Choosing a campground in Algonquin's Highway 60 Corridore

For many campers, their first experience in Algonquin will be staying in one of the organized campgrounds along Highway 60.  There are six to choose from, and all of them have their own reasons to recommend them (or not.)

In the last two years, I've stayed at most of them, and it's always struck me how the camping experience can be so different when in the same park.  So I started to wonder, what attracts different people to the different campgrounds?  What things do the twenty-somethings look for on a boys weekend?  What about families?  Obviously a retired couple will be after something very different as well.

I'll start with Tea Lake, though it is the only one I haven't gone to yet.  From my research on the Ontario Parks reservations website, I know all of the sites are fairly small and only accommodate one tent.  The average size of the sites is about 6 meters by 6 meters.  Also, the smaller number of sites (there are only 43) would lead me to believe this campground is likely to appeal more to couples looking for quiet.  Also, since there is no comfort station, and no electrical sites, it is more likely to appeal to the type of camper who more use to rustic conditions, possibly even those who are heading up for an interior trip and plan to spend the first or last night at a campground so as to get an early start the next morning.  I don't know for sure, as I said, I've not stayed at Tea Lake, so if anyone has any input on this, I'd love to hear it.

Travelling from West to East, the next campground you come to is Canisbay Lake.  This one was a little harder to categorize for me.  There was a good mix of families, retirees and partiers here when we stayed, so maybe this is one of the campgrounds that just has a broader appeal.  The sites are pretty private and of good quality (less so in the radio-free area, and there is a nice beach.

When I drive along Highway 60, and pass Mew Lake I often wonder why anyone would want to camp so close to the highway.  You'd hear traffic noises all night.  Actually, the electrical sites, and those at the bottom of the radio-free area are really nice, and with it's close proximity to the Two River's Store, The Old Railway Bike Trail, and the side trail for the Track and Tower Interpretive Trail, this campground has a lot to offer someone who wants to park once and not have to move their car again.  Also, a short walk down the highway gets you to the Two River's Trail, as well as the Bat Lake Trail, so really, you have several activities within walking distance, as well as easy access to supplies or a meal if you don't feel like cooking.  We've stayed here three times now, twice in the spring and once in late August.  On our spring trips, we stayed in the electrical area, and during the summer, at a non-electric site right on the water, fairly close to the highway.  The highway noise wasn't as annoying as I'd thought it would be, though when a big truck is coming you can hear it from a long ways off.  As to what kind of camper this campground would appeal to, I'd say it would be pretty broad, from the quiet zen type to the college kids out for some fun.

Next door at Lake of Two Rivers Campground, we certainly got a lot of the latter.  Mind you, we were starting our trip at the tail end of the August Long weekend, so there were more of the partying sort about than normal.  Two Rivers is perfect for lazy campers, or for someone who is on their first trip and isn't confident that they've packed everything.  You have a store and restaurant right at hand, so if you've forgotten a can opener, or dish towels, you can easily get what you need.  Dying for a coffee you don't have to make?  Or ice cream on a hot day? Two Rivers offers these luxuries as well as one of the nicest beaches in the park.  Also, you have access to the Old Railway Bike Trail, which is perfect for those who want a fairly flat trail.  What Two River's doesn't offer is much in the way of privacy.  The sites are pretty open, and really aren't that appealing...mind you it's sometimes hard to judge when they are full of other camper's gear.  That's not to say Two Rivers doesn't have some nice sites, because they do.  The sites lying on the North Madawaska River are pretty nice.  Maybe another aspect of this campground that appeals to more energetic type, is the fact that you can have motor boats on Lake of Two Rivers (up to 20hp) so anyone who likes to fish from a boat would find Two Rivers a good choice.

Next up is Pog Lake.  I've stayed here twice and what I remember most is that the women's room at the comfort station was always full of teenage girls doing their makeup.  I kid you not, I saw girls with huge bags full of facial cleanser, creams, and more makeup than I've owned in my lifetime, blow dryers, curling irons and there are always lineups for showers in the morning.  It's like Pog Lake attracts a more upscale kind of camper or something.  And there's me, waiting 20 minutes to clean the worm dirt from under my finger nails after I took the kids fishing, not a spot of makeup on me, and possibly smelling a little ripe unless I'd been swimming earlier in the day.  Pog's sites are beautiful, set under tall pines but they don't offer much privacy for the most part.  There are two nice beaches though, and easy access to the middle of the Old Railway Bike Trail.  It's also the biggest of Algonquin's organized campgrounds, and therefore, you're more likely to have someone close by who is up late being loud, or accidentally turning on their car alarm at 5am.

