Dawson Brothers Algonquin Trips

Trip #14 May 4th to 8th 2011

2011-11-19T07:08:00.000-05:00

Trip #14 May 4th to 8th 2011

McIntosh, Misty, White Trout, Littledoe

In Spring of 2011 Grant and I, along with our friend Mike, embarked on a 4-day trip to the North side of Highway 60 in Algonquin Park.

Our trip actually began the evening of Tuesday May 3rd as we decided to drive up to Huntsville after work and staying in a hotel that night to allow us to be on the water on Canoe Lake as early as possible the next day. We also knew that this trip was going to be physically demanding and we wanted to be sure we were well rested when we set off.

We stayed at the Comfort inn Huntsville, not much exicting to report on but the hotel room was spotless and the continental breakfast was fantastic. We all ate more than our share, as we knew it would be the last really heavy meal for the next 4 days.

At 8:00 am we were pushing off from the sandy beach of Canoe Lake, paddling on towards our eventual first campsite on McIntosh Lake. This leg would be the longest leg in our trip and would also include the longest single portage of the trip.

I should point out that the weather was perfect. Dry weather is never guaranteed in spring, but unlike almost every other trip we have made into this park, this trip did not start out with us paddling out into the rain. The sun was shining and there was not a hint of cloud in the sky.

This was our first time paddling Canoe lake and it was interesting to see areas we have not seen before in the park. Like it or hate it, there are cottages on Canoe Lake, and we were happy to reach the portage into Joe Lake as we were ready to start leaving signs of the civilized world behind us.

As we approached our take-out to the Joe Lake portage we spotted a large Brook Trout just under the canoe. Maybe he was trying to go upstream into Joe, but good luck as there is a 12 foot dam between him and his destination.

The portage from Canoe to Joe is an easy one, it's short, it's flat and wide like a dirt road, and looks like some people have even used kayak carts on it which would make it one of the few portages where those carts could be used with benefit. The man made dam is interesting and worth taking a bit of time to have a look at. Built in the 1960's it is holding back a considerable mass of water in Algonquin Park. I would have loved to take an HDR photo of that dam but I couldn't, as you see Grant had my pack on his back and he missed the end of the portage. He took a left and continued to walk 400m (nearly twice the distance of the actual portage) down a maintenance road. Mike and I yelled at him to stop but I guess he couldn't hear us under the canoe as he just kept trudging on in the wrong direction. Mike and I took this opportunity to have a snack and wait for Grant to return. He did not. We reluctantly grabbed our packs and added another 400m of portaging to the trip as we tracked down Grant at the end of the road by a small dock.

For having 3 guys in one canoe, plus all the gear and food for 4 days, we were pushing that canoe along at a great pace considering. As we glided past Camp Arowhon (the last buildings we would see till our return) the day grew warmer with the bright sun. We stopped for a quick snack on a small site on the Little Oxtongue River. Here is a photo from out rest:

Back on our way we passed thru the beautiful Littledoe Lake, there are some fantastic sites on this little lake. A little ways up the channel between Littledoe and Tom Thomson there is a large beaver dam.

As we canoed through Tom Thomson Lake we saw many nice looking sites. The paddle across was Tom Thomson was not an easy one, the wind was starting to really pick up and it is not an easy lake to cross by sticking to the shores. At times we were forced to cross large openings. So soon after ice-out the water temperature is so cold that an accidental swamping of the canoe would be very dangerous. We reached our destination; the start of the 2,390m portage into Ink Lake. We were not looking forward to this portage as it was the longest on our trip.

What can I say about the portage into Ink? It was not fun. Uphill, downhill, and many freshly fallen trees blocking our way. Mike had an especially hard time on the portage, later on we discovered why: Along with his regular gear and food he was also carrying 5 one litre tetra packs of wine in his pack. The wine was his own little surprise and though he was secretly cursing it on that portage, we all agreed was worth the weight in the end.

Video of the boardwalk on portage from Tom Thomson to Ink:

We were all very happy when we were back in the canoe paddling Ink Lake. Ink is a strange lake which reminds me of the Spruce Bog. Maybe it is a spruce bog, or the start of one? We pondered this as we paddle thru its dark red waters.

connecting Ink to McIntosh is a meandering stream. Half way down this stream we came across a strange site: A dead moose, half submerged in the stream. Grant figures it fell through the ice in late winter and drown. We will probably never know.

At last, we turned a bend and reached McIntosh lake. What we were greated with was the strongest headwind Grant and I have ever experience in Algonquin. Worse still, Mcintosh was filled with swelling white caps, and were a loaded canoe that was riding low enough in the water already. although we had wanted to pick ou the best site we could find on McIntosh, this was not going to happen. We were forced to stick to the shore and take the closest site avaliable. The closest site happened to be the first site on the left. It was relatively close, but even paddling to it was a touch-and-go experience. I was in the front and had to brace myself every large wave. I could feel the splash on my face as we broke through large waves and though the day was a sunny 22 degrees, the water was a deadly 1 degree. We eventually reached our site in one piece.

Our site on McIntosh was not all that bad. Begger's can't be chooser's, and I have seen far worse sites in the park.

I will point out here that I was trying something new this trip. I did not bring my tent, instead I brought a lightweight nylon hammock to sleep in. The hammock was one I made myself before the trip following instuctions from Hammock Forums. While Grant and Mike looked for spots on the ground for their tents, I looked for two nicely spaced trees to string up my hammock. With only a tarp overhead and no bug net, I was looking forward to sleeping with nothing between me and the night air.

The first night was the usual camp routine, start a fire (with a firesteel as we like to do), cook our dinner, have a beverage, sit by fire, go to sleep.

We woke the next morning to a mirror flat lake.

Thankfully this also meant that the vicous wind of the previous day was no longer present. Grant took a few minutes to cast off the rocky outcrops in hopes of landing a fish, but to no avail. After a lite breakfast (Backpacker's Pantry's - ??? Museli - awesome by the way) we were soon packed up and back on the water as we paddled towards the portage into Timberwolf Lake. Upon reaching the portage take-out, \mike pulled another surprise out of his pack: two fresh oranges. A quick bite later we were walking the portage to Timberwolf. This portage marks the part of the trip where we started seeing large sections of forest completely decidioudous rather than coniferous. Something we have not seen much of on our previous trips to the park. This portage was a quick up and down and we quickly found ourselves at the put-in to timberwolf.

After Grant took a quick look at the map we navigated straight acrooss timberwolf to our next portage. Upon approaching the portage we realized that Grant had navigated us to the incorrect portage. Here we faced a decision: Do we take the 780m incorrect portage into \misty, or turn aound and backtrack somewhat to our inteded portage of 120m into misty. We quickly decided to backtrack and take the shorter portage.

Video

Mike trolled for trout as we paddled our way to the little river that lead to the portage into \misty. Turns out we chose wisely as we had our first (living) moose encounter on this little river on Timberwolf. This moose saw us coming and as such we did not have great luck photographing it. Strangely, we also stumbled upon our second dead animal sighting of the trip as we glided past a submerged dead beaver.

We portaged into Misty. The downfall of the portage we took is that it placed us at the end of the lake which logically eliminated most of the sites that we could otherwise have chosen. The first site we looked at was very nice, and in hindsight we probably should have taken it as the remining sites on the lake were anywhere from rough to mostly abandoned. \one site we stopped at had had its sign ripped off and it appeared from the way it was grown in that it had not been used for years. We ended up staying on the last sight on the lake before the \petawawa river. This site was small but somewhat unique. first off, it was located in a large section of decidious forest. Being so early in the spring with no leaves yet sprout the forest allowed a great deal of sunlight onto the campsite. There was also a nice grassy spot for tents. I setup my hammock deeper in the forest.

Beign our shortest travel day, we had the oportunity to relax a bit on this day 2 of the trip. The sun was shining and it was hot enough for tshits and shorts. We even though about taking a swim but the water was way too cold. Grant took some time to fish, \mike took a nap and I relaxed in my hammock.

At this point \mike brought the next supprise out of his pack. He produced a large pork tenderloin and a few potatoes. We all ate a good meal.

Later on, Grant fished and Mike and I opened another tetra pack by the fire. Before long it was dark and we were watching the stars wheeling overhead. Just before \i turned to walk into the woods to my hammock I heard something loud walking through the woods behind me. I do not know what animal made that sound but as I lay in my hammock I pondered that sound for a long time before falling asleep.

