TIME TRAVELLERS
Group carries own transport along historic trail to honour rivers, history and Indigenous people,
A group of travellers hunched under canoes set off along a 23-kilometre trading route to portage from the Humber to the Don River.
They carried everything they needed for the journey on their backs — clothing, food and firewood — and planned to arrive before dark.
Unlike early Indigenous hunters, fishers and traders, the portagers didn’t have any wild animals to worry about, but then again, the Davenportage is all about sticking to tradition.
On Sunday afternoon, about 30 “historian athletes” and “voyageur philosophers” carrying 10 canoes travelled along Davenport Rd. — or Davenport Trail — to recognize Toronto’s rivers, history and Indigenous people.
Dating back thousands of years, the trail connected Indigenous settlements with hunting and fishing grounds and trade routes tied to the Great Lakes, Atlantic Canada and the Midwest, according to Heritage Toronto. In Objibwe, it was named Gete-Onigaming meaning “at the old portage.”
In 2014, four friends mapped out and followed roughly the same route, portaging through downtown Toronto. That’s when the Davenportage was born. They’ve continued it every year since, boasting that everyone who tries it comes back the next year.
“The Davenportage is a joyous and interesting way to experience the city, using traditional modes of transportation — feet, paddling and portaging,” said Nicholas Brinkman, co-founder and organizer.
European traders, missionaries and soldiers discovered the trail in the 1600s. By 1793, when the Town of York (now Toronto) was established, it had been transformed into a road for wagons and horses.
“What appealed to me the most is connecting to Toronto’s past, forming a visceral connection,” said Bethany Reed, who was participating for the first time.
The portage started at Étienne Brûlé Park with a sacred smudging ceremony and opening prayer, led by Mike Ormsby of Curve Lake First Nation.
“Think of the Indigenous people you’re following, you’re walking in our footsteps,” Ormsby said to the group before they set off.
“I really respect what you guys are about to do.” Along the way, participants dropped off canned goods at the Yorkville Fire Station and stopped for refreshments at the Tollkeeper’s Cottage at Davenport Rd. and Bathurst St. The tollgate operated from at least 1850.
They made their way down Davenport Rd. until it turned into Church St. Then they followed smaller streets and finished at the Evergreen Brick Works, along the Don River.
A group of eight, including Brinkman, started the trek earlier, with a 15-kilometre run to the Don River, followed by a paddle to Lake Ontario and up the Humber River.
“The experience is spiritual and ridiculous,” Brinkman said.