Algonquin Saturday Aug 19

 Our last day. Very last. Last time to pack up camp.

 Last campsite to run around on.

 Bags of gear pile up. Keep it all in plastic so it stays as dry as possible! I keep having to sort through things to make sure that there are sweaters and coats available (not buried and unreachable) for everyone. Especially those little tikes who will be sitting and sitting and not warming up.

 Into the boats we go. It is raining lightly so we have our jackets on. With the shorter ways to paddle ahead we can gauge how many layers we will want when we get to Opeongo.

 It doesn't look like it will be sunny later on today!

 Off we paddle to our last portage. It is really three portages because there is an option to paddle a small lake in the middle instead of the middle portage. It woul save you 300 meters. But we trek straight through. The bugs are quite bad by the little lake. Jennifer is not a happy camper. She thought yesterday we'd arrive at home and here she is out in the rain having to lug her backpack. Again. "I want to go home." "That's where we're going...just keep walking and we'll get there sooner." "I don't want to walk. I want to be home now!" (and on and on....) It was about 1.3 km. We are done quickly and we didn't have to double back for anything. Unless you count Jennifer. But don't worry, she wasn't very far back. We could still see or hear her where ever she was!

 A landing dock is here. Which means it would be ideal for a water taxi to come pick us up. Wouldn't it be nice if one was already docked there (or just coming up) dropping off people and they were empty and had to go back anyways and couldn't we just go on (for really cheap or maybe even for free) back to the access point? Wouldn't they just offer that out of the goodness of their hearts?

 But there is no water taxi. And there are no "big" waves. And we didn't say "if it was raining we'd call the water taxi". So we don't call for help. We load the canoes. Some of us with a heavy hearts. Or maybe it's just one heavy heart. Off we go.

 The dark clouds let off a bit of rain.  But look! There is a lonely barren island but covered in birds!

 Might they be cormorants? What a lot of them! There is life in abundance even in this bleak place...perhaps there is hope we can survive too! Maybe this is a good omen. No, I will not think about it being a sign that we might be abandoned on island with nothing but ourselves for company.

 We carry on. I think at about two hours in...when some of our bladders were bursting we took a break. In fact, we barged into someone's campsite. We noted the fire was smoldering. Unattended. We used their thunderbox. With our own toilet paper. And tried leave to traces. As no one is around and it is almost sunny we break here for lunch. "Don't touch!" I say...keeping an eye out for a returning canoe. We eat our crackers and cheese. Which is delicious! Now we have energy to carry on.

 Doesn't it look like more of the same? Melanie keeps paddling. What a trooper! She is tired but keeps paddling steadily. We do have to go through some sections where the waves are bigger...but they are manageable.On and on we paddle.

 Up ahead we see the final point we need to paddle around. And now the rain is really getting heavy. It had drizzled for at least half an hour, but now it really is going down harder.

After 4.5 hours of paddling we have made it at last. Now on my gravestone, or perhaps in my eulogy, you can put that I paddled Lake Opeongo.

Done. Hopefully never again. Ugh. I am sore.

The rain is not letting up. It is getting worse! The kids are told to stand under the roof to "stay dry". But really it is more like, to "not get more wet".

Unloading the canoe took a while. Everything is drenched. Yuck! Note the empty water taxi docked peacefully. Empty. Why wasn't it at our portage when we came out? Ah well. We made it!

Hooray for dry clothes and dry towels waiting for us in the van! It's hard to change when you are drenched and shivering. But it feels good to be dry. And warm. And in a comfy van seat. Such luxuries await us!

Algonquin Friday Aug 18

 We wake up to a cloudy day. Today is the beginning of the end of our trip...going back is all we have left of the trip. But it's a dreary looking morning so we aren't too sad about this! We eat on a tarp under a tarp. This way our bottoms don't get wet. Theoretically.

 Camp is packed up. At least it isn't rainy now. The sun broke through the clouds once or twice!

 Off we go to Little Crow!

We get to paddle straight through the lake.

 On the other side is a river. No portages today! We just keep paddling on!

 The river is full of twists and turns. You can't go too fast, and it's hard to tell how much progress you are making...maps don't include all the intricate details!  Off and on we have a few drips, but mostly it just stays dry and foreboding.

And sometimes it is even sunny and we have to take off our jackets!

 The nice part about the river is it is pretty and the wildlife is interesting. We saw a duck very close by, which didn't look like a mallard. She wouldn't fly away so we think her ducklings were hiding close by.

