Kayak Big Creek ON
Called the “Canadian Amazon”, this creek meanders through the heavy lush canopy of the Carolinian forests of Norfolk County to Long Point. While the waterway extends 40+ km, we spent the afternoon paddling a pretty stretch from Rowan Mills Conservation Area down to Port Royal. Read on for more details on where to launch and what to expect when you kayak Big Creek, Ontario!
Read on for more about kayaking at Big Creek, or visit our Where to Paddle page for links to more great kayaking destinations in Southern Ontario and beyond. Also, if you’re interested in a longer paddle in the same area, look at our post about kayaking Big Creek Marsh.
Kayaking on Big Creek involves challenges like fallen logs to navigate around, under, or over.
Called the “Canadian Amazon”, this creek meanders through the heavy lush canopy of the Carolinian forests of Norfolk County to Long Point. This creek seemed much more wild than other spots we’ve kayaked, and challenged us physically and mentally as we needed to duck under fallen logs and navigate over rocks and partially exposed debris.
When we went to kayak Big Creek ON, it was a warm day in September. The seasonally low water levels in the fall create 4-8’ banks that form steep unnavigable barriers on both sides of the river. The low water levels created their own challenges – a launch where we needed to “slide” in, and more exposed log jams to contend with. The creek was still fast flowing, clear, and cold.
The current pushed us along, although at times it twisted the Beast (my 16’ tandem) at inopportune times, despite the best efforts to control our direction with my foot-controlled rudder. Several times I had to back paddle to reposition my kayak for the best spot to clear the maze of fallen debris.
With kids aboard to announce our presence, wildlife had lots of time to flee before we arrived on the scene, and we didn’t see any muskrats, beavers, or white-tailed deer, but we spied their prints in the muddy banks along the way. We did see blue herons, cormorants, belted kingfishers, and turtles, and spied a majestic bald eagle soaring overhead. Our trip to kayak Big Creek ON coincided with early arrivals of the fall bird migration, and we saw hundreds of red winged black birds, as well as some cedar wax wings and warblers. All along the route were wood duck nest boxes – my husband says he saw a few, but I never did, despite keeping an eye out for them.
One of the many wood duck nest boxes along the river as we neared the marshes. Wood ducks nest high in trees in natural cavities, or in nest boxes like this one.
Looking for more paddle destinations? Don’t miss our Where to Paddle page for lots of great destinations we’ve tried and loved!
Our Recommended Route
Put In: Rowan Mills Conservation Area: 42.628083, -80.537913. http://www.lprca.on.ca/
Take Out: Port Royal at Cty Rd 42. 42.596368, -80.484773. From the water, you’ll pass under 3 bridges, Port Royal is the 4th bridge, and you will unload on the left side of the river.
Trip Length: 9 KM, approximately 3 hours
While the marshes north of Lakeshore Road (42) are private property and are clearly marked to deter trespassing, if you paddle further south from the bridge at Cty Rd 42, toward the private launch near Cronmiller’s At the Bridge (Hwy #59), there are opportunities to explore the wetlands more in the Big Creek National Wildlife Area.
Shuttle Required: Like most river routes, Big Creek requires a shuttle, as you are unable to paddle back upstream. When you kayak Big Creek ON, you’ll need to arrange to leave a car or bike at the put in and at the end. We drove the trailer down to Port Royal and left it there, and then returned with the second car to begin our paddle. This worked well because there was more parking space at Port Royal. When we finished the trip, we loaded the kayaks on the trailer and then went back to pick up the car.
Cost: Free. Access points are maintained by Long Point Region Conservation Authority.
Degree of Difficulty: Dependent on water levels and time of year. Not recommended during spring due to high water levels and fast moving currents. Low water levels will also bring their own difficulties, and may not be suitable for novices. If you are a beginner, you may want to try this route with an outfitter.
The Beast. Our 16′ tandem had its challenges on this twisty turny river, but the rudder helped navigate. My front seat passenger has a nap.
Gear Recommendations
Life jackets and all Transport Canada required safety gear are always a must. See our list of mandatory kayak gear for more details. Plus, sunscreen and sun hats are definitely recommended when you’re on the water. Besides your normal safety gear, we definitely recommend a bilge pump in case you end up tipping on the logs, and good insect repellant. Towels and dry clothes are also a must! We took an extra dry bag along just for clothes.
What Not to Do When Visiting Big Creek
We actually visited Big Creek 2 weekends in a row. The first weekend, we launched further north – which I wouldn’t recommend. The river was strewn with uncleared debris and fallen log jams. The only way to pass was to get out and physically lift the kayaks over, as the banks were so steep we were unable to “portage” around on the banks. This made for a very slow trip – we hardly paced 1km/hour! And several of us fell in while trying to clear the boats over the logs, and this was a colder weekend.
We were cold and tired by the time we’d made it the 5km to Rowan Mills Conservation Area, but unfortunately, we’d parked the trailer at the next stop. That next stop, while another 5 km by the way the crow flies, turned out to be almost 10 km by way of a very meandering river. The men went on to the end, while I sat with my friend and our kids waiting for a couple hours for them to reach the trailer and then come back to pick us up!
While us adults were cursing the place by the time we were done, the kids have very different memories of this first trip to kayak Big Creek ON. By the following weekend, when we had worked up the courage to go back and attempt the Rowan Mills to Port Royal stretch, the kids had already forgotten the challenges, and would have happily started again at the first launch for another run at “that place with the obstacle course”.
