The last trip promised to be good and eventful. With the previous trip having everything organized, the transition between groups went very quickly and we were able to get on the water very early. The weather had also cleared up providing for some sunshine as we paddled across Grand Lake to our 1st portage on the Barron River. We very quickly realized that we had plenty of strength for our portages, as the 1st lift over went very quickly. We also saw a prediction of an eventful trip as one canoe got very stuck in the creek following the portage and we saw Nick donate his sunglasses to Stratton Lake as he went to relax on the back of the canoe.
This was followed by log rodeo and a crazy game of battle slugs at camp. A sign that maybe we should have made this day a bit longer. Dinner was as many burgers and hot dogs as you could possibly eat, which the group did. Everything was gone, although we found out later that they had stolen some hot dogs to roast over their own fire. Unfortunately, they could never get it going long enough to actually roast any hot dogs.
The 2nd day started off gorgeous and sunny. This was going to be our longest day, as we were travelling on 5 lakes and 4 portages (totaling 1500 m), as well as, a side trip to the water slides at High Falls. Now continuing on the theme of eventful, this day didn't disappoint. We started out by having to repack Troy, because we think he did bring the kitchen sink. We were not sure whether he would survive the 1st portage of the day (45 m). Then Nicole of the famous canoe that got stuck in the creek on day 1 decided to test the waters of High Falls Lake. To her defence, she had a choice, go down with the canoe or abort ship and save the canoe, she did save the canoe. As we hiked to the falls, it was another member of the same canoe that rolled her ankle just before the really rocky and uneven part of the hike. To her defence, she went on without a single complaint, even carrying more on the last portage than some of our lads.
To add to the fun, it was the 1st time ever that our school was forced to take a different campsite on Opalescent Lake and not camp on the best site ever (just had to rub it in). The next site was not badly set up and allowed us to use a great tarp structure to keep us sheltered from the tremendous amount of rain that would fall on us for the next 12 hours. It was the only heavy extended rain on all 3 trips, but we can't complain, as the spaghetti was great and the sun came out in the morning.
The rain ended about 9 in the morning and was followed by two hours of sunshine. We decide that we would delay our departure for the Barron Canyon until the afternoon to give us some time to dry things out a little. Some tents had been supporting a swimming pool. The weather stayed as unpredictable as ever, after a great game of 'lick the stick' the winds picked up like crazy. It was an extreme paddle across little Opalescent Lake to our longest portage of the trip. The 760 m portage however flew by as the everyone worked together really well. The next two portages went quick and we were in the Barron Canyon in no time.
This is where it got interesting again. After loading up with some candy and chocolate, and some wood, we enjoyed a sunny paddle through the 100 m high canyon. It was just before the end of the canyon and about 1 km from our last campsite that Scott and Patrick decided to throw the wood, along with the saw, into the water. In their defence however, they also threw themselves and their canoe into the Barron River as well. Rumour has it that another canoe rammed them. The funny thing is that Scott actually bounced off the water into another canoe and Patrick's clothes never even got wet even though he fully went in.
The boys were put in dry clothes and we proceeded to our final campsite. Camp was set quickly, wood was gathered and dinner was made. Dinner was a wonderful spread of fajitas and Jiffy Pop for dessert. The evening was nice and peaceful as most people retreated to their tents early.
The next morning presented the most beautiful day of the trip. With a perfect blue sky, we were greeted by a super friendly little fox. He hung around for about an half hour, even helping Branden get out of bed. With a simple final breakfast, we enjoyed the sunshine and short paddle back to the bus. What a great way to end a wonderful trip.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Canoe Trip #2
The 2nd canoe trip started a little late, as the 1st trip took a bit longer than planned to come out from their last campsite. As the saying goes, better late than never and that seemed to be the philosophy of the group. Their goal was to be just as energetic on the final day as they were on this 1st day. That was quite a high standard, as they were flying on the 1st day. The portages went really smooth and quick, even if this was to be their longest day and all uphill.
We came through the Barron Canyon, Brigham Lake and to our campsite on Opalescent Lake in record time. The 1720 m of portaging never bothered the group. This was exemplified on the last portage as I watched 4 ladies work together on the last canoe, they hoped along singing, each with their own corner of the canoe, but the best was when they came upon a bridge and they all moved into the middle as if they had been portaging together for years. It was nice that after this day we came to a camp that was completely set up and stocked with wood by the last crew. We did have to move the tarps around a bit as the wind had shifted since the morning, but the benches and seats were just as comfortable.
