5 Best Hidden-Gem Canoe Routes For 2025

Over the last few years, I’ve watched as paddling has surged in popularity. Canoe sales have climbed, campsite reservations have turned into a competitive sport, and access points throughout the near north have become busier than ever. While it’s great to see so many folks discovering the joy of paddling, it’s also a reminder of how precious those quiet wilderness experiences are.

The good news? You don’t have to settle for busy lakes or packed portages. As someone who’s spent my life exploring and documenting the best canoe routes in Ontario, I’m here to help you find hidden gems with my top five picks for canoe routes to paddle in 2025.

What’s special about these routes? Each one offers something new this year—freshly cleared portages, expanded access points, updated reservation systems, or even new guided options. Most importantly—each still delivers the kind of wilderness experience we all crave.

Georgian Bay’s McGregor Bay

Why Go: This area blends the majestic white quartzite of Killarney Provincial Park’s La Cloche Mountains with the ocean-like vistas of Georgian Bay. The sheer expanse of the lakes keeps you spellbound. This is the same area that once inspired members of the Group of Seven to capture Canada’s iconic wilderness on canvas.

2025 Updates: Killarney Outfitters now offers a water taxi aboard Cyclops, a 26-foot shuttle boat, to drop you off in McGregor Bay. From there, you can access the famed northwest section of the park, paddle back to the town of Killarney over several days, or just hang out and get picked up by Cyclops for a return trip.

Access: Town docks of Killarney, which is located on the northern shore of Georgian Bay, about 100 km southwest of Sudbury.

Skill Level: Easy to moderate.

Length: 3-5 days

Highlights: Beyond the incredible scenery and the fact that the campsites are outside of Killarney Park, on Crown land where reservations and permits are not required (check your map to be sure), you have the added bonus of a boat cruise in what’s considered a yachtsmen’s best freshwater paradise in the world. Don’t miss taking a day hike to Killarney’s spectacular cerulean Topaz Lake from Baie Fine.

Challenges: Wind and waves can make navigating the Bay difficult at times. Patience is a virtue out here.

Guided Options: Killarney Outfitters offers complete canoe and sea kayak trip planning and outfitting to take the hassle out of planning a trip. Their convenient and personalized outfitting packages are ideal for those who enjoy self-guided wilderness adventures.

Don’t Miss Nearby: Back in town, treat yourself to takeout from Killarney’s famous Herbert Fisheries. If you’re in the mood for something sweet, the brownies at Gateway Bakery are delicious. To rest up after your wilderness adventure, indulge in the comforts of Killarney Mountain Lodge, and on Wednesday and Friday nights, be sure to catch story time with three-time cross-Canada canoeist Mike Ranta.

French River

Why Go: Paddle through one of Ontario’s most iconic waterways, steeped in history and framed by stunning Canadian Shield scenery. French River Provincial Park offers a mix of tranquil sections, exciting rapids and backcountry camping under white pines and on granite outcroppings.

2025 Updates: A new site-specific reservation system for French River Provincial Park backcountry campsites will launch for the 2025 camping season. Paddlers can now book specific sites up to five months in advance, replacing the previous zone-based and 14-day advance booking system. The change is a contentious topic amongst the Ontario paddling community. The new system is in response to user feedback from paddlers who want more certainty in trip planning, according to an Ontario Parks statement.

Access: Popular put-ins include Hartley Bay Marina and Wolseley Bay. You can also start at Lake Nipissing to experience the full 110-km descent down the French to the Georgian Bay delta.

Skill Level: Moderate. Paddlers should be comfortable navigating moving water, including class I and II rapids, and willing to portage.

Length: 2 to 7 days, depending on your chosen route. Options range from a quick out-and-back adventure to a full 110-km descent from Lake Nipissing to Georgian Bay.

Highlights: Explore the French River Delta’s maze of channels or retrace the historic voyageur route through Old Voyageur Channel. You might spot moose, beavers and bald eagles.

Challenges: Expect strong winds on open sections and potentially challenging rapids.

Local Outfitter: Hartley Bay Marina rents canoes, kayaks, and gear, providing a convenient launch point and secure parking. You can also go guided: Black Feather and MHO Adventures each offer their own version of exploring the French, from chill long weekends to 10-day river descents.

Don’t Miss: Visit the French River Provincial Park’s Visitor Centre to learn about the region’s history, from Indigenous routes to fur traders and explorers. A detour to the French River Gorge is worth the effort for its dramatic views and geological features.

Pro Tip: If time allows, extend your trip to paddle the entire 110 km stretch of the river, finishing in Georgian Bay. It’s a bucket-list adventure for paddlers seeking a mix of history, challenge, and pristine wilderness.

Opasquia Provincial Park

Why Go: The 473,000-hectare park straddles the Manitoba border and is darn remote, located 245 kilometres north of Red Lake. It can only be reached by a 2.5-hour bush plane ride. The landscape seems mystical. This is not the tamed interior of Algonquin or the semi-wilds of Temagami—Opasquia Provincial Park is real wilderness.

