Spring 2005 Trip Log (4 day Loop) May 20th - May 23rd Brent ( Cedar Lake, Little Cedar Lake, Aura Lee Lake, Laurel Lake, Little Cauchon Lake, Carl Wilson Lake, Varley Lake, Camp Five Lake, Glacier Lake, Gull Lake, Cedar Lake, (Brent)      Above you will find an extrapolated section of the Algonquin Park Canoe Routes Map©, blown up to easily show you the route we took.    Day 1:   (Friday May 20th, 2005)    Well where shall I begin?   This was not my first canoe trip into the park.   (I had made 2 trips earlier: 1 with a friend from work, and the other as a solo trip.)   But it is the first trip log posted here because it is the trip where I introduced my 11 year old son to the wonders of Algonquin.  My long awaited vacation had finally arrived and I was anxious to get on the road.   I picked my son up from his Mom’s house and headed off to Pizza Hut for one last heavy meal before the fun began.   We hit the sac around ten and it seemed like it wasn’t long before the alarm went off at 3:30 A.M.   I stuffed the food into the cooler along with the ice for the trip to the park and off we were.   (I don’t think Kevin woke up until we hit the Ottawa/ Toronto Split 45 minutes later.)   The drive from Pierrefonds, (just outside of Montreal), to the gates of the park takes about 5 ½ hours to drive.   Then you add on another ½ hour for the drive to Cedar Lake.   After we rented our canoe from the store at Brent we packed the gear into the canoe and headed off to the north end of Cedar to begin our loop.   The weather on this May day was nice.   Cedar was a sheet of glass and the sun was warm enough notify everyone that Spring was finally here.   We canoed passed a group of teenagers loading up there canoes for a few days in the bush and paddled up Cedar towards the narrows.   North end of Cedar   The Narrows  At one point, “the narrows” becomes just that.   It snakes its way along, ducking under the old CNR railway line to eventually come out on Aura Lee.   A small lake, Aura Lee is more of an inlet.   Although there were two sites marked here on the map, no one was camping here.   We paddled past both of them and continued towards our portage and our first night’s camp on Laurel.   The portage between Aura Lee and Laurel is wide and well maintained.   The sections at each end are a little rocky, but overall it is good.      When planning this little adventure I had hoped to get the campsite located on the island in the middle of the lake.   As we paddle up towards the main part of the lake, I was pleased to see no tent on the island.   There is a large flat rock at this site, which is ideal for keeping your canoe while your in camp.   The site itself is broken up into several sections, which occupy most of the center of the island.   The privy is located on the highest part of the island near its Western end.   We placed our tent on a flat area near the top of the site.     Laurel Island Campsite   Kevin after a day of paddling  A word about Park Wardens.    For those of you who are considering going into Algonquin without a fishing permit, let me give you a little advice.   DON’T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Kevin and I were drifting for trout on the Laurel, when two men approached us in a canoe.   They were dressed as any normal camper would be dressed and they were as friendly as anyone I have met in the Park.   When their boat was about 10 feet from ours, they flashed their badges.   The were polite and friendly, but they were there for a reason.   Pickerel season was opening the next day and they were checking to see if we had any illegal fish in the boat.   They also checked to see what bait we were using.   After a short conversation, they wished us a good trip and continued on their way.   Fishing licences are not expensive, but the fine associated with being caught without one is.   As is the fine for having minnows or illegal fish in the boat.   These rules are to conserve our parks so that generations of campers can enjoy it and its fishing.   So please, follow the rules.   Fishing regulations can be found on the Ontario parks website.      Day Two:   (Saturday, May 21st, 2005)    We awoke early on day 2 and ate a quick breakfast of coffee and breakfast bars (Kevin had hot chocolate).   After packing up camp, we paddled to the north end of the lake where the portage to Little Cauchon Lake is located.   The portage here is a small one and very easily traversed.   It is located just off to the right of the remnants of a small logjam that now forms a waterfall.   We were hoping to catch a couple of trout below the dam, but luck wasn’t with us on this day, so we unloaded the canoe and headed up the portage.   Dam on Laurel   Little Cauchon Lake Bridge  It is a short paddle up to the portage to Carl Wilson by passing under the train bridge.   There is a campsite at the beginning of the portage, but I for one would not like people coming and going through my camp.   The portage itself is relatively flat, (only a 31-foot elevation to the next lake).    Carl Wilson Lake is large, but on this day, we were lucky to have no wind.   We paddled down the eastern shoreline of the lake while trolling for trout.   We had no luck with the fish, but the lake was calm and quiet all the way to the southern end.   There were several other canoes on the lake but no one seemed to be having any luck with the fish.   Entrance to Carl Wilson  North End of Carl Wilson  The portage to Varley Lake is located at the southern tip of Carl Wilson.   A short, relatively level portage is easily traversed.   Varley Lake is a small, narrow lake with only one campsite, located at the lake’s eastern end.   The portage to Camp Five Lake runs right through the campsite, but we had no visitors during our stay.  Campsite on Varley  We had a brisk wind during most of our day on Varley, but it did not discourage us from giving the fishing a try.   We had no luck with the trout, but Kevin caught a 2 ½ lb.   Cisco.   Obviously, these fish are attacking the trout population in this lake.   A direct result of what happens when a foreign species is introduced into the eco-structure.   