Just a note, but Roslyn and I are off through hiking the Mantario starting tonight, so no post today. I will also be working a project early next week so no post Tuesday either.
See everyone next Thursday.
Thursday, August 30, 2018
Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Mantario Trail, Marion Lake to Caribou Lake
Date: July 1, 2018
Length: 7.2 km
Elevation: 66 m
Time: 2 hours 51 minutes
Length: 7.2 km
Elevation: 66 m
Time: 2 hours 51 minutes
Marion Lake to Caribou Map
The second day of our weekend hike was a return from Marion to Caribou. We were out of bed around 8 am and had a lazy start, not getting on trail until about 9:45 am. Breakfast, picture taking, and wiping down in the lake water took up our time. With the sun up and the three of us feeling much less grumpy than the previous night we took the opportunity to enjoy Marion Lake. Roslyn and I both agree that Marion Lake is one of the nicest camp sites we have ever been in and the water was amazing even though we didn't get to swim.
A bit more detail on the Marion Lake Campsite. There's room for about a dozen tents, we shared it with 6-7 other groups and there were 2-3 tent sites left. There is a bear box about 50 feet down a path near the middle of the camping area, and about 30 feet beyond that is a latrine. Please don't use the bear box as a garbage container, that's not what its there for. There's also two picnic tables, so be prepared to share with others who want to cook at them.
Finishing packing up in the morning
View from the picnic table
Connor, sitting on a rock
View down the lake shore
Once we were done lazing around, we prepared ourselves to go back to Caribou through what we considered the most annoying section of trail we had hiked all summer. Starting out the return to Caribou went quite well. And then the middle went well. And then arriving at Caribou Lake went well. It was at this point that we realized we had let the heat, desire to camp, and a poorly handled water crossing ruin the last 3 hours of our hike the day before. We felt quite silly about it as we arrive at Caribou Lake around 1 pm, set to enjoy the rest of the day.
View down the tracks between Marion and Caribou
Pretty trail flowers
More flowers, Roslyn loves them
The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing again. We were out here for Canada Day and we planned on enjoying it. We set up our tent is the best spot at the camp site and relaxed with our feet in the water watching the wild life. There are a few turtles in the area that were fun to watch swimming around in the water. Luckily there was no fire ban, so we collected some wood and started a merry little fire to enjoy during the hours before bed.
Connor on a rock at Caribou Lake
Roslyn's bedtime snack and night cap
The camp site had two picnic tables and there was room for about 10 tents. As the evening went on we ended up sharing the area with about 10 other people and it was far from crowded. There's also a bear box on the way into the campsite. The one down side is that we did not manage to find the latrine, but if anyone knows where it is comment below and let us know.
In Roslyn's words:
Last post I mentioned how your attitude makes or breaks the day, and on our first day, our attitude definitely did not help us out. One day two we walked back over the same section of trail we struggled so hard on the day before and truly realized what babies we were. The path was a beautiful mix of new and old forest with a fraction of the undergrowth we remembered. Being extra careful during the bogg crossings, we made it back to the Caribou camp site quite easily.
Having most of the day left, we were able to really enjoy the campsite, lounging in the water, and exploring around the immediate area. The water at this lake is quite red and dark but still enjoyable. In comparison, Marion Lake was amazingly clear and I would have loved to gone for a dip but we didn’t get into camp till late. I am really looking forward to our next trip to this site to fully get to enjoy the lake here. We happen to be going this coming weekend, but I fear it will be too chilly for a dip.
Lastly, this was Canada day so of course we had to do a little something. We celebrated the end of the day with a crackling dried pine branch on the fire, a toasted marshmallow, and a baileys and hot chocolate. Simple perfection.
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
Mantario Trail, South Trail Head to Marion Lake
I've got an unexpected work trip this week, so there won't be a post this week on Thursday. Sorry for missing another day! - Connor
Date: June 30, 2018
Length: 20.4 km
Elevation: 227 m
Time: 10 hours 59 minutes
Roslyn, Tyler, and I were pretty excited to get out to do a trial run on the Mantario. After our aborted attempt on May long weekend we had been looking forward to it for an extra five weeks. We were packed up and ready to go the Friday night, picked up Tyler around 6:30 am and were on the trail at 9 am.