2025 Updates: Goldseekers Canoe Outfitting in Red Lake has dropped off a few lightweight canoes to Big Hook Wilderness Camps situated in the centre of the park. This greatly reduces the flight cost into the park. The camp has also opened up a series of portages to East Lake, a large scenic lake located along the northern border of the park.

Access: By bush plane out of the town of Red Lake, which is 2.5 hours north of Dryden, Ontario and five hours driving time north of the U.S. border through International Falls.

Skill Level: Advanced wilderness tripping skills are required due to the remoteness and lack of canoe route maintenance.

Length: 7 to 10 days

Highlights: The park has more wolverines than canoeists. Enough said.

Challenges: Forest fires are common at the height of summer, portages are not maintained, and your only way out is by bush plane. Be sure to take an emergency satellite communication device into this remote wilderness.

Guided Options: Goldseekers Canoe Outfitting and Wilderness Expeditions offer full and partial outfitting, as well as guided expeditions and base camp-based fishing trips. Pick your trip or plan your route using the map on their website.

Don’t Miss Nearby: Pakwash Provincial Park, just south of Red Lake, is a hidden gem if you’re looking for a place to camp before and after your canoe trip, with great sites and a good system of hiking trails. If you’re looking to carb load before your wilderness trip or treat yourself on your return, try Antonio’s famously delicious cooking in Red Lake. And if you’ve had enough of sleeping in your tent, put up your feet at Goldseekers’ very own Paddle Inn B&B.

Kirkpatrick Lake/Blue Lake Loop

Why Go: Nestled in Ontario’s Algoma Highlands, the Penokean Hills and its countless turquoise-coloured lakes are sprawled out north of Elliot Lake, across one of the most rugged landscapes in Ontario. The Blue Lake System features an interconnected network of eight feeder lakes, which drain into Blue Lake. All harbour naturally reproducing lake, rainbow and brook trout. This biodiversity is found in less than 1% of Canadian lakes, leading to its designation as a fish sanctuary within the Little White River Provincial Park.

2025 Updates: Tackling this route used to require a bush plane to fly you in, but a new backroad in the northeast corner to Duval Lake is doable with a two-wheel vehicle and good clearance.

Access: From Blue Fox Camp, fly in and out by bush plane from Timber Wolf Air in Blind River, or use a new logging road that comes close to the northeast end of Duval Lake.

Skill Level: Moderate canoe tripping skills are needed. This route is not maintained.

Length: 4 to 5 days

Highlights: Kirkpatrick Lake itself is lovely place to hang out. A paddler could easily stay here for a week and explore from end to end. There are countless smaller lakes to the east, west and south of Kirkpatrick, all full of brook trout and self-sustaining rainbow trout. It’s an angler’s dream.

Challenges: There is no maintenance to this canoe route, and access is difficult.

Guided Options: There were no guided options at the time of writing.

Don’t Miss: Blue Fox Camp is a full-service lodge in the summer and offers comfortable accommodations pre or post-trip. Serpent River Trading Post Gas is located on Highway 17 east of Blind River. The beautiful log building is full of moccasins, art, paintings (including by Indigenous artists), jewellery, coats, pottery, authentic crafts, souvenirs and crafts from local artisans.

Steel River Loop

Why Go: The Steel River Loop has gained popularity thanks to being promoted as one of the best so-called “lost” canoe routes to challenge your skills on by a number of popular YouTubers. And there's a good reason for that. It’s an amazing place to paddle. The Steel River, Ontario, is a non-operating provincial park and access is free for Canadian residents.

2025 Updates: This has always been a tough route due to one notorious portage called the Diablo Portage, which climbs a sheer cliff, gaining 100 meters of elevation. However, a series of new portages have been cut, eliminating the Diablo portage route completely.

Access: The Steel River is located 24 km east of Terrace Bay, off Highway 17, above Lake Superior’s north shore. The public launch on Santoy Lake is located at the end of a gravel road off of Highway 17.

Skill Level: Moderate tripping skills needed due to the area's remoteness.

Length: 7 to 10 days

Highlights: A good chance to catch a rare blue walleye (the fish’s skin pigment changes from yellow to blue - an oddity for sure). You also have a very good chance of not seeing another person for days. The route features long, narrow lakes, rugged cliffs, ravines, swamps, ponds, oxbow lakes and a 20-meter waterfall.

Challenges: The route is not maintained regularly and portages are difficult at times.

Guided Options: The Steel River is located in a remote area and outfitting options are limited. The nearest outfitters supplying rental canoes are Naturally Superior Adventures in Wawa, SAND Adventures in Rossport, and Wilderness Supply in Thunder Bay. SAND Adventures can also help arrange vehicle shuttles for a one-way trip down the Steel River if you don’t have time to complete the entire circuit. No companies were running guided trips on the Steel River at the time of writing.

Don’t Miss Nearby: Camping before or after your trip at Neys Provincial Park offers incredible views of Lake Superior. Also, make sure to check out the impressive gorge at Aguasabon Falls, a kilometre west of Terrace Bay. An observation platform puts you right over the thundering 30-metre falls. 

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