After two cancelled trips this winter I was finally able to get down to the Adirondacks to pay a visit to my old friends the High Peaks. My husband Glenn hadn't been down to the Lake Placid area since pre-Covid, so he was extra excited to cross the border again and be back in our old playground. Looking at my winter peak-bagging 'to-do' list, I had Whiteface and Esther Mountains still to complete. The winter season seems to allow a variety of creative ways to bag summits and Whiteface and Esther seems to present multitude of pathways and methods to get there. As it turned out our plan A didn't end up working out and we resorted to a new one altogether!

Our plan was to ski up the Toll Road as far as possible and bag Whiteface, and then ski back down the road to the hairpin turn where we would transition to snowshoes and hike downhill on the hiking trail to tag the summit of Esther and then ascend a short distance back up where we would transition back to skis and ski down the road back to the car. We left the toll road gate just after 8 AM on Monday March 13th in mild conditions. Luckily due to a healthy snow season, the toll road had full coverage from bottom to top. We skied up in backcountry nordic gear and fell into a steady rhythm and kept a comfortable aerobic pace so the conversation rolled as we ascended. Every thousand feet or so of elevation gain, we stopped to add more warmer layers: First a toque, then warmer mitts, then a shell jacket. The balmy spring like temperatures at lower elevation quickly disintegrated into full on winter conditions including snow fall, wind gusts, and in a cloud of grey! We were the only ones on the toll road that day and seemed to have the place to ourselves!

We reached the castle in 2.5 hours (2400' gain) where we took off our skis and threw on a pair of microspikes and headed up the last 200' of stairs and railings to the summit sign. The summit did not offer any stunning views on this day so we didn't linger. The summit at 4867 feet is exposed - and between the wind, cold, snow and clouds we took a few photos and scurried back down to our skis. We pulled off the microspikes and stepped into our skis and skied downhill through some wind scoured powder on the road and then picked up speed on a section of hard snow crust combined with some blinding upswelling wind gusts to the top of the first hairpin turn where the hiking trail and road meet. There is a small wooden post with a red trail marker here that indicates the merging of the road and hiking trail. Here Glenn mentioned to me that he had developed a blister on the back of his heel on the ascent. His ill fitting backcountry nordic boots had worn through the heel pocket and also worn the skin right off his heel. Even though I had blister bandages with me, I suggested that instead of snowshoe hiking down to bag summit #2, he just ski down the toll road back to the car in order to not make matters worse. We have been down this blister road before...

​So we agreed that I would transition into snowshoes and hike down to the second summit of Esther while he would ski back to the car and meet me at the bottom of the hiking trail. I quickly threw on my winter hiking boots and snowshoes, packed up my ski boots into my pack, and grabbed some hot chocolate and snacks. My body temp was dropping and I needed to get out of the wind and get moving so off I went. I would have liked to have stayed to have gotten a photo of Glenn's descent set-up as he had a backpack on carrying not only his snowshoes but also my nordic skis A-framed on his pack! Alas, I was on a mission so I descended down the hiking trail at a feverish pace still with my battery operated mitts on and hood cinched in. 10 minutes into my hike I found myself looking at the top of a chairlift from the Whiteface Ski Resort which was barely noticeable in the cloudy conditions but could hear the strange hum of electricity not normally found in the woods! I crossed two ski runs and then kept my brisk pace on broken trail looking for the cairn and turn to Esther. I passed 3 young guys on rental snowshoes blaring their bluetooth speaker on their way up and a moment after I then took a sharp left at the herd path cairn. I took a moment to de-layer here as I was now 30 minutes into my hike and started to warm up. I wondered how Glenn was doing and if he was down to the car yet. I ascended over Lookout Mountain (there was no lookout views today) and kept up a brisk paced along the brushy herd path. I remembered how much I like solo hiking and being able to walk at your own pace. I ducked under a few fallen trees and felt a couple snow showers fall down the back of my neck. Along the way I encountered several trees with rime on them and spruce trees with icicles hanging down off them. I had forgotten to get the GPS from Glenn so I wasn't 100% sure I had reached the summit of Esther when the herd path ended but my Garmin watch was reading the right elevation at the time so I knew this had to be it. The summit marker for Esther is a plaque in a rock that was snow under several feet of snow that I couldn't see to confirm. I took a photo of me (with very red cheeks!)  in the spot the plaque should be and checked my watch again. It took me 30 minutes to walk out to Esther from the marked trail and it had been 1 hour to get to Esther's summit from the toll road. I think my original plan would have worked well re-tracing my steps for the hour or so back and then skiing down the road. My estimate of 6-6.5hours would have been a pretty efficient plan!

Back on the summit of Esther, I had told Glenn I would send him an inReach message to him so he would know where I was at and how long it would take me. As Canadians in the US, we both don't have a US cell plan or opt for cellphone roaming charges but now that both of us have our own Garmin inReach communication devices, we can text back and forth and communicate via satellite. At my current pace, he was to pick me up at 2:30PM at the hiking trailhead. As I waited the minute for the inReach message to send, I chugged back another cup of hot chocolate and had another quick bite of food. Out of the wind, in the trees, and 600 feet lower than Whiteface, Esther's summit was a nice warm hug on a winter day. I re-traced my steps quickly on the beat down trail back to the marked trail. Snowshoes were definitely still needed even though the trail was broken. Winter hadn't given up it's fight yet! I started to descend down the marked trail through a few steeper areas keeping up a fast pace. At 3500', I got my first glimpse of the valley as I exited the cloud but the snowflakes kept pounded my face like they had for most of the day. I heard a beeping noise from my inReach - it was Glenn responding. He was back at the hotel and was coming to pick me up for 2:30pm. Technology works great sometimes! At the first junction at 2750', it was evident in winter that all of the traffic turns left towards the ARSC and Marble Mountain Road. The marked trail hadn't been used much at all and it didn't look like hiking traffic uses the marked trail to the reservoir parking at the bottom. The last time I had been to Whiteface and Esther in July of 2010, I we started at the bottom so that is where I told Glenn to pick me up. Not wanting to break a new trail for 3km, I turned left and descended a neverending  well trod ramp down Marble Mountain. At the bottom were some green buildings and later found out there is a parking lot that hikers can use. I could have ended my hike here!

Instead I had to turn right on to a well-used snowmobile path backed to the marked trail and to the lower parking lot. The marked trail here did not look like it had been used by hikers much at all as there were many signs of bareboots, dog prints, and dog poop. Note to self: park at the Marble Mtn Road trailhead next time! I was slightly late for my pick up time due to the steep leg braking I had to repeatedly do on a 3000' decent. When I arrived at the parking lot Glenn and the care were there waiting for me. Glenn's descent on the toll road had been a mixed bag of hard and fast snow to some softer powder sections. He and his blistered heel did not regret his decision to ski down and I was able to get 2 more summits into my Winter 46 bag!

Unfortunately the weather deteriorated as a classic Nor'Easter parked itself over the High Peaks that same evening and shut the door on any more summits this trip. Next time!

Hike/Ski totals:
Distance: 20.82km
Time: 6hrs 39mins
Ascent: 1057m or 3467ft

On Saturday November 19th 2022, my hiking partner Deb and I decided our objective would be the Hancock mountains off Hwy 112. We were initially considering a different objective but the ice and snow conditions made us change our minds. The Hancocks would fit the bill for today.

We ate our continental breakfast at 7AM and drove through Lincoln to the Kancamagus Highway to the hairpin turn where the parking lot for the Hancocks are. The weather for today was supposed to be sunny and clear; much different than yesterday's clouds. I started my watch at 7:49AM.

We crossed the highway and put on our microspikes right away. We hiked in a seemingly flat snow covered well trod and broken path for the first hour or so until the grade rose every so slightly. Traffic on the trails today was noticeably busier than yesterday and we seemed to bump into people every half hour or so. 

We hit the beginning of the Hancock loop in just about an hour and a half after starting our hike. We met a couple coming down already with their energetic dog. Deciding to go towards Mount Hancock or the north and highest summit first we initially downclimbed before hitting a steep 1000ft steep climb straight up that made us feel like our hearts were pounding out of our chests. The hiker in front of me was not wearing microspikes and made a bit of mess of the trail. Instead of nice snow steps. there were snow smears making me have to re-step out the staircase up. We hit the summit about 2.5 hours in. Initially when you finish the ascent you hit the junction with the ridge trail. If you turn left, less than a minute of walking will take you to a nice lookout. The Gray Jays showed up here instantly and Deb got a great photo of one flying by me on the summit (see above). 

We didn't take a break here as we were pretty warm from the ascent and wanted to keep walking along the ridge to dry out our thermo-regulating garments (OR Refuge Air Jacket) and get back to being warm and dry. The ridge trail was covered with loads of rime ice and snow and on this sunny clear day was quite stunning. 

