What we’re about
This MeetUp site is intended to share info about RACCC, and to encourage interested paddlers in the Ottawa area to join the RACCC.
Note: Go to www.raccc.ca official membership page, to join the RACCC ! Then....come paddle with us!
Ottawa is in the middle of canoeing paradise! Beautiful parks like Gatineau, Algonquin, La Verendrye, Frontenac, Mattawa and Bon Echo as well as the Ottawa, Madawaska, Petawawa, Rideau Rivers (and many other) are all within a short drive. Come and explore these and other wonderful wilderness areas with us!
The RACCC has over 300 members of all ages and skill levels collaboratively host hundreds of trips, training and social events during the paddling season and throughout the year! RACCC trips and training are for beginners through advanced paddlers interested in flatwater (lake) or whitewater (river) paddling. Last year, we held 250 club events!
The RA Canoe Camping Club (RACCC) has a legacy of canoe tripping expertise! Friendship, volunteerism, safety, environmentally friendly camping and car pooling have been RACCC hallmarks since 1952.
The RACCC is volunteer run, providing club members with the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of the club, to learn new skills as well as meet many other canoeists and outdoor enthusiasts. We run co-operative trips where everyone gets involved which allows us to keep costs down. Club members enjoy a range of relaxed evening paddles, day trips and weekends to extended wilderness expeditions.
RACCC membership provides access to:
• Club Trips, Training and Social Events (during the paddling season and throughout the year)
• Canoe and Camping Equipment (This includes our fleet of whitewater, flatwater canoes and touring kayaks)
Full access to www.raccc.ca to view:
• Calendar of events: Trips, Training and Social Events (year round!)
• Trip Reports posted by Club Members
• RACCC Handbook (Club Procedures, Safety and Canoe Camping Tips, and more)
• Safety tips
• Contact List for Club members and potential paddling partners
• List of RACCC Qualified White Water Paddlers (meeting club criteria)
• Discussion Forums
• Volunteer opportunities!
Does this sound like the right club for you?
Click here for more information about joining the RACCC or email membership@raccc.ca
**Please note that this meetup site is not used for all regular club events - for member access to full calendar via www.raccc.ca
Come paddle with us in the Ottawa area....in Ontario, Quebec...and beyond!
Upcoming events (3)
See all- Winter Seminar (Zoom) : Frances Anne Hopkins: Artist, Adventurer, InspirationLink visible for attendees
This presentation will delve into the life and times of 19th C. British artist Frances Ann Hopkins - her iconic drawings and paintings, her influencers and contemporaries. What's more, her long-distance canoe trips are impressive and inspiration for current day canoeists.
Frances Ann Hopkins was the wife of Edward Hopkins, a Hudson Bay Manager. She accompanied him on extended voyageur canoe trips from Montreal to Fort William (now Thunder Bay). Her paintings documented the life of voyageurs during her time in Canada (1858 - 1870) in the fading glory days of the fur trade. She was a trained, professional artist at a time when women “didn't' do” that kind of thing. As descendent of several notable English explorer-artists, Frances Anne longed for adventure and opportunities to use her talents to forge a successful artistic career.
Special Appearance by Frances Anne Hopkins herself, supported by:
• Lee Benson - Paddler, contract researcher/editor/ghost writer.
“Who knew that she and I would meet because of the latter!” Frances Anne Hopkins
• Dot Bonnenfant (Long time long distance paddler and canoeing history fanatic.)
“The embodiment of the adventure I longed for!” Frances Anne Hopkins**This event is part of the RACCC's Winter Seminar series which are free and open to club members as well as non-club members.**
The seminars cover a wide range of topics related to paddling and the outdoors. Some of the club’s previous seminars are available on YouTube here. The full list of seminars is available on the RACCC website at www.raccc.ca. **Non-club members can get the Zoom joining instructions by contacting Mark at outreach@raccc.ca. RACCC Club members can get the joining instructions from the calendar on the club website.
Click to read RACCC basic level guidelines on Zoom. - Winter Seminar (via Zoom) : Paddling Trips in Eastern Ontario - Tips and tricksLink visible for attendees
This seminar explores some of the best canoe trips in eastern Ontario. Most trips feature gently flowing rivers or lakes. Details show how you can explore these places too!
