#DiscoverON with The Planet D this Summer

Guest Blog by The Planet D

Photo: The Planet D.

Award winning travel couple, Dave and Deb live by the motto “adventure is for everyone. Married for 17 years, they’ve visited over 80 countries on seven continents. Through their travel blog, The Planet D, they aim to inspire people to follow their dreams and push their boundaries.

Ontario is the Planet D’s home province and this winter they are discovering their own backyard. Here’s a sneak peek at what’s in store:

Ontario is a four seasons playground for the outdoor lover. My husband Dave and I have always known it. We used to spend our weekends doing everything from scuba diving the great lakes to mountain biking and rock climbing the Niagara Escarpment. It’s been a while since we’ve been able to explore our home province, so after six years of traveling the world, we’re back in Canada and are so excited to be spending this year showcasing Ontario’s North. After an epic winter of doing adventures like dog-sledding with Siberian Huskies and traditional winter trekking on the Misinaibi Headwaters, we’re gearing up for our summer adventures. We have some very ambitious travels in store. By the end of this season, we’re going to be coming away with new skills and confidence that are going to completely change the way we travel.

June

It’s going to be a jam-packed three months of summer fun and we’re starting it off in true Canadian style by learning how to white water kayak at Canada’s first and oldest white water kayaking school, the Madawaska Kanu Centre. White water kayaking is an adventure that scares many people. What’s it like to flip upside down in rapids? Will we be able to master the roll? We’re going to tell you all about it. It’s going to be one of our greatest adventures yet. We’ve done sea kayaking many times but have always dreaded the moment our kayak could flip over. With an intensive white water kayaking course under our belts, we’ll now be able to kayak anywhere in the world with confidence.

June

This past Spring Dave and I learned how to ride a motorcycle. We took a course with Motorsoul Riding School and passed our test. We’re now licensed to drive a motorcycle. Since then we’ve done some practice rides and even took a multiday trip through Grey and Bruce Counties to gain confidence. Riding a lot helps to gain skills, but we’ve been told that riding off road will help your skills more than anything. So we’re taking a couple of days of dirt bike training with Trail Tours in Peterborough. We’re going to learn how to ride single track through forest trails, jump logs and ride standing up. How cool is that?

June

It’s then straight off to Algonquin Park to hop into a canoe. With camera in hand, we’re joining award-winning photographer Rob Stimpson and Voyageur Quest on a moose safari. We saw moose tracks on the trail of our dogsledding adventure this past winter, now we hope to see a moose with our own eyes this summer. Rob’s photography is outstanding and we’re looking forward to picking his brain and capturing these majestic creatures in the wild. When we think of Canada, we think of moose and nothing is more of a true Ontario experience than spotting moose from a canoe.

June

If you haven’t noticed, there is a bit of a water theme happening in our travels. We’re proud of Canada’s fresh water system and it’s fitting that so many of our summer adventures revolve around our lakes and rivers. So, our next adventure takes us to TV land where we’re joining The New Fly Fisher Colin McKeown as guests on his show. The New Fly Fisher is an educational show and Dave and I will need all the education we can get, as we’ve never been fly-fishing in our lives. All our trials and tribulations of learning how to fly fish will be captured on film for your enjoyment. But don’t worry, we hear Colin is a great instructor; so I have a feeling we’ll get the hang of it quickly. I hope we have as much grace as Brad Pitt did in A River Runs Through It.

July

Our next trip takes us to the north shore of Lake Superior to explore the Slate Islands with Naturally Superior Adventures. This trip takes place on sea kayaks. After our white water kayaking course, we’re going to be able to put our new skills to the test. A multi day kayaking trip is exciting enough, but the Slate Islands are home to the greatest concentration of woodland caribou in Ontario.

July

As you know, we passed our motorcycle test in April, and just three months later, we will be circumnavigating the world’s largest freshwater lake on two wheels. This trip around Lake Superior will take us out of Ontario for a portion of the trip as we enter Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. We’re starting in Sault St. Marie and traveling clockwise. We’ll be starting on the sandy south shore of Lake Superior and making our way around to the north where the most dramatic views of the magnificent coast await. This is one of the epic rides in Canada and you can find out more at Ride Lake Superior.

August

We’re extremely excited to join the winners of the Best of Outdoor Ontario Contest on Manitoulin Island. This is a dream trip as we’ll be experiencing the Great Spirit Circle Trail where we’ll learn about aboriginal culture while enjoying such epic adventures like swimming with horses and taking a scenic flight over the world’s largest fresh water island. There’s still time to enter. We’d love to see you there!

August

We end our summer with Ontario’s epic trek on the Pukaskwa Trail. This is Ontario’s answer to the West Coast Trail and we hear it is spectacular. Once again we’ll be joining Naturally Superior Adventures to hike 60km on the North Shore of Lake Superior. This is the most remote part of Lake Superior and it is a challenging hike, but after nearly forty days of adventure, I think we’ll have the strength and stamina to complete this trail with the help of our expert guide.

 

 

And that is summer in Ontario!

Make sure to follow the adventure on social media, Twitter and Instagram at the hashtag #DiscoverON and check out our website ThePlanetD.com as we blog about our Ontario Adventures all summer long.