Birchbark canoe builder and owner of The Bark Canoe Store, John Lindman, provides a comprehensive list of must-see films for canoeists that feature both birchbark canoes and fiberglass replicas.

Article by: John Lindman, owner of The Bark Canoe Store, http://www.barkcanoe.com/home.htm

Over the years I have come across various movies that have birchbark canoes or replicas of birchbark canoes in them. Some of these are popular and well known, but others are obscure. I have appreciated when a friend tells me about one so, I figure you might enjoy watching some of these yourself.

Films with real birchbark canoes

Nikki The Wild Dog of the North

Filmed in the 1950s by Disney, this film was shot in the Canadian Rockies in the area of Banff, Alberta. David Gidmark told me that the producers used a number of canoes in the movie and that they were made in Maniwaki, Quebec and picked up for $50 a piece! There is also one replica used in the movie—a stunt double you might say. The story takes place in the late 1800s with a fur trader heading down river to get supplies with a Malamute puppy. Beautifully shot, the bulk of the movie is about this puppy/dog and his black bear friend in the wild—a typical Disney nature movie. The beginning and end of the film is more about the fur trade.

The Bear

This takes place during the late 1800s. It's about two guys that set out to hunt this bear. It’s a great kids story. There is only one small scene of the canoe—a wabanaki chiman.

Dreamkeeper

This was a Hallmark Hall of Fame film that was picked up by ABC and shown as a mini-series. It’s a story about a First Nations kid on the Pine Ridge Reservation who takes his grandfather to a big pow-wow in the south-east. It does a great job of weaving contemporary Indian Country life with traditional lessons. Well acted and directed with good costumes and scenery. I did an Ojibwe longnose canoe for it and it is shown in one of the stories.

Grey Owl

This is the screen adaptation of the Archy Belany/Grey Owl story presented by Sir Richard Attenborough. There is a small scene with birchbark canoes—wabanaki chiman. While it is not strict with the actual life of Grey Owl it is a well-made and enjoyable movie. I personally think it’s some of Pierce Brosnan's best acting.

Ikwe

Ikwe in Ojibwe means woman. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada it is a story about the fur trade and affected the Ojibwe people—specifically small pox. A few birchbark canoes were used in the film. One looked like the style built by Bill Hafeman of Minnesota and the others were wabanaki chimans.

Silent Enemy

Filmed entirely on location near Lake Temagami, Ontario and with local Ojibwe for actors this is a "must own" video. They made their own canoes, bows and arrows, wigwams, etc. Very authentic. Filmed in 1930s, it must have been a monumental feat to pull this movie off. It’s a testament to the canoe skills of Native Americans. Watching them handle the river they looked like Olympic white-water paddlers.

Films with replica canoes

Black Robe

Great movie. It won the Canadian award for best movie of the year. It’s the story of a Jesuit Priest traveling by birchbark canoe with a band of Algonquins to what most likely was St. Ignace in late fall/early winter. The canoes were very well made fiberglass replicas. It is hard to tell they are not birch bark. However at the time of Champlain, the Algonquins did not paddle "wabanaki chimans,” they paddled the Ottawa River style. Alqonquin is spoken throughout the movie, it was beautifully filmed and the script is haunting. If you haven't seen this, I highly recommend it.

Centennial

This mini-series from the 1970s has unmistakably the finest made birchbark replica canoes. They were constructed by Ralph Frese of the Chicagoland Canoe Base. Ralph told me the story of how he ended up making the canoes. The producers first contacted Henri Vaillancourt to make real birchbark canoes but he was too busy so he referred them to Ralph. Ralph made them as well as the dugouts used in the movie.

The story is about a place in northern Colorado and traces its history through stories on up to the present time. The story opens with the courier d' bois - runner in the woods—paddling his birchbark canoe up the North Fork of the Platt river. If you haven't seen this you are in for a real treat.

Last of the Mohicans 1992

Great movie. It didn't follow the book and was not authentic in all the details, but compared to anything else this was a very well done and entertaining picture. The canoes were very stylized.

Last of the Redmen

Don't let the cover fool you, the costumes and make-up are much better in the film. This is basically Last of the Mohicans with a fun twist. Not historically accurate at all, and the canoes were pretty fake but fun movie none-the-less.

The Unconquered

Gary Cooper, what can I say. This is a fun movie. Most of the canoes were really stylized. There is a chase scene down a river and I can say the stunt man who handles the canoe is a pro. Good cast, good costumes. I liked it.

Squanto

Good story, well filmed, good cast. The canoes look made by the same person who did the canoes for Black Robe. They were wabanaki chiman.

Hiawatha

Great cast, beautiful scenery and the replica canoes aren't bad. Enjoyable and the scenery will get you in the mood to go canoeing.

Make sure the tent is fully seam sealed/taped. You can check this yourself by looking at the inside of the fly and the body of the tent and checking that the seams are waterproof. Some tents are ‘critically seams sealed’ by manufacturers, which is only a fancy way to saying that they didn’t seam seal everything. Be careful of language like that.