basetour

A PICTORIAL TOUR OF THE NORTHERN TIER BASES

The first thing you will see when you arrive at the Sommers Canoe Base is an impressive carved wooden sign that signifies the three bases operated by the Northern Tier National High Adventure Program. The sign was carved by Roy Cerny, an old Charlie Guide and an active alumnus.

The gateway was dedicated in September 1995, and it is symbolic of the "portage through time" theme that invites Scouts to enter the historic era of the fur trade as they experience the finest contemporary wilderness camping in North America. As you walk through the gate and into the stockade, you are will be greeted by your first glimpse of a lake through the trees. Once you hit the trail, you will learn to portage your gear between lakes. One of the simple pleasures of trail life is that first glimpse of the next lake.

The welcome cabin is a log cabin with Canadian and US flags out front, a life size wooden carving of a voyageur on the front porch, and a helpful staffer who will help you get checked in and organized for your experience at the base and on the trail.

You will spend you first night at the base in a six-sided cabin made of wooden logs and patterned after a Scandinavian design. These cabins are located along walking trails so as to fit into the natural surroundings.

The Commissary building is one of the largest buildings on the base, at 4500 square feet. It is an open-construction warehouse type building used for food issue and food storage. During the winter months, this building can be seen from Moose Lake, and looks much like a Chalet. During the summer, the only thing visible from the lake is the Base's radio tower on top of the hill.

The Bay Post is a building that is used for outfitting of packs, tents, and non-food type supplies. This state of the art building was first used in 2004.

The dining hall is where your meals on base are served, and houses the Trading Post. In the winter, the dining hall is heated and is used during the Okpik winter camping program.

The lodge was the first permanent building established at the Sommers Canoe Base, and was built by Finnish immigrant loggers during the winter of 1941-1942. It was built with hand tools, axes, saws, chisels and planes, with trees that were blown down in 1938 in a severe storm along the Echo trail. It is an awesome building that has recently been renovated to house a trip planning/chart room, new lighting, and the Hedrick Library. Hot water heat provides another winterized facility for Okpik and other training programs.

Crew cabins provide you with a place to sleep when you come off the trail. After taking a sauna and letting someone else cook for you, this makes for a pretty comfortable place to sleep before leaving for home.

The administration building is where the year-round staff take reservations and answer your question about the Northern Tier programs. This is also the contact location for first-aid situations and where the 24-hour monitored emergency radio is located.

A PICTORIAL TOUR OF THE NORTHERN TIER BASES

The Don Rogert Canoe Base is your base camp for canoe treks south into Quetico Provincial Park and north into the White Otter - Turtle River Wilderness and Crown Lands. The base has been completely revamped into an outstanding outfitting facility with the addition in 2005 of a state-of-the-art program facility housing the Trading Post, Dining Hall, and Commissary. This structure replaces all of the temporary trailers once used for these functions.

Enjoy a relaxing post-trip experience in the wood-fired sauna overlooking beautiful Perch Lake.

Crew amenities include lockers for those traveling via public transit and comfortable crew cabins for your evenings before and after your trek.

Showers and bathroom facilities

Equipment is checked out at the Bay Post

A PICTORIAL TOUR OF THE NORTHERN TIER BASES

Northern Expeditions Canoe Base is located in the small mining town of Bissett, Manitoba about 31/2 hours northeast of Winnipeg. Most trips from here travel by float plane to the canoe cache on Scout Lake. Treks are in Atikaki Provincial Park or Woodland Caribou Provincial Park.

Inside of Sauna Program Center and Outfitting Crew Cabin Inside of Outfitting Building