 We finally winded around to Proulx Lake. We wanted to take a site closer to the end, so we made it to where the lake opened up. There it was getting windy again and the rain was getting a bit more serious.

 Welcoming us in cheerful array was a cozy skeleton. We think that the hip and skull of a moose were hanging up. Down our potty train (which was really soggy to walk on...but not surprising because of all the rain) we saw a lot of fur. Thick and matted. Likely moose as well.

 A few of us thought the site was creepy. Some of us would rather paddle back and find a more cheerful one. But alas, we stayed here anyways. It had nice tent spots, and if you didn't look at the bones it wasn't so bad. But the potty trails was not welcoming. There were even slugs on the seat a few times...so I came along as a companion for several of these trips.

 We huddled in the rain and we hung out around the fire pit. There was a lot of dry would so managed to light a fire and keep it going, even when the rain picked up once again. It was sunny for a while too, and we all fought for a spot where could soak up some of the golden sunshine! No swimming today!

 Tomorrow is going to be a long day. Would be good if we can get an early start!

 Secretly I am hoping that tomorrow will be windy. We had agreed that if it there were lots of waves on Opeongo Lake we would call the "water taxi". Then we would get a ride back instead of paddling for hours and hours.

Algonquin Thursday Aug 17

 Another rest day is in order -- after such a long portage, parents need to recover! We don't want to hang around our campsite all day though. It is dark, and we still feel like it should have been a nice open site with a beach. But it isn't, so we pack up a day bag.

 It's a bit chilly this morning, but maybe that's because we can't find any sun to sit in as we warm up in the morning.

 It is another beautiful morning, and we can see the mist slowly coming off of the lake. So calm and serene!

 Once we are ready we look back at our site. It's off on the left, you can see the "pumping tree" hanging over the water. Kinda dark looking in the bush there! And off around our site is access to Little Crow Lake. We will pass through there tomorrow!

 Our journey takes us down a creek to where a path leads off into the forest. Our map tells us that here we can find "virgin pines". Untouched white pines that have not been forested.

 After a long walk and enough bugs to keep some of us complaining we come to some older trees. They are by no means record breaking trees, but is is possible that they are the biggest and oldest that most of us have seen yet. They certainly are taller than the trees around them!

 We chat about trees for a while, and then I head back with the youngest three who didn't find the end of the hike very climatic.

 After getting back to our canoes we head off to that lovely beach we wanted to camp by so badly yesterday! The camp site is actually not that close to this first beach, so that makes it ideal for us. There are two people when we arrive, but they leave and the beach is indisputably ours.

 Swimming and playing in the sand is funner than staring up at old trees!

 We didn't pack any shovels, but sticks do pretty well to loosen up the sand.

 Driftwood is hunted for. Melanie had a really nice piece that her Dad helped her find, so everyone wants one now! Unfortunately the only driftwood that we see here is soggy and dark.

It might not make good carving material, but it is good for making tracks! On one end of the beach cold water is coming in. The source of it is discussed at length.

 While digging in the sand a rabbit came by. Several times. Very close. He seemed very weird. He wasn't foaming at the mouth or trying to bite us, but was certainly behaving strangely. As if there were a fox in the bushes planning to get him if he went in so he'd rather hang out with us. Or else it wasn't our beach, but he owned this beach. I think he tried pretend we weren't there (unless we came too close and he couldn't overcome his natural fear of man). He appeared to like sunning and maybe our stuff was on his favourite spot.

 It was certainly a restful afternoon! The beach was big enough to take some time to explore it's nooks and crannies.

 We'd packed dinner along in case we wanted to stay -- but the clouds were getting much heavier and so Mama Hen thought it was time to bring her chickies back to the nest.

 Over Big Crow Lake we paddled (the short way, as we didn't have to hunt all around the edge for an empty camp site!) and the waves were getting kinda big and it dripped a little. We stayed dry enough though. And had time to make a campfire.

 We ate our dinner in the drizzle. And hung out for the evening in the rain. It was sure nice that we had so much dry weather in the morning and afternoon.

We headed to bed a bit on the early side as it was dreary out anyways. Maybe if we go to sleep the rain will go away!

Algonquin Wednesday Aug 16

 Our big day started out beautifully! What a gorgeous day!

 We paddled over the still water enjoying the tranquility, the beautiful colours and the big bright sky.