The next morning we discovered that our site was built over an old logging camp. In fact, my hammock was setup within the boundaries of the old foundation for some sort of logging building. judging by the size of the trees growing out of the foundation, it was safe to say that logging camp was abandoned a long long time ago. it is also worth mentioning that the whole area of the site was scattered with various rusted old tools and machine parts.

Once packed back up we continued our journey down to the end of Misty and down the Petawawa River towards our next destination of White Trout Lake. This 3rd day of the trip was the only day with poorer weather. Overcast skies and just a few patches of drizzle overhead as we paddled down the river. The trip from Misty to White Trout is decievingly longer than expected. There are also quite a few short portages along the way. One one portage we say what we believed to be wolf droppings, full of hair.

video under water

This photo was taken at the start of the 418m portage.

Upon reaching White Trout we were all pretty worn out and decided to take the closest site to us which happened to be the one directly across from the put-in in Grassy Bay. This site ended up being the nicest site of the trip, large open areas with a thick bed of conifer needles on the ground everywhere. The site is on a point and is covered almost exclusivly with Douglas Fir trees. The douglas firs are very straight and some falled dead wood made a great frame for the buck saw.

The overcast skys stayed with us untill after dark but we never had to deal with any real rain, just a few drizzles. We all took well deserved naps that afternoon.

None of us stayed up late any of the nights on this trip. I was last to turn in that night and I sat by the fire by myself for a bit before going to my hammock to read some Carl Sagan before sleep.

The next morning we awoke to grant yelling at us that he caught a fish and we all had to get up and see. He had caught a Hay fish, right off the shore, and they were biting so well he was pulling them out of the water as soon as he cast out. Mike joined in the fishing and him and Grant debated whether they should fillet one up and eat it. We had had zero luck with trout the whole trip and really wanted to have some fish to eat before the trips end. In the end they decided that they would and Grant prepared one as Mike continued to catch and release.

Meanwhile I had noticed that the lake was pefectly flat and the sky was reflecting its clouds perfectly. It was a photo-op I was not going to let pass.

After a quick breakfast of whatever we had left (Grant and I shared our food bag, we pack light, and at this point we were getting to the dregs of the bag) we set off towards the last nights destination of Littledoe Lake. This last day was going to be hard and we knew it. Much of the distance between White Trout and Littledoe would be on foot portaging. The only benefit was that our packs were now considerably lighter as our food was low.

Before our first portage as we paddled through McIntosh Marsh, Grant spotted two moose on the far shore, a male and female. We were quite a ways away but I got out my 70-200 lens and we started slowly paddling towareds the pair. I thought for sure we would spook the moose into running before we got close enough for a really good shot, but in the end they let us as close to them as we were willing to risk. A moose enconter like this is the main reason I lugged that 70-200mm lens with me all along.

Here is a video of the moose encounter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4SNYkWKN-o

After the moose encounter we continued on to our first of many portages for the day.

We made an error on the 1400m portage and ended up putting our canoe into Three Ponds lake, thinking we were at Canada Jay Lake. We soon realized out mistake, but it was still a bit of a pain having to load and unload the canoe more than required.

We had decided ahead of time that we would take a rest stop on one of the islands on Sunbeam Lake. What a beatiful lake Sunbeam is. The island we chose to stop at is the one on the south end of the lake, the one with a designated site on it. The site is hands-down one of the nicest and most interesting I have ever seen in the park. The dominant feature is a huge rock face which seperates the site into two sides. The campire is located just by the face of this rock, offering a huge wind-block as well as a great surface to reflect the fire heat from. This site is definitely one I hope to stay overnight one someday.

Grant and Mike fooling around on the Sunbeam island site:

video

We took our time relaxing on Sunbeam island, I even set up my hammock for lunch. After we ate Grant dared me to wade from our island to to a little island just off shore. I did it but the water was bone chillingly cold. Mike would soon find out how cold the water was as well.

Wade Video

I was the last to enter the canoe as we put in to the lake. I was taking the middle seat on the floor with Grant in the rear and Mike in the front. I guess I leaned leeft when I sould have leaned right because I got that canoe rocking and next thing I new I was sitting down and Mike was swimming wildly towards shore. he had gotten thrown clean out of the canoe and into the chilly water. Luckily we were only a few feet from the shore and he was back on land withing 2 or 3 seconds. Unluckily he was wet from his chest down. Mike had dry clothes in his pack and decided he would paddle to the first portage before changing. We spent the rest of the paddle to Littledoe with Mike's clothes spread out over the pack in the sun and by night time they were all dry, even his shoes.

Our last night we stayed on an OK site on Littledoe. All 3 of us setup on a flat ledge very close to the lake. We were all within a few feet of the water. Which made for a great view of the sunset, but also made for the coldest night of sleeping yet.

Before we turned in for the night we gathered around the fire and ate what was left of our food. I myself was completely out of food after this last small meal, with the exception of a Clif bar for the morning.

The following morning was a chilly one to wake up to. There was a fine layer of ice on the canoe, so we knew it had gotten down below zero that night. I had decided I wanted to sleep without my tarp over my hammock as I wanted to be able to see the stars as I fell asleep. This turned out to be a bad decision as the tarp actually really helps to keep the heat in, and I woke pretty cold in the early morning.

The paddle back to the car was pretty uneventful. We did let a large group of a dozen or so canoes get in front of us.

Canoe Lake is a fairly long lake to be crossing on the last journey to the car. It was nice to finally reach the end and set foot on that beach by the permit office. So far this trip has been the longest distance covered for us in one trip.

Trip #13 Sunday Lake to Sproule Lake and back September 2010

2010-10-04T17:58:00.000-04:00

To say the least 2010 thus far has been a a year of change and being able to adapt to these changes presented a couple opportunities for Blake and I to get into Algonquin park and explore some lakes we had not yet experienced. Just getting back from our August trip we really had no idea we would get another chance to head North this year. It all started one evening when Blake and I were sitting around at my house and we started to talk about doing a short weekend trip and then after a look at the calendar it looked as though we could fit it in this year. Blake was interested in getting some pictures from some of the trails along the highway 60 corridor and and I was interested in checking out a couple lakes. We looked at the map it became obvious that Sproule and Sunday Lakes were going to be the destinations this trip.

Sunday Lake at the put-in from the logging road

Our Mom and Dad had headed up to the park on Wednesday to camp at Rock Lake campground so this was going to work out good for us. Blake and I packed up on Thursday after work and headed for Rock Lake arriving around 22:50 just in time to say hello and get to bed in anticipation of the adventure the following day. We got up around 06:20 on Friday and after a cup or two of coffee we headed to the East gate to get our permit. It had rained hard all night and everything was soaked. We were instructed by the permit office staff to park at the Big Pines Trail parking lot so we drove up the logging road and offloaded all the gear. We decided to both drive the car back to the lot and walk back to the 150m portage that leads down into Sunday Lake. We couldn't`t help but notice that there was at least enough parking at the portage for 4-5 vehicles along the logging road well out of the way of any passing traffic but wanting to do the right thing we obeyed the instructions we were given.

The 150m portage to Sunday Lake was very steep at the beginning but short enough making up for that section. The put-in was great and given that the wind was non existent the short paddle across to the 500m portage into Sproule was smooth. We did stop at the island site on Sunday Lake to investigate for a possible destination on the way out for the last night.

View of sun shining on Sunday Lake from the island site

We made the 500m portage a two tripper due to the muddy conditions and slippery log bridges. The wind picked up considerably between leaving Sunday lake and putting in on Sproule. We paddles straight for the camp site to the North of the Opeongo Lake portage and started to set up camp. Once camp was situated and some lunch was had we decided to head out and try to bushwhack our way to the Big Pines Trail. This proved to be more of a challenge than we were willing to take on and the beaver dams forced us to take a detour and in the end we had to head back to the car to drive to the trails we wanted to hike through. We walked the Spruce Bog Trail first and then the skies opened up putting a damper on Blake`s picture taking.

Sunday Lake looking toawrds the 500m portage into Sproule Lake

Rather than give up on the trails for the day we opted to check out the Visitors Center and this was worth it. The center is a great place for people to get a sense of what a bear or moose would look like up close. The rain didn't let up so we decided to head back to the Sunday lake portage and back into the interior to our site on Sproule.`The rest of the day was spent gathering fire wood and exploring the woods and bogs behind our site. I spent some time fishing and paddling the shoreline looking for animals and birds. Blake worked on a tarp shelter and organized his gear.

Friday evening the fire was going and we waited for the moon to rise so that we could check it out with the spotting scope. Jupiter was also up and with the scope it was easy to spot three of it`s four moons. After awhile the wind picked up and we decided to call it a day. I thought my tent was going to blow clear of the point and end up in the lake with me in it! I have never experienced wind that strong from inside a tent.

