Trip Log: Presquile Provincial Park - May 21-23, 2012

I was adding more links to the Trip Log's page this morning when I realized I hadn't actually posted a trip log for our trip to Presquile last year.  I wrote a review of the park, but no trip log.  As this is the trip we still hold up as the standard to which all other trips get compared to (well, up until we went to Achray, now its our unanimous favourite), I should probably write up what I can remember.

From what I recall, it didn't start well.  The drive wasn't long, maybe an hour and a half, but the kids complained most of the way.  That might have had something to do with the fact the dogs were in the back of the car, huffing bad breath and drooling over their shoulders.  I can't really blame them for not enjoying the trip to the park.

The beach at our campsite

We got our permit and went to our site.  Before we did anything else, we headed to the water and the kids went nuts about the smooth stones.  While Chris and I set up the trailer and got the dog's ropes tied up, they explored along the shore.  We had a quick lunch of sandwiches and lemonade, then went to check out the Visitor's Centre.  Since we'd arrived on the monday of the Victoria Day weekend, we were hoping it would still be open.  It wasn't, so we spent some time exploring the lighthouse and the little paths in the area, then headed back to camp.

I can't remember what we had for dinner that night, just that I made bumbleberry crisp on the BBQ.   I remember the kids spent most of their time looking for fossils in the rocks on shore and when dinner was ready, I kept calling them but they couldn't hear over the sound of the waves and wind coming off Lake Ontario.  They found quite a few, and this became the main source of fun for the whole trip.  Chris got them into their swimsuits at one point and they waded into the water.  Dixie went along for the little walk.  She didn't like Chris being out of her sight, and whined when he's not around.  We went for a short walk along the bike bath then had a quick campfire so the kids could roast some marshmallows.

Our site at Presqui'le

The next morning the kids went right back to searching for fossils and wading in the water.  I don't remember what Chris and I had for breakfast, probably eggs and bacon, but the kids had cold cereal (as usual)  Pretty much the whole trip was spent on the shore of our site.  At one point Chris tried out his new "footie" shoes and ran to the lighthouse and back.  We also did the boardwalk before dinner our second day.  It started to rumble while on the hike, but I don't think we got more than a sprinkle of rain.  While the kids and Chris were playing in the water, I went for a walk and saw a family of swans in a little pond.  We also had to make a run in to Trenton to the Walmart for more propane.

Dinner our second night was awesome.  It was only spaghetti, but we dragged the picnic table out onto the rocks on shore.  The sky was crazy dark, and it looked like it was going to storm.  It sprinkled a bit in the night, and we ended up putting a tarp up over the picnic table so we could eat breakfast.  I think we had pancakes (kids had cold cereal again) then headed out.

Looking back I don't know why this held top spot on our list of favourite camping trips.  We didn't do anything super memorable, but I guess it's not about that (otherwise we'd go to Wonderland several times a summer.)  What made this trip so good was the good weather, the lack of bugs, and the fact the kids never had an "I'm bored" moment.  

Approaching storm over lake ontario

One thing we always talk about from this trip is the lasso golf game we got.  Chris and I had spent ages trying to get one on sale.  Every time we went to get one, they'd be sold out, then finally we got one at TSC.  The kids were so excited.  Chris set it up the first night, probably while I made dinner, and on the third throw, one of the plastic connectors broke and the ladder fell apart.  Chris fixed it up, and two minutes later another one broke.  It got to the point where after every throw, the whole ladder would fall apart.  We were so disappointed!  After so long trying to get one, it ended up being a piece of garbage that lasted about 10 minutes before it was completely unusable. (we're still on the lookout for a set made of sturdier material...like wood)