French River maps

[hawk-eye]

I'm sure it's been asked before so forgive me for asking.

 

Is there any electronic maps for the French near noelville? If not electronic where can I get my hands on a paper one? My navionics map stops giving depths about 16km down from Nippising. The water around there looks like it could be hard on the lower end.

 

Thanks.

[Freshtrax]

Rare and hard to come by. From what I understand it's not officially charted, may have to do with the fluctuation in water level it sees. The French has claimed 3 of my props. The first few times I went al I had was printed off google maps so I wouldn't get lost in some of the way back in there lakes. No fish there anyway , I heard. There's lots of fish in the kawarthas.. All I can say is go slow. And follow a local if your running some miles. Lots of boulders in 30 ft of water that come up outa nowhere.

Edited June 23, 2012 by Freshtrax

[Pigeontroller]

Here's about your best bet, its basically a topo so no depths...

 

[hawk-eye]

Sounds like I should bring some spare props with me. Well if I bust her up i gues I'll get to spend more time with the wife during our trip. I was hoping some has station or tackle shop would have something. Thank anyways

[woodenboater]

All I can tell you is a bunch of prop eaters down around Cranes Lochaven, one nasty shoal (waaay off from shore) near the entrance to the North Channel from Wolseley Bay . I understand there are a bunch more that I managed to miss. Thankfully.

 

But yeah, the French River Park map is your best option. As for spare props, that would be a smart move so you don't cut your boating off too early.

 

If you're staying at a lodge, they probably have basic maps noting locations of rocks and shoals.

[chris.brock]

where are you staying?

[hawk-eye]

Down green bay road.

[blue pickeral]

Look into the French River Trading post - had some maps there last year. BUT not sure about whether they provide nav information or not. Floating logs - deadheads - can also be a hazard.

[bigcreekdad]

[

There are no depth maps below the Chaudiere dams. I think it's because the rocks and shoals down there move around. That explains how I turned my prop into a donut sized knob a few years ago. "I swear that rock wasn't there last year!!"

 

By all means....have a spare prop or two down there, and give every point a WIDE berth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

quote name=blue pickeral' date='23 June 2012 - 06:22 AM' timestamp='1340446965' post='708486]

Look into the French River Trading post - had some maps there last year. BUT not sure about whether they provide nav information or not. Floating logs - deadheads - can also be a hazard.

[hawk-eye]

Thank for the help guys. Little scared of of the place now. No wot there. It's been so long since I made a trip up that way. I can't wait.

 

Thanks for the heads up.

[Rich Clemens]

Down green bay road.

 

Are you on what they call the North Channel of the French ??? We are at Rainbow Camp on the North Channel in September. One week at Wolseley Lodge and the second at Rainbow.

[cynmar]

Have stayed on the French many times over the years and you have to be real careful. One minute you're cruising along in 50" of water and the next there's a shoal that comes up out of nowhere. I always ask the lodge owner for the lay of the land and most have their local maps of the nearby areas with most of the rocks etc. marked. I generally scout an area slowly before I go running through it for the rest of the week. One year. lodge owner said watch the shoals in this inlet. He didn't say the shoal was in the centre of the bay and the deep part (30') was all around the shoreline . Go to go into the inlet and scrape 2' of water. Not good.

[cynmar]

Have stayed on the French many times over the years and you have to be real careful. One minute you're cruising along in 50' of water and the next there's a shoal that comes up out of nowhere. I always ask the lodge owner for the lay of the land and most have their local maps of the nearby areas with most of the rocks etc. marked. I generally scout an area slowly before I go running through it for the rest of the week. One year. lodge owner said watch the shoals in this inlet. He didn't say the shoal was in the centre of the bay and the deep part (30') was all around the shoreline . Go to go into the inlet and scrape 2' of water. Not good.

Edited June 24, 2012 by oldbassguy

[Nipfisher]

Down green bay road.

 

My buddies dad has a trailer at Green Bay Trailer Park. I have been up and down that stretch a few times. I believe you can only run less then 20 kms because of rapids. Oulette rapids are impassable by boat and the ones north of the park are challenging. When you can't run the North ones (can't remember the name) I believe you are confined to about 7-8 kms of the channel.

[chris.brock]

Cedar rapids is the end of the line heading up river, just pass Ash Bay.

I've spent alot of time on that section, don't worry about hitting rocks, stay off shore abit and you'll be fine, it's nothing like Hartley Bay or some other sections

[Rich Clemens]

Cedar rapids is the end of the line heading up river, just pass Ash Bay.

I've spent alot of time on that section, don't worry about hitting rocks, stay off shore abit and you'll be fine, it's nothing like Hartley Bay or some other sections

 

 

Correct. It is pretty clear for the entire stretch. Coming out of Green bay, heading up, you have some rocks sticking up out of the water along the left, but they are easy to see. However, there are a few just under the water surrounding these. Just a wee bit past these rocks, on the opposite side is a pretty large shoal and it typically has a marker on it - but it covers a wide area I believe. I don't often go further than Ash Bay, up towards the rapids, but have a couple times. Not all that familiar with the water up there, buit as Chris suggests, don't get real close the shore line and you should be good. I actually have to launch my boat there at the public launch at Green Bay. The launch at Rainbow is just way too hairy for my boat - due to the width and length of the launch.

 

Patsy landed a 49" last year and I boated a 49" and 45" - all within a 36 hour period in the North Channel last September.

[Nipfisher]

Cedar rapids was what I was thinking about. I have seen a few boats run them during high water but those boats were on 14' aluminums with 9.9-15hp outboards.

 

I have never tried for musky in that stretch.....gues I'm gona have to go visit again.

[chris.brock]

I'd say that stretch of river is best for muskie, in early September, the bass and walleye can be tough (especially the walleye)

it's pretty safe going up Cedar rapids in normal water levels, it's more of a chute than a rapid, you can only go for a couple hundred meters before an impassable rapid though, there is walleye between Cedar and the next rapid up-river

[Nipfisher]

I'd say that stretch of river is best for muskie, in early September, the bass and walleye can be tough (especially the walleye)

it's pretty safe going up Cedar rapids in normal water levels, it's more of a chute than a rapid, you can only go for a couple hundred meters before an impassable rapid though, there is walleye between Cedar and the next rapid up-river

 

 

K. Thanks Chris. Gonna try it out in September.

[taper]

There are no depth charts available but you can get a topo chart for Your Lowrance that has very good detail. I found it helped quite a bit with planning where you were going to fish etc.

[F_ast]

I was on the ontario topo site (cant find the link now) and pieced this together with screen shots a few years ago. Goes from Wolseley Bay right to Chardier

 

[Rich Clemens]

There are no depth charts available but you can get a topo chart for Your Lowrance that has very good detail. I found it helped quite a bit with planning where you were going to fish etc.

 

 

I had purchased MapCreate for Canada some years back and made my own map of the entire area. All this gives me is the contours of the shorelines. No depths, no hazards, etc. I basically created this for my GPS unit for navigation. As I encounter a rock/shoal, I just mark it with a waypoint for future reference. If the OP is fishing the North Channel coming out of Green Bay, as mentioned before, you have rapids on both ends, so in a way, you're locked into that stretch. Can't really get lost or turned around.

[bigbuck]

There is a French river depth chart available from navCanada, it covers from the west arm of Nippissing to well west of the Chaudiere dam. I'm not sure of the chart number but you could look it up.