Christa and Hermann K
erckhoff
Ottawa Pioneers
spotlight
Madawaska Kanu Centre's
Christa & Hermann
Kerckhoff, 1969
BY CLAUdIA KERCKHOFF-VANWIJK
¦ It has been an exciting road starting
Canada’s first whitewater paddling school in
1972. In 1969, my parents won the National
Whitewater Championships in Huberdeau,
Quebec on the Rouge River. They were very
excited and felt that they wanted to share this
incredible sport they embraced.
With a choice of setting up on the
Rouge, Petawawa, or Madawaska River, my
parents chose the Madawaska as it was the
section that their paddling club, the Ontario
Voyageurs Kayak Club (OVKC) paddled
each Thanksgiving. A major benefit to this
R
a
f
t
i
n
g location was the negotiated agreement
with Ontario Hydro to release water for the
sole purpose of recreational paddling. This
was the first negotiated recreational use
t
h
e

O
t
t
a
w
a
River
agreement with a local utility in Canada! The
Madawaska Kanu Centre was an immediate
success and destination, offering a unique
combination of a structured learning and
resort environment.
Their next legacy to the whitewater world
was the discovery of a whitewater paradise -
the Rocher Fondue rapids of the Ottawa River
by Renfrew, Ontario. My father and I were the
first kayakers to run the now famous Rocher
Fondue rapids, in the spring of 1974
OWL Rafting, started in 1981 became a
natural progression for the Kerckhoff family
– introducing non-experienced paddlers to
the world of whitewater through rafting.
The two whitewater businesses remain in
the family, my husband, Dirk van Wijk and
I, embrace the same passion for the sport of
whitewater. Today, MKC on the Madawaska
1-800-267-8504 River and OWL Rafting on the Ottawa River
www.riverrunrafting.com Beachburg, ON
remain industry leaders and are renowned
world–wide.
52 OTTAWA >> SPRING/SUMMER 2008 www.OttawaOutdoors.ca
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