Fri, Dec 1 2006, Sat, Dec 2 2006, Sun, Dec 3 2006 - Algonquin Park - Partial Highland Trail (View Original Event Details)
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Quickly we squirmed away from the sharp talons of the Rat-Race. Even as we escaped our respective offices the dark shadows extended out to us under clouds of poison fumes and hundreds of vehicular obstacles. It hunted us in our dreams, in our thoughts, and with the persistent ringing of insatiable cell phones; the Rat-Race almost crushed our spirits and drained the energy that makes us people.
But two people fought back well, for two nights anyway (I wont even get into how draining Monday was!). We conquered traffic and slithered our way through Mother Natures frosty flakes and icy asphalt but after the three hour battle and once the engine had turned off - all it took was one step in the fresh, shin deep snow, and one breath of the clean crisp air to send the horrors of the rat race back to where they belong somewhere else.
First night was at the Mew Lake campground. Sleep came late, but the sunrise was welcome. After a quick breakfast and speedy mobilization JennP and I made the move to the Highland Trail. There is an element of peace and serenity in Canadian Nature that can not be matched anywhere else. To be in the middle of vast forest covered in a blanket of snow speckled with lakes of patchy ice then to see the moon rise and cast its silvery spotlight on the world is unique in its Canadian way. It is where footprints are rare and paw prints are abundant.
After a couple of hours of trekking we found ourselves at our campsite by Provoking Lake where we set camp and started a fire. Its always impressive how much one eats when being active in the cold. We brought lots of extra food and almost finished it all, even after spoiling ourselves with a delicious thick rib-eye steak (apologies to vegetarians). YumYum. With nightfall came the sound of loud flapping, and the ears led the eyes to two large eagles approaching the site, where they soared in a circle and then settled at the peak of an ever-green. To our pleasure, they chatted to one another for much of the evening. Wolves were also present and although we did not hear or see them, their prints were fresh and we noted them right on top of own footprints from the day before.
At times, the snow was falling so hard that one could not even see a quarter of the way across the lake and it was also like that for much of the drive back to Toronto. All I can say is that people in the country drive a LOT better than people in the city!
Have some photos from this event that you'd like to share in our photo album? Please forward them to Erik Sonstenes at photos@torontooutdoorclub.com. Please note that we prefer to receive the photos in approximately 640x480 or 750x500 pixels - do NOT send original high-res photos. If you have a LOT of photos, please submit up to twenty of your favorites (only) for a day event, or up to forty of your favourites for a multi-day event. Thank you.