We relaxed for the rest of the day and I fried up a large pan of Lasagna for supper.    A word about water quality:    During all my trips into Algonquin I have drank the water right from the lakes.   To this day, I have never had a problem of any kind.   Other campers have told similar stories.   If you are not sure, water purification pills are inexpensive and easy to use.   Camp Five from Portage  Day Three:   (Sunday, May 22nd, 2005) On the third day of our loop, we broke camp around 7:30 A.M. and headed along the portage towards Camp Five Lake.   As we arrived at the lake, I scanned the area and quickly noticed a young bull moose wading in the water on the other side of the lake.   My digital camera does not have a very good zoom, but I managed to snap one picture before he headed into the trees.   Can you see the moose?   Can you see the Moose  We trolled the lake for a short time, but we were skunked again.   Off we went to the portage to try Glacier Lake.   Glacier is a very small, narrow lake surrounded by fallen trees in the water.   Both portages are near the south end of the lake.   We arrived at the lake to find another canoe with two anglers on the lake.   They were catching small specks, using worms and a drift system.   We talked for a bit with them and then headed back to Camp Five to pick up the canoe.   When we returned, the two anglers informed us that they had just heard a moose tromping through the woods around the lake.   Possibly the same moose we had seen earlier on Camp Five.  As we were putting the canoe in the water, our new friends, only 20 feet away from the portage, were catching a pan-sized speckie.   It was a good-sized fish and wood taste great for lunch.   They pulled their canoe into the other portage, quickly cleaned the fish, waved goodbye and moved off to meet their camping buddies on Gull.  We were sad that we had missed the moose earlier.   I was hoping to get a good look at him and a couple of good shots with the camera.   Therefore, we decided to stick around Glacier for a while, to see if we could catch another glimpse of him.   We trolled around the lake twice, but the moose didn’t return.   We also had no luck with the fish, so we grabbed up our stuff and portaged to the next lake where we were going to set up camp.    Gull Lake is slightly larger, with many bays to shelter you from the wind.   Our newfound friends were there along with another canoe of their friends.   We paddled up the lake to the campsite and found another pair of their friends sitting there getting ready to warm up some already-cooked trout that they had caught earlier.   We put ashore and spent sometime talking with them.   They offered us some of their trout, so we nibbled on fish and talked for a good ½ hour with them before they headed back on the lake to do some more fishing.   We set up camp and headed out to do the same.    I really don’t know why we weren’t getting any bites, but the fish just weren’t cooperating.   We put ashore after about an hour of no fish and decided to have some lunch.   I figured that we might as well fish while we were there, so I set up the lines for some shore fishing.   We wormed up the hooks and set the lines out right in front of our camp.   Then we sat back and enjoyed the midday May sun for a while.   Finally, after about and hour, a fish decided to take the bait.   It was a small speckled, but it would look good in the pan.    Friends on Glacier   Glacier Lake Shoreline   Gull Lake (View from camp)   Gull Lake landing   Gull Lake camp   Finnaly, a trout!  We spent the rest of the day relaxing and resting, (we had a long series of portages to do tomorrow).   We were leaving the park tomorrow, so we wanted to enjoy the wilderness for the rest of the day.   During the day though, we expelled a little energy trying to get a close snapshot of a friendly Grouse that was hanging around the camp.   He or she was a sneaky little fellow, ducking into and out of the bramble, just before we could get a good picture of him.   He eventually got tired of our little game of tag, and flew off across the lake to quieter places.   Relaxing on Gull Day Four:  (Monday, May 23rd, 2005)  After breakfast the next morning, we packed up all of the gear and carried it to the portage, which was just meters from our campsite.   I decided to try the first portage (880 m.) in one shot.   Therefore, I grabbed the canoe, along with my pack and headed off with Kevin leading the way.   The portage is rough in places, with a few steep hills and several fallen trees across the trail.   When we arrived at the small-unnamed lake between the portages, I was glad to put the canoe and pack down.   I’m not 20 anymore, not by a long shot.   This small “lakelet” only takes about ten minutes to travel and then you are portage bound for another 1425 m.   The second portage is mostly downhill.   It crosses several streams that have been bridged for campers.   It was muddy today because of the steady drizzle that was falling, but it was relatively easy going.   We decided to two-trip this portage and when we reached the end I immediately went back to get the canoe while Kevin relaxed on the shores of Cedar.    It was on the return trip to Cedar with the canoe that I received the biggest thrill of the trip.   I was coming over a small hillock with the canoe, when I came face to face with biggest moose that I had ever seen.   This big male was munching on some flowers on the side of the trail when I came across him.   He raised his head, and the six-foot-wide rack he possessed, and stared at me for a few seconds before turning and galloping back down the trail.   He was magnificent.   What a creature.   With the canoe on my head however, I was not able to get the camera out to take a snapshot of him.  I finished the rest of the portage with the canoe and met Kevin at the bottom.   He was disappointed to have missed the moose, but was excited that I came that close to one.  Cedar was choppy today.   There was a good wind blowing across the lake and the steady drizzle was continuing.   We kneeled down (thank God for kneepads) and muscled our way across the lake to Brent and home.   Burger King was our first scheduled stop.