Once we arrived at Caribou Lake, we stopped for about an hour to rest and soak our feet in the water. According to our map we had ~5 km left and it was only about 2:45 pm when we left the campsite, so we figured it would be an easy afternoon. Unfortunately, north of Caribou Lake the trail becomes hard to walk through as regrowth from forest fires covers it and its a constant bushwacking experience, which alternates with crossing bogs for about 2 km. Tyler ended up knee deep in a bog so we had to stop for an hour to let his boot dry out some.
We also found out that Marion Lake was actually 7 km past Caribou Lake and not 5 km. That realization happened when the GPS told us we had walked 18 km for the day. The though having to continue on another 2 km drained us at this point (it was about 6:30 pm, we were a bit grumpy from the bushwacking and expected to be at camp already). We ended up getting to camp around 8 pm.
Despite some of the grumpiness, one of the more interesting things we noticed during the day was all the different stages of a forest fire. through out he day we progressed through fresh burn, to low regrowth, a furn forest, 6-8 foot tall regrowth, forest that was 20 years old and cluttered, and some sections of forest that were easily 50+ years old and open with a view.
In Roslyn's words:
Things do not always go as planned on trail, but isn’t part of the fun on a hike improvising, getting creative with what you have, or proving you can overcome an unforeseen obstacle? We had a small taste of this on our first day of our 3 day Mantario trip, and looking back at this first day, even as soon as the second day of the hike, really put into perspective how your attitude can determine a day. The first section of our hike started as expected, because we knew what to expect, we had done it before, no big deal. The change of landscape after the wildfires was an interesting change and made keeping to the trail a bit of a challenge, but our trip to the old tower base, our lunch spot, was quite successful. The hike to the caribou campsite was exciting and new with a challenging rock scramble, amazing views, and a rewarding foot soak in the lake. Now thinking we only had ~5 Km to the next site, we were not at all worried about getting there at a decent time so off we went at 2:45. After encountering seemingly endless heavy undergrowth, Tyler plunging knee deep into a bog, and having walked another 4 hours, we were very miserable. I was in the mindset of “one step at a time, focus on just getting to camp” and we finally strolled into the Marion Lake campsite at 8pm, miserable, grumpy, and tired. What we realised the next day had us shaking our heads, but that will have to wait till next time.
All in all, the section of the Mantario from the south trail head to Marion Lake was pretty great. The next posts in the series will go into more detail about the sections of it as we make our way back to the trail head. I will make a note here though that the trail is well kept and easy to follow up until Caribou lake. Between Caribou lake and Marion lake we got lost twice because the markers are misleading and there is a significant amount of bushwacking and having to walk through bogs, so make sure you are prepared for it!
Date: June 30, 2018
Length: 20.4 km
Elevation: 227 m
Time: 10 hours 59 minutes
Mantario Trail, Day 1
Roslyn, Tyler, and I were pretty excited to get out to do a trial run on the Mantario. After our aborted attempt on May long weekend we had been looking forward to it for an extra five weeks. We were packed up and ready to go the Friday night, picked up Tyler around 6:30 am and were on the trail at 9 am.
Getting ready in the parking lot
Right at the trailhead
View of the burn parking lot
Just up the hill behind the parking lot
Just up the hill behind the parking lot
At the turn off onto the trail proper
The evidence of the fire on May long weekend was everywhere at the start of the trail, and made the trail look very different from last September. The burn area only extended about a 500 to 700 meters along the trail though, so we were quickly through it and hiking in the woods again.