We climbed up over the Middle Hancock bump and passed a few people going the opposite direction. We got to the South Hancock summit where a few other people were lingering at the sunny lookout point. Standing in the direct sun was instantly warming and so we went over to the lookout to join in and have some tea and a bite to eat. Two young guys were there and we exchanged hiking stories and tried to identify peaks in the distance. The Gray Jays were also hovering here and one time when I pointed to one of the peaks with a pepperette in my hand it swooped down and tried to steal the food! It was unsuccessful but it sure made us eager to pack up and move on. We descended down the South Hancock trail (which is steep in places but not as steep as the ascent we came up) and joined back onto the trail we came in on. 

We kept seeing many parties coming in after us including solo and small groups. One small group of youngsters had only running shoes and city clothes on which was concerning. I didn't say anything at the time, but I wish I did now. Only a day later a 19 year old girl Emily Soreto attempted to hike Lafayette Mountain and perished wearing only running shoes and not having proper winter hiking gear. I think our hiking community needs to do a better job at education, and I need to speak up more when on trail. It is so easy in the winter to get into trouble.

We finished the hike on the flat snowy path and were eager for xc ski season to begin. Winter has just arrived, and there is more hiking and skiing to be had. With these 4 summits bagged this trip, I am up to 73/115 for my NE list. Getting there!

Stats:
Time: 6 hours 20 mins
Distance: 16km
​Elevation: 3000ft

I took advantage of a rare school board holiday to head down to the White Mountains of New Hampshire. After a 6 hour long drive, we settled into our hotel looking out a snow covered mountains ready to be hiked. On Friday November 18th, 2022, we decided our objective for the day would be the North and South Kinsman mountains. 

Our free continental breakfast at the hotel didn't open up on this day until 8AM so we waited around for it to open and finally got into the car around 8:15AM. We drove the short distance up Hwy 3 to the I-93 to the Basin parking lot and walked through a tunnel under the highway to start our hike.

The hike begins in a maze of trails at the bottom which could be quite confusing at first. Without a mistake we found the correct trail and started hiking up the Basin-Cascade trail which joins onto the Cascade Brook Trail. This section of trail was absolutely beautiful. Several waterfalls and moving water made me want to stop and take a photo of every one! It would be a perfect short hike for the aspiring photographer or even a great place to spend an afternoon on a hot summer day. Today was not the best trail conditions, as the trail was covered by snow, and iced over puddles were not supporting our weight leading to many soakers. Good thing we put on our gaiters as we luckily didn't get wet. We crossed the brook a few times but before we did we put on our microspikes as there was more grip on the ice and snow covered rocks with them on. We never took them off for the rest of the day! Up on the Cascade Brook and Kinsman Pond Trails I was the first to break since the snowfall two days before. We were delighted to see fresh tracks of pine martens, hare, squirrels and even a bear track on the way up!

Continuing on to the Kinsman Pond trail, we were still breaking trail and hopping on boulders on what the trail was apparently created on....an old stream bed. The snow, water and ice created very moist conditions on this day and required full concentration for each step. We were moving slower than normal, and I realized that this trail would be much better suited for summer travel. We reached the Kinsman Pond and finally caught a glimpse of the summit of North Kinsman. The pond was iced over and the snow depths rose to over ankle depth. Temperatures dropped here so we took a moment to put on heavier mittens and pull up our hoods. We reached the Kinsman campsite and made a left turn to head up to the Kinsman ridge trail.

Here we finally caught up to footprints and noticed that two people were ahead of us on the trail. We turned a corner and found a fellow hiker who had come up from the opposite side than we did and startled him to the point he shouted out loud! He was standing on the North Kinsman summit. I am glad he was there, as I don't think I would have realized it was the summit. It was a snow covered chunk of rock. If you downclimb a couple of steps from here it leads to a nice lookout. We were getting some glimpses of views of the Franconia ridge in the distance but the summits today were mainly obscured. We decided to keep going on to the South Summmit.

Off we went to South, which includes downclimbing a couple hundred feet and then climbing back up to the summit. The South summit is somewhat confusing as there are two locations: The lookout point at the highest point and then a large open area with a rock cairn a few minutes further and slightly below it. Luckily my hiking partner remembered the cairn so we hit both spots in order to make it official. Here again the views were not ideal and we didn't waste too much time before turning around and heading back along the ridge to the North summit. 

On the way back we met two fast-moving 30-something guys that were heading to the South summit. In what seemed like no time at all, they were back behind us so we asked which summit they went to and it was only the lookout they reached. My hiking partner Deb turned them around and sent them back to the cairn in order to make it official. We stopped for lunch on the North Kinsman summit lookout where it was snowing lightly and we were mainly in a cloud. After our break we descended back down but instead of taking the Kinsman Pond trail we took the Fishin' Jimmy Trail. This trail was much easier going as it wasn't a boulder ridden and did not involve creek crossings like the Kinsman Pond Trail does. It also has more infrastructure (boardwalks, etc) as it is part of the Appalachian Trail system. The two guys we saw up on the ridge caught up to us again and blew by us mentioning that they would be finishing their NH 48 on Carragain the next day. 

We reached the Lonesome Lake Hut to see that it was open and functional and met a father and daughter duo outside working on some map and compass skills. We were chatting with the at the corner of our right turn and missed it initially as we were distracted with our conversation. We realized our mistake quickly and turned around and got back on path breaking trail on the connector back to the Cascade Brook Trail and Basin Cascade Trail. 

Just before we finished we lost daylight and had to don our headlamps in order to cross the last brook and head down to the parking lot. We got to the tunnel, took off our microspikes and gave each other a high-five. It felt great to be back in the White Mountains after a 3 year hiatus! 

Stats: 
Time: 8:42 hrs
Distance: 20km
​Elevation: 4000ft

​Camel's Hump is a peak in the Green Mountains of Vermont that has a prominence of 4080feet tall. This peak has a short 2.4 mile approach via the Burrow's trail and was a perfect selection for a short hike before driving 6 hours home later the same day.

We drove a maze of back gravel roads from Underhill State Park to the Burrows Trailhead which was super enjoyable. Vermont is a beautiful state and one I have not spent that much time in. Beautiful lush green fields and forest with beautiful barns and homes all around. We noticed several people out running and cycling on a Sunday morning and liked the vibe of the area. We arrived at the trailhead around 9AM and started upward. The parking lot was already full so we had to park on the side of the road. This hike is popular because of the short distance and there were many users out on the trail today including several trail runners, families with dogs and children, and a full military group of 20. 

We bolted up the forested trail with good dry footing. Some erosion pathways created some rock obstacles to hike over but were not an issue. Soon the gradient steepens and the trail became more rocky, rooty and wet. I was glad I chose to wear shorts on this day as the temperature was much warmer than yesterday's hike and the sweat rolled off our chins and our soaked through our t-shirts on the way up. We noticed the Burrow's trail was being renovated with some new wood steps and several flags and signs indicating work was being done. Covid has really widened several trails as people tried to stay 2m(6ft) apart so I was glad to see that they were trying to narrow the trail again. 

We made it up to the junction with the Long Trail and the Munroe descent trail. Here there is a historical plaque that registers the Camel's Hump as a natural landmark and historic site. The home stretch of the ascent is from here up and after 1hr and 20 mins we hit the summit. There was a large crowd up there already, including a family celebrating grandpa's 83rd birthday which was  great to see! We took a 20 minute break here and enjoyed the 360 degree views. We could see Mount Marcy in the distance as well as Mount Mansfield from the day before. We took a few summit shots and headed back down the trail.

We finished the 8km (5mile), 2000ft hike in 3 hours exactly. This is peak #69 checked off on my Northeast 115 peak bagging list. Our stay in Vermont was very enjoyable and I am happy that I will need to return to hike Killington, Ellen, and Abraham at some point. 

Scoring a last minute weekend cancellation of a lean-to at Underhill State Park, we made the 6 hour drive from Ontario and set up camp at this small and quaint camping location. A thunder and rain storm rolled in and poured for most of the night but luckily we were snuggled inside a tent inside a lean-to and were not worried. 

At 7:45AM on Saturday August 27th, 2022, we left the parking lot at Underhill and headed up hill to the sign-in register past the group camping area. The 500ft ascent here has two options: trail or road. You can pick either to get to the upper trailhead. We signed in and headed up the Sunset Ridge trail. The trail was saturated with moisture from last night's storm and in some places was still flowing down hill on the trail. Luckily the temperature was cool and we could charge up the trail as fast as our feet could take us. Due to Covid, I hadn't been able to cross the border the past 2 summers and was a bit worried that my fitness wasn't up to par but there is only one way to find out if your lungs and legs were ready: go up!