Saturday I got up around 06:00 and decided to try some fishing as Blake tried to catch up on some sleep. I trolled the shoreline for about an hour with no luck but I did enjoy the peace and quite. After some breakfast we decided to spend the day hiking and we started with a trip to Titmouse Lake with a side trip on an old logging road to check out a few clearing Blake had identified on Google Earth a few days before we left home. Later in the day we decided to paddle to the 1340m non-maintained portage into the Sunday Creek area and walk it. This portage was more like a game trail but it was really cool to see log bridges covered in an inch of moss as if not to have seen humans for years. The trail had lots of ups and downs and went from spruce bogs to rolling high lands covered in colourful maples. We were greeted at the Sunday Creek by a large blue heron but we spooked it before a picture could be taken.

Sunday Lake from the island site looking back towards the 150m portage

Saturday afternoon we packed up and made our way to Sunday Lake for our last night. Once out on the lake it became clear that someone else had set up on the island site we had scoped out the day before. We decided to stay on the site along the Eastern shore. This site was well protected and would turn out to be a perfect site for our last night. The site had a large rock at the water edge that had served as a backing for the fire pit. We managed to get a small fire going and the rock helped to reflect the heat from the fire back towards us. The rain moved in and we called it a night.

Sunday we got up to more rain and a cool 6 deg C morning. We packed up and headed back to the 150m portage which gets us to the road that leads to the parking lot at the start of Big Pines Trail. Blake took the keys and headed back to get the car which was about 1.5 kms away. I made a few trips bringing the gear up to the logging road. To our surprise there were four cars parked at the start of the portage in the area we were told not to park. If there ever is a next time we will definitely be leaving the vehicle at this spot.

Trip #12 Smoke Lake to Phipps Lake and back August 2010

2010-08-26T23:45:00.000-04:00

This trip was a long time coming for the two of us. We had to cancel our May trip due to work and we didn't want to wait till Fall to get a trip in. We decided to head up on the Wednesday the night before the trip was to start. Some friends had rented a cottage on Oxtongue Lake so we stopped in for a visit. The cottage was nice but to small for the two of us to sleep so we said our goodbyes and headed to the West gate of the park where we slept in the car for the night. Cars aren't designed to sleep in so I don't recommend this as a great idea the night before you plan to paddle any distance the following day. Blake set his watch alarm for 07:00 and we woke up and drove to Canoe lake office. We planned on a trip from Smoke Lake to Little Coon Lake but since we didn't reserve a spot we had to change our trip plan upon arrival to the Canoe Lake permit office. Blake wanted to go in to Bonnechere for one night, Phipps the second, and come back out to Ragged for the last night. I on the other hand had my heart set on a longer trip and wanted to travel to Phipps and stay until the morning we had to come out. Being the older brother I won the toss and we headed down into Bonnechere for the 1st night.

Some moving water between Smoke and Ragged

Smoke Lake was a big lake to paddle through and the putin was crawling with cottagers rushing to get to their weekend getaways, so my first impressions were not great as I have a bit of a problem with motor boats in Algonquin period. For the most part the boaters were courtious and slowed down when passing by but a few didn't seem to notice we were there. We made quick work of Smoke Lake because for us the trip really doesn't start until you can't see any more cottages and motorboats.

A Heron taking flight on Ragged

A few seconds after take-off

The portage from Smoke into Ragged was short and aside from an initial elevation change it was nice. We spent about an hour exploring the dam and the creek and rapids flowing into Smoke. Blake tried out his camera and I tested out the video camera. We loaded up the canoe and headed South into Ragged Lake.

Ragged Lake has a large number of really great sites and for those people looking to get away and only want to contend with one portage this lake would be great. We noticed as we got further into the lake that the South end is littered with dead heads and evidence of a lake with a much lower water level prior to the logging boom in the late 1800's. The dead heads gave me a bit of a chill as I imagined what the lake would have looked like prior to the dam at the Smoke Lake portage.

The portage into Big Porccupine was a bit longer at 590m and it had a greater elevation change which gave my heart a workout as it did Blake's I am sure. I carried the 20lb camera pack and the canoe and Blake carried the 40lb canoe pack (note from Blake: more like 50lb). We one tripped this one as we had on all the others to this point which surprised me because I was sure we both weren't in the best of shape heading into this trip. Once at the putin to Big Porccupine we sat and had a drink of water and I filled up my bottle with micro filter lake water.

We paddled into Big Porccupine and opted to paddle around the large land mass seperating the North and South portions of the lake. We weren't in a rush and we wanted to see as much of these lakes as possible scince this was our first journey into this part of the park. We checked the map and decided to paddle to the East of the two large islands as we approached the portage into Bonnechere. Looking back we both agreed that parting them would have been the way to go but as I said we were not in a rush. The portage into Bonnecher was a 200m one and it to was easy to conquer. At last we had arrived at the lake that we were camping on the first night. It is really exciting to paddle into a lake you have never been to and go through the motions of site selection. You would think that two brothers in their 30's could act like an old married couple but if you were there you would see that it is possible. From selecting a site with a view to a site with a good swimming access to a site with wind protection we argued about it all. I am sure that the birds and other animals in the area were wondering what was coming to spend the night when we arrived to scope out a site! We crossed the lake and from a distance we saw "THE SITE". The arguing stopped and we both just paddled closer and closer to the site just hoping it was vacant. As we rounded the point it became clear to both of us that this was the one and it was ours for the taking.

The Gaga Site

The bow saw was definitely a good idea

Grant by the fire the first night

We lucked out and ended up getting what we would consider the best site on the lake. We setup camp and scoped out the entire site. The plan was to have a sleep in the afternoon once we setup camp and then get up and stay up for the meteor shower which was to peak that night. We woke back up about 17:30 but by about 21:30 we decided that the sleep we had in the afternoon wasn't sufficient to keep us up till 02:00 in the morning so we both turned in for a few hours. Blake set his watch alarm for 03:00 and at 03:00 we both got up and walked down to the rock point at the south end of the campsite. We had a great view of the sky from this point and saw approx. 45-60 meteors per hour. This is really something to see when you are in the park as the light pollution though not completely gone is much less than the rest of southern Ontario where we are from.

The Algonquin night sky

The Milky Way

Sparks

Black-Capped Chickadee

Loon

Friday morning we got up and took our time breaking camp. We had breakfast (oatmeal and some beef jerky) and then we pushed off for Phipps Lake. The water was like glass so paddling was relaxing. We approached the narrows about 2/3 of the way up the lake and manouvered through a 3' spot without hitting bottom. As we made our way North up towards the channel that leads into the start of the Bonnechere to Phipps portage I noticed a cow moose peaking around the corner of the inlet. Blake pulled out his camera and I kept paddling to get us closer. As we rounded the corner into the narrow channel we discovered that the cow moose had a calf standing just beside her. We almost ran out of water so we stopped and took some pictures and managed to film some video as well. I believe we were privilegded to have an encounter like this and for such a long time. I was reluctant to attempt passing with her so close to the canoe, but eventually she and her calf wandered off into the woods.

Moose

Calf

Swamp Donkey

Pretty happy to get this shot

The portage into Phipps was very nice and with little to no elevation change we mangaed it in about 5 minutes. We emerged from the portage to the so called put in into Phipps and we were faced with an obstacle like no other I have come accross in the park. There before us was a swampy marsh with what at one time, most likely last May, was a creek but had now shrunk to nothing more than trickle of meandering water and mud. We loaded the canoe and decided it would be best to walk the canoe with the gear through the creek. After we made it about 500m closer to the lake the water was deep enough to get back in and paddle through it.

Our first site on Phipps

Big old tree by the fire

Phipps Lake was small and has two sites both on the North shore about 400m apart. We stopped and chacked out the West one but Blake thought the site was too enclosed and would be hard to see the stars come night fall. We paddled to the East site and after a few minutes we knew this was the site for the night. This site was up high on a rock and had a great view of the lake as well as the sky. There was plenty of wood laying all over the site so getting a fire going was easy. Blake spent the rest on Friday taking pictures and I jumped in the canoe and scoped out the entire lake. The weather was on our side and the rain gear we brought was not getting and use which was nice for a change.

After supper (beef jerky and freeze dried rice with chicken) we decided to paddle down the lake and check out Kirkwood Lake. Blake was taking pictures of every water fall we passed on the entire trip and so he thought it would be worth a trip with me to see this portage. The portage into Kirkwood is short only 175m and is to was relatively flat as far as portages go. I wanted to paddle into Kirkwood but there was no convincing Blake at this time, he was paddled out for the day.