View from a point about 3 km into the trail
Roslyn has a strong affinity to sparkly rocks
Blue berries starting to ripen
One of the many wild flowers on the trail
One of the many wild flowers on the trail
One of the many wild flowers on the trail
The trail had plenty of small wonders to look at. From wild flowers, to special rock cut out, to views going far off into the distance. We also saw plenty of wild life on day one, including a bear and a handsome white-tailed buck.
We stopped for lunch at "the tower", which is the base of an old fire watch tower. A few other people trickled through while we ate, but there weren't many people around us for most of the day. After lunch we headed towards our next stopping point, Caribou Lake East campground. One point on the trip there deserves special mention for two reasons. The first is that it is beautiful. The second reason is that it is the biggest tease of the trail.
At the end of Caribou Lake a small creek flows out of it. The trail leads around the lake and the crosses the creek before continuing onward. At the point where it descends you can see the tents in the campground (top picture of the series below, in the top left corner). You can actually talk to people too if you yell. The teasing part of this is that to skirt the edge of the lake that's out of view from here takes an additional 40 minutes of hiking!
View of the lake from the top before crossing the stream
View of the crossing from the top before crossing the stream
View upstream from the crossing
View downstream from the crossing
Once we arrived at Caribou Lake, we stopped for about an hour to rest and soak our feet in the water. According to our map we had ~5 km left and it was only about 2:45 pm when we left the campsite, so we figured it would be an easy afternoon. Unfortunately, north of Caribou Lake the trail becomes hard to walk through as regrowth from forest fires covers it and its a constant bushwacking experience, which alternates with crossing bogs for about 2 km. Tyler ended up knee deep in a bog so we had to stop for an hour to let his boot dry out some.
We also found out that Marion Lake was actually 7 km past Caribou Lake and not 5 km. That realization happened when the GPS told us we had walked 18 km for the day. The though having to continue on another 2 km drained us at this point (it was about 6:30 pm, we were a bit grumpy from the bushwacking and expected to be at camp already). We ended up getting to camp around 8 pm.
Despite some of the grumpiness, one of the more interesting things we noticed during the day was all the different stages of a forest fire. through out he day we progressed through fresh burn, to low regrowth, a furn forest, 6-8 foot tall regrowth, forest that was 20 years old and cluttered, and some sections of forest that were easily 50+ years old and open with a view.
Low regrowth
Fern Forest
In Roslyn's words:
Things do not always go as planned on trail, but isn’t part of the fun on a hike improvising, getting creative with what you have, or proving you can overcome an unforeseen obstacle? We had a small taste of this on our first day of our 3 day Mantario trip, and looking back at this first day, even as soon as the second day of the hike, really put into perspective how your attitude can determine a day. The first section of our hike started as expected, because we knew what to expect, we had done it before, no big deal. The change of landscape after the wildfires was an interesting change and made keeping to the trail a bit of a challenge, but our trip to the old tower base, our lunch spot, was quite successful. The hike to the caribou campsite was exciting and new with a challenging rock scramble, amazing views, and a rewarding foot soak in the lake. Now thinking we only had ~5 Km to the next site, we were not at all worried about getting there at a decent time so off we went at 2:45. After encountering seemingly endless heavy undergrowth, Tyler plunging knee deep into a bog, and having walked another 4 hours, we were very miserable. I was in the mindset of “one step at a time, focus on just getting to camp” and we finally strolled into the Marion Lake campsite at 8pm, miserable, grumpy, and tired. What we realised the next day had us shaking our heads, but that will have to wait till next time.
All in all, the section of the Mantario from the south trail head to Marion Lake was pretty great. The next posts in the series will go into more detail about the sections of it as we make our way back to the trail head. I will make a note here though that the trail is well kept and easy to follow up until Caribou lake. Between Caribou lake and Marion lake we got lost twice because the markers are misleading and there is a significant amount of bushwacking and having to walk through bogs, so make sure you are prepared for it!
Thursday, August 16, 2018
Lime Kiln Trail
Date: June 23, 2018
Length: 6.3 km
Elevation: 68 m
Time: 1 hour 36 minutes
Lime Kiln trail is a short, easy hike in Birds Hill Park that we did as a quick morning outing. The trail is nice and wide, smooth and easy to walk on. There is an out house partway through and a warming shack with a wood stove for going out in the winter on snow shoes or skis.
