Canoe Tripping Workshop with Kevin Callan

One Day. Every Canoe Tripping Skill You've Been Winging.

Spend a day on with Kevin Callan, The Happy Camper, learning the skills that make backcountry canoe trips safer, lighter, and a lot more fun. Whether you're planning your first overnight or you've been tripping for years on guesswork and good luck, you'll leave with practical knowledge you can put to work on your very next trip.

Group sizes are kept small so you get real face time with Kevin, your questions answered, and hands-on practice, not a lecture from the back row. Spots fill fast.

What You'll Learn

Kevin covers the full arc of a canoe trip, from planning at your kitchen table to staying warm, dry, and fed in the backcountry:

• Planning a canoe route and packing light, even for a 20-day trip
• Choosing the right canoe design, paddle, and PFD fit
• Basic paddling strokes, canoe safety, and portaging techniques
• Selecting the perfect campsite
• Fire lighting, wood identification, and cooking great meals in the wild
• Water purification and backcountry navigation
• Staying warm, dry, and comfortable in any weather
• Tripping with dogs and kids
• Dealing with bugs, bears, blisters, and storms
• Wilderness hygiene and safety essentials

Workshop Details

• Dates: Saturday, August 8th or Sunday, August 9th, 2026 (select your date above)
• Time: 9 am to 4 pm
• Location: Frontenac Outfitters, on our lakefront in the heart of the Frontenac Arch
• Canoe required: Don't have one? Add a rental above for a special participant rate of $40, almost half the regular price.Who Is Kevin Callan?
• Bring a lunch: There's a midday break, and given our location, we'd recommend bringing your own. Feeling adventurous? If you want the full backcountry experience, grab a dehydrated camp meal from the shop and cook it up on-site. Nothing says "canoe trip" like rehydrating your lunch.

Kevin Callan is THE Happy Camper

If you've ever searched on YouTube for Ontario canoe tripping videos, you already know him. Better known as The Happy Camper, Kevin is the author of 20 books and counting, including the best-selling The Happy Camper and the paddling guides that have introduced generations of Canadians to the backcountry. He's been named one of the top 100 modern day explorers by the Canadian Geographical Society, serves as Patron Paddler for Paddle Canada, and has spent over two decades writing for Explore Magazine, picking up National Magazine Awards and film awards along the way.

But credentials only tell half the story. Kevin has spent more than 30 years living what he teaches, paddling, portaging, and camping his way across Ontario and beyond, and sharing it all on his popular YouTube channel, KCHappyCamper. He's a natural storyteller with a legendary sense of humour, so this won't feel like a classroom. It feels like a day in the bush with a friend who happens to know absolutely everything about canoe tripping, and has the misadventure stories to prove it.

Select your date, grab your spot, and become a happy camper yourself.