The 2nd day seemed went just as smoothly. With a 650 m portage into Ooze Lake and a 300 m into High Falls Lake, the only thing to slow us down was a dubious bag count that left us wondering if we had all our gear with us. It seemed that we did and we enjoyed the great paddle across High Falls Lake. The final portage showed us how not to do a camping trip, as a school from Montreal was travelling in the opposite direction and had a tremendous amount of loose gear, including firewood bought at the gate of the park. I guess this was lucky for us, as we used the end of the portage to fill 3 canoes with firewood for our next campsite.
We had sent the boys cooking group to prep the grilled cheese sandwiches, while we were collecting firewood. Unfortunately, a few very large thunderstorms blew in as we were gathering firewood and as we started to paddle to our campsite, we were forced to get out of our canoes and hide in the bushes as one of these storms unleashed upon us. After convincing Ryan that it would be ok to continue (he had issues about paddling solo in an aluminum canoe with thunderstorms around), we quickly arrived at camp to find the cooking crew looking a bit shell shocked. Eventually we did manage to have some soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.
The campsites we had wanted to take on St. Andrew Lake were occupied, which meant that we had to go to a new campsite and luckily for us, we found a beautiful one just around the corner. It was a bit of a peninsula that gave us many beautiful views of the lake. It also had a great open space around the fire, which gave us plenty of room to play a new version of 'lick the stick' during the next thunderstorm. This evening also saw the entire group get a 2nd wind around 10 pm, unusual for a group that has just finished their two toughest days. We figure this was the reason, because they had two days left with 2 portages totalling less than 70 m.
The next day was a very easy day as we hoped, skipped and jumped over to Stratton Lake. The weather was nice as the barometer stayed steady, giving us some sun and cloud with the odd sprinkle. The best was that the temperatures were quite mild, perfect for swimming at the water slides at High Falls. On this trip almost everyone went in. After our swim we explored High Falls and on the canoe trip back we loaded our canoes with wood. The perfect calm waters really showed off the fall colours that Algonquin Park is known for.
The final day was just a beautiful easy paddle across Stratton and Grand Lake back to Achray. The colour of the leaves was amazing and as promised the group finished with as much energy as that it had started with 4 days earlier. I think many wanted to turn around with me and do it all again. That said, we enjoyed our last few minutes at the beach as we waited for the bus to arrive.
We came through the Barron Canyon, Brigham Lake and to our campsite on Opalescent Lake in record time. The 1720 m of portaging never bothered the group. This was exemplified on the last portage as I watched 4 ladies work together on the last canoe, they hoped along singing, each with their own corner of the canoe, but the best was when they came upon a bridge and they all moved into the middle as if they had been portaging together for years. It was nice that after this day we came to a camp that was completely set up and stocked with wood by the last crew. We did have to move the tarps around a bit as the wind had shifted since the morning, but the benches and seats were just as comfortable.
The 2nd day seemed went just as smoothly. With a 650 m portage into Ooze Lake and a 300 m into High Falls Lake, the only thing to slow us down was a dubious bag count that left us wondering if we had all our gear with us. It seemed that we did and we enjoyed the great paddle across High Falls Lake. The final portage showed us how not to do a camping trip, as a school from Montreal was travelling in the opposite direction and had a tremendous amount of loose gear, including firewood bought at the gate of the park. I guess this was lucky for us, as we used the end of the portage to fill 3 canoes with firewood for our next campsite.
We had sent the boys cooking group to prep the grilled cheese sandwiches, while we were collecting firewood. Unfortunately, a few very large thunderstorms blew in as we were gathering firewood and as we started to paddle to our campsite, we were forced to get out of our canoes and hide in the bushes as one of these storms unleashed upon us. After convincing Ryan that it would be ok to continue (he had issues about paddling solo in an aluminum canoe with thunderstorms around), we quickly arrived at camp to find the cooking crew looking a bit shell shocked. Eventually we did manage to have some soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.
The campsites we had wanted to take on St. Andrew Lake were occupied, which meant that we had to go to a new campsite and luckily for us, we found a beautiful one just around the corner. It was a bit of a peninsula that gave us many beautiful views of the lake. It also had a great open space around the fire, which gave us plenty of room to play a new version of 'lick the stick' during the next thunderstorm. This evening also saw the entire group get a 2nd wind around 10 pm, unusual for a group that has just finished their two toughest days. We figure this was the reason, because they had two days left with 2 portages totalling less than 70 m.
The next day was a very easy day as we hoped, skipped and jumped over to Stratton Lake. The weather was nice as the barometer stayed steady, giving us some sun and cloud with the odd sprinkle. The best was that the temperatures were quite mild, perfect for swimming at the water slides at High Falls. On this trip almost everyone went in. After our swim we explored High Falls and on the canoe trip back we loaded our canoes with wood. The perfect calm waters really showed off the fall colours that Algonquin Park is known for.
