Delaware – Putting in at Delaware on July 16th, Trevor Thompson and his seven-year-old son Ian will be canoeing down the Thames River to their Chatham destination. “It’s something I’ve been planning for years – says Trevor. During the 1813 celebrations I paddled with my wife from Louisville to nearly Thamesville, upstream. We fell short of our goal of Thamesville but I was struck by the beauty of the river and its wildlife. We saw herons, deer, fish jumping, muskrats and more. It was then I decided I wanted to go downstream from the London area to Chatham.”
The trip from Delaware to Chatham is 150km. Trevor and Ian’s goal is to paddle 40km a day. At that rate, they should take 2 days to arrive just east of Wardsville at the Big Bend Conservation Area, around July 17th. Thamesgrove Conservation Area in east Chatham will be in sight on the 4th or 5th day by July 19 or 20, where they will finally pull out the canoes.
It will be the first multi day canoe trip Trevor has ever taken. “I believe the Thames is misunderstood river, both from an environmental and ecological standpoint and a tourism standpoint. It’s easily accessible and it’s close to home which is great if the weather turns sour or we need to cut the trip short. It winds through a very populated area and yet retains its wild side. There aren’t any portages from London to Lake St. Clair and is very calm water making it ideal for beginner paddlers.”
Trevor is also new to the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority’s Board of Directors, representing Chatham-Kent. He says there are three reasons for the trip. The first being he has always wanted to travel the river, the second that it’s a good opportunity to learn more about the entire watershed first hand and finally, it’s a good way to highlight the tourism opportunities of the river. The Thames River is a Canadian Heritage River, designated in the year 2000, joining an elite group of rivers across Canada.
We will be following Trevor and Ian’s trip down the Thames on our LTVCA’s Facebook page at http://www.ltvca.ca/facebook and Trevor will be tweeting from the trip a couple times a day. http://www.twitter.com/LTVCA . Safe paddling!
“A journey by canoe along ancient waterways is a good way to rediscover our lost relationship with the natural world and the Creator who put it together so long ago.” – Bill Mason, Path of the Paddle
For Further Information Contact:
Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority
519-264-2420