In less than an hour we had reached the turn off to a 0.1mile side trail to view the famous Cantilever rock. I had seen photos of this online previously but was floored by how large it was in person. It is definitely a unique feature and worth the side trip. Back on the ridge trail, we noticed it had been one hour in and we could all use a sip of water. Heading up hill from here, the theme of the trail is ROCK. There are many rock steps, rock ledges, and rock slabs to negotiate. Some views start popping out above the trees and a few welcome cool breezes started to be felt. The trees start to change from deciduous to coniferous and the height of the trees seems to start to shrink with every step. In the alpine zone, Vermont uses white string to guide hikers as to where to walk so that the impact to the alpine zone vegetation is minimized. At the 2 hour and 10 minute mark, we had ascended the 2543ft of elevation to the summit of Mount Mansfield, otherwise known as The Chin at 4393ft. The summit steward answered our questions about landmarks on either side of the summit and took some group photos for us. Crowds were definitely starting to build but we couldn't really figure out where all the traffic was coming from. Then we could see it: a gondola bringing hikers up the Stowe ski hill and a road that some people drive up bringing them about 90% of the way to the top!

We descended from the summit proper back down to the junction with the Sunset Ridge Trail and had a snack and water break before continuing our loop hike along the ridge. The sun had just started to break up the clouds and views were coming into play. The ridge walk is along the Long Trail in Vermont and is mainly rock boulders and slabs. There is a real mix of hikers here - everyone from multi-day thru hikers, to day hikers, to people in flip flops and white shirts who had drove up. Across the ridge, we came across a cell tower and hut and the Visitor Centre. We stopped in at the centre to read more information about the area and speak to some of the staff. We left and continued on the Long Trail to the Forehead and stopped for lunch. 

Here I noticed one of my favourite pieces of gear was broken: my short gaiters from Outdoor Research (Salamanders). Vermont is affectionately known as 'Vermud' among thru-hikers and gaiters were helpful on our hike today, especially after the rains the night before. I have been holding on to these gaiters for years and think they are the best on the market but unfortunately the metal buckle broke and they are dunzo. 

We found the Maple Ridge trail and found the mainly rock trail was a bit treacherous from the rains the night before. Many of the rocks were slimy and sloped and it was tricky in places to get a good pole plant or foot placement. In a few cases we had to resort to lowering down on our butts to safely descend. We all had instances where our feet slipped from underneath us so we slowed our pace down to ensure that no injuries took place. We found the chasm, and all had to jump over the crevasse-like crack to get to the other side. All in all the Maple Ridge trail is do-able, but isn't as fun to descend when wet. The first part of the decent is the steepest and then once it hooks up to the CCC road it is easy going again. The CCC road surprisingly climbs as it traverses at first and then descends back down to the trailhead on good trail. I enjoyed this hike with it's mix of interesting features and good challenging trail that keeps your focus.

Arriving back at the trailhead we signed out of the register and chose to take the road walk back down to the campground. We looked at our watches and it took us 6 hours exactly to do the 14km (8.7 miles) with 3100ft of ascent. This is #68 for me on the Northeast 115 list. 

​

The South Nahanni river is normally the top of any canoeist's bucket list and for good reason. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the South Nahanni River boasts spectacular natural beauty in the form of waterfalls, canyons, hotprings, whitewater, and jagged peaks. For me, my obsession with the Nahanni started as a young girl reading Canadian Canoeist Bill Mason's books with ample photos of the northern river gem. We started planning a self-guided canoe trip down the South Nahanni river in the fall of 2019. Back then we had a group of 10 eager paddlers ready to go but COVID had other plans. Fast forward to 2022 when only 6 of the original group finally took off via float plane and landed  in Rabbitkettle Lake, our chosen starting point for our adventure.

The South Nahanni river is part of Nahanni National Park and covers 565km from it's headwaters to it's confluence with the Liard River. We chose the classic 14 day route that covers 335km of the river from Rabbitkettle lake to Nahanni Butte. One of our group members Joel decided to head out a week early and tackle the upper section Moose Ponds before joining up with us.

Day 1 Saturday July 16th: Whitehorse to Rabbitkettle Lake

After 3 years of waiting, a troublesome air travel day including lost luggage, and some unsettled weather, we finally took off from Whitehorse with Alkan Air towards Rabbitkettle. Why leave from Whitehorse and not Fort Simpson? The rest of our group was from Whitehorse, and it was cheaper to fly in direct from the Yukon.

The Cessna Caravan needed 2 flights to transport all our gear in so one group left from Whitehorse and the other from Watson Lake. In addition to the two flights needing to land at Rabbitkettle, we also needed to liase with our 6th paddler who had started his trip a week earlier and had paddled down from the headwaters Moose Ponds section to meet up with us. The logistics were somewhat complicated including flying in a tandem boat and flying out a solo boat!

When we arrived at Rabbitkettle there were a few groups coming and going and various planes landing and taking off. We immediately noticed the need to put on our bug jackets and pull out the DEET from our packs. The lake is sheltered from the wind and can be on the buggy side. We set up camp on the obvious platforms and waited for plane #2 to arrive. The campsite also has an outhouse and metal food storage lockers. I learned how to put on a spray deck on a canoe and saw some new birds to me: a Red-necked Grebe being one!

Day 2 Sunday July 17th: Rabbitkettle Lake

Today was set aside for two reasons: 1) To have a buffer day in case a float plane couldn't take off or land the day before and 2) to hike the Tufa mounds with a Parks Canada Staff. The Tufa mounds are in a Zone 1 area of the park and cannot be visited unless a staff member is with you. At the staff cabin, there was no staff present either the Saturday or Sunday of our trip. The guided hikes are normally conducted daily at 8:30AM and 1:30PM but because there was no staff present there was no access for us. We waited and waited for a plane to arrive but it never did. Instead we went and checked out the 'back door' creek out of Rabbitkettle Lake (accessed from the north or upstream end of the lake) that would enable us to avoid a 900m portage trail the next day to get to the river proper. We paddled over to the creek and walked the length of the creek to check for any hazards like wood that could be an issue while paddling down it's current. It looked fine! We got our first glimpse at the river and immediately noticed it's width, silty nature, and current speed. We returned to the lake and spent time fishing, swimming, and had a floating lunch on the lake to escape the bugs. Mia had an encounter with a Black Bear who was grazing on the various berries in the area.

Day 3 Monday July 18th: Rabbitkettle to Hell Roaring Creek (46km, 8 hours)

​Day 3 I woke up disgruntled as I realized that my 8 year old inflatable sleeping pad had a slow leak and had to be blown up several times over the night. I did a dunk test in the clear waters of Rabbitkettle lake (my last chance to do so as the Nahanni is very silty) but could not find the pinhole or source of the leak. We packed up camp and heading to our 'back door' creek and as we were doing so the float planes started to arrive to drop off/pick up more groups. To complete the creek paddle, you have to drag your canoe a short 10m distance at one point. To get back into your boat, you must descend a steep bank and balance on the gunwhales of your canoe to get back in. This was a highly entertaining process and luckily no one screwed up. By the time we paddled the creek and got to the Nahanni proper, we canoed a short distance down the river to the Rabbitkettle kiosk where the portage trail ends. 

When we arrived, we signed in at the register and met a guided group of canoeists who had just finished portaging and were starting/continuing their trip. They mentioned that a Parks Canada staff member had just flown in and would be leading a hike at 1:30PM. By that time, we just wanted to get going down the river and didn't want to allot anymore time to the Tufa mounds, even though we didn't get to see them. 

The river valley here has peaks on either side, and has mainly coniferous forest mixed in with rocky terrain. On one of our gazes, we saw a Dall Sheep and two lambs on a scree slope but weren't quick enough to catch a shot.  The weather on the river today including sun, clouds, brief periods of light rain, high winds and no wind.

We found a large camping site on the upriver side of Hell Roaring creek. When we arrived the winds were high making it hard to set up our bug shelter. The winds made the bugs scarce but when the winds died, they were definitely noticeable. Around 9PM each evening the mosquitoes came out to feast which correlated with us migrated to our tents to read!

Day 4 Tuesday July 19th : Hell Roaring Creek to Last Chance Island (46km, 6.5 hours, 1861ft)

On the water by 10AM, we paddled for an hour before finding a windy gravel bar to get out and have a bathroom break. The mosquitos make bathroom breaks unbearable in protected areas even despite using different tactics including DEET fumigating, bug jackets and even pee funnels. Back in the boats we set off again until our stomachs growled for lunch. We found another gravel bar to stop at and munch on preserved meets, cheese, crackers, and bagels.

The river in this section is characterized by having small swifts and small wave trains. None of it is very risky, but the current is moving at a good clip. The river moves through 'big squiggly' and 'little squiggly' lines. One of the straight stretches we launched a sail and zoomed along quite successfully...until the river twisted again! Last chance island is the last gravel bar island before Virginia Falls. In the guide book on page 25, it is beside the word 'South'. We scouted spot that could work for camping and found a workable area that was exposed to wind - no bugs! We decided against setting up a tarp or bug shelter due to the sunny conditions and wind. 

