Hike, Hike

Saturday was spent hiking in Algonquin Park. In my last post, I put up a few of the photos from the day. I took several hundred frames in our journey. My photoblog will reveal about thirty or so over the next few weeks.

Hiking in September is usually a good thing. The cooler temperatures mean fewer bugs and, in a place like Algonquin, fewer people on the trails. The leaves are starting to change colour which creates more interest for the avid photographer. I will be going back over the next couple of weeks as the fall season swings into full stride.

We had a wonderful day. The weather was dramatic, changing from a cold, penetrating rain to mild, pleasant sunshine. Our first stop was the Ragged Waterfall Provincial Park. This park is located just outside the west gate of Algonquin and well worth the stop. We spent over two hours at the falls, taking pictures and climbing up and down the banks.

We drove into the park, checked in at the west gate, and then made our way to the first outfitter and restaurant off of Highway 60. A surprising number of people were at the outfitter, prepping their canoes for overnight camping.

We ate lunch at a restaurant which overlooked the docks. It was quite entertaining to watch the people getting ready to embark on their canoes. And it was even more entertaining watching some of the people in their canoes. Suprising the number of folks who seem to know nothing about how to work a canoe.

After lunch, we made our way to the Track and Tower Trail. The hike is fairly strenous, and at almost 8 kilometres, a bit demanding. We spent roughly four hours on the trail. The weather stayed pleasant and sunny until we finished the hike. As soon as we returned to the trailhead, the rains descended.

Perfect timing.

I was really proud of our young son. At 10 years old, he managed a pretty demanding hike. He thoroughly enjoyed the day exploring the trails. At one point he said to me: “Hey Dad! I think we are the first people to ever walk this whole trail!”