There were also many nice sights.
Like most of the short hikes, we found it to be a pleasant and easy going trip.
In Roslyn's words:
The lime kiln trail is yet another nice little trail in Birds hill where you will find a sweet tree covered path lined with pretty flowers and even the odd wild strawberry. I actually couldn't believe how small these strawberries were, absolutely adorable. This was another trail with an outhouse at the midpoint of the trail (at the lime kiln) which is really appreciated. A perfect trail for a leisurely stroll through the woods.
Length: 6.3 km
Elevation: 68 m
Time: 1 hour 36 minutes
Lime Kiln Trail
Lime Kiln trail is a short, easy hike in Birds Hill Park that we did as a quick morning outing. The trail is nice and wide, smooth and easy to walk on. There is an out house partway through and a warming shack with a wood stove for going out in the winter on snow shoes or skis.
There were also many nice sights.
Flowers on the trail
One of a large group of butterflies
More trail flowers
The smallest strawberries Roslyn and I have ever seen
Clear at the 1/4 and 3/4 distance
Like most of the short hikes, we found it to be a pleasant and easy going trip.
In Roslyn's words:
The lime kiln trail is yet another nice little trail in Birds hill where you will find a sweet tree covered path lined with pretty flowers and even the odd wild strawberry. I actually couldn't believe how small these strawberries were, absolutely adorable. This was another trail with an outhouse at the midpoint of the trail (at the lime kiln) which is really appreciated. A perfect trail for a leisurely stroll through the woods.
Tuesday, August 14, 2018
Musings About the Trail
Right now, I am sitting here wanting to talk more about being on trail in general than reviewing a specific one we've been on. I think this is because we simply went camping instead of hiking on the weekend, and the act of driving a car into a campsite and setting up a tent leaves something to be desired. The weekend was still great though, what we lacked in hiking we made up for in hanging out with the large group of friends that came for the weekend.
If you look on our side bar you can see that so far Roslyn and I have covered 234.4 km of trail. We walked an additional 134 km in Germany during our two weeks that we aren't counting. And I estimate another 60-80 km of small 2-4 km walks in the city during our weeknights off going to get ice cream, Tim Horton's or just to walk. Currently, we want to hit 300 km by the end of Labour Day long weekend and 400 km before the snow gets to deep to walk sometime in November.
I want to elaborate on a bit of the above paragraph, the "just to walk" bit. Roslyn and I have put on more kilometers that we though possible so far, setting stretch goals for ourselves and trying to find a way to meet them. In May, 100 km seemed like a daunting goal. In June 200 km seemed just as bad. In July we didn't expect to walk 134 km in Germany and not really care about the sore feet. In August, now, 300 km seems doable, but the Mantario is going to be a trial for us as our first 4 day hike. In all honesty, 400 km by snowfall is seeming like a fairly relaxed goal, assuming the Mantario goes well.
We met the goals by just getting out and walking, as daunting as the hiking and camping seemed. We've learned a fair bit and become quite a bit more comfortable with the idea of living outdoors along the way. I would say our self confidence has benefited greatly. But there was no secret formula, no rigorous training regimen, nothing special that needed to be done to accomplish this.
For those of you out there who think that the idea of backpacking or hiking is too extreme for you to try even though you like the idea of it, I just want to tell you that you can do it. Just start by walking 4 km in a park once a week, then twice a week, then 10 km at a time, and just walk more and more. As you walk more, you will want to walk more. Roslyn and I are restless quite a bit, wanting to move and be out on the trail instead of in the office. Hence, the weeknight walks in the city.
All I can really say after all that is, have fun on trail.
P.S - I am going to be posting Tuesdays and Thursday from now on. Posting on Mondays was not convenient for our schedule.