Kearney Lake has the same feel as Pog Lake (They are right across the highway from each other) but Kearney has no electrical sites and the sites are generally smaller and most of them are only able to accommodate a single tent.  We only did a drive through of this campground and it was hard to judge the quality of the beach, but for the most part, we decided it would be a nice place to stay.  You do have to watch though...some of the sites were down a hill, and you could tell heavy rains had dug channels in the ground as the rain water ran down into the campsites.  Watch where you set up your tent, or you could get washed away in a good rain storm.

I won't get into Whitefish Lake because it's designated as a group campground, so unless you are a scout leader or something, you probably aren't looking for that kind of site anyway.  It is possible to reserve a site here for a family reunion, but youth groups and special groups take priority.

The last organized campgrounds along the corridor are Rock Lake and Coon Lake.  Both are approximately 8km down a dirt road, giving you a much quieter camping experience as far as highway traffic is concerned.  Coon Lake's sites are small and not too private, and are the only ones I'd class as meadow sites.  Rock Lake doesn't offer much privacy either, with a few exceptions, but I really enjoyed camping there.  There are several sites right on the lake, Booth's Rock hiking trail is a short walk away, and you can access the Old Railway Bike trail and bike the 10km to Mew Lake if you wanted to.  The comfort station is pretty far away from the non-electric sites, but there are 4 bathrooms in the area with flush toilets and sinks.  Also, the Visitor's Centre is only 3km down the highway from the entrance to the Rock Lake road.  The beach at Rock Lake wasn't great when we were there at the end of august.  Water levels were really low, but the kids waded a bit and said it wasn't mushy or gross, so I imagine when water levels are normal, it would be good swimming.  The lake is also nice for canoeing, with some scenic bluffs and a water fall at the far end where it flows into Pen Lake.

Hopefully this helps a few people choose which of Algonquin's campgrounds they'd like to stay at.  With so many options, it's hard to decide.  Our first time, we stayed at Two Rivers because it was the only one with a site available the two nights we were planning to go.  We loved being close enough to the store to walk for coffee in the morning and pick up things we didn't bring (a dish pan and tin foil) but weren't too thrilled with the guys a few sites down playing horseshoes until midnight while blaring country music....the weepy depressing kind, not the more pop-country type.  We still had a lot of fun, and would go back to Two Rivers again without hesitation.  You can't control what your fellow campers do, so remember to pack a sense of humor.  You'll probably need it for other things anyway, like raccoons eating your marshmallows or burning half your dinner.

Spring cleaning your camping gear

Okay, so yeah, there's still snow on the ground but since it is officially spring...and spring means the dreaded spring cleaning torture, I figured why not at least reward myself with a reason  to get all the camping gear out.

If you have a trailer of some sort, now's the time to scrub off any grim that's accumulated from leaves and dust sitting on top of it.  Chris loves scrubbing the Boler down each spring...it gives him a chance to play with his power washer. CLR works really well to get rid of the mildew from leaves rotting on the roof.  Inside, scrub down all the shelves, cupboards and counters with soapy water...if there's any evidence of rodent activity, you might want to use a bleach/water mix.  You should check the tires as well, and any other spring maintenance tasks that are recommended for your type of trailer. On a nice warm day with a bit of breeze, open all the windows and spray some Febreeze on the cushions (or Lysol if there's any evidence of rodent activity)  Let it air out for the day to get rid of any musty smell.

If you store most of your camping gear in your trailer, you'll probably want to bring in any dishes and give them a quick wash.  Not only is there a chance mice made a pass through, but several months of dust should be cleaned off before you use them.  Heck, I do it just cause I like to reorganize everything and remember all the camp gadgets I've got.

Now is also a good time to do an inventory of what you have in your gear.  If you're like us, you might not have a dedicated camp can opener, or maybe you ran out of fluid in your BBQ lighter at the end of last season and need to pick up a few more.  Sometimes, something might have gotten lost, or broken and you figured you'd just get a new one in the spring...chances are, unless you made a note of it, you've forgotten by now.  Also, if you got any camp gear for Christmas or birthdays during the winter, you've probably got those items in the house still.  We bought a bunch of IKEA cutlery this winter so we didn't have to keep taking forks from the kitchen for each trip, and we got a whole bunch of bungee cords and other things like that for camping.  They've been sitting in a bin in my office since Christmas.

