The Windigo Lake ride.

[kl Richard]

Originally Posted by ZZR_Ron

I'll get on that.sorry..had some interuptions in my life like unemployment, and moving and stuff.

Those are Very Serious Interuptions!!!!! Like I said, I'm vey patient...so, no hurry!!!

GOOD LUCK with those issues!

[ZZR_Ron]

Originally Posted by kl Richard

Those are Very Serious Interuptions!!!!! Like I said, I'm vey patient...so, no hurry!!!

GOOD LUCK with those issues!

Thanks, things are mostly worked out now!

[ZZR_Ron]

Still trying to find the disk...this moving thing is very messed up!

[klondike1]

Thanks for getting back to me. Made me feel good to see all those places again. I spent a few nights drunk in the Winston myself. If i find my picture of mine when it was started i will send them on if interested. Looks like a great ride.

[ZZR_Ron]

Still looking for that disk....

[ZZR_Ron]

Sometime in the 60's or 70's the Natives on the reservations in this area decided that they wanted their kids to attend high school and since there were none on the reservations they sent 400 of the kids to one of the large towns to the south for the purpose of education. At the end of the first year 397 of the kids had been returned to the rez, couldn't handle town life. About this time a missionary from the US decided to build remote high schools for the Natives, and from the Gov leased land at the north end of the so called North Road from for this purpose. Two schools and their small supporting towns were built, Crystal Lake for the girls and 50 miles to the north, Stirland Lake for the boys. Many prominent Natives including the chiefs sent their kids to these schools, they were considered a good place to get an education and resembled the reservations in many ways. My family moved to Stirland from Pennsylvania in the early 80's. For two years we lived in a house overlooking that lake. In the fall the students would fly in from the reservations in bush planes on pontoons, live in dorms and attend high school. I went to a 1 room school for the missionary kids, there were about 10 kids in our whole elementary school. Imagine not seeing a tv, hearing a radio or reading a newspaper for 2 years. There was nowhere to drive on a regular basis, so it would be months between car rides. The only things I had were canoes, a huge lake, and unending wilderness. It was paradise. I'd go back tomorrow if I could. Anyway, the year after we came back to the US, the Powers That Be decided that it would be a good idea to move the girls up from Crystal and make Stirland a coed campus. It was not a good idea. I don't know all the details of what started it, but an all out riot broke out. The students burned the power generator to the ground, lit the fuel tanks on fire and dragged the staff members from their homes and beat them. Eventually the OPP arrived and pattywagoned the whole lot of them. The school was shut down and the town was sold to a Native bush pilot and some partners. I have no idea what they were planning to do with it, the land was leased from the Gov for 99 years for the purpose of education only, it cannot be used for anything else. The buildings are now in a state of disrepair. I've taken the 36 hour drive up there twice in the last 12 years, it's kind of sad to see it like that when you remember it filled with people. Anyhow, life goes on. It feels funny talking about something that happened 25 years ago, where the **** does the time go? (PS, along the North Road, just past the old entrance to Stirland there is a small place to camp. If one were to paddle a canoe across the lake, get into the river system and know the way ( its not easy ) one would eventually reemerge at the North Road, 30 miles south, on the Pipestone River, which also has a camping area. If one took that trip, one would see sights and catch fish that were not easily forgotten. Did it twice.

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[CanadianX]

It's great when some of these old post pop up, inspiration for a future ride. I've been looking at the James Bay road as a potential trip and am wondering if there are any trails that go further north after the road ends. It would be a cool ride but I can't figure out how to bring the kayak as I'd like to paddle in Hudson Bay for giggles.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by CanadianX

I've been looking at the James Bay road as a potential trip and am wondering if there are any trails that go further north after the road ends....

JBR ends at Radisson, paved all the way. not north, but there's always the Trans Taiga running roughly ENE. about 1400km of gravel road roundtrip.

[ZZR_Ron]

to get to the start of this ride, you can always ride the railbed...

[Mercenary]

Hi Ron. Looking at Windigo lake on Google earth it looks as though the road runds past it up to Weagamow lake. Is that just a winter road or have they extended the road since you took your trip up there?

[ZZR_Ron]

It must be a winter road...the natives I work with fly to Weagamow...

[OldSilverFox]

It's great when some of these old post pop up, inspiration for a future ride. I've been looking at the James Bay road as a potential trip and am wondering if there are any trails that go further north after the road ends. It would be a cool ride but I can't figure out how to bring the kayak as I'd like to paddle in Hudson Bay for giggles.

You don't need to bring your kayak. The natives have lots of canoes there. See some of the James Bay ride posts on how to get to the Bay from Raddison.

[ZZR_Ron]

a few people asked for this...it would be cool to upload the video, but can't seem to get Smugmug to accept the file...anyone know how to convert from a Mac format to Windows?

[ZZR_Ron]

Wolves near the mine,

[bwokentoof]

Ron, try posting it on YouTube then linking to adv.