This seminar builds on a previous seminar "Paddling Day Trips Near Ottawa" (2020) which can be found on YouTube here
Karen Hurd has instructed canoeing and enjoyed canoe trips with the RA Canoe Camping Club for 16 years. She has learned many lessons on canoe trips.**This event is part of the RACCC's Winter Seminar series which are free and open to club members as well as non-club members.**
The seminars cover a wide range of topics related to paddling and the outdoors. Some of the club’s previous seminars are available on YouTube here. The full list of seminars is available on the RACCC website at www.raccc.ca. **Non-club members can get the Zoom joining instructions by contacting Mark at outreach@raccc.ca. RACCC Club members can get the joining instructions from the calendar on the club website.
Click to read RACCC basic level guidelines on Zoom. - Winter Seminar (in PERSON): Arctic Canoeing & the Inuit Homeland as a LandscapeClark Hall - RA Centre, Ottawa, ON
NOTE: This seminar is being held in person in the Clark Hall at the RA Centre 2451 Riverside Drive, Ottawa
This diverse and exciting two-hour program will carry you north to the Arctic barrenlands in your imagination. Jackpine Paddle’s founder/owner, Dan Wong, will entice you with contemporary tales of northern paddling adventures, which his company offers in the wake of his mentor, the very first Arctic canoe guide, Alex Hall. A 15-minute documentary film produced by Jackpine Paddle offers a lasting tribute to this giant of a man, a paddling legend.
To follow this, Jackpine Paddle is pleased to present David Pelly, a seasoned northern canoeist and author, who will share his reflections from a lifetime in the North, and how it changed his perceptions of the “wilderness” we all dream to paddle.The evening offers a blend of short documentary films, spectacular images of the northern landscapes and people, inspiring stories, and a thought-provoking feature presentation by David entitled “The Arctic as a Landscape of Stories.”
David Pelly
David first went to the Arctic as a canoeist in 1977. Leading that month-long expedition down the Back River began a northern career spanning the decades since.During that time, he published ten books and countless articles about the North, the land, its history, and its people. He has worked with biologists and archaeologists in the field, developed and written documentary films, served as co-curator of Inuit art exhibitions, and assisted with numerous community-based cultural projects across Nunavut. David's abiding passion is the lessons he has been gifted by Inuit elders, whose wisdom changed forever the way he sees the Arctic landscape. As an author, this had a profound impact on his writing.
His feature presentation to the RACCC will be rooted in the notion of the Arctic as a landscape of stories, as the repository of the ancestors’ stories and wisdom – something of a contrast with his erstwhile wilderness canoeist’s perspective. It also serves as the foundation for his most recent book The Ancestors Are Happy.
Of course, throughout this time, David continued canoeing, now having paddled many of the barrenlands great rivers, some of them numerous times, a few lesser-known routes as well, accumulating tens of thousands of miles in the stern of a canoe on Arctic waterways. Many canoeists will know his best-selling classic book on the Thelon River, its natural and human history (Thelon – A River Sanctuary).
Much of David’s work has been rooted in the collection of oral-history and traditional knowledge from Inuit elders. In 2012 he was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal "for dedication to the preservation of Inuit oral history and traditional knowledge, and for his many works to help increase Canadians’ understanding of the North."
Currently, when not working on the next book, or planning another northern canoe trip, David spends much of his time managing a small foundation, the Ayalik Fund, which gives Inuit youth who would otherwise not have such opportunities a chance to build self-esteem and confidence, through challenging expeditions. You will learn more about the foundation’s work.David’s books will be for sale at the event. The author will be available to sign your copy.
Dan is the owner and lead guide of Jackpine Paddle in Yellowknife.
Dan grew up and lives in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. He feels lucky to live in a place with true wilderness and loves to share his knowledge of the North.
Dan is an experienced guide and paddling instructor, who will always get excited to explore a new remote route by canoe and kayak.
Dan previously made a webinar presentation to RACCC on February 5, 2025 about the new Thaidene Nene National Park.
Dan Wong info@jackpinepaddle.com**This event is part of the RACCC's Winter Seminar series which are free and open to club members as well as non-club members.**
The seminars cover a wide range of topics related to paddling and the outdoors. Some of the club’s previous seminars are available on YouTube here. The full list of seminars is available on the RACCC website at www.raccc.ca. **