I want to elaborate on a bit of the above paragraph, the "just to walk" bit. Roslyn and I have put on more kilometers that we though possible so far, setting stretch goals for ourselves and trying to find a way to meet them. In May, 100 km seemed like a daunting goal. In June 200 km seemed just as bad. In July we didn't expect to walk 134 km in Germany and not really care about the sore feet. In August, now, 300 km seems doable, but the Mantario is going to be a trial for us as our first 4 day hike. In all honesty, 400 km by snowfall is seeming like a fairly relaxed goal, assuming the Mantario goes well.
We met the goals by just getting out and walking, as daunting as the hiking and camping seemed. We've learned a fair bit and become quite a bit more comfortable with the idea of living outdoors along the way. I would say our self confidence has benefited greatly. But there was no secret formula, no rigorous training regimen, nothing special that needed to be done to accomplish this.
For those of you out there who think that the idea of backpacking or hiking is too extreme for you to try even though you like the idea of it, I just want to tell you that you can do it. Just start by walking 4 km in a park once a week, then twice a week, then 10 km at a time, and just walk more and more. As you walk more, you will want to walk more. Roslyn and I are restless quite a bit, wanting to move and be out on the trail instead of in the office. Hence, the weeknight walks in the city.
All I can really say after all that is, have fun on trail.
P.S - I am going to be posting Tuesdays and Thursday from now on. Posting on Mondays was not convenient for our schedule.
Thursday, August 9, 2018
Rainbow Falls from Jessica Lake Lodge
Date - June 19, 2018
Length - 8.6 km
Elevation - 272 m
Time - 3 hours 24 minutes
Sorry for being a week late and missing two posts. We had issues coming back from Germany and arrived about 48 hours late back in Winnipeg. Dealing with that, catching up on sleep, and preparing/hiking on the long weekend left us with little time to get a Tuesday post up, let along one last week. We are back now fortunately!
This was a fairly easy hike, the only challenge was the heat. The trail is a section of the Trans-Canada trail the starts at the Jessica Lake Lodge. The trail is well kept and about 6 feet across. The footing is gravel along pretty much the entire length of it.
Rainbow Falls was a pretty area, though it is very popular. There is a campground with a store right by it and it is a popular area to go swimming. We hung out at the falls for about an hour, enjoying the water and having some lunch.
The hike had a few benches along the way and some nice views of Jessica lake to the east. All in all it was a good wrap up hike for the Brereton Lake weekend.
In Roslyn's words:
Length - 8.6 km
Elevation - 272 m
Time - 3 hours 24 minutes
Sorry for being a week late and missing two posts. We had issues coming back from Germany and arrived about 48 hours late back in Winnipeg. Dealing with that, catching up on sleep, and preparing/hiking on the long weekend left us with little time to get a Tuesday post up, let along one last week. We are back now fortunately!
Trail Map for the hike
This was a fairly easy hike, the only challenge was the heat. The trail is a section of the Trans-Canada trail the starts at the Jessica Lake Lodge. The trail is well kept and about 6 feet across. The footing is gravel along pretty much the entire length of it.
Tiny flowers we saw along the way
Rainbow Falls was a pretty area, though it is very popular. There is a campground with a store right by it and it is a popular area to go swimming. We hung out at the falls for about an hour, enjoying the water and having some lunch.
View from the top
Our group hanging out at the top of the falls
The swimming area
The hike had a few benches along the way and some nice views of Jessica lake to the east. All in all it was a good wrap up hike for the Brereton Lake weekend.
In Roslyn's words:
This trail was pretty nice, not overly difficult, but also not anything super exciting. The waterfall at the end however is quite spectacular. If you do not want to do the hike, there is a parking lot right at the falls where you can just enjoy Rainbow falls. There were some children swimming in the area as well as someone fishing close by which was not super comforting. It is not an overly safe area for small children to swim as there are some strong currents and it does look like people often fish close the the same area, leaving the possibility for lost fishing hooks underfoot. It is however a great place to go see and explore and I would recommend a visit.
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