Floatplane Expedition to Canada, July 2007 Galleries

1: At Surfside Seaplane Base : The trip began at the Surfside Seaplane Base in Lino Lakes, MN, just north of Minneapolis. The planes are stored out of the water, with an unusual machine (shown in several pictures) for picking up the planes and putting them in and out of the water. These photos show planes on the lot and some routine operations, as well as the process of getting the three planes for our trip ready to go.

1: At Surfside Seaplane Base

The trip began at the Surfside Seaplane Base in Lino Lakes, MN, just n ...

Updated: Jul 29, 2007 10:11pm PST

2: Outbound to Crane Lake : After leaving Surfside, we flew north to Crane Lake, on the US/Canada border. We stopped at Scott's Seaplane Base to refuel before crossing into Canada.

2: Outbound to Crane Lake

After leaving Surfside, we flew north to Crane Lake, on the US/Canada ...

Updated: Jul 29, 2007 11:07pm PST

3: Canadian Customs at Sand Lake : After fueling at Scott's in Minnesota, we flew 5-6 miles north to Sand Point, the Canadian customs station. Sand Point does not have road access, and it feels like you've already passed into the wilderness. The customs staff couldn't be friendlier - the one agent's family and dog were out there and everything was quite relaxed. It must be one of the most beautiful settings for a customs office in North America.

3: Canadian Customs at Sand Lake

After fueling at Scott's in Minnesota, we flew 5-6 miles north to Sand ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 3:52pm PST

4: Red Lake : From Sand Point we flew up to Red Lake, ON, a small outpost town. We refuelled at the Green Airways docks - there are some pictures here with their deHavilland Otters and more in my Canadian Bush Aircraft gallery. Then we continued north across the wilderness of northwestern Ontario and eastern Manitoba.

4: Red Lake

From Sand Point we flew up to Red Lake, ON, a small outpost town. We ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 5:43am PST

5: Edmund Lake : We spent two nights at the Edmund Lake Lodge on Edmund Lake, fishing and enjoying the beauty of the lake. I captured a number of "artistic" shots of the lakes, which went into my Canadian Lakes gallery.

5: Edmund Lake

We spent two nights at the Edmund Lake Lodge on Edmund Lake, fishing a ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 6:38am PST

6: Outbound from Edmund Lake to Churchill : After leaving Edmund Lake we flew up to Gillam, where the giant hydroelectric power facilities on the Nelson begin, for refueling. Along the way we made some low altitude passes over the Gods River. We then stopped into York Factory, where the Hayes River meets Hudson Bay. Most of my photos of York Factory are in a dedicated York Factory gallery, but I've placed the ones of our aircraft tied up there and crowded onto the beach, and of our people, on this page.

6: Outbound from Edmund Lake to Churchill

After leaving Edmund Lake we flew up to Gillam, where the giant hydroe ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 10:18am PST

7: In Churchill, MB : I have a separate gallery with the postcard-style pictures of Churchill, with this gallery for pictures of our planes, our group and our activities during our visit. This is how I always organize my galleries, but in this case it seems almost a little odd - you might want to look at both galleries side by side. We tied up at a dock on the "Landing Lake" beside the Churchill airport, shown below. While walking around town we came across the "Tundra Buggies" used in the fall and winter to take tourists into Wapusk National Park to see polar bears. We took a boat tour into the harbor to see the beluga whales, and from there onto Fort Prince of Wales. Later they took us by the famous plane wreck to see it up close. Before leaving we had to fuel the planes, using a rather makeshift rig.

7: In Churchill, MB

I have a separate gallery with the postcard-style pictures of Churchil ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 10:09am PST

8: Dogskin Lake and Return Journey : On the way back we stayed overnight at Dogskin Lake, which has a beautiful fishing lodge. After leaving we stopped in Kenora (see separate gallery), flew over Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake, and then cleared customs at Crane Lake, where I spent some time watching the ducklings pictured below.

8: Dogskin Lake and Return Journey

On the way back we stayed overnight at Dogskin Lake, which has a beaut ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2007 10:12am PST

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Brian E. Coggins, Ph.D., Durham, North Carolina.
Copyright (c) 2003-2009 Brian E. Coggins. All rights reserved.

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