The final day was just a beautiful easy paddle across Stratton and Grand Lake back to Achray. The colour of the leaves was amazing and as promised the group finished with as much energy as that it had started with 4 days earlier. I think many wanted to turn around with me and do it all again. That said, we enjoyed our last few minutes at the beach as we waited for the bus to arrive.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Canoe Trip #1
The 1st trip started at Achray on Grand Lake On Sept. 29. It was a chilly day that promised a bit of everything, sunshine, rain, wind and even some snow. The cross-wind on Grand Lake provided for a challenging and wavy start, but once in the shelter of the peninsula, on the Barron River connecting Grand Lake to Stratton Lake, things went much easier. After a quick lift over of the 1st portage it was smooth sailing, literally, as we put up the tarps and sailed all the way down Stratton Lake to our campsite.
The campsite was a nice one, with the fire on a bit of a point. The wind was chilly and we erected an amazing shelter around the campfire using many tarps and canoes. This provided for a very comfortable spot to eat our fajitas, although it was a bit smokey at times. The evening was very quiet as everyone jumped into bed fairly early to be nice and warm.
The 2nd day, the wind was still there, but we knew that with a short paddle and portage we would find our next campsite that would be protected from the wind. The easiest paddling day went by in a flash and we found ourselves on two beach campsites on St. Andrew Lake. As the lunch crew prepared the grilled cheese, another crew paddled across the lake for some firewood. The climb up the cliffs was worth the effort, both for the view and the firewood. This is also when Jeff decided to dump himself and the canoe at the campsite.
The afternoon was spent with a side trip to High Falls and the natural water slides. The group did a great job using a compass to bushwhack to High Falls, there were only a couple of wet feet as we crossed some beaver dams on the way. Only four braved the chilly temperatures and went down the slides. The water was warm, it was just getting out that was chilly. Back at camp, the wonderful stir fry ensured that everyone was warm.
The third day was our 1st day of real portaging, with 3 portages totaling 1400 m. Considering most had to complete the portages twice with gear on their back, this was a great feat. The day took us through the beautiful High Falls Lake with its many little islands and fun route choices, as well as, little Ooze Lake and to our final campsite on Opalescent Lake. We gathered all our wood on the final portage and arrived at this beautiful campsite that had benches and seats for all. We set up an even more extravagant tarp system and enjoyed a wonderful pasta dinner with chocolate cake for dessert.
The final day started brilliant, with a very misty lake and a beautiful blue sky. We were on the water early, as we had quite a day ahead of us and we had to do it all before noon. The longest portage of the trip was first, 760 m, which was followed by two quick ones. After this we loaded up with lots of candy and proceeded to paddle down the Barron Canyon. After a short final portage, we were greeted by an excited 2nd group at the bus. A wonderful trip for all.
The campsite was a nice one, with the fire on a bit of a point. The wind was chilly and we erected an amazing shelter around the campfire using many tarps and canoes. This provided for a very comfortable spot to eat our fajitas, although it was a bit smokey at times. The evening was very quiet as everyone jumped into bed fairly early to be nice and warm.
The 2nd day, the wind was still there, but we knew that with a short paddle and portage we would find our next campsite that would be protected from the wind. The easiest paddling day went by in a flash and we found ourselves on two beach campsites on St. Andrew Lake. As the lunch crew prepared the grilled cheese, another crew paddled across the lake for some firewood. The climb up the cliffs was worth the effort, both for the view and the firewood. This is also when Jeff decided to dump himself and the canoe at the campsite.
The afternoon was spent with a side trip to High Falls and the natural water slides. The group did a great job using a compass to bushwhack to High Falls, there were only a couple of wet feet as we crossed some beaver dams on the way. Only four braved the chilly temperatures and went down the slides. The water was warm, it was just getting out that was chilly. Back at camp, the wonderful stir fry ensured that everyone was warm.
The third day was our 1st day of real portaging, with 3 portages totaling 1400 m. Considering most had to complete the portages twice with gear on their back, this was a great feat. The day took us through the beautiful High Falls Lake with its many little islands and fun route choices, as well as, little Ooze Lake and to our final campsite on Opalescent Lake. We gathered all our wood on the final portage and arrived at this beautiful campsite that had benches and seats for all. We set up an even more extravagant tarp system and enjoyed a wonderful pasta dinner with chocolate cake for dessert.
The final day started brilliant, with a very misty lake and a beautiful blue sky. We were on the water early, as we had quite a day ahead of us and we had to do it all before noon. The longest portage of the trip was first, 760 m, which was followed by two quick ones. After this we loaded up with lots of candy and proceeded to paddle down the Barron Canyon. After a short final portage, we were greeted by an excited 2nd group at the bus. A wonderful trip for all.
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