Distance: 320km
Take Hwy #417 to Hwy #17 to Renfrew, then head west along Hwy #132, which turns into Hwy #41, continue heading west through to Denbigh. At Denbigh, turn onto Hwy #28 and travel through Bancroft to Paudash.
At Paudash, turn onto Hwy #118 (formerly 121) which continues west to Haliburton. At Haliburton, you can continue on #118, but that’s a bit slower. Take Haliburton Route 21 (formerly 121), which is a left at one of the main intersections in the town with traffic lights. This route travels down to Hwy #35 and the town of Minden. At Hwy #35, turn right so that you're travelling north, go over the small bridge and just after, turn right onto Horseshoe Lake Road (Country Road #20) and follow it about 5km to the Gull River.
The road parallels the river. There is a large parking lot in the woods on the left side of the road (not on the river side) and further along the road is a small parking lot (10-12 cars) on the right (the river side). About 200 metres after that you will see the dam and a bridge. Turn right on Bethel Rd (there’s a sign for a golf course) and go over the bridge and immediately turn right into the Minden White Water Preserve (MWWP) campground.
An alternative that saves some time is to exit onto Bethel directly off of Haliburton Route 21 (approximately 15km south of Haliburton). You’ll see a sign to turn right off of Route 21 to go to a golf course. That is Bethel Road. Follow until you reach the MWWP campground.
The campground charges $12/night/person. The payment is on the honour system. An envelope is in a small kiosk near the main building. There are no showers. Bathrooms may be open, but not every weekend. If not, there are out-houses. The camp ground is operated by White Water Ontario. If you are a member, camping is cheaper.
The Gull river is a 600 meter stretch of class II (lower section) and class III+ (upper section). This is the classic training ground for Toronto paddlers. The bottom half is the most popular with open boats, but the upper section can be run if the water levels are reasonable. Scout the upper section prior to running. The current is fairly fast in this technical river. There are sharp rocks on the last drop, which is called the otter slide. It is safe to go down, but you want to be in your boat – it is not friendly to swimmers. If you swim above the otter slide, aggressively swim for an eddy (there is a large one above the drop).
At the very bottom is a wave train that is a favourite for practicing eddy turns. This can turn into a great surfing spot as the lake level changes. This can change quite a bit during the day, so if there is no surf opportunities in the morning, do not despair.
