Top 5 places to put-in
I now have 25 places on the interactive map where you can launch your canoe or kayak. It may seem a bit overwhelming, so I'm putting up my five favourite places, for those new to the Seine, to start a quick journey that should only take you an hour or two upstream and down (returning to your start) The numbers match up to those on my map.
1. The Edgewood-Tremblay Street Bridge (#35 on the map) .
There's decent street parking nearby and always a spot to put in, regardless of water level, either under the bridge or in a grassy area next to it. You can start downstream and there is a lot to see: bridges, homes, industrial areas, nice green spaces and walking trails. You end up where the Seine empties into the Red. Only caution is: this section is very finicky. Water levels drop quickly after mid-spring, and there are rapids, rocks and rebar when the water is low. Prepare to portage or turn back if the water is low.
2. The bridge at John Bruce Road (#18 on the map).
Another easy spot to start, with decent parking and the option of launching under the bridge or on nearby grass. This is a great spot for a quick trip upstream through the Bois Des Esprits - a forest popular with walkers and cyclists. In just 90 minutes, you can go upstream to the Shorehill Bridge and back, stopping along the way to see The Spirit Tree (#16 on the map) about 30 metres from the shoreline. There are usually deer and turtles about, and afterward there are restaurants and cafes aplenty along St. Anne's Rd. The only tricky part on this section is a rapids/low branches/rocks combination on a turn (#17 on the map).
3. The path immediately south of Shorehill Drive (#11 on the map).
This launch point is a bit tricky to get to (unless you ask the kind folks at the Morrow Gospel Church to use their parking lot), but it's a great spot to start a trek through the wilder part of the Seine. There is lots of wildlife about, even though you're still in the city. When the leaves are in, it can feel like a bayou. The scenery is very pretty as you go under the Creek Bend Road bridge and head toward the older rural homes. At the end, you see an intriguing 4-foot-high hand (#7 on the map) on the shore, telling you you're approaching the perimeter.
4. Blenheim (#32 on the map).
An easy spot to put in -- lots of nearby street parking and a short walk to a steady shoreline. You can head upstream through quaint older neighbourhoods and the Windsor Park golf course. There are a few bridges and you'll likely see golfers at play. There's a challenge too - depending on water levels, you may have to portage around or limbo underneath a very, very low bridge (#29 on the map).
5. Sumka Road (#6 on the map).
A nice and easy spot to put-in just south of the perimeter highway. Good parking and a tiny oxbow of sorts to start your journey downstream into the city. A quick 45-minute return paddle will take you through some of the few remaining rural properties in the city, by the big hand statue (#7 on the map), and under the bridge at Creek Bend Rd. Or, you can go upstream through beautiful rural properties to the dead end at the Red River Floodway, where a walking/cycling path overlooks the massive ditch that protects Winnipeg. There is a hazard in the upstream direction -- a tiny culvert under the rail tracks that is usually too water-filled to go through. Portage up and around.