Early May Canoe Trip

We are really fortunate that the ice was out in our area at the end of April, giving us the opportunity to go for a very early May canoe trip. This was our first time getting out this early in our canoe, so to say that I was excited was an understatement!

Ice is Gone

Even though I’d been watching the ice out conditions in Algonquin and seeing delay after delay, I knew that there was open water at a non-operational park near us. I had checked the weather and it was going to be beautiful, with a high of 18 and an overnight low of 3. That’s a little cool, so we packed some of our warmer gear just in case the night time temperatures dropped even more, and planned to camp in a location that did not require a portage.

On Saturday morning we quickly packed up our gear and loaded the car and we were on the road just after lunch, thinking we had plenty of time to get there since it’s not typically a busy area. So you can imagine our surprise when we got to the parking lot and it was full! We both thought the same thing – would we get a site tonight? Even as we packed the canoe, three more vehicles were trying to enter the parking lot. With this being crown land, there are no reservations and this is the risk you take, so we quickly got our gear to the water and pushed away from shore. We decided to grab the first nice site we found just in case it was gone when we returned from scouting, and it’s a good thing we picked the site we did because another couple came by as we were setting up and turned around to go elsewhere. Phew!

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Hayden was super excited for this trip because we bought him a pulley system and new gloves to allow him to make a zip line at camp (something he’s been wanting to do for a long time), so he immediately went to the trees to start hanging his zip line, giving Dan and I time to get the tent set up and complete the camp chores. I had been to this site before to install a privy, and I was very happy to see that my sign was still up and by the looks of it, it was getting some use as well.

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Exploring Time

Once we got fully set up we decided to head out for a paddle. It was a beautiful afternoon with the sun shining strongly and we had loads of time to explore the lakes in the area. We have been to this park a few times now and knew exactly what to expect with portages and the paddle. We had to do at least one portage, but with no gear it was easy going. The second portage was a wonderful surprise as it was flooded and we paddled easily into the third lake.

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After being out for a few hours in the canoe, we headed back to the site to start supper. Hayden was getting hungry and he forgot to bring some snacks for our afternoon paddle. I doubt he will forget the next time. However, before we made it back to our only portage, I heard my name being called from behind. It was Andrew from Cruising Canoes. We had seen his van in the parking lot, so we knew he was here… somewhere. Turns out he was spending the weekend with a group of local Girl Guides. When we mentioned about the numerous vehicles in the lot, but the seemingly lack of people on the lakes, he informed us that there is a large group of people that park in this lot and then paddle down the creek in pack boats. I guess the high water in the area is good for other adventures.

Supper you say?

Our supper consisted of chicken fajitas and a bag of chips and I enjoyed a lovely drink. After eating, Hayden went back to playing around on his zip line while Dan and I enjoyed the campfire supper views.

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We went wandering around the site and found a fallen tree that was like a natural trampoline, which Dan called a “tree-poline”. It made for some good laughs, this is what being out in nature is about. Not relying on technology to keep you entertained, but what you find around you. Hayden also found an old bottle and picked some of those spring flowers and placed them by our table. He said that we needed to add some decorations. Funny guy!

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Evening Views

As we watched the sun go down on the cliffs across from our site, we were greeted by red winged black birds feeding their young in a nest in the bushes, a loon that would call out every now and again, and a beaver that was heading to find some more wood for his home.

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It wasn’t too long after the sun set that we decided to head to bed for the night. That was of course after we heard the coyotes calling in the distance. I had tried to take a video, but it was just too far away to hear it clearly. However, I did get some really nice pictures of our campfire at night.

Sunday Morning

I was surprised that we all actually slept in a bit the next morning. Must have been the nice cool air in the tent. I had gotten up and started to prepare breakfast while Dan actually had stayed in the tent a little longer that morning. He must have been very tired because usually he is the one up and on the go early and not me. However, it was really nice because he packed up the inside of the tent which is a job that I normally do.

We didn’t have anything fancy for breakfast, just some oatmeal and hot drinks. Hayden decided to entertain himself again by making a teeter totter from a piece of 2 by 4 that was on the site. He really wanted to go back on the tree-poline, so Dan encouraged him to help with the tent clean up and he would take him back to the tree for a few minutes before we left our site. This also gave me time to pack up our gear and get ready to go.

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The paddle back to the car was easy (we could see our car from our site!) and in no time we were back on shore, car loaded, and heading home. Part way home we saw a couple of deer run across the road and into the forest. It is important that you are always watching for wildlife at all hours of the day.

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I hope you have enjoyed reading about our first canoe trip of 2019. If you were able to get out already, please leave a comment below as we love to hear about other people’s adventures!