Launch : To get to
Kirkham's Bridge from Brandon, drive north to Highway #1 and turn west.
Turn south on
Provincial Road #270 and west on Kirkham Road. You can access the river
on either side of the road. Note also a back road route from the
Landing site.
Landing : The bridge over #1
Highway near Grand Valley, about 10 km west of Brandon.
Distance : About 10 km
Time : 2 - 3 hours
See
Google Earth
View
You have your choice of destinations.
We got out under the bridge (3) that spans the Assiniboine at Highway
#1
near the Grand Valley Park (Former Thunder Mtn. Waterslides). You can
also get
out at the bridge (2) that crosses the Little Saskatchewan just before
it
enters the Assiniboine. This bridge is about a kilometre straight west
of Grand Valley Park.
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The rapids are usually passable only in
the
early spring, unless we get an exceptional amount of rain as we did in
1998. The water is fast - watch for rocks. More importantly, watch for
fences. As the water level
drops you may want to walk around some of the rapids and save your
canoe.
When you pass what looks like the
remains of an old bridge (it's really from a dam) you are approaching
the site of the Glenorky Ski Hill. You are soon within sight of the
first exit point. From there its a short easy paddle to the Assiniboine
and from there it's only 10-15 minutes to the Highway #1 landing.
The rapids are easy but keep the ride
interesting.
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