action, or motive) lacking consideration for others; concerned chiefly with one's own personal profit or pleasure.

I kind of have to agree that is a bit selfish. It’s definitely a tough pill to swallow, realizing something you’ve been obsessing about, spending oodles of money on, and countless hours of preparation and research probably not materialize.
“Showing up” in a northern community unannounced will probably be unwise this summer, even after multiple weeks of self isolation in the bush.
I’ve altered my plans, things can wait until next year. The rewards will be even sweeter.

Probably best to stay put, but if you've gone stir crazy w/ cabin fever,
-Choose a local river that you're familiar with
-Wear thermal protection
-Know your limits & paddle within them
-Be prepared to self rescue
-Paddle solo
-Do your own bike shuttle

I am going to be a bit of contrarian here and say that it is probably ok - depending on a few things. These factors include distance you would have to drive, and your track record both behind the wheel and on the water. If you are confident and competent in both aspects, the likelihood of something happening that would require emergency services is REMARKABLY low. And its fine and potentially accurate to label it as selfish, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. If you are going crazy cooped up alone at home like I am, your long-term mental and physical health weighed against the extreme unlikelihood of something happening that would negatively affect someone else, then you should do it.

Not OK. DNR here in Nova Scotia has a fire ban on and fishing season has been delayed by one month. As an avid canoeist and fisherman I don't like it but realize that it is necessary. Travel means extra contact at gas stations. What happens if you have a breakdown or an accident? What happens if a search is required? Vital resources are being used because of selfishness. Stay home FFS.

Interesting question. Dialing the risk factor back as far as possible is a given. But, easy-peasy routes that are nearby and would normally be rammed are now more likely to be available. And for mental health purposes, maybe easy-peasy works. If you simply don't tell anyone where you're going, why then there isn't going to be any rescue attempt is there. Your dependents could take that liability instead of health professionals. Risk is a continuum, if you're going to talk about risk, you should really be prepared to talk about them all at once, the sum total of your life choices. I rode a bicycle to work for many years in downtown Toronto, an insanely risky thing to do. Tagged at least a half dozen times and hit for knockdown twice. For canoeists there could be a middle ground in here somewhere. Careful thought is required.

Poor you! Fishing season opened early and until at least April 30 requires no license! The fire ban can be dealt with; someone has to deal with it every year.

Whether rescue will strain agencies is another issue. Usually the most "what were they thinking" rescues occur at a home lake; one that does not require travel. Familiarity breeds non thinking. We just got rid of ice.. I am waiting for the normal quora of non thinkers to appear.

I have been conflicted on this issue for some time now. I had planned on the Ranger Lake Loop in May, I know without a doubt that is out of the question for me now (a 10 hour drive from home). However, all I'd like to do now is to drive to an area 25 minutes from home, launch from private property (which I have permission to access) and paddle around a creek for an afternoon. I'd love to just get an afternoon of paddling in. Viewing all the risks associated, I can say that I'm ok with doing this with a clean conscience. However, I'd love to hear some other opinions on it.

I have a seven day trip planned in May, I'll have to forego if the State of Emergency is still in effect for Ontario.

For me to go imho would be selfish.

If you go. Travel up at night and launch at first light.

I think each person has to weigh the risks that they will present to themselves AND others in their own way. There is so many variables to this. One of the biggest is the area that you are in and where you're going. Travelling through Toronto to go to Algonquin (if it were open) is much different than leaving from Sudbury to go to Temagami. Those that already habituate in a sub-urban or even rural area will have even less risk than that.

I have struggled with this a great deal:
I have seen much said about the "added risk" that a traveler places on SAR groups and "other" healthcare workers (who exactly?...) if someone gets into trouble. In my experience (28yrs in EMS) there is next to zero extra risk IMO.
1) The SAR group is almost always a local group and where they live and might be called to search for you is probably a social isolation nirvana all the time anyway. Not just during this pandemic. Most SAR work is also non-medical and rarely does anyone need evac to a major hospital (where the covid people are). SAR people also don't take people to the hospital. Like the ski patrol they pass the patient off to the local rural EMS people...
2) Rural EMS and their associated clinics/hospitals are similarly NOT busy right now. This may change but the medics in the GTA are not the same ones that you'll see in the Muskoka region

So that leaves the risk really being if YOU might pass it on to them. So how has your social distancing been in the weeks leading up to your trip?

Just a thought. No claim that its a good one...