After a hearty chili and cornbread meal, we relaxed after dinner - some fished, some chatted, some doodled, some read. As the wind died off, the dust and silt covered most of our gear with a fine layer of grey that would remain a constant for the rest of the trip. We also missed a clear creek nearby, meaning we would have to let our filter water settle out in a large blue sink before processing it. 

Day 5 Wednesday July 20th: Last Chance Island to Virginia Falls (45km, 7.5 hours, elev 1882)

Today we left camp at 10:10AM and immediately faced a headwind that would stay with us most of the day. The breezes however alternated from hot to cold back to hot all day long which seemed odd. The river here is wide with big squigglies and with current but the headwind definitely posed an extra challenge. We found a nice clear creek to fill up our water bottle and bladders. Water filters definitely do not like the silty waters of the Nahanni.

On the last turn before Virginia Falls, there is access to Oxbow lake on river left which is worth checking out. Find the creek entrance (about 2m wide) and follow it in about 1 minute paddle to the Oxbow Lake. Here, paddle to the end of the lake and around the corner. This lake is supposed to be excellent for wildlife viewing. Our group saw a bull moose and some interesting waterfowl (American Widgeon).

After our visit we returned to the river to the home stretch before the docks of Virginia Falls become visible. There are three sets of docks here and they all have ramps that head up to a maze of boardwalk trails that lead to campsites, gazebos, outhouses, the Warden's cabin, and the falls. The food cache lockers here are enormous, and there are many campsites  with platforms, picnic tables, and firepits to use. The outhouses even have toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Luxury! We noticed right away we weren't the only users of this space. Some visitors fly in for the day, some just overnight, and some guided groups took up large areas. What was interesting for me in comparison to many other national parks I have visited is the kilometers of boardwalks have been installed on this site. The mosquitos seem to disappear as well - bonus! There isn't much firewood at the falls, so if you need some, collect some before you arrive!

After a chicken burrito supper, highlighted by a resident Snowshoe Hare and a resident pesky Gray Jay,  we walked the 1km on boardwalks down to the falls.  The magnificence of these falls cannot be overstated. The power of nature, the beauty, the dramatic scene - amazing. We took a million photos and videos and visited all the lookout spots to get the best angle. It was marvelous. I could stay for longer. Good thing as we planned a two night stay here!

We returned to our site to have a dessert of shortbread out of the Dutch oven and then fell asleep to the distant sound of the falls.

Day 6 July 21st: Sunblood Mountain Hike and Portage Carry #1 (16km hike, 4km portage)

​Today ended up being our only layover of the trip (even though others were planned - more on this later). We woke up to a hearty eggs benedict and peameal bacon breakfast by Joel which would help fuel us for later in the day. 

We paddled across the river in our empty canoes to the trailhead for the Sunblood Mountain hike around 11AM. I have included the times a lot in these posts but time doesn't really matter in the NWT in July as it never gets dark. There is no pressure to be back to camp, and I never turned on my headlamp once.

The Sunblood Mountain trail starts off in the forest scrub near the river and ascends quickly up to a scree slop that traverses across to the mountain's shoulder. On the traverse you get some stunning views of the river, a glimpse of the falls and then the canyon below. When you turn to ascend the shoulder, you are in a drainage between Sunblood and the adjacent slope. The trail ascends a consistent rate, making all our bodies happy that the day was overcast as our hearts pounded and lungs took in the alpine air. The ascent was about 3200 feet, similar to a short Adirondack peak. The summit is marked with a big rock cairn. It also has a ugly green communications tower on it and is home to an aggressive community of ground squirrels that will approach you without fear.  The views of the Nahanni valley were the reward for the hike and I was happy to test out my lungs after suffering from a positive COVID test a few weeks before. 

It took us 3 hours to get to the summit and 2 to return and the afternoon sun broke through and created burning hot conditions. We paddled back over to camp and Scott, Pauline and I briefly jumped into the river to cool off. After a delicious Moroccan stew for dinner we packed up some gear that we didn't need over night and took a load across the portage trail. From the campsite it took us 35minutes one way to do the carry that is mainly on boardwalks. The steep switchbacks at the end of the trail are regular dirt trail. At the bottom there is a metal storage locker you can leave your gear in safely. We got our first view of the bottom of the falls (stunning!) as well as Fourth Canyon where the whitewater begins.

Day 7 July 22nd: Virginia Falls to Clearwater Creek (11.3km plus 2 carries of portage 1483 ft elev)

Today we had a quick oatmeal breakfast and got straight to work packing up. There are two options for the portage: 1) Walk on flat boardwalks from the campsite to connect to the portage trail for a total of about 2.2km one way or 2) Paddle carefully on river right 900m downstream to an opening on shore (closer to the top of the falls) to start portaging. Members of our group did both depending on comfort levels. We needed to portage 2 more carries to get all the gear down to the bottom of the falls for a total of 3 including the one from last night. We did take off our spray decks for portaging and had eaten all of our big bulky food (at least most of it before this point). On my last load down on the switchbacks I was a bit shaky with my legs after the 20km+ day yesterday and the two descents down the steep trail today. 

Once the portaging was complete, it was time to get to work putting the spraydecks back on, loading the boats, donning our drysuits, and eating lunch. After those tasks were complete we wandered up closer to the falls and did a quick photo shoot. The falls are so impressive - you could never get sick of them. I was sad to see them go.

Fourth Canyon is the the first canyon and is where the real whitewater begins. The whitewater on the Nahanni is mainly caused by compression of current in canyons and converging currents with other tributaries. Fourth canyon has reputation of being big and wild and most guiding companies will catamaran canoes or raft clients down these big waves. Our group of 3 canoes just paddled it and with a spray deck on and some active paddling, we did have have any issues. That said we are all experienced (20+ yrs) whitewater paddlers and were doing a self-guided trip. There are definitely big waves in the 3 rapids and some turns so make sure you have your game face on. The False Canyon rapid was no issue as well, easily snuck on the right. Our max speed in the canyons according to the GPS was 18.3km/hr!

As someone from Ontario who only wears a drysuit in the spring and fall, it was my first time wearing one in the summer heat. When we arrived at our Clearwater Creek campsite I thought my drysuit was leaking due to the dampness inside. Turns out it was just sweat! We quickly set up a clothesline to dry out our wet gear and changed into our bathings suits to swim in the clear blue lagoon at the creek. Although swimming in the Nahanni will take your breath away literally, it is sometimes worth the refreshing dunk as was the case today.

The afternoon sun without mosquitos made lounging in bathing suits easy. We enjoyed some classic Mac & Cheese for dinner and socialized all evening in our camp chairs on our temporary beach home!

Day 8 July 23rd: Clearwater Creek to Moose Camp (35km, 5 hours,9km before The Gate 1298ft)

We woke up today with overcast skies and cooler temps which were grateful for being another drysuit wearing day. There were a few small rapids and converging whirlpools and tricky currents in our path today that required attention and proper gear. A swim in any canyon or on the river could be long and wearing a drysuit would definitely help your chances of survival. 

The first major rapid we hit was Figure 8 rapid which has been apparently dramatically lessened since the flood in 2006. I agree as there wasn't much to it. We scouted it on the gravel bar and hopped right back into them and ran it without issues. Then we hit Wriggley creek where we all spun in a whirlpool at one point but nothing major. Then we hit Tricky currents which are two currents that converge around an island and look non threatening until you look down and see a whirlpool 2 feet below where your paddle should be hitting the water. Again, our group had no issues but I can see how  the boils and converging currents could indeed be tricky for some and we did hear some guided groups had swimmers here. The fastest speed of the day was 19.3km/hr but generally the current is moving around 10km/hr.
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We entered the 40km long Third Canyon today. I learned some tips for using my GoPro today from another group member: audio commands! I was amusing in some of the rapids and canyons today hearing "Go Pro stop recording" or "GoPro take a photo"! 

At the Virginia Falls campsite we found out from the parks staff that The Gate campsite was currently closed to a bear encounter that had happened earlier that month. Apparently a large guided group encountered a bear that came into camp looking for food and was not scared. The group deployed bear spray onto the bear and it successfully deterred it. Parks Canada had closed the campsite and we were supposed to be the first group eligible to camp there...and were scheduled for 2 nights! Instead we opted to camp just before and just after The Gate instead just to be on the safe side. Other guided groups after us did the same. Why risk it?

We set up camp on a gravel bar that had a large moose antler shed on it. Not too long later we heard an engine that was not a plane. It was a Parks Canada motorboat heading upstream! We ate a delicious cottage pie and played Quicktionary in our bug tent after dinner. An ominous cloud rolled in and rained on us very quickly and then almost immediately after the sun came out and surprised us with a double rainbow display!

