Aha! Adventure - Milk River, Ab

Dates: Full trip: May 24- 28, 2023

Upper only: May 24-26

Lower Trip only: May 26-28

 

Cost: Full trip: $650 plus gst,  Upper or Lower $325

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Enjoy 2.5 or 5 days of paddling through vast, rolling grasslands and unique semi-desert landscapes as you make our way from Del Bonita to Writing on Stone Provincial Park. This southern Alberta River has intimate sandstone canyons, hoodoos and many small rapids and rocks to maneuver around. It is a great river to develop your canoe and tripping skills. You can join the whole trip or just enjoy the upper or lower portion of the trip.  The upper is not as busy with other paddlers and there are few rapids.  The Lower has many small rapids and more rocks to navigate in the

 

There will be a pre-trip meeting via Zoom.  After you register, you will receive an email when this will occur.  At the pre-trip meeting, you will meet your group and we will discuss clothing selection, food planning, packing techniques, meals and travel logistics.

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All of our Aha! Adventure trips are "community catered".  All participants and guides take their turn providing and cooking breakfasts and suppers on the trips. Everyone looks after their own lunches. This is a fun way to share, try new meals and learn how to bake and cook in the backcountry. Guides will help at every meal and give you lots of assistance! 

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Prerequisites: No experience necessary.  Guides can teach you what you need to know on your trip.  You should have an average fitness level. 

Cancellation Policy:  A $500 non-refundable deposit is required to register. The balance is due 30 days before the trip start date. No refunds on or after this date. We recommend trip cancellation insurance.

Itinerary:

May 24: 8am- Leave Calgary (location TBD) and drive south to the put in at Del Bonita.  We will set up the shuttle to the town of Milk River and then start our trip down the river. We will randomly camp on the river beneath the big grass hills and enjoy some evening hiking.

May 25: A full day on the river with another night underneath the big sky.

May 26: We will paddle to the town of Milk River and make the switch of picking up new people and dropping off those who are only doing the Upper.  We will do a shuttle and pick up the vehicles from the Upper and then drop vehicles at the take out at Writing on Stone Provincial Park. We will continue down the river and camp.

May 27: Enjoy the Sandstone canyons and fun rapids as we make our way to camp around poverty rock.

May 28: Take off the river in the early afternoon at Writing on Stone Provincial Park.  We will pick up our vehicles at the town on the drive back.

 

Cost Includes:

• Safety equipment (throwbags, first aid kit, emergency communication)

• Group camping gear (tarp/ shelter etc.)

• Group cooking equipment (pots, stoves, utensils, fuel)

• Experienced and qualified guides

• All canoe gear (canoes, paddles, pfd's)

• Camping and permits

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Transportation Details:

You are welcome to join the van from Calgary if you are doing the full 5 days.  If you are doing the shorter version you can meet us at your start point.  We will need help with the shuttle from the group.

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Medical Form and Waiver:

In order to participate in this trip, you are required to fill out all your registration and medical information.

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EMERGENCY EVACUATION AND TRIP CANCELLATION: In rare cases, if you have an emergency and need to be evacuated from the trip, you will be responsible for any extra charges.  The quickest way to get off our remote trips is via floatplane or helicopter and if we contact these companies directly for the quickest service, you will be responsible for the expense.  To ensure that there are no surprises, we recommend that you get evacuation insurance.  An evacuation could be very costly in remote locations, so we recommend that you are covered through your credit card or another plan.  One option available is Tugo Insurance at:  https://www.tugo.com/en/travel-insurance/canadians/.  You may also want to consider purchasing trip cancellation insurance if for some reason (i.e. illness) you are unable to go on the trip.  If cancellation is required at the last minute, you will need to have trip cancellation insurance. This will protect yourself and Aha! Adventures and allow us to offer great trips into the future.