tortue River (Words by Jean Fecteau)



Area: Côte-Nord region
Interest: ★★★★★
SufferFactor: ★★★ (shuttle by plane / 4-5 multiday, self-support, source to sea / only 2 small portages)
Difficulty: Class IV-IV+
Season: The Tortue is usually running from June to mid-July
Level: theres no gauge on the Tortue river. You want the river to be medium-low.
Put in / Take out information : HERE
(50.911901,-65.507582) (50.302874, -65.373526)

From the 138, you can stop and access the river from a trail on the river left. If the river is medium-low, it should be good to go. If the 3 waterfalls under the bridge look a bit gnarly and not really runnable, it’s a good sign. If they look runnable, it migh be too low for the upper portion. If there flooded and look totally unrunnable, the river might be too high. Some sections of the river could be runnable at a medium or high level, but some others could become unrunnable or really gnarly.

For more information and local’s advice, you can ask information on this Facebook page : HERE



Paddlers: Jean Fecteau and Crew



If you get the perfect water level, you’ll get 3 days of perfect class 4/4+ rapids in a scenic and wild valley. With only one portage and one day of flat water, this is an exceptional 95 km multiday kayak trip. The flight from Sept-Îles to the put-in is quite cheap (around 300 $ each) and takes about 45 minutes. A small Beaver plane fits 3 paddlers with boats and gear. If your more than 3 paddlers, you can either book 2 Beaver planes or an Otter plane (fits 6 paddlers).




The river starts with mellow continuous read and run class III/IV rapids, punctuated by 2 bigger rapids (class IV). They are all runnable. You’ll rapidly get to a second lake. Once you cross it, you’ll enter the first gorge: the “Nose Bleed Gorge”. Mellow class III and IV rapids awaits, all runnable. At the entrance of this section, there will also be a rock slab on the river left, perfect for the first night of camping.

After that, let’s say there’s too much rapids to describe them. Just read and run until you see an horizon line : then, just scout and run. The biggest one will probably be “Michealangelo”. Everything is clean in this rapid. A few hours and a few sections of continuous rapids later, you will face a choice : camp on a rock slab on the river left just before the entrance of an engaging and steep canyon (“Splinter Canyon”). This canyon features major rapids (class IV/V) and an unrunnable waterfall (really short portage and seal lunch on river right). Once you get out of the canyon, there will be a fun class IV continuous section ending with a small slide (“Splinter Gorge”). There’s a huge rock slab on the river left, probably suitable for camping.



Figure 2 – Michelangelo




Figure 4 – Splinter Gorge (continuous fun class IV, after Splinter canyon)



Your Title HereAfter this, once again, there’s to many rapids, gorges and canyons to mention. All runnable, read and run (or easy scouts when there’s an horizon line). Only one rapid sequence is worth mentioning : “Cawabunga”. After a grey granite class IV canyon (“Shredder gorge”), be carrefull. A substantial horizon line awaits. This is the biggest rapid of the whole river. A 25 ft class V waterfall, hitting the river right wall and landing in a huge recirculating eddy. This eddy immediately leads into a class IV+ rapid with a weir hole at the end. This sequence is clean but engaging. Good safety is required. The portage is 200 meters long on the river right.



Figure 5 – Shredder Gorge




Figure 6 – Cawabunga




Figure 7 - Cawabunga



Once “Cawabunga” is behind you, you still have a many class II – III – IV rapids ahead. A few might need a scout. One of them, “Pointe Parfaite”, is an awesome class IV auto boof. The rest is read and run / easy scouts. At the end of this sequence, you’ll get to a major rapid : “Wall Street”. 3 small drops lead into a wall ride drifting on the left granite bank. All clean and good to go.



Figure 8 - Pointe parfaite




Figure 9 – Wall Street



Wall street marks the start of a big day (or two smaller days) of flat water and small class I-II rapids. There will be plenty of beautiful beaches for camping. At the end of this, you’ll get to the last section of the Tortue. This section starts when you get to the hydro lines. Since it’s accessible by the hydro lines road and ends at the 138, this section is frequently paddled by local paddlers. It’s a class IV section featuring a few small portages, many different lines and a few canyons. Be careful : you’ll see lots of weird rock features, sieves and siphons. Scout and portage when needed. Once you see the 138 (take out road), the run is over. You can take out, river left, just before the bridge of the 138.

Just under the bridge of the 138, there’s 3 majors waterfalls that are not really clean at a medium-low level. They have been run, but at a really low levels. If they are runnable, either you’re a really good paddler or the river is too low to run the upper portion.



Figure 10 – 3 major waterfalls at the take-out. This is a perfect level for