Day 9 July 24th: Moose Camp to Asteroid Camp (26.2km including the hike, 600ft ascent on hike)

Packed up and headed downstream a short distance through Third Canyon. We were blessed with beautiful vistas and lovely paddling through swifts - no drysuit today!

Stopped at The Gate campground keeping an eye out for bears and hiked to the top of the bluff to look at the Pulpit rock. The hike required crossing a creek, ascending 600 feet of steep boulders and rooty trail. The reward is worth the effort though. The views are amazing! The lookout points at the top are on detached blocks so be careful when you are up there. My rock climber eyes spotted this chossy rock and chose not to linger on it! When we descended, a Parks Canada motorboat was travelling back downstream (same one as yesterday). Then a helicopter flew through The Gate and buzzed the Pulpit rock. Then a float plane flew over....all within 10 minutes. This river is busy!

​Not too long after the gate we found a gravel bar we could camp on. The afternoon sun was beating down on us so our first priority was to set up a tarp for shade. This was another day swimming was mandatory and took no time at all to dry off. We ate a delicious Pad Thai dinner and cheesecake for dessert and shared stories from our travels to Southeast Asia. 

Just after dinner the wind died and some smoky forest fire air moved in. We named this camp Asteroid Camp because of peculiar black rock we found that was so different from anything else we had seen that it had to be from outer space!

Day 10 July 25th: Asteroid Camp to Painted Rocks (22.1km including 6km hike 1248 ft elev)

​The morning of Day 10 was not best for me. After 9 nights of sleeping on a deflating mattress (and having to re-inflate in multiple times per night) my back got very cranky and started to revolt. Gravel bars are not the most forgiving place to sleep on with a disfunctional mattress. After popping some ibuprofen and doing some stretches, my hubby offered me his functional mattress for the night and we could switch. That is love!

This morning was also very moody due to the smoky skies. There was little to no wind and the smoke settled in for most of the day. We left Third Canyon and rounded a big bend to see some very picturesque scenes with the smoke lingering in the valley. You could start to really smell it and taste it the further we went downstream.

At the beginning of Second Canyon, we pulled over on river right at Painted Canyon to do a short hike to see the rocks. The rocks here have some sort of red pollen or something on them that turn them red. Be careful - if you walk on these rocks with bare feet, sit on them or wipe your finger on them your skin will turn yellow! The hike was easy up a creek bed and crossed a creek multiple times - keep your wet shoes on! We walked up to the end and turned around and had lunch back at the canoes. An obvious campspot was not being used so we decided to take it and have a half day rest. Glenn pulled out his fly fishing rod and caught 6 Grayling here at the mouth of the creek and the river. Other members swam, read, napped and made pie.

The lack of air movement created some smoky and buggy conditions until after dinner when a subtle breeze started to pick up and move some of the stagnant air out. After dinner a guide from an NRA canoeing group came to visit us (to compare itineraries) and we had a lovely chat. 

Day 11 July 26th: Painted Rocks to Dry Canyon (28.5km, 5 hours)

Today we were on the water by 10AM after a comfortable sleep for me on a fully inflated mattress. We had beautiful blue skies and no smoke to exit Second Canyon. The landscape changed here as we entered Deadmen Valley. The valley widened and you could see the Headless Range. For more interesting stories about this valley read the book "Legends of the Nahanni Valley" by Hammerson Peters.

We stopped at the outflow of Prairie Creek for lunch and only 200m downstream I spotted  a large Caribou antler set with partial skull that we stopped and checked out. Then another 200m downstream on river right is a Forestry Cabin we wanted to check out. We pulled over and had to use rock climbing skills to climb up the bank but in hindsight it would have been easier to paddle down to the Warden's cabin a few hundred meters more downstream and then walk on the trail back to the Forestry Cabin. Inside, are hundreds on mini paddles with the names of paddlers who have paddled the river hanging from the roof. Very Cool!  A thermometer outside of the cabin read 30C in the shade!! Very buggy here!

Another 5 mins downstream was Dry Canyon, our campsite destination for the night. The direct sun was oppressive by mid-afternoon so we set up a tarp for some shade. We quickly put up the tents and changed into our bathers for a dip. I stayed in for over 10 mins. A record! The winds picked up in the afternoon and blew over our shelter and left us baking in the sun once again. This day it was imperative to swim and drink as much as possible as heat exhaustion was a real threat.

Today we hit the tents early as the wind finally died and the bugs came out in hoards. After being so sun exposed today it was nice to lay down and rest. I fell asleep instantly.

Day 12 July 27th: Dry Canyon to Lafferty (24km, 7 hours)

Today we started our day with a hike up Dry Canyon. We couldn't even entertain the thought of hiking in the heat yesterday so we went for a hike up the dry creek bed and checked out all the caves and boulders in the Canyon. We didn't go up too far, but did feel like we got a good 1.5 hours of walking in. We returned to the boats and changed out of hiking gear to drysuits as the dramatic entrance into First Canyon was almost visible. We scouted the George's Riffle rapid from the island and eliminated the sneak as an option. George's Riffle is certainly no riffle at all! Sweat built under our wetsuits as we moved along the shorelines. Left of centre looked like the best option so up we went to run it. Glenn and I were the first boat down and when we hit the converging currents Glenn (who was in the stern) opted for Plan B and veered right early which after some hard paddling through some wild waves proved to be successful missing the boils, recirculating eddy. Everyone else stayed left of centre which was also successful. No swims!

Just downstream at the first gravel bar we stopped for lunch and took off the sweat suits we were wearing for the rest of the day. The cool air felt so refreshing! First Canyon is now my favourite canyon of the trip- tall canyon walls that don't let up for hours. It's hard to pay attention to your paddling when all you are doing is 'oooing' and 'awwing' at the scenery. Mindblowing!

We stopped at the Whitespray natural spring  (looks like a 10m wide small waterfall/rapid) on river left to fill up bottles and bladders. Some of the best water I have ever tasted. Soon after you reach Lafferty campground. We pulled in beside a guided group and set up on the gravel bar. Glenn graciously lent me his mattress again and it was my turn to make dinner again: a sweet potato peanut stew which turned out well. The smoky skies returned this evening and we were in bed by 8PM.

Day 13 July 28th: Lafferty to the North Elbow (26km including hike to Lafferty Pools)
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Today was supposed to be a layover day at Laffery but with 2 guided groups plus our self-guided group all supposed to leave the next morning and head to the hot spring we knew that having 30+ people in the hot spring wouldn't be fun or even possible (its not that big!). We woke up to some rain and cloudy skies and decided to walk up Lafferty Creek (along the left there is a trail) to the pools where the canyon becomes very narrow. On this cold cloudy day I chose not to swim but some of our members did and carried on up through the slot canyon at the top!

We returned to camp to pack up and a raft group started taking over our campspot after they had just arrived at camp...at noon! Boy do they pack heavy! We ate lunch and ran the left sneak past Lafferty Riffle to the end of First Canyon where the Kraus Hotsprings are located on river right only about 2km downstream from Lafferty. The Kraus' are a couple that used to inhabit that land on and off for decades. Only one outbuilding remains - an old cabin that is again filled with small paddles and the names of paddlers who have travelled it's waters. Unbenounced to us, Joel had made a small wood paddle and had us sign it and hung it in the cabin. We confirmed our place in Nahanni history.

The cabin is only about a 50m walk on trail from the hotspring. We jumped in the hotspring which was warm, but not super hot and tried not to mind the slime and scum and smell of rotten eggs a.k.a. hydrogen sulfide. The warm water on our bodies was a welcome change. Joel used his sat phone in the hotspring to call our floatplane company to confirm a pick up time in two days time. We washed the scum and slime off us in the clear creak water below before changing and jumping into the canoe for a floating lunch/snack. Returning to paddling after this was a bit of chore as we all had jelly muscles from the hotspring!

We paddling for a couple of hours and out of the blue saw two heads swimming in the river in front of us. A cow moose and calf were swimming across the river! We were far enough away to witness the whole crossing and then saw the two successful exit on the far side. Momma looked a bit confused trying to identify what species the 3 red canoes were!

We found a wide open gravel bar to call home for the night near the North Elbow. We had some time to rest before dinner today as we waited for some bison goulash to heat up and cornbread. After dinner in the bug shelter we played a competitive game of Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza! A fun kids game that adults can play as well...and may even draw blood!! Heading to bed these even was interrupted but a couple of Common Nighthawks calling as they came out to feast on insects. The Nighthawk's call is more barking then melodic so it took some time before they moved on for us to fall asleep!