Small falls between Phipps and Kirkwood

Swampy area near the portage from Phipps to Kirkwood

Evening Cast

Sun down

Comforting fire once the light goes out

Blake reading on Phipps Lake

On Saturday we were getting a bit bored of sitting around so we decided to pack up our camp and move it to the other site on Phipps. We grabbed some fire wood and were loaded to go in 10 mins. The other site on Phipps is a bit more grown-in. Great for getting out of the wind, but a little dark for spending much time at. We stayed that last night there, but went to bed early to get a good sleep.

Enjoying out last night by the fire.

At 05:00 we got up and broke camp, luckily the rain had stopped some time in the night. We worked our way accross the lake and tredged through the shallow channel leading to the portage into Bonnechere all before the sun started to come up. We wanted to make good time so the camera stayed in the pack and before we knew it we were paddling into Bonnechere, no moose there to great us this time. We didn't take it easy on the way out, we made it from Phipps to the car parked on Smoke in 4 hours.

Keeping busy making tools for interior camping while trying to pass the winter months

2010-03-21T19:03:00.001-04:00

The Homemade Bow Saw

A handy tool for those early spring interior trips is a bow saw when making your way along portage routes that haven't seen humans for a few months. The winter tends to bring down the dead branches and weak trees and at times they end up blocking portages. I saw a picture of one on the internet so I thought I would give it a try. I used pine 1"x2", some stainless hardware from Canadian Tire, some rope about 4' & a 21" bow saw blade also from Canadian Tire. All the parts cost about $15.00 and took me about 30 minutes to make. The saw is easy to completely take apart and pack for interior camping. The center cross section is grooved to allow for the blade to be stored inside it.

Trip #11 Rock Lake - October 2009

2009-10-30T19:51:00.000-04:00

This was the latest I had ever been into the interior. The last week of October brings with it short days and very cool nights. Dad was a little reluctant to head into the interior this late in the year given the short days and normally rainy weather you chance having this time of year. Dad asked his brother uncle Pete (2004 Trip attendee) to join in the trip and in was determined that a short trip would be the best thing this time around. We planned on staying on Rock lake and I had done some site investigation in years past that had me wanting to stay on one of the mainland sites along the east shore of the lake. Dad and uncle Pete decided to take a small steel boat on this trip and though reluctant to agree with their choice I figured why not, at least they where going to go in with me. I on the other hand chose my dad's square back fiberglass canoe. I loaded up my gear and paddled solo to the site from the access point. I am not in favour of any motor boats in the park but I knew that if I pushed the issue too much dad and uncle Pete wouldn't be coming along and I would be going solo.

The site we chose had a large rock face running along the East side. This was kind of neat because our camp fire tended to reflect off the rock and light up the entire site in the evening. As in the past, tent placement is key when camping with snoreres!! I thought I had the right spot for my tent but after the first night it bacame very clear that the rock face that reflected the fire light so well also echoed the bear like snoring coming from both dad and Uncle Pete's tents right into mine. Lesson learned from this is to take along a cheap pair of foam ear plugs when camping with two old men that snore like nothing I have ever heard before in my life!

George Castanza eat your heart out!!

The weather for most of the trip was overcast but we did have a couple clear sunsets to take some nice pictures. The temperature was -1 deg C by day and -3 deg C by night fall. We all had enough clothes and mostly just enjoyed each others company for the weekend around the camp fire. Dad and Uncle Pete talked about old times and I just sat back and listened to stories of their lives growing up and camping as kids. I know I got the camping bug from my parents and my love for Algonquin Park came from memories of my very first trip into the interior back when I was 8 years old. We talked about our first trip into Pen Lake with mom, dad brother Blake and myself. Though we didn't make a habbit of interior camping right away after that first trip I believe the seed was truly planted.

View of site from rock ledge along the east side of the site.

I took some time to enjoy the lake by myself this trip. The lake was empty of campers and I had never paddled down towards the dam into Galeairy Lake so I headed out one morning and just paddled the East shore meandering in and out of all the little bays and coves hugging the shoreline. I stopped and checked out three or four sites along the way for future trips. I got within about 200' of the dam and the light rain I had endured thus far became a heavy down pour so I decided to return to the camp site. One cool feature in this end of Rock Lake is a rock face protruding out of the water and rising up about 100' or so. I took one good picture of this and posted it below.

I find it amazing how each trip into the park fuels my desire to return. I found myself sitting around the fire drinking a hot coffee after dinner and looking at my Chrismar map trying to plan my our next trip into the park.

I find nothing helps pass the Winter months faster than sitting around the kitchen table talking with my brother Blake about a trip to embark on come ice out in May year after year. It is really great to have other peoples trip logs available online to help plan future trips.

We decided that an interior campsite on Rock lake would be the best choice for this trip.

Our Rock Lake site was S/W facing but the prevailing winds held off so it turned out to be a good choice this time around.

The shoreline had a great flat rock landing for putting in and out.

The rock wall down the shoreline from our site.

The three of us at the access point when we were heading home.

A great shot down the east shoreline from the put in at our site.

A picture of a site further South along the East shoreline.

Thumbs up to the great sunset!!

My favourite picture of this trip, to me it kinda just says it all!

Trip #10 Pen Lake - September 2009

2009-09-29T19:51:00.000-04:00

In September of 2009 I went on a trip to the park with my friend Matt. Grant was not able to join us this trip so just Matt and I went. Ever since Grant and I's visit to Fork lake and it's great island site I have wanted to return there. As this was to be Matt's first trip to Algonquin, I thought that that lake and site in particular would be a great introduction. As we were going into the park in late September and Fork lake is rather off the beaten path I figured we would have no problem getting the island site, and in fact would likely have the whole lake to ourselves anyways.

Due to the fact that there are no portages on the way to Fork lake and most of the paddle is along a small creek speckled with beaver dams, combined with the fact that water levels were expected to be fairly low, I decided to not bring my dad's expensive Ultralight Kevlar canoe and instead take the old "rubber" Coleman canoe that we have had for a few years. The Coleman is heavy, slow, pushes water like a barge, has no yoke, and is not something you want to portage with. It is however very durrable, and can survive any rocks, scrapes, ramping off beaver dams etc. that you throw at it. Seemed like the perfect choice to take to Fork Lake.

Driving into the park it rained on us as usual, but by the time we reached the access point at Sunday Creek the weather had subsided and was a overcast, but dry day. Maybe too dry actually. In fact it had not really rained for weeks in our parts of Ontario, and when we got to the put-in for the canoe, I was shocked to see that the water level was a good foot and a half lower than when Grant and I had come there in August the previous year. Looking at the mostly dry culvert we had paddled through just a year ago I realized that there was a chance Sunday creek was going to be very hard to paddle up without constantly getting out of the canoe to drag it. We decided to put the canoe in and cross under the highway via the culvert to start our journey on the other side.

Well we bottomed out the canoe in the culvert and had to get out and drag the canoe through it to the other side.

Where did all the water go?

On the other side of the culvert I got my first good look at Sunday Creek and I remembered as a 10 foot wide river was nothing more than a muddy ravine with some puddles periodically dispersed every few feet. We could not canoe up this, it could take hours upon hours to literally travel a single kilometer. Not yet willing to give up, Matt and I left the canoe in the culvert and entered the marsh on foot to see if the creek opened up after the next few bends.

Ever try to walk through a marshland? Well its so overgrown that you can't see where you are stepping and every few feet there is a hidden hole that sucks your leg up to the groin. Each bend we came to showed us the same bleak picture, a muddy creek bed with no chance of canoeing down it. After about 200 metres of hellish treking we decided that it was no use, we would not be reaching Fork Lake. We would not be staying on my favorite site in the park. We turned around, hiked back to the canoe, caried it back to the van, strapped it on, and though: Now what?

Well the closest access from Sunday Creek was Rock lake, and I know it and Pen very well from the last few years of tripping. Matt had never seen any of the park so why try not for a site on Rock or Pen and show him the cool places? I just hoped that there was still a site open on one of the lakes for us...

We were lucky, of the 18 sites availible on Pen Lake, all but two were left availible. As it was getting late in the morning already we happlily changed our reservation to Pen lake, put in the canoe and gear, and made our way across Rock Lake towards the Pen portage.