Note the warning from Norfolk Tourism site: “During different levels of flow throughout the year, Big Creek may be difficult to navigate. In high water, the currents can be strong so do not canoe in the creek. In low water, there are more exposed logs and rock, so caution is needed. There is a mandatory portage in the vicinity of Rowan Mills Conservation Area – you must exit the canoe at the portage sign. Please do not attempt to walk on the log jam.”
There are apparently lots of put-in spots when you kayak Big Creek ON. Below are some of our notes:
- Cty Rd. 1 – LPRCA notes that this route to Cty Rd 60 takes 6 hours. We think they might underestimate their times a bit, at least by the speeds we accomplished in September.
- Lower Big Creek Conservation Area – We had actually planned to start here to kayak Big Creek ON, but discovered that there is a ~1.2km path to the launch area. Being September, the water level was a bit low here and we had left our kayak cart at home, so we decided to check out the other launch spots. The LPRCA suggests this is a 2 hour kayak to the next access point.
- Cty Rd 60 – This was where we started on our first attempt – and while you’re free to do what you want, we wouldn’t suggest this as a family friendly stretch. While LPRCA suggested the route to the next access point was 2 hours, it took us more than 5 hours to complete this ~5 km paddle to Rowan Mills Conservation Area – steep creek beds and no room to portage around fallen log jams meant we needed to lift boats over several log jams. It might be better in the spring, but there were a lot of jams that we ducked under that would have been more problematic with higher water levels, so I’m not sure.
- Rowan Mills Conservation Area – noted above – this is our recommended access point. LRPCA suggests this is a 2 hour kayak to the next access point. I think we spent around 2.5 hours paddling this stretch, but the kids poked along, so if you wanted to push it you could probably pull it off in 2. We did measure this stretch to be over 9km.
- Cty Rd 42 / Lakeshore Road Port Royal – this is our recommended pull out spot, as there is lots of parking and a shallow bank that we could easily climb out at. If you want to continue to the next access point, the LPRCA suggests this would be another hour – this wouldn’t include time spent exploring the marsh!! We made another trip to explore the marsh, starting at this point. You can read our post about Big Creek Marsh here.
- Hwy 59 – this launch is the southernmost access point, located near the outfitter “At the Bridge”, and is closest to Lake Erie. We didn’t drive down to check it out this trip, but next time we want to venture further into the marshes so maybe we’ll make it this far. We’ve heard you can paddle upstream through this stretch to Cty Rd 42, and then back if you don’t want to deal with shuttling your kayak.
Experience Ontario’s Carolinian Forest
Old growth deciduous trees typical of the Carolinian forest ecosystem found along Big Creek. When you kayak Big Creek ON, you’ll be up close and personal with a rare and at risk habitat in Ontario.
The warm, mild climate supports old growth deciduous trees, including many tree species that are rare in Canada:
- Tulip tree (a form of wild magnolia species, and North America’s tallest hardwood, commonly reaching 75 feet in height),
- Sycamore (one of the largest deciduous trees, with maple-like leaves and patchy creamy white bark, and round fruit balls 1-2” diameter)
- Black Gum
- Black walnut trees
- Cottonwoods
- Sassafras
- Black Oak
- Cucumber trees / cucumber magnolias (the only magnolia native to Canada)
- Pawpaws
- Black maples
- grape & Virginia Creeper vines
The Nature Conservancy of Canada estimates that though Ontario’s Carolinian forest is just 1% of Canada’s landmass, that it supports 25% of our country’s species at risk.
Kayak Your Way into the Big Creek National Wildlife Area
Reflections on the water as we neared the marshes of Big Creek National Wildlife Area. We definitely want to go back and explore the marshes more.
Beyond the unique ecosystem of the Carolinian forest lies another gem – the Big Creek National Wildlife Area. The creek feeds into these marshes and then flows on to Long Point’s Inner Bay. The Big Creek National Wildlife Area’s marshes are a major staging area for waterfowl. Tens of thousands of waterfowl, including ducks, geese, and swans) rest and feed at Long Point and Big Creek during the peak of fall migration. The Government of Canada, who manages the marshes of Big Creek National Wildlife Area, note that more than 200 species of birds have been observed at the NWA, and more than 80 species breed there, including threatened species like the least bittern, and prothonotary warbler. The area is also home to turtles & Monarch butterflies.
Additional Reading
Excellent video of Big Creek from PaddleTV
https://www.thespec.com/life/travel/2014/08/23/paddling-down-a-lazy-river-by-kayak.html
https://wwf.ca/2018/05/22/seven-rare-species-carolinian-zone/
Plus, check out our post on our visit to Big Creek Marsh / National Wildlife Area
Outfitter Options
Long Point Eco-Adventures https://www.lpfun.ca/
Grand Experiences https://grand-experiences.com/about-us/our-places/big-creek/
Cronmiller’s At the Bridge https://www.atthebridge.ca/
Grand River Rafting (Tubing) https://grandriverrafting.ca/trips/big-creek-turbo-tubing/
More Kayaking Destinations
For more trip planning inspiration, don’t miss our Where to Paddle page for links to more great kayaking destinations in Southern Ontario and beyond.