Day 14 July 29th: North Elbow to Nahanni Butte (61km 7 hours)

Today we woke up to low cloud weather and damp conditions from rain overnight. We pulled out the Goretex for the first time on the trip. With a slow pancake breakfast to start the day, we saw the guided group of rafts head downstream before us. We got on the water a little later than normal at 10:30AM and saw a the second guided canoe group coming downstream at us so we bolted onto the river. Two of our group members are YRQ (Yukon River Quest) alumnists and it was as if we were in a race with a group ahead and behind. Our group found a maintainable pace that was fast enough to pass the raft group and not let the canoe group catch up. The river turns right at Trickster Peak and then mellows out and becomes very braided and shallow in places. 

Just after we had passed the raft group, a group member spotted a large brown piece of wood on shore. After a short glance through the binoculars it was not a piece of wood, but a bison! This young male was a great at posing and did not move the entire time we passed it. Very cool! Soon after we passed the park boundary sign and kept going down The Splits. Before we knew it we had passed the last gravel bar because the river banks become very muddy in the last 20km before Nahanni Butte. We decided to carry on to the Butte and camp in the campground on river right. 

Arriving at the campground tired after a 61km, 7 hour paddle we pulled our gear up the muddy bank onto a flat grassy area. There were a few outbuildings and tables there but and some bison patties on the ground. The mosquitos there were the worst of the trip by far...going to the bathroom, eating unzipping a bug jacket, or showing any exposed skin was hazardous. There must have been a million on the campsite. We set up our tent without the fly inside one of the outbuildings and set up our bug shelter to eat in. Everything that evening was about managing sanity from the 1000 mosquito cloud following each individual!

Day 15: Nahanni Butte to Whitehorse
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On Day 15 we strolled into the thriving metropolis of Nahanni Butte We had heard there was a general store and the potential for a cold drink or ice cream. We walked about 10-15 mins from the campground past the airport and an outfitter to the very small community and found the store. It was closed on weekends! No luck! We returned to the campground just as our float plane was landing. Unfortunately the water was too low to be picked up at the campground (mud flat) so we canoed directly across the river to a sandy area that was deeper and more appropriate for loading. Being on the second flight, we shuttled our gear over to the landing spot and waited a couple hours before the plane returned. Goodbye Nahanni, you were amazing! Bucketlist trip complete!

Check out the 6 minute video below of the trip! 

March 15th, 2022

After our first day back in two years yesterday our legs were feeling the toll of the ascent the day before. We decided on a shorter, one peak hike that I needed for my winter list: Big Slide. We drove from Keene where we were staying over to Keene Valley to start from the parking lot and hike up over the 3 brothers to the summit.

Today our group of 4 was able to start at the same time and hike together after being separated yesterday with our Covid testing appointments. The last time I hiked Big Slide was back in October of 2011 when my husband Glenn and I waded through hip deep snow and crawled to the summit after starting in the parking lot on wet leaves. Surely this official winter ascent would be easier. We would find out!

Even though today was about bagging another winter peak, it was more about our friend Ivan. At 76, he wasn't sure he still had it in him to do a mountain. He had a knee replaced in 2019, and hadn't been back to the 'dacks since. He started with us up the Brothers, and we thought if he had to turn around then at least he would have been about to have a nice hike with views. The weather today was above freezing and we were down to our baselayers in no time. We hit the first brother and realized our pace was slow, but with the daylight available in March, the warm temperatures and the fact that Ivan was trying to push himself we allowed him to continue to set the pace. After the third brother it was apparent that this pace was going to really slow us down, Ivan gave Deb and I a blessing to run ahead to tag the summit and return to the junction that marked the descent down to the JBL area. 

Deb and I took off and ran up the summit which had just freshly been slid down by three women we had just passed. We dug the crampons of our snowshoes in and felt our heart rates increase as we stepped over the area that normally has a ladder (it was buried!). We got to the summit eager to see the furry summit steward (pine marten), but didn't want to linger too long as we wanted to head back down to see how Ivan was doing. We were getting worried he had pushed himself a bit too much and might need assistance getting back down. We downed some water and took a few photos and took off without even sitting down.

Unfortunately after we slid on our bums down from the summit we arrived at the junction to see that no one had gone down to JBL yet. So we headed back to the 3rd brother and within a couple minutes saw Ivan and Paul huffing their way up. They made it! We took a long lunch break at the junction and Ivan was elated that for the next while it was downhill. The downhill was indeed less energy intensive for sure but did cross a creek multiple times that had some ice bridges that were failing or about to fail. By the time we got down to John's Brook, there was little sign of the 10" of snow that fell 3 days before. In fact there was barely any snow left. We kept our snowshoes on until the parking lot though as they were beneficial most of the way. Ivan hit the wall on the way out so on a break I played one of his favourite tunes Irish Rover which we sang out loud which seemed to lift his spirits and give him a boost to finish the home stretch.

I am so impressed with the mental fortitude of Ivan on this day. For someone I thought we'd leave an hour or two into the day, here he was at the end! He had been to Big Slide's summit before and didn't care if he made it, but to walk 15km with over 3000ft of ascent is admirable. I hope I am like that at 76....

Upon return to Canada the next day, we learned about an overdue hiker that apparently had been hiking the Trap Dike in the blizzard on Saturday. Having hiked in the area for the days he was missing but not found which was a bit unsettling. According to the Adirondack Explorer, his body was found buried under 4 feet of snow in what must have been an avalanche. A very sad outcome for this hiker and his family and friends. Stay safe!

Stats:
Distance: 17.2km
Time: 8:31hr
Elevation: 1056m

March 14th, 2022

Finally!! After a long two year hiatus, I finally crossed the border and headed straight to the Adirondacks! We crossed over on Sunday March 13th, a day later than planned but a large snowstorm was warning us that blizzard conditions were going to be imminent and driving would be 'impossible'. When we finally arrived in Lake Placid and then in Keene in felt like being back to our home away from home. I have spent loads of time in the Adirondacks over the past 15 years and it definitely felt good to be back.

One hoop us Canadians had to jump through in March of 2022 was to have a negative Covid test before re-entering Canada. So we found a free one you could get done at Walgreens in Lake Placid and had our appointments booked in advance for the earliest slots on Monday morning around 9:30AM. The drive-thru test was a breeze - they did Deb and I together. Our two other trip mates had to wait a whole extra hour so we went ahead and started our day off on South Meadow road.

I needed Phelps and Tabletop for my Winter 46er list. We thought those two would fit the bill nicely as a re-introduction to the Adirondacks after our 2 year hiatus. We had tried our best to keep our legs in mountain shape by strength training, walking up and down our local ski hill and doing numerous hikes and backpacking trips in Ontario. The hills just aren't as long, so nothing would fully prepare us for our return trip to the 'dacks.

We started the day late around 10 AM at the South Meadow Parking lot and skied into Marcy dam via the truck trail with our snowshoes on our packs. I love these combo days and my goal is to make all my Winter 46ers as interesting as possible. The skiing was really good- it had just dumped 10-12" of fresh snow two days before. We managed to ski past Marcy Dam and up a little bit more across a creek towards Phelps before we transitioned to snowshoes. Being on snowshoes felt a bit weird as I had spent most of the winter cross country skiing. Off we went to the Phelps turn off and started the inclined portion of the hike to the summit. I was in the lead and told Deb I was going to keep a steady pace on the ascent (not blazing fast but not lollygagging either). Turned out we passed two other parties and reached the summit first on that day! It was a bit of an ego boost for us having not hiked a mountain in 2 years! We still got it!

We took a break on the summit with some food and drink and had some photos taken by some other summiters. We didn't linger too long as we had to descend and then continue over to Tabletop. The descent went well despite being not sure how my knee would handle it after having a knee surgery during my 2 year hiatus. The slog up to the Tabletop turnoff is a part I had forgotten about. You do ascend quite a lot in this section.  I was reminiscing with Deb about a AT ski descent I did off Marcy down the ski trail parallel the hiking trail and it is quite steep. We saw a group of AT skiers heading up Marcy earlier which would have been a great day to do it with all the fresh snow. When we finally got to the Tabletop turnoff we  couldn't remember how far it was to the top. Deb thought it was 30-40 mins or so. I think it ended up being 45 so not too far off! I remembered the Tabletop summit from my first round as being unremarkable but I found this time it does have a really nice view from it despite the dead standing trees. 

Our descent went pretty fast but by now the toll of the ascents had worn out our legs and we marched out and down to our ski stash. We transitioned back on skis and found that now being late afternoon, the snow was freezing up again and things started to get icy. The ski trail out from Marcy Dam was incredibly fast....we were averaging 22km/hr not even poling! There was one part of the ski trail that I was concerned about and made a remark to Deb on the way in. A steep descent ends a one foot ledge drop off that would be consequential at speed. Knowing it was coming, I used the metal edges on my backcountry skis to dig into the snow as best I could and snowplowed my way towards the ledge with alarm bells ringing loudly in my brain. Could I stop before the ledge? With all the extra weight on my back (winter daypack and snowshoes) I came to a screaming halt 2meters before the ledge with my legs still in a wide plow formation. My upper body position was so far forward that it catapulted me into a faceplant into the snow! Luckily I did not go over the edge and besides having a mouthful of snow, I was no worse for the wear. Deb had one wipeout too in a different location, so it was definitely fast skiing!