Making our way across rock in record time with a strong wind at our backs

What had seemed like a great canoe for creek running, the Coleman canoe was not designed as a lake crosser, and it was painful to see most of our paddling effort wasted on the huge bow-wake the Coleman was pushing. On the bright side we were helped along by the strongest back wind I have ever experienced canoeing in the park. the wind literally pushed us across Rock lake in record time. I can only dream about the speed we would have attained in my dad's sleek kevlar canoe with that wind.

Here is Matt making his way over the old logs that have been piled up here over the years

My favorite shot from this trip

After two tripping the portage, Matt and I spent a good while exploring the rapids that fall from Pen to Rock Lake. It was very interesting to see this familiar site so dried up, in fact everything looked different to me about the area as the water was so much lower than I was used to.

The park has all you need, including running water

We considered taking the site on Pen right beside the rapids, but Matt wanted to stay on the one of the islands instead so we made our short paddle over there. We first stopped on the Eastern island, which is technically the only island, as the other one is ususually connected to the mainland with a narrow strip of beach. I have stayed on this island before, and it is quite exposed to the North wind which was blowing like crazy still. We left our canoe on the beach and walked to the back of the island, and hopped across the rocks to the other island to see how it looked.

I have also stayed on this island before, on the Southern site which is really nice. It was however occupied, but we found the North site was open and it had a few more trees on it compared to the other island to block the North wind. We decided we wanted it so we had to run back over the rocks to get our canoe and claim our site. We knew that this lake was to be all but full for the night, so this site would not be free for long. This assumption was true, as for the rest of the day we saw many dissapointed campers veer towards our site only to see that it was occupied and turn away.

The wind was cold that first day, but it warmed up quite a bit the next day

Relaxing eh?

We started a small fire and had some food but the wind was cold on our backs so we went to bed fairly early. The first night the wind never let up, but Matt and I were smart enough to bring tarps with us which we positioned over our tents as wind blocks. Inside out tents we could not feel the cold wind at all.

These tarps made all the difference that first night blocking the strong North wind

Something new this trip, I brought a small hatchet. I don't usually bring one when portaging, but then I never planned on portaging did I?

The next morning we woke up to a clear blue warm sunny day. We set out to do some hiking, and paddled to the portage to Gem Lake, left the canoe and hiked up to the rock lookout that I had been to before on previous trips.

Here is Matt taking in the view

Living on the edge

After climbing down from the cliffs we hiked the portage to and from Gem Lake, and decided to gather some driftwood from the shore near the portage to take back to our site for firewood. We loaded a couple hundred pounds of wood into the caone, something I would not have done with my dad's Ultralight canoe, but was easily handled by the bargelike Coleman. We took our time paddling back to our site as the wind had totally stopped, the sun was hot and was nice to just feel the sun warming us up on the lake.

Like I said, it was nice to feel the sun on our backs the second day

On the way back we saw a huge snapping turtle sunning himself on a rock, he dropped into the water and I watched him swim away under our canoe. The lake was so flat that day that I could clearly see the bottom of the lake the whole span between both islands, even though it was at least 15 feet deep. Would have been great for snorkeling with that sun shinning through the water.

Turtle, likely older than both of us combined

We spent most of the rest of the afternoon relaxing around the campsite, but as it got later we decided to paddle to the end of Pen lake and maybe explore the falls that connect Clydegale Lake to Pen.

We did not anticipate just how slow the Coleman canoe would be crossing the lake, and by the time we reached the end we found the sun was only a few degrees above the horizon, it was turning to night and we would still have a long paddle to get back to our site. We decided to turn around and make our way back rather than risk going any further.

As we paddled the sun set over the horizon and the stars started to come out. It was fully night by the time we were near our camp and at this point we were basically guiding ourselves by the stars, the stars were very bright that night (and I know them very, very well), so it was easy to keep our bearings.

We finally approached our island and had quite a time finding the small gap in the rocks to squeeze our canoe through, I'm sure fellow campers where a little concerned to see us on the lake after dark, the temperature had fallen quite a bit and the air was cold. We soon however made it to our site, fumbled in the dark to find some warmer clothes, and spent the rest of the night sitting by the fire.

The next morning we paddled out in a thick fog.

Trip #9 Clydegale Lake - May 2009

2009-05-29T19:51:00.000-04:00

Trip #9 was full of firsts as you will soon read in this Blog.

This site had a bit of everything including a great canoe access pictured on the left of the above photo. The sand made for easy access and is also great for washing dishes (natures S.O.S. pad).

Dad entertained every evening with some tunes of the harmonica.

We set up a small shelter utilizing a tarp and some thin rope. This small shelter was great because we could position it close enough to the fire to feel the warmth but not to close that we smoked ourselves out.

This picture shows how calm the lake was on the way into the interior.

Prior to this trip I read in a persons blog that fishing is pretty good in the waters near the Pen to Clydegale portage. I only caught a large rock and some water logged trees. The park was conducting a fish survey and they gave me a package upon entering the park. The package included a lure. Leave it up to Ontario Parks to buy American made lures and put them in a Canadian fish survey care package. This lure now rests at the bottom of the lake at the brink of the falls leading into Pen Lake from Clydegale.

Dad didn't want to get caught in the rain without his rain gear so he pushed on and bared the heat of these heavy duty pants.

Dad acquired a canoe pack a few years ago and he to agrees that this is the only way to enter the interior.

I made a brief attempt at fishing near the bottom of the South Madawaska River portage into Clydegale. This picture looks better then the fishing that is for sure.

This picture shows the sleek Alchemist 16' Ultra Lite at the sandy entrance to our island site.

Once again a reminder that winter hasn't been gone for very long. You don't have to look too hard to find signs winter.

We purchased a new canoe an Alchemist 16' constructed of Kevlar and Carbon Fiber. This canoe is extremely lite and a dream to portage. We discovered that it was less stable than any other canoe we had tripped with in the past but what is lost in stability it gained in speed and maneuverability. With this trip being just Blake Dad and myself it was a tight fit for people and gear in this canoe but we managed.
We endured all sorts of weather this trip. Sometimes calm and sunny and other times very windy with rain or snow. The sun sets pretty early still in May.

The location we picked for camp was an island site down in the S/W end of the lake. The island was well protected for most sides and was very private.

Blake took an opportunity to take a swim in the frigid water. The island had a small neighbouring island to the south that was home to some nesting birds. Blake found this discovery out the hard way and was chased off the rocks by a very unhappy mother bird. I always knew Blake was a natural around water but running on water was a surprise to me!!

The coolest geeks in Algonquin or at least that is what Dad called us when he snapped this picture. We planned a day trip to Little Canoe Lake located South of Clydegale Lake once you walk the 1990 m portage.

Blake programmed his GPS and I packed my fishing gear and we were off. The weather was great when we headed out.

We also took an afternoon trip with Dad up the South Madawaska River to the portage. We all took our fishing gear but not much time was spent fishing this time as you will soon see. The sun was out when we left and other than some snacks we didn't really pack too much extra stuff since this was to be a short trek. Shortly after paddling to the start of the portage was heard a very load crack of thunder and within minutes the temperature dropped by about 12 deg. C. The wind turned around 180 deg. and the clouds rolled in. We walked the length of the portage and then once we reached the end the rain started. We made our way back to the canoe and I started to get in my seat in the stern of the canoe. I had asked Blake to steady the canoe while I got in but I guess he didn't hear me as he was talking to Dad about something. Just then I lost my footing and made a back flip into the river in about 3' of water. I looked up and both Blake and Dad looked on in amazement at my acrobatic maneuver. I had no change of clothes with me and no extra boots or socks left back at camp. The weather was now -1 deg. C and we had a good 40 min. paddle back to camp. With the rain coming down we all got wet just I was wet every wear even in my boots. We made it to camp and each of us went in our tents to get warm.

This picture shows how crowded the canoe was on the journey in and out of the park.

This is Dad's new tent from M.E.C (Mountain Equipment Company). This is a three season tent that Dad bought for this trip. He had one complaint and that was that it has very little venting and therefore tended to contain lots of condensation from your breath. A tent candle could be used to eliminate this phenomenon but for this trip Dad didn't have one. A tent candle is a long burning collapsible candle that can hang inside the tent and believe it or not keep condensation in check. Care must be taken when utilizing one of these for obvious reasons so I would recommend talking to an outdoor supply company about the best one for your tent.

This shot was taken during one of the moments when the sun did shine. Like I said before we experienced all types of weather and on the way out we paddled the length of Pen Lake through blizzard like conditions. In all the trip was fun and Dad had a good time as well. It is important to select a route that is realistic for all participants. Too long a trip or too rushed a trip can take the fun out of it if not everyone is able to keep up with the required pace. This trip is just the right distance for a four day trip. The two portages are short and relatively easy to complete.