 We took care when loading up at the portage to make sure that everything was accounted for. No one wants to go back 3.7 km for a forgotten paddle or life jacket! We took off down the trail. Nathan was in the lead. Philip caught up and passed the group of 5 children and I lagged on in the rear. I was gasping and wheezing up the trail. Usually there is a moderate incline at the very least, and this incline was long and tiring. I was carrying just as much weight as I could handle...baby steps up the hills and careful breathing were the trick! There were a few steeper sections (not that steep really) that I doubled back for the canoe because I was really struggling to push myself, pack and canoe up the incline!

 I was so happy to catch up with the kids once the incline was over and it was more or less level because Melanie had the first aid kit! I was badly in need of band-aids for my feet! I was having some real problems because of having torn skin in the arch in my foot open last night on a stump in the dark. I sparingly cleansed the wound with water (that I'd rather be drinking!) and the covered it up in bandaids. That felt better. Still warm and uncomfortable, but that painful edge from the grit that was sneaking in and grinding was gone at least! :)

 The kids report to me how they are doing. We all agree that we must be about a third of the way by now. That the bugs are WAY better than the portage from yesterday. We are all very grateful for this. We can't imagine how torturous it would be to have so many bugs for such a long and sweaty trek! We are glad the trail is in the shade, as we are feeling hot. But we are all coping fairly well.

 On and on we trudge. Nathan, meanwhile, has marched ahead and is in his element! When asked about his highlight of the trip a month later, it was this portage!! He got to "break trail" read the signs of people's and animal tracks and tell us later "Did you see this...I think it was ....". When he unloaded his bag at the end he graciously came back and met us all, reporting how much further we had yet to go, offering encouragement and a hand. Evelyn was in need of help by then! Jennifer was glad for a hand too. When I met Nathan I plopped my canoe down and said to the other family (from Switzerland getting a real Canadian wilderness experience) "My husband can come back and get it from here!" And feeling much relieved "bounced" unencumbered to the end. Philip was ahead and did, thankfully, come back for my canoe. I think I could have taken it all the way but it was certainly a huge relief to get that off my back! I needed energy later for paddling!

From the end of the portage we could see a beautiful sandy beach that a campsite was very near. We can be there soon and cool off there where it will be nicer to swim! It's still relatively early in the day and we expect to find it empty and then we can relax in the sand and sun for a few hours! Off we paddle eagerly. BUT that site is full. And the next site. And the next. We are getting tired and start feeling a bit depressed as we go further and further. All the beautiful beach sites are taken. We paddle slower and slower and canoes feel heavier and the water gets wavier which slows us down even more. On we go along the coast of Big Crow Lake. Will we go all the way around and find that there are no empty sites at all? At last we ask yet another full site's occupant if they know of any free sites? Well, a half hour ago the next one up ahead (third to last available one that we haven't paddled by yet) was still empty. I cruise on ahead to see if we can snag it before it gets nabbed by someone else! On and on the shore seems to go, but at last, there it is -- and it is free!! Compared with the other sites that we've seen this was is dark and depressing. Melanie and I zip off with the canoe free of gear to check out the second to last site to compare it. (The last one is pretty much back at the portage where we had started and we refuse to go that extra length!) The site we check out is very hilly, just as dark, and only site for a tent is literally only a few feet from the thunder box. The site we first snagged is starting to look good. Back we go, stock up on a late lunch. And finally, a swim!

 Get those sore muscles soaking and clean off all that sweat!

 We feel tired and enjoy sitting down and lounging. Everyone can tell about their biggest ever portage experience.

 In the tent a game of cards is enjoyed. (The younger kids can't interfere then because they aren't allowed in this tent.)

 And the best ever pumping place is at this camp site. Daniel has renewed interest in volunteering to pump.

 Actually Daniel should get "most improved camper of the year" award, as this year he has been really doing a great job lugging his load, not complaining about the food, and even volunteering for tasks. He's been taking his sisters down the scary thunder box trails and opening the heavy lid for Evelyn when she's been tired. It was such a treat to see him taking responsibility and enjoying the trip.

 Every site has different places to hang out and activities to do.(Do you ever notice that the younger you are the quicker you bounce back after exerting yourself?)

Evelyn cooked several meals for us at this site on her own personal oven!

 We might be tucked in the back and away from the sun, but if you look for it, there is certainly much beauty here too! (Even if it doesn't have a sandy beach and early morning sunshine.) The "pumping tree" is fascinating to look at, it's strong trunk going way down over the water, still looking healthy and robust.

 And off to the side where Big Crow leads off to Little Crow we have another peaceful view. And sunshine to sit in and meditate in.

What a beautiful day it has been and we have been once again spared injury and bad weather! We are thankful to be alive and healthy in this wilderness together.