We zoomed out the rest of the way on skis and finished our first day in the 'dacks and a natural high from the adventure we just had. Long overdue! 2 more winters in the bag!

Stats:
Time: 7h 37mins
Distance: 25.3km
Ascent: 1323m (this could be off as my watch wasn't working well)

The Lake Superior Coastal Trail extends on 65km of coastline on the eastern edge of Lake Superior inside Ontario's Lake Superior Provincial Park north of Sault Ste Marie. Campsites along the coast are used by kayakers, long distance backpackers, and some short distance backpackers that hike in from the many access points for one night. Due to the high demand by different user groups, it is recommended you book early. We booked our trip exactly 5 months out and still had issues with getting our campsites spaced the way we wanted.

The Coastal Trail is characterized by being rugged and I would agree with this description. From my vast backpacking experience (including the Pukaskwa National Park Coastal Trail just north of this one),  this trail is indeed challenging and I would NOT recommend it for beginners. The trail requires good tread on boots, scrambling skills involving hand and feet maneuvers, and confidence with some exposure while on coastal rock drop offs and hopping over rock gaps. I was fortunate to have dry conditions hiking the trail and our entire group agreed that we would not want to be on the trail in wet conditions as it would be very dangerous.

Here is my trip report that took place on Sunday August 15th to Thursday August 19th, 2021.

Day 1: Gargantua to Rhyolite Cove (6km, 900ft ascent, 3hrs, 15 mins)

We woke up at a motel in Sault Ste Marie and travelled the 1.5 hour drive to the Agawa Visitor Centre for when it opened at 9AM. After a quick orientation we got our car permits and found out our originally planned exit was not open and so we had to shorten our trip by a few kilometers. This ended up working to our advantage as we had a long drive back home the final day and we felt we didn't miss out on much.

It takes about 1hour to drive from our exit point at Sinclair Cove Boat Launch to the Gargantua road trailhead. The posted 40km/hr speed limit on the 14km stretch of gravel on Gargantua road is somewhat of a joke, as most of the time you can only drive half that speed while dodging potholes and washouts. It is also a one lane road, so be attentive for drivers coming in the opposite direction to you.

We started the day at 11AM at the trailhead and headed out to Gargantua beach. The coastal trail actually heads north 10km on a easy cart trail but then ends and you have to turn around and re-trace your steps. Most groups skip this out-and-back part of the trail and our group elected to omit it. We headed south and needed to cover 6km to Rhyolite Cove. It didn't take long before the trail turned into what we had read about in other trip reports: steep up and downs, technical terrain requiring exact foot placements and varied mediums such as rooty dirt paths to coastal rock to boulder hopping. There was 1 kilometer that took us one hour to complete! For reference, our group of 6 are all highly experienced backpackers and mountaineers, and have extensive hiking experience in the Adirondacks (most of us are ADK 46ers). 

We arrived at Rhyolite Cove in the hot afternoon sun and set up camp on the red shores. We took a welcome dip in the lake and settled in to the rhythms of backcountry camping. In 2021, the park has added bear boxes at some of the campsites along the coastal trail. Rhyolite Cove did have one and despite seeing several more along the way, this was the only site in 4 nights that had one. The rest of the time we hung our food.

Day 2: Rhyolite Cove to Baldhead River (13.5km, 1700ft ascent, 8 hours)

The task for the day was to cover 13.5km of terrain. Reading other backpacker's trip reports, we knew this northern section of the trail was the toughest so we headed out on the trail at 8AM. We met a couple of groups still packing to head out in the first hour or so of the day. Terrain today including numerous coves with large boulders, small pebbles and rounded rocks that looked like dinosaur eggs mixed with some forested trail and rugged coastal rock.

The forecast for our trip was daily highs in the mid-20's (celcius) with a humidex factor around 30C in the afternoon. It became apparent each day that forested areas were shaded and cool but offered no air movement so the sweating was profuse. Out on the coast in the direct sunlight, the coastal environment offered a breeze. What we didn't anticipate before starting was how hot the rocks would get baking in the sun and would radiate heat back on to you like an oven leaving you literally dripping in sweat. Swimming in the lake at the end of each day was one of our top priorities.

​The Coastal trail is a marked path. It has two ways of marking: Rock cairns that show the way on the rocky coastline and blue plastic backpacker trail markers on trees where permissable. Given that active hiking requires intensive concentration on foot placements on this trail, were were glad we had 6 pairs of eyes on the lookout for the next cairn or marker. The trail is very well marked if you are attentive - we only made one mistake the entire trip.

The Baldhead River campspot was great - the area is busy with traffic from the Orphan Lake day hiking trail area. I did have cell service both here, Rhyolite and Coldwater but not in the southern sections that were ironically closer to the highway. 

Today's stats show how gruelling this section of trail was averaging less than 2km/hr.

dDay 3: Baldhead River to Coldwater River South (7.5km, 800 ft ascent, 3 hours)

Today was an usually short backpacking day (thank you competitive booking) so we decided to take a leisurely pace to start of the day. Two of our group members decided to go fishing up the Baldhead River for an hour and we didn't get on the trail until after 9AM. 

The terrain of the trail relaxes south of here but don't let your guard down as the trail won't let you be inattentive for long. Things still stay interesting and require you to earn your mileage. Today's hike started by walking up to a double bridge crossing of the Baldhead River and then back down to the coast. At the end of the bridge there is a sign indicating a trail left leading to the Orphan Lake loop and then another to the right to send you back on the Coastal trail. Back on the gravel beach we continued along until we saw an obvious trail opening and blue marker. Don't be fooled here...this is part of the Orphan Lake Loop and NOT the Coastal trail. Two of our group members made a mistake here as they had left early due to issue with blisters from the day before. When the rest of the group arrived we made the right navigational decision as we noticed a few things: there is a large trail sign that has it's back to you indicating the Coastal trail stays along the coast as well as a blue hiking sign with a hiker on it without a backpack (indicating a day hiking trail not a backpacking trail) and on the map which we pulled out the trail obviously was not the one we wanted. Don't be duped here!

The Coastal trail continues to the end of the gravel beach (as the trail normally does) and heads up a steep incline over a bump to what I am guessing is the highest point of the trail. As we had extra time, we took some leisurely breaks and were treated to a visit from a Bald Eagle. Descending down off the bump we passed the Coldwater North campsite and scampered off some boulders to a beautiful sandy beach which we assumed was the Coldwater campsites as the river was flowing through the middle of it. This area was busy with day users and we figured out quickly that the campsites on this beach (not marked on the map) were for short overnight trips only steps away from your parked car.

Up over another rocky point we found the Coldwater South sites on a tropical looking sandy beach. We arrived early and took advantage of the sandy cove bottom and lake water to cool off in. Our group that had gotten off track met up with us here.

Day 4: Coldwater South to Barrett Island (15.2km, 1700 ft ascent, 7.5 hours)

Knowing Day 4 would be the longest on the trip, we left our favourite campspot just before 8AM. We started off the day tackling some coastal boulders and rocky coastline that occupied us for the first hour or so. Passing by a family camping at the picturesque Robertson Cove we found ourselves soon entering the easiest section of the trail at Katherine Cove. Here the trail is again beside the highway and has day use parking areas for it's sandy beaches. We found a young family already swimming in the mid-morning. The forested trail here is fairly easy going and soon after we were in another section of sandy beach and we could see the popular bathtub island. We made some good time through this section of sandy beaches and dunes. We took the path up to the highway to cross the bridge at the Sand River which was under construction and down to one lane which provided some sketchy running over the bridge to beat traffic. 

Down to the shoreline again, we entered some coastline and flat forested trail before popping out onto the Barrett North campspots. By now it was early afternoon, around 1PM when the heat started to get oppressive. We met a couple here new to backpacking who wanted lightweight backpacking tips as we passed by. The Baldhead beach was beautiful but the heat intensity was strong and we were dying to get out of the direct sun and back in the forest. Looking at the map and knowing were past Barrett South, the map shows a maximum of 500m to Barrett Island campsites, our destination. This is where things get tricky - the trail undulates in and off the coast and up and down so many times that it was a few kilometers in distance travelled. We walked on the hot coastal rock and finally found our home for the night on a rocky beach. The Barrett Island campsites were not big enough for our group's two 2P and 2 1P tents and one of our group members had to pitch a tent on the rocky shore. We generally weren't impressed with the camping in this section. 