Trip #8 - Sunday Creek to Fork Lake - August 2008

2008-08-10T19:51:00.000-04:00

In a rare August visit to Algonquin Park, Grant and I decided to try something new and different again and stay on a Fork Lake, which is accessed via Sunday creek. Fork lake is an easy lake to access as it requires no portages to get to, and is only a 3-4 km paddle from the access. You may think that this combination would be a recipe for seeing lots of fellow campers, but due to the fact that fork lake only has two sites on it, and only one of those sites is really any good, the stay on fork lake is pretty quiet.

Grant and I on the boardwalk bridge over the bog at the Sunday Creek access. There is a nature trail here that winds all through the bog to the left, we chose not to walk it this time, but I think we might take the time to walk it if we ever go back here. (I would come back here in the future with my friend Matt, only to pass up walking this trail again... next time for sure!)

An interesting part of this launch is that after paddling 10 feet, Grant and I both had to get out of the canoe to lift it and our gear over the first of many beaver dams that blocked our way. Even more interesting is that you have to actually paddle your canoe under the culvert you see here to get to the other side of Highway 60.

A shot looking back at the bridge over the bog from which we came, as we paddled through the culvert.

The trip down Sunday Creek was really a lot of fun. I enjoy paddling down a river far more than crossing an open lake, you just feel like you are really getting somewhere even though I am sure we are only going half the speed we would paddle if we were on an open lake. Lots of stuff to look at in the river, and beaver dams to try to ram over.

Here we are pulling the canoe over another beaver dam, still on our way in along Sunday Creek. It is worth mentioning that going in August was a rare treat for us as we are very used to going into the park in the cold months of May and October where you have to pack a bit more clothes and a warmer sleeping bag. We usually wear heavy ankle high hiking boots into the interior, but I think here Grant was wearing running shoes and I was wearing Crocks of all things, though they came in handy for wading into the water to pull the canoe out of the shallow spots by the dams. Much like every other trip we have made into the park, it rained on us driving in again this trip but also like every other trip soon passed and turn into a nice sunny day. I remember the sun finally poking out of those clouds on the paddle in and the temperature shot up really fast. It was nice to be able to get my feet wet to cool off.

This is a site we stopped to check out on Norway Lake, which you must pass trough to get to Fork Lake. This is one of only two sites on Norway Lake as well.

A view of the mouth of Sunday Creek as seen from the site on Norway. Not really a nice site to swim from In my opinion.

The first and so far only Trout either Grant or I have ever caught in this park. We weren't even trying to fish, we were taking a short 10 minute paddle to the single portage on the end of Fork lake, Grant threw out a line just for something to do, and boy was he and I shocked when he pulled in this fish. We quickly turned the canoe around back to our camp site and started a cooking fire.

Grant fillet the fish about 1 minute after catching it, and we had cooked and devoured it about 10 minutes later. It's interesting but we did not need any oil to fry this fish, it seemed to cook in its own natural oils. It was just about the best tasting fish I think I have ever had. With every other food we have to eat coming out of a bag, it's refreshing to get a hot fresh meal like this trout.

Later on that day Grant and I decided we would walk the portage from Fork Lake to Jean lake, and that little walk turned into just about the scariest 30 seconds of my life. As we were turning a bend in the very overgrown portage, Grant stopped in his tracks, pointed down the trail and said, "Blake! A bear!". He then turned 180 degrees, ran straight past me and continued to sprint directly back towards the canoe. I chanced one millisecond to look ahead of me, saw a gigantic dark brown mass just off the trail 40 feet ahead of me, turned, and did exactly the same thing.

Now I know that you are not supposed to run away from a bear as it may lead it to give chase, but Grant had already started this little faux pas so what was I supposed to do, stand between him and a no-doubt already charging bear, or get the heck out of there too? Well my heart was pounding and after about 10 seconds of sprinting I yelled to Grant, "Wait! Stop running, this is not what we should do." If it were chasing us we would have no chance of outrunning it anyways as we were still a few hundred meters away from our canoe.

We both stopped. We both listened. We heard no bear chasing us, so we slowly turned around, walked a few feet back up trail, and took a second look at what we were running from. What did we see? A giant bull moose! This thing was huge. You may have seen a moose on TV, you may have seen the ones around Highway 60 that lick the road salt, but you have never seen one like this. This moose does not lick road salt. This was a giant of the woods.

We now better understood our situation, this was not a bear, but this was still a very dangerous animal, and were were clearly within charging distance. This moose was also not backing down, it was not afraid of us. We decided we could not leave without at least a half decent picture of it so I chanced a few more feet towards it, climbed about 6 feet up on some tree branches and snapped a few shots. The picture does not do it justice. Needless to say he was not going to move for us to continue our trek to Jean Lake, and we were not going to push the subject. We never did finish our walk along that portage, and curiously Grant was not nearly as enthusiastic as usual about wandering through the woods for the rest of that trip.

Grant standing on some logs at the start of the portage to Jean Lake.

Unfortunately for us, when we initially arrived at Fork Lake we found that the site we wanted was occupied, leaving us with the only other site on the lake which was pretty small even for two guy's. As we were only staying for two nights this trip, and it was Friday - the start of the weekend, I figured whoever was staing on the island site we wanted would be there for the rest of the weekend. We chanced a paddle near the island to check it out and i could see that it was a great little island with a nice mix of open area and a nice little patch of trees to boot. Man was I dissapointed it was already taken!

A photo of our site from the first day. you can see how overgrown this site is, and how uneven the ground level is.

The thunderbox. Any questions?

The second day we awoke and grant went out in the lake to fish when he noticed that unbelievably, the island site that we wanted so bad was now open! Somehow the campers on that site must have packed up and left in the wee hours of the morning because we never saw them go. Very strange that they would leave on a Saturday, but I was not complaining, against all odds, we now had a chance to take the glorious island site! Only one problem: we had to get our gear on the site to claim it or else risk losing it to anyone else entering the lake for the night. Our whole camp site was still set up on the crummy site including our tents and all, so we decided to just grab and drag out assembled tents and all of our gear into the canoe and bring it all to the island as soon as possible. We set a personal best record time for breaking camp, as we had completely moved our whole camp to the island in less than 10 minutes.

turns out our fears we unfounded, as for the rest of the trip no other campers entered the lake, so essentially that lake was ours for the rest of our stay. Silence and solitude.

Canoes are great workhorses, it is much easier to paddle a couple hundred pounds of wood across a lake than to drag it by hand through the forest.

The island site turned out to be everything we had hoped for and more. It gave us great flat rocks to enjoy the sunshine on, trees to procvide shade for out tents, a great swimming spot that we made use of in the hot August afternoon, and a great view of the stars that came out that clear night.

Our island site also had one other very pleasant supprise for us. Most of the open areas were covered in hundreds of wild blueberry bushes that had berrys perectly rippened on the branches. Together Grant and I ate handfull after handfull of the sweet berries. It was just our luck that we were there in early August as the berries would fall off the plant by the dozen to fill your hand. Fresh fish and fresh fruit from the land all in one trip.

We ventured for another hike up a hilltop overlooking the South end of the lake and found that black bears had been here as well. You can see from their droppings that the eat quite a few blueberrys this time of year too.

A photo of grant on the hilltop near the bear poo.

This is the part of the island that we swam from. As you can see, the weather was perfect.

Because of the openness of the island, we had a nice moderate crosswind to fuel our fire. We gathered a huge old stump from the side of the island and dragged it over to our fire. To this day that fire was the best burning, biggest, and warmest we have ever had in the park.

The next morning we paddled out of Fork Lake in a thick fog.

Fork lake is a great little lake that is off the beaten path and one I want to return to someday.

Trip #7 - May 2008 - Rock, Pen, Welcome, Harry, Louisa, Rock Loop

2008-05-15T19:51:00.000-04:00

This trip was one of the more aggressive ones we have embarked on site we started interior camping. In the past we tried out some different canoes but when setting up this trip we knew that we had to pack very lite. We had been looking at canoes to buy but hadn't yet decided what we wanted so for this trip we rented from the Canoe Lake outfitters. This canoe was a 16' ultra lite Kevlar weighing in at 38 lbs.

We arrived at the outfitters about 20 min. before they opened and the anticipation of the journey ahead of us was intense.