If the weather forecast calls for a warm sunny day, and the ground is dry enough, set up your tent(s) and any cooking shelters you might have.  Make sure all the poles are all accounted for and no mice nibbled on the tent fabric over the winter.  Sometimes, in the fall, when we are packing stuff up for the winter, we don't always think logically.  For example, last year, our 6 person tent had been a bit damp when we brought it home, so we didn't wrap it all up, just bundled it into Boler to wait for a dry day.  After we spread it out to dry a few days later, we rolled it up, but didn't realize the pole for the rain fly wasn't in the bag with the other poles.  We found it in the Boler later, and told ourselves to remember to take it next time we used it.  In the process of putting everything away for the winter, it got separated from the rest of the tent.  If I hadn't noticed it when searching for Chris's camp mug last week, we might have gone camping with it sometime this summer and not had the pole.  I guess the smart thing to do would have been to unroll the tent right when we'd realized it wasn't where it should be.  

Throw your sleeping bags onto the clothes line for the day and let them air out as well, same with backpacks.

You might find things aren't as organized as you'd like them to be.  In the fall, it's easy to just throw things in random places, but now that spring is here, and camping season is so close, you'll want to organize drawers, bins and bags.  Maybe you came up with new ideas for organizing your camping gear over the winter, or got inspired to build a chuck box or portable camp kitchen during those long cold months. (If so, I'm so jealous!  I'm still waiting for my dad to make me a reflector oven.)

Unfortunately, once you get done spring cleaning your camping gear, you still have to do the traditional spring clean in your house...but maybe the term won't cause so much dread next year, because you'll have something to look forward to. 

Day Trip: Algonquin - March 12, 2013

Weather has such a huge impact on what we Canadians do, especially at this time of year.  Last March Break, when we went to Algonquin, all the parking areas at the trail heads were full of cars and we had to wait in line at the gatehouse for our permit for what seemed like ages.

When we went up yesterday, the gatehouse parking lot had less than five cars in it, and nobody came in to buy a permit the entire time we were in there talking to the lady working the desk.  Rain the day before might have deterred some people, leading them to believe the trails wouldn't be good for skiing.  We almost didn't take our skis, but Chris, ever optimistic, stuffed them all in the car just in case.

My parents weren't so hopeful.

The plan was to do a hike where we could take lots of pictures.  Bubbie had my dad's spare Canon DSLR in hand before we even got out of the cars and was eager to work on her photography skills.  After going over our options, we decided on the Whiskey Rapids Trail.  We'd done this one before, in late summer or early fall, when the water levels were low, and wanted to see if there were actual rapids when the levels were high.

The start of the trail winds its way down into the river valley, and at times was quite slippery.  Chris and Squatch simply ran straight down the hills while the rest of us were a little less brave.  Once down at river level, the trail is easy and winds its way around the banks.  Squatch wanted a closer look and ended up going down the bank...then promptly got his foot stuck in deep snow so I had to go pull him out.  Of course his boot got full of snow (neither of them wanted to wear their snow pants) and by half way along the trail his foot was cold enough he was limping.  We switched out his wet sock for one of mine but that only helped a little.  Once we got back to the car, I gave him my other sock and he traded out his winter boots for his ski boots.  It should also be mentioned I hiked most of the trail with his wet mitts hanging on my belt loop and that wet sock hanging from my back pocket.  I'd also like to say that hiking with no socks inside your boots?  Not easy.  You wouldn't think a thin sock would do much, but without them I was sliding around in the boots, especially when climbing back up the hill to the car, and my feet were sweaty and gross.

Lesson learned.  Always take a change of socks for everyone...and a few plastic grocery bags to use as liners in the event of a soaker.

Anyway, other than that little hiccup, the trail was pleasant.  The kids took lots of pictures, Squatch threw lots of snowballs into the river, and Chris even got to climb on some rocks and ponder the possibility of running the rapids in a canoe or kayak.

