Algonquin…the plan.
The back story….An upcoming wedding, a hen party with a difference and a walk across fields towards a good pint led to a conversation about trips we had been on and trips we wanted to do. A canoe trip was mentioned which peaked my attention. A story of flat water canoeing, camping and lots of Canadian wildlife. It sounds perfect I thought, H has always mentioned she wanted to do some sort of canoe trip. Not being that way inclined during my adult life I was a little sceptical if open to suggestion or certainly persuasion.
Some googling later and I presented this bodacious (been watching Kung Fu Panda on DVD!) plan, with the expectation of earning some excellent brownie points, to H. Approval was forthcoming in abundance.
A canoe camping trip on the flat water lakes of Algonquin National Park, an enormous area of Canadian continental shield scrapped flat by numerous glacial advances. Left behind is some stunning wilderness with hundreds if not thousands of flat water lakes, gentle rolling hills and a myriad of connecting waterways. One of Canada’s first National Parks this area north east of Toronto it is also, I’m told, referred to as ‘Cottage Country’.
The route, well with what looks like literally thousands of lakes, rivers and camp sites it’s a little difficult to work out what to do and where to go. Google, as ever, comes to the rescue and a quick search finds some really key websites.
Algonquin Provincial Park is the official park site with loads of useful information but for a more personal, first hand account, you won’t find better information than www.algonquinadventures.com . After posting some of the usual newbie questions asking for information and putting down some of our own ideas we got some great feed back and sorted a route that was long but had lots of days off. We’re in for a shock I’m sure but were nothing if not enthusiastic. The route would have been impossible to fix it it hadn’t been for Jeffrey M. The author of one of the best on-line resources for mapping in the park, his tireless work collating numerous maps and personal experience in the park has led to an incredible tool. Check out the map at www.algonquinmap.com.
So a 16 day trip involving 16 major lakes, one section of the Nipissing River, and 8 different campsite’s along with a stop at a rangers cabin for a few nights should give us a taste of what the park has to offer and then a little bit more. There’s over 20km of portage in those 16 days split roughly 50/50 and with no phones, shops, roads, internet, people or easy escape it’s going to be perhaps the most remote I will have ever been and that certainly makes you think.
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