We had purchased our permit from the West gate prior to renting the canoe so once the canoe was secured to the roof of the van we headed to the put in at Rock Lake Access #9. We arrived around 09:00 and wasted no time loading our gear and shoving off on our trip. The water was high due to the spring melt and this meant that protruding rocks and dead heads that we had become accustomed to were now just beneath the waters surface making the paddle even more interesting.

We made our way across Rock and Pen lakes in record time and didn't really take a breather until we got to the Galipo River portage on the S/W end of Pen Lake. Though we had been to this water falls numerous times before this time seemed different. This time we were pushing on into the unknown that being Welcome Lake and beyond. There is something to be said about being familiar with the lakes you intend to travel especially in early Spring when the water is so cold. This trip we planned on seeing 5 lakes we had never ventured to before. Keeping our excitement in check was a must as we didn't want to make any stupid decisions along the way that could wreck our planned trip itinerary.

Blake on the edge of the falls that run along the side of the Pen to Galipo River portage.

The first new portage was the 2170 m one from Galipo River to Welcome Lake. We landed on the start of the portage and took off in a flash to get to Welcome Lake. We forgot to snap a photo of the portage sign at the start of the portage so this picture was taken once we reached Welcome Lake.

We made quick work of the 2170 m portage by one tripping it. Like I mentioned before we packed very lite. One tent, one pack, one canoe and this made it fairly easy to one time time portage. We made it to Harry Lake around 14:00 and decided that this site was the best choice for the 1st night stay. The site was on a beach at the East end of Harry Lake just as you paddle up stream through the narrow channel from Welcome Lake. We set camp and spent a couple hours just exploring the beach looking for signs of Moose and Bear. We did have a visitor at our camp that afternoon in the form of a Pine Marten. This little critter ran back and forth from behind our site to a tree just in the bush behind the site. We did get a picture but it really doesn't do the little guy any justice as we only had with us cheep digital camera with very little zoom capabilities.

Day two started off early around 05:30 with breaking camp and a brief look at the Chrismar map to ensure we identified the next leg of our journey. We made a quick stop at this site on Rence Lake. This shot shows what some of the sites look like when venturing into the interior this early in the Spring. Sites this far in have yet to be visited by the Rangers for Spring clean-up.

Before we knew it we were on another portage this 320 m portage takes us from Rence into Frank Lake. This canoe was a dream to portage and with Blake carrying the pack I think I had the better carry.

We completed the 320 m portage and then were faced with this unique paddle through a narrow section at the South end of Frank.

We paddled up into Florence Lake and then prepared for the 1725 m portage from Florence to Louisa. The weather was calm and this made paddling enjoyable. Getting an early start on each leg of this trip

This picture speaks volumes to how winter tends to hold on in Algonquin. This East facing ridge along the portage to Louisa only sees sun in the early morning but due to the trees blocking most of it these large chunks of ice take forever to melt.

We stopped for 3rd night at a site on the South shore of Louisa about 2/3 of the way down the lake. The weather turned and the rain started to move in. We managed to get a fire going with our magnesium stick and some birch bark. We did some exploring in the tree covered hills behind the site and even managed to hike to the site West of us only to discover that it was occupied and judging by the comments they made to each other we had the occupants wondering what was coming through the woods behind their site. We never did come out and say hello or even let them see us so I am sure they thought we were a Moose or something.

Day 3 was heading home day. we awoke to more rain and packed up fast knowing we would be unpacking at home and drying out our gear anyways. We headed off towards the long portage from Louisa to Rock Lake around 07:00.

This portage was the most intimidating until we actually started in on it. We one tripped this one as well and this was a great accomplishment for Blake and I.

We stopped twice along the way to Rock Lake to grab a snack since we skipped breakfast this morning. Blake is pictured here with the pack and a small water tight pack that contained our food. This yellow pack is great for food and is easy to rig up into a tree on your site to keep the food from animals. The pack is totally water proof and therefore also contains any food smell so bears and other curious animals won't be tempted to investigate the contents.

In all this was my favourite trip thus far. The loop was aggressive for a 3 day trip but packing lite and smart made it enjoyable.

Of all the trips we have done this one was my fovourite because we were faced with challenges and we over came them and pushed on. I really think I learned the most about tripping during this trip and completeing a loop is kinda a scence of accomplishment.

Trip #6 October 2007 - Rock Lake

2007-10-26T19:50:00.000-04:00

This picture is of Dad and Grant fishing in the small channel between Rose and Jean islands. Dad brought up his small steel boat this trip since we were staying of Rock Lake. Normally it is canoes only but this trip was an exception given the party size and the lake we chose to stay on.

The group took a day trip over the the Booth's Rock Trail. If the sun would have came out from behind the clouds this would have been a great picture. The climb to the lookout was not too bad because the trail has stairs in spots to to make it easier for kids and seniors to enjoy the view. The bay on the left of the picture is the Rock Lake campground area.

This is a closeup of two of our tents on the sand. Jean island is off in the distance and Grant is trying his luck at fishing along the rocky shoreline.

Our first night camping this trip was exciting. We were all gathered around the camp fire when suddenly out of the darkness from behind our camp came this Fox. We all took pictures of this fearless animal but this shot turned out to be the best one. The Fox was a bit jumpy but it appeared more hungry than anything else. The island isn't very big, we thought maybe he came over in the winter when the lake was frozen and just didn't get back t the main land before the ice went out. Who knows maybe Fox just like to swim?

Rose Island site on Rock Lake interior October 2007

This site was nothing special but had a sandy beach that protruded about 100' into the lake. We set up our tents on the sand point. I had never camped on sand like this in Algonquin interior before. We had some rain over the weekend but it quickly drained away beneath the sand.

Trip #5 - May 2007 - Pen Lake

2007-05-26T19:50:00.000-04:00

In May of 2007 we gathered a group of 9 and set out to explore more of Pen Lake. Our friend Steve brought up some of his friends and family and we went up with our Dad and his friend Jim.
We stayed on the Western most island, the Southern side of the island. In the future Blake will stay on the Northern site on this island.

This is the group of campers that assembled for this trip. 9 people is the largest party that you may have on one site in Algonquin.

Dad's friend Jim was an expert with a rope and we all got a lesson in scaling a tree using nothing more than a rope and some really cool knots.

We camped on the west island at the North end of the lake. The South site was the most inviting for a large group such as this. Our Dad is pictured here with my brother and I. We spread all the tents out so that each person had some privacy and nobody would have to hear some of the campers snoring.

Blake making his first attempt at scaling the tree. It is amazing how much one small branch will hold if rigged properly.

This is a view from a rock face we climbed up to. Off in the distance you can see the South end of Rock Lake. We estimated that the drop from this point was about 80 m so nobody wanted to get too close to the edge.

Blake and I near the edge. You can see Pen Lake in the distance.

Trip #4 Clydegale Lake - October 2006

2006-10-04T19:50:00.000-04:00

This 4th trip into the interior of Algonquin was another first for Blake and I. After the last trip our buddy Steve managed to round up some friends that were willing to give this type of adventure a try. The one thing that I learned this time around was that no matter how many planning meetings you have prior to your trip newcomers will always find out the hard way. As you will see soon packing lite is an essential part of enjoying your trip not the other way around.

Because this team included six campers we drove up in separate vehicles. Just beyond the west gate we came upon two moose grazing in the long grass along highway 60. This was a first for the newcomers so we stopped and took some pictures.

This above shot should be a poster shot for what not to take camping into the interior! I was a little concerned about the amount of gear our newcomers took along. My brother Blake and I led the way across Rock Lake and I felt it would be best to hug the west shoreline just in case they dumped their canoes or river barges which ever you might call them! We managed to get to the Pen portage with little excitement and then the newcomers got a taste of why you don't pack everything you think you might use or want when portaging into the interior. I explained that you carry what you pack and then Blake and I made our single trek up into Pen. Our friends that thought they knew better made four trips back and forth across this short portage before all their gear was finally on the banks of Pen Lake. I felt sorry for them but everybody tends to learn the hard way when it comes to giving up creature comforts to pack lite.

Brother Blake and I took some time to explore the top of the rapids leading into Rock Lake from Pen while we waited for our friends to recover from the portage. This is Blake in his new rain gear, the gear he made mention about in our trip#3 log. The rain gear is cool the hat isn't but that is just my opinion. I think he looks like a Dick Tracey wannabe.

Some of our gear sitting on the dock at the put in to Pen Lake. You can see we both have canoe packs and they are a great thing when travelling in spring or fall (Rainy Season).