Day 5: Barrett Island to Sinclair Cove Boat Launch (3km, 300 ft ascent, 1 hour)

Today's hike started at 8AM again not knowing if the distance travelled would be 1km or more. It was more but only took an hour. Today was the only day the air was still and there was no wave action on the lake. The haze in the sky seemed to be caused by nearby forest fires but the turquoise clear lake water was stunning. We enjoyed our final hour of hiking through mossy outcroppings and a final group celebration at Sinclair Cove. 

Back at the car, the shuttle took 2 hours to complete. In the meantime, the two of us left at the cove checked out the pictographs and chatted with visitors.

The Coastal trail will be remembered as Ontario's hardest backpacking route but also the most scenic. I was happy to report my fitness met the challenge and my gravitation to lightweight backpacking gear paid off. My pack weight at the beginning was 26lbs!

Trail stats:
Gargantua to Sinclair Cove: 44 km
Ascent: 5474 ft ascent
Hiking time: 24.5 hours
Moving average 2.9km/hr
Overall average including lunch and breaks: 1.8 km/hr
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When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in Spring 2020, it drastically changed my summer travel plans so several Plan B’s started to develop. After travelling all across Canada in recent years to backpack some classic and off-the-beaten track trails, I decided I should check out the backpacking trail closest to where I live in my own province: The Western Uplands Backpacking Trail in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario. 

The Western Uplands trail consists of 3 loops that correspond to a short (~32km), medium (~54km) and long distances (~80km). The longest route (or 3rd loop) is over 80km long and is the one we chose to do this trip. When booking the campsites online, the system will only allow to book campsites within a certain distance away. If you are an experienced backpacker like myself, you may opt to call the park reservation agent and have them book campsites even further apart. We chose to do the loop in a clockwise rotation but you can choose to do it in either direction. From my experience it doesn’t matter which direction you travel. When we called to book many of the sites were taken so our choices were slim. If you must book Maggie Lake West like we did, it added an extra 4km to our total distance, which was 85km total!

Day 1 Wed August 12th : Trailhead to Maggie Lake West (14km, 1800ft ascent, 5 hours)

After a 3 hour drive to the Western Uplands trailhead, we were itching to get moving. We darted out of the car and across the bridge at 11AM, and chose the left trail at the first junction, sending us in a clockwise direction around the loop. The trail between the trailhead and Maggie is generally wide, well-travelled, and has some nice rolling hills. We found this part of the trail was the busiest that we encountered the entire trip and we started the trip on a Wednesday! One of the most surprising things was the disproportionately high number of all-female backpacking duos and groups.  I was so amazed, and also insanely happy to see this number of women out in the backcountry. Awesome!

We arrive at Maggie Lake and began our lengthy 2km detour to the west side of the lake to find our first campsite. The 2km (+2km back) detour may have been worth it as the campsite was awesome and the water was this awesome green colour that didn't come across well in any of the photos. The consistent breeze made the 31 degree humidex weather feel more tolerable and a dip in the lake felt amazing. We were able to dry out all our damp gear, eat a hearty meal and head to the tent at sunset.

Day 2 Thursday August 13th: Maggie Lake West to Islet Lake (30km, 3000ft ascent, 9 hrs)

Wake up time was 6AM as we knew this would be a long day distance-wise. Adding up the kilometres on the backpacking routes map we figured it would be a monster 27km day. I had only done a maximum of 23 km backpacking in the past so I was nervous and wanted to leave enough time to get to Islet Lake. Our average moving time including breaks the day before was 3.2km/hr so we figured it would take 9 hours to get there. 10 years ago I was backpacking with a 90L pack that weighed over 40lbs. In 2015 and 2017 I did backpacking trips with a 75L pack with pack weights in the 30lb range. On this trip (albeit shorter) I did this trip with a 55L pack with 27lbs. Lighter packs enable you to go further and get less tired in a day...well at least that was the theory that I was going to test out!

We were on the trail at 7:20AM and had to re-trace our steps back to the 2km to the main trail. We passed by many campsites with hikers still nestled in their tents. We handrailed Maggie Lake for some time before breaking away and heading north. This section of trail is fairly easy and before you know it you're at the turnoff to the first loop. We continued passed this turn off and for the next 7.6km or so the trail moves up and down over some hills (some are steep) and down through soupy mud puddles. Although our trip had 4 days straight of sun, it was apparent that the trail had recently been exposed to rain as the mud puddles were quite saturated meaning one misstep and you could end up with a soaker! The most prominent feature in this section is 'Bean's Boulder', a massive erratic that is parked right beside the trail that we conveniently used as an excuse for a rest stop. Soon after we came across two women about to pass us who had just gotten lost near Clara Lake by taking the portage trail instead of the hiking trail and wound up bushwhacking there way back to the trail. They had a long day ahead of them and had just added 3km to to their day. Yikes!

We arrived at Clara Lake in time for lunch and ate at the campsite right on the trail. This site is convenient with benches and easy access to water in case you need to filter some more water for your bottles. We noticed that on this site was also somewhat of a garbage dump laid with a heavy propane gas cylinder and random wrappers. I don't mind packing out garbage like wrappers but I draw the line at heavy objects. I wish people would just abide by the leave no trace principles and pack out what they packed in.

Leaving Clara Lake we passed over a beautiful ridge before descending down to the junction with the third loop. At the 17km mark for the day, Pincher Lake would have been a great place to set up camp and call it a day. It looks like a nice lake! We continued on and passed two male hikers who gave us a heads up of a tough climb ahead of us. This climb was to the lookout beside Stammer Lake. The climb was probably the longest and steepest climb of the trip, but wasn't anywhere as near as a steep and long as a Adirondack Peak. At the top of the ridge, you reach what feels like the height of land and can see into the distance initially and then it slowy drops down as you move through it. What we welcomed at this 'summit' was a breeze that had been absent all day in the sweltering heat. Once the descent was complete the march along Weed Lake and into Islet eases off and becomes fairly flat - something we were grateful for at the end of the 30km day.  Yes the GPS indicated we had done 30km, not 27km as per the map. We stayed on the southern most campsite on Islet which was good except for some slightly angled tent platforms. It was around that time when I notice that the bottom tip of my hiking pole was missing and the carbon shaft had cracked. I must have got it stuck in some mud puddle somewhere. My Black Diamond Carbon Cork Poles owe me nothing - they are over 10 years old and have been with me through thousands of miles on all my day hikes and backpacking trips. I was able to finish this hike and order a new lower shaft from Black Diamond for $9.95 USD. A 9 hour effort today was deserving of a cold drink, but one that would have to wait for another day. Instead we hydrated with Nuun tablets in our water bottles. Swimming was great on this lake and the loons put on a show!

Day 4 Saturday August 15th: Redwing Lake to Trailhead (14km, 1200 ft ascent, 3.5 hours)

Another early rising day we woke up to a chilly morning. Deb was already out of her tent and lowering the food hang. I hollered out "Is there snow out there?" and we all chuckled and wore a an extra layer getting out of the tent. The cool air was something we wanted to take advantage of so we were on the trail by 7:45AM.

Glenn's blisters had really grown in yesterday's heat and the blister bandages we brought did not stick to his feet.  Today I pulled out the roll of athletic tape and re-visited my taping skills from my athletic therapy days and taped up his heels. He was able to hike out the rest of the trip no problem which I was grateful for as he was contemplating wearing his crocs out! 

The section from Redwing Lake to the junction of the first loop seemed to go by quickly. Campsites were all full passing Lupus Lake, Thunder lake and Romona Lake. The difference in the trail in the first loop junction was incredible. The trail widened significantly and the rest of the way out was an easy march. We even saw a trail runner who was running the first loop! We were out just after 11AM, a fast and easy end to the trip. We high-fived each other, took a quick selfie and headed to the Mad Musher restaurant in Whitney.  Check out my video of the trip below!

Recommendations/Notes:
- Call to reserve sites with larger distance gaps as online booking limits distances
- If experienced and deciding to do the 3rd loop, booking 4 nights would be best
- Do not leave garbage behind on the sites, in firepits, or on the trail. Pack out everything you packing in.
- Booking in August or September would be better for avoiding bugs
- The trail is mainly in the woods, not many views
- Moose sign becomes more and more apparent in the 2nd and 3rd loops
- Trail is more overgrown in 3rd loop but still easy to follow
- Campsites can accommodate 1 tent for sure, some 2, and rarely 3.
- Larger lakes are more 'swimmable' as some smaller lakes are weedy and shallow
- If there has been recent rains, the muddy spots on the trail will be more soupy so gaitors would be recommended. 
-Even if all campsites are full the trail does not feel crowded and lakes don't seem busy
-Trail markers are Blue on the 1st loop, Yellow on the 2nd, and Red on the 3rd
-There is cell service at Maggie Lake (I use Bell Mobility)
-Buy your Backpacking Trail Map from Friends of Algonquin Park 
-Gear List for the Western Uplands
-Blog for food and recipes - coming soon!

Totals:
Distance: 85km
Ascent: 8855 ft
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