The plan for the day had been to find a spot to heat up a pot of chill on the Vital Stove, and we'd originally thought to do this at the Minnising bike trail parking area while Chris skied the Sugar Bush Run section of the trail.  We figured this way, some of us could warm up inside the shelter while one person (probably me) fed the stove twigs and got the food ready.  Once we got there though, there was no fire going in the shelter, and no wood to get one going.  It had started to snow a bit by then, almost sleet to be more accurate, and I wasn't too keen on standing outside alone while everyone else huddled in the truck eating goodies from Henrietta's Bakery in Dwight (just to the right on Highway 60 after turning off Highway 35....they have some really yummy treats, so if you're headed to Algonquin, you should check this place out) so while Chris skied, the rest of us waited, then we headed to Huntsville to get dinner (after a stop off at Walmart for dry socks for everyone)

I was kind of disappointed I didn't get to use the Vital Stove...and that I now have to eat a dozen corn muffins all on my own...but we had a fun day.  Chris has decided the ski season is over...and he won't likely suggest me and the kids join him on a difficult ski trail since he said he spent the whole time cursing the constant hills and realized it would have taken a whole day if he hadn't been alone.

Trip Log: Mew Lake March 28-30, 2013

First camping trip of the year!  And a fabulous birthday present for me.  I'm thinking I should make this a new tradition, to go camping for my birthday.

We'd been planning this trip for quite a while, since before Christmas at least.  Last year for Easter weekend, we spent a night in a yurt at Mew Lake, but this year, all the yurts were booked, so we thought we'd take a chance and see how well camping in mum and dad's tent trailer with the electric heater would be.  I couldn't see it being much different than hot tenting, except we wouldn't have to be up most of the night stoking the fire.

Waiting Impatiently....

Back around Christmas, I noticed Kevin Callan had a new book coming out.  I love his books, and I love camping cook books, so you can imagine I was thrilled to see his next release was a camping cookbook.

Originally, the release date was March 5th...I'm sure it was because Squatch was waiting for the new Tomb Raider game which came out on the same day.  We were both bouncy with excitement, but when I went online to check availability in the local Chapters, I noticed the date had changed to March 19th.  I almost cried, I swear.

So, yesterday, I got up, and checked online again...and none of the stores nearby had it in stock.  I thought this was a little weird.  I could order it online, but not pick it up in stores.  I found this to be really strange.  As an author, even though my books aren't published straight to print format, I'd always assumed that when a book comes out on a certain date, it's actually available on that date.  I can't see it being any other way for a best selling author like Stephen King or Nora Roberts.  I know there's a difference between a best selling novel and a niche market reference book, but I just didn't expect there'd be any difference.  Even more, I would have thought the Peterborough Chapters would have had it since he's a local author.

Very disappointing.  I might just have to go ahead and order it online...though I might have run up the credit card booking camp sites for this summer...I'll have to check.  Here's the link if anyone else is interested in buying it.

Pictures from Arrowhead

Finally getting around to posting a few pics of our day trip to Arrowhead back at New Years.

Stubb's Falls in Winter

Chris and Squatch enjoying the Ice Trail

Kind of a dreary day...but still fun

Family Day Trip to Algonquin

We didn't make it up for the Winter Fest, but we headed up on Monday instead.  There wasn't a variety of interesting presentations, but the trails were mostly empty, and considering our lack of skill on skis, that was probably a better day to be there anyway.

Our first stop was, of course the west gate, to get our permit and then we did a very short loop directly from there.  Chris was a little disappointed...I think he wanted to do longer trails, but always forgets to take into account the kids slower pace...and my much lower fitness level.

After the short ski, we headed to Mew Lake Campground and found an empty site to heat up lunch.  I'm not entirely sure it's allowed, but since none of the roads to picnic areas have been cleared, and we didn't want to sit in the parking lot of a trail head, we didn't have much choice.

I'd made a pot of bean soup and a few loaves of crusty bread the day before, and we took the Vital Grill Stove with us to try out.  The kids had fun collecting twigs, and I was surprised at how easy it was to light as well as how quickly it brought a big pot of soup to a boil.

After lunch, we decided to ski to the waterfalls via the Track and Tower Trail leaving from the garbage area at Mew.  Only Chris, Squatch and I skied, while the others walked.  In hindsight, I wish I'd walked as well because having to stop, take off ski poles and then mitts in order to take a picture meant everyone behind me had to stop as well, and I didn't take any pictures while on the trail.

We spent a while at the falls, and I realized we'd been to this spot four times, and each time it had been very different.  The first time had been last April, when Chris and I went during our Yurt trip.  There had been lots of water going over the rocks that day, and no snow.

The second time, only Squatch and I went all the way to the falls...and there were tons of people laying about in the little pools.  It was about mid-summer.




The next time was late August, and though there were a few people around, there weren't as many as the previous time, and there wasn't as much water either.  This time, there was lots of water, lots of snow, and we were the only people there.