Mother and Son Overnight to Buzzard Lake – Part 2

As I left off in Part 1, Hayden decided to play a trick on me by pretending to be a bear outside the tent. It didn’t work as I knew he was fooling around…. but then I fell asleep.

That night I had multiple dreams about things outside the tent – specifically a bear that started to push its way into the tent, and while I was getting out the bear spray, the bear started to talk to me. WOW. It wasn’t until a few seconds later I woke up, looked around to get my bearings and fell back asleep… maybe Hayden’s trick worked better than I initially thought!

Morning Came

Finally it was morning and it was surprising to see that the clock said 8 am. I thought for sure I was going to be woken up early by Hayden wanting his breakfast, but he slept in!

I decided to pack up the gear before breakfast as we both agreed that we would head home after eating. It was going to be another long morning of paddling and we had to get home in time for his soccer game that night. While packing up the gear, Hayden asked to start the fire again. We needed it to boil the water for oatmeal since I wanted to save the fuel for cooking my eggs. AGAIN, this kid would do an amazing thing – he started the fire with flint and steel and a cotton ball that was in our fire kit!

• 

• 

• 

Hayden was his usual silly self and didn’t mind being out in the wild with the bugs as they don’t seem to bother him as much as they bother me. While I prepped my breakfast in the shelter, the water was just about ready for his oatmeal. Once everything was ready, it didn’t take us long to eat and then it was time to load the canoe.

• 

• 

• 

Having a little helper that I can boss around does have its perks. I would get Hayden to move items from inside the shelter to outside, help fold the tent, and take down the shelter. Then I quickly packed our bags and got the gear and canoe ready to go.

We made quick work of Buzzard to the portage and the views were amazing. We had a mirror lake the whole paddle to the portage. I find that I have been drawn more and more to the reflections made by the rocky shores and mirror lakes where if you turn your head sideways there are images that are so unique and interesting.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Once we reached the portage, we ran into another couple that just spent three days on the site across from us. We chatted about our boats and they commented on how nice it was to see a kid out with his parent on a trip. It most certainly is a great thing.

Along the portage we encountered an interesting situation. The gentlemen I was chatting with told me that there was an elderly man who apparently had collapsed on the portage. So as we made our way down the path, I kept an eye out for him and found him walking back to get the remainder of his gear. He only said ‘hi’ and looked down and continued on his way. At the other end, he appeared again, this time with the couple, but no gear. It was apparent that the gentleman had sent the older guy back and he would gather the gear on his next trip. I told Hayden that I would be back, as I also joined this gentleman across the portage to get the man’s gear.

We chatted to each other and discovered that this older man had one lung and was recovering from multiple other issues – but he just wanted to get outside again. He told us he had tipped his canoe several times and was just running out of steam so I offered him one of my Arbonne Fizz Sticks for his water which would help him get some of his energy back. After a short rest, he re-assured us that he was good to go, so Hayden and I continued on our way with the other couple.

On our way back to our vehicle Hayden spotted the Ontario Parks staff motor boat, so I flagged them down to inform them of the situation. The other couple had also done the same, they checked in on the elderly man, and he again insisted he would be fine. I felt better knowing that the park staff was aware of the situation and that they had left their contact information with the man in case he did want some assistance.

• 

• 

• 

Once back to our vehicle, I made quick work to pack up the gear and get going. However, if you know me, you know I like to do spontaneous trips so as we passed by Petroglyphs Provincial Park I asked Hayden if he would be interested in going to check it out. A small “sure” came from the back seat which meant he was good to go.

We didn’t spend a long time in the park, but I did get my first provincial park patch. I wish I was able to get the Kawartha patch, but that will have to wait for another trip north to Bancroft where their park store is located.

It was getting close to 4 that evening before we got back home and as usual our gear “exploded” all over the place as we brought it into the house. This is where I wish I had some sort of outdoor gear cleaning service where they would come and pack away our gear, clean anything that requires cleaning, and air out our tents.

• 

• 

• 

Hayden did a great job on this trip and he is showing some awesome potential for longer trips in the future with me. He knows that he will be required to do more paddling and I am looking forward to this as well.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed reading about our trip. Kawartha Highlands is really a lovely place and I know we will be back there again soon. If you like what you read, please leave some comments below about lakes you have visited in this region.

Disclaimer: I am an Arbonne consultant so I receive and income off products bought from my page. However, I have used these products well before I became a consult and truly enjoy them. If you want more information on the Arbonne products, you can visit my consultant page. Thanks.