Built by the McMaster Outdoor Club, the launch has already been used by Mac students and local community organizations.
By Caelan Beard | October 9, 2025
Paddling in Paradise is more accessible to McMaster and Hamilton than ever before – thanks to a new canoe launch built by the McMaster Outdoor Club.
Located on the lower campus, near the McMaster helipad, the launch point gives canoe access to Ancaster Creek and Cootes Paradise.
“McMaster is so lucky to be on Cootes. That’s such an amazing natural ecosystem,” said Erika Javornik, club president and fourth-year civil engineering student.
The student-run McMaster Outdoor Club, which is housed under Athletics and Recreation, offers a variety of weekly trips, social events and environmental initiatives to get people of all experience levels outdoors. They offer a membership program, but anyone can sign up for individual events. The club estimates they serve over 1,000 students per school year.
The idea for the canoe launch came from discussing the creek that runs through McMaster’s own campus, and opportunities to build something that wouldn’t be used by just the club, but the broader McMaster and Hamilton community, as well.
Construction of the launch started last fall, with students clearing out several invasive plant species blocking the path to the water. The main part of the building phase took place in April, with 29 student volunteers from the club working whenever they had study breaks during exam season.
“It was very muddy when we built it,” Javornik said. “We had eight-hour work days and people stayed through the whole thing.”
But it was a really fun project, Javornik said. “I think a lot of people enjoyed the building of it… and being part of something that will hopefully continue for years and years, and benefit so many people.”
The launch is designed to accommodate seasonal changes in water levels. The last few steps are meshed in gravel, and the railing stops a few feet before the water, so that they can still put canoes in when water levels change at different times of the year.
In addition to the launch, the club also built a nearby canoe compound to house its 11 canoes, many paddles and lifejackets.
The bulk of the project’s funding came from the club’s 10-year-reserve, as well as a $25,000 donation from the Patrick J McNally Charitable Foundation. They also received funding from the Office of the President through the Nature at McMaster project.
Get on the water
Use of the launch started this summer, with Nature at Mac, McMaster summer camps and many community organizations using it for close-to-home afternoon paddles in Cootes Paradise.
The wider campus has also been making use of the launch and their fleet of canoes – with various student groups, faculty groups, sports teams, and even a biology class booked for canoe sessions.
“It’s rewarding seeing someone who’s never done anything like this before do it for the first time and just absolutely fall in love,” said Noah Stegman, club advisor and third-year PhD student in the School of Earth, Environment and Society. “Which is pretty common.”
For the club, it also offers exciting new streams of income. “It just opens up so many amazing opportunities for us to get more people outside, and put it back into ways that we can reach more people and do more fun stuff.”
That includes running afternoon canoe trips twice a week this fall — all McMaster students are welcome to sign up.
The launch is a great access point, and beginner friendly. The first section sends paddlers down the small creek, surrounded by trees. Boats are protected from the wind, and it lets people get practice paddling before they reach the open water of Cootes: 320 hectares of marshland and a Nationally Important Bird Area where you can spot thriving populations of Trumpeter swans, great blue herons, double-crested cormorants and more.
“It’s paradise,” said Javornik.
They’ve seen everyone from absolute beginners to advanced paddlers. “Canoeing is a heritage activity for Canada,” said Stegman, but “most Canadians have never been canoeing and we’re seeking to change that.”
Getting out on the water gives people a chance to take a break from a busy school day, make friends, and get closer to nature. Javornik hopes it also helps to foster a desire to take care of and appreciate the environment.
“We’re looking to bring people out to experience Cootes,” said Stegman. “It’s a world biosphere, nationally important for lots of different species. We’re trying to show people what we’ve got in Hamilton.”