This is Blake relaxing in his tent at our Clydegale Lake campsite while the rain is coming down. Even with good tents it is always a good idea to make room in you pack for a small tarp like this one. Your tent may stay dry without a tarp but the area immediately outside the tent door will get wet unless you cover it with a tarp. This makes getting in and out much cleaner and less likely to track pine needles and dirt into you sleeping gear.

This is a picture of the site, notice the folding lawn chairs. We decided from past trip experience that taking a chair like this can pay dividends if your site has no tree stumps or other places to sit. If you look around you can pick up a small chair like mine in the middle. This chair has an aluminum frame and no arm rests. I can pack this chair inside my canoe pack and it weighs less than a pound.

One of the excursions we decided to take was a trek through the woods to a small lake called Gale Lake. Though only about 800 m as the crow fly it was much longer given the terrain that we faced on our journey. Brother Blake made use of his hand held GPS ans a compass along the way.

After about an hour or so we emerged on this really cool lake. The first thing I remember saying to myself was I wonder if this lake has any fish in it. later that day I made a return trip with my pole and spent some time trying my luck in a few choice locations. I never got so much as a nibble but it was worth it given the piece and quiet.

The second excursion of this trip was one up the South Madawaska river. This paddle was fun and attempting to paddle up over beaver dams against to current proved who was the most experienced paddlers of the group. The river brings you up to some rapids that in fall are too shallow to paddle up through. We pulled the canoes on shore and walked the portage up along the side of this twisting river.

This was the four of us that made this day trip. We are posing beside the portage sign at the bottom end of the 630 m portage into Clydegale Lake. If you look closely you can see that my left leg is soaked. I made a rookie move when exiting the canoe at the portage and ended up slipping into the river. Wet feet and only one pair of footwear, not a comforting feeling.

Our trip to the Madawaska took longer than expected and the days are short this time of year. We managed to get back to camp just before dark. It is always a good idea to take flash light and map of the lake whenever you venture out for little trips like this. If you run late and end up paddling in the dark a flashlight and map goes a long way to getting you back to camp safe.

This was one of the only times the six of us stopped moving long enough in the same place to snap a picture. The swift water behind us is the flow from Clydegale down into Pen approx. a 9 m drop in elevation over a 200 m distance. I hear that the fishing is good at the base of the rapids in the early Spring though I have yet t try my luck.

This is a shot taken while we were getting ready to head home. The reason for choosing this site in the first place was that we had a North wind on the first day so even though the site is elevated it provided cover. This decision came back to haunt us the second day when the wind turned right around and brought with it some rain. Over all the trip was a blast and this group of guys got along great.

The journey out along Pen was awesome. The lake was like glass and this made paddling a dream. You can see in the picture just how much gear the others took in. I never would have imagined bringing in a cooler like the one these two brought along.

We all made it back and nobody got hurt.I was glad to have a chance to show this great place to some new people.

Trip #3 - May 2006 - Pen Lake

2006-05-26T19:50:00.000-04:00

In January of 2006 we started planning an epic 3rd trip into Pen Lake with our friend Steve. This trip was going to be all about exploring all we could of the peripheral lakes and portages that feed to Pen, as well as some select rock cuts identified on our Chrismar map (Chrismar is a manufacturer of high quality mylar waterproof topo maps of the park). This was Steve's first trip into the interior of Alqonquin, and our first trip in May.

Grant and Blake looking like idiots in our $5 matching rain gear at the start of the Rock to Pen portage. The rain gear lasted about 300 m before the pants ripped to shreds. At the time we thought matching was cool, but viewing this shot after the trip explains why the campers we passed on the portage were laughing...

Half way across Pen we stopped for a hot lunch on the East shore. The lake seemed calm at the put-in on Pen, but after we passed the narrow channel between the two islands we were met with 2 foot waves that washed over the bow. I (Blake) was sitting in the middle of the canoe on the floor of the vessel in my torn $5 rain gear, as you can see in this picture my jeans are soaked. Steve on the other hand had a $20 pair of rain pants on that were of much higher quality and was dry. I now own the same brand. Lesson learned.

A further lesson learned, this trip was the last one in which I wore blue jeans. They take hours to dry once wet or damp and they weigh a ton.

The canoe you see here is a 16' heavy-duty fiberglass which weighs in at 93 lbs. This was the last time this canoe made its way into the interior.

A view of our site. The last site on the east shore of Pen before you reach the Clydegale Lake portage.

Blake enjoying a relaxing read by the fire during our first evening. Shortly after this photo was taken the weather turned cold and the 3 of us gave up on cleanliness and laid down around the fire, directly on the dirt. We all fell asleep there on the ground for an hour or so. The combination of very little sleep the night before in anticipation of our trip coupled with portaging a 93 lbs. canoe and paddling the length of Pen lake into a strong headwind must have taken a toll on us, but that warm fire was great.

Steve and Blake on an outcropping we saw from the lake and hiked up to.

A great waterfall at the start of the portage from Pen to the Galipo River.

The 3 of us at the base of the big fall from Galipo River down into Pen Lake. Elevation difference between river and lake: 18m

Steve and Blake standing by the fast moving channel between Clydegale and Pen Lake.

Grant by the falls from Galipo.

Grant and Steve log walking across a small bay north of our site. I didn't want to get my only pair of footwear soaked like Grant did moments after this photo was taken. Grant does not recommend log rolling in the interior of Algonquin. Lesson learned.

Trip #2 - June 2005 - Pen Lake & Rock Lake

2005-06-26T19:49:00.000-04:00

This was our one and only trip into the park during June when the mosquitoes and black flies are so bad the park is practically empty. We were in the park for 3 nights total and the original intention was to spend all 3 nights on Pen Lake. The bugs were so bad combined with the 30 degree plus temperatures and ultra humid weather convinced us to change our plan mid trip.

Blake's tent and canoe pack. All new from the lessons learned from the 2004 trip. Nothing ruins the start of a trip faster than wet sleeping bags and no dry clothes to change into. A waterproof canoe pack is the number one must have piece of gear for canoe tripping.

You can see in this photo how muggy and still the air was. If you look close enough you can see the bugs in this photo. We knew going into this that the bugs would be an issue, but having to wear full length layers all day in the hottest muggy weather is a real pain.

On our third day we awoke with a plan to beat the bugs. First thing in the morning we broke camp and Grant and I left dad and all our gear at the waterfall at the top of the Pen to Rock portage. We paddled in record time to the beach at Rock Lake campground, hiked to the pay phone and called the Park office to change our reservation to Rock Lake interior for our final night. We hoped Rock Lake would have more wind to keep the bugs away. After confirmation of the change we paddled all the way back to the Pen portage to pick up dad and all the gear, we then headed for the best site on Rose Island, and boy was it worth it. We spent our last full day swimming, snorkeling and fishing for Rock Bass off the West side of the island. The hot sun and wind came out and blew the bugs away.

I was able to snorkel along the rock face while Grant fished above, I could see a school of Rock Bass and point out to grant the right place to put his line as well as get a great underwater view of the fish being caught on the hook and fighting. Grant managed to reel in 5 decent sized Rock Bass in total.

This site has plenty of room to space out our tents. Grant opted to pitch his tent on top of the high point of the site overlooking Picto Bay.

This photo shows the size of the usable area of this site. I am sure it is a favorite of many campers. One of the few benefits of visiting the park in June is that sites like these are usually free for the taking.

This little fellow became our supper. Just kidding.

Trip #1 - September 2004 - Pen Lake

2004-09-10T19:47:00.000-04:00

This trip was our first time back to the park since we were kids, so this is really where it all starts.

On our hike to secluded Sandy Lake we got off track and our short trip turned into a long bushwack. Along the way we found this little marsh which was on our Chrismar map and allowed us to determine exactly where we were. It was this trip that made me buy a handheld GPS for future trips.

Someone had been here before.

A view of the islands which have 3 sites between the two of them on Pen Lake. In future trips we will eventually stay on every one of the sites on those islands.

Dad is on the lake in the canoe, just off shore from our camp.

Here's Grant, on the edge.

This location offers the best view of Pen Lake there is. If you're willing to make the steep climb up to it you'll find that the trees open up to a rocky ridge and you get a great view of the lake. This is on the north side of Pen, close to a nice secluded site, and in fact the very same site we stayed on this trip.

We stayed in the park for 4 nights this trip and spent it all on the same site on Pen. We learned a lot this trip about interior camping, and after paddling in in the pouring rain we learned the value of a good waterproof canoe pack. We also started to learn how to pack lite for portages including the right kinds of foods to bring, and what to leave at home.

After the first day the weather cleared up and we had a great couple of hot September days and crisp nights under the most stars we had ever seen.