Killarney Canoe Trip

I wanted to take my son up to Killarney Provincial Park this summer so I made my booking back in early May. My wife and I have been up to Killarney several times when we were first married but I haven't been back for fifteen years. When I made the booking I was told I could have up to nine people per site, so I thought It would be a good opportunity to invite my two brothers and some of my nieces and nephews to come along.

We arrived at the park via the Bell Lake Access Road and obtained our permits from the Killarney Kanoes outfitter located at the put in point. When you make your reservation at the park you book a spot on a lake, in our case we had one night on Bell Lake, two on David Lake and one on Balsam Lake. The sites on the lake are chosen on a first come first served basis. Our plan was to stay on site number 74 on the western end of Bell Lake and fortunately for us there was no one there. In fact the park wasn't busy at all and we found throughout our visit that we could chose any site we wanted.

The tents were pitched for the night and we proceeded to settle down to steaks and sausage on the grate that was left there for us.  Each site is equipped with a "treasure box" latrine tucked away several yards from the camping area.  We hung our food bags away from camp in an appropriate tree to deter the bears or any other unwelcome animals from tampering with them.

Supper our First Night

The next morning we awoke to a calm lake and a spectacular view of Silver Peak which we would be climbing the next day.

Site 74 on Bell Lake Looking West Towards Silver Peak

Site 74 on Bell Lake looking East

We were all sitting around the fire having our breakfast when my son shouts "there's a bear swimming across the lake, I'm not even kidding you!"  I looked up to see the bear's head just out of the water swimming to the shore to our right.  I was too slow with the camera but my niece caught the picture below as the bear exited the lake.

We packed our things and headed off towards David Lake.  We would need to make a 745 metre portage to a beaver dammed lake and then another 200 metre portage into David Lake.  The wind was strong and made paddling difficult but we made it to our first choice for our campsite, site number 106.  It had a great view of the LaCloche Mountain Range but there was a steep climb to the tenting site and the ground was uneven.  We settled on site number 100, one of two sites on a large island in the middle of the lake.

Canoeing on the Lake Between the Portages from Bell to David Lake

I brought along a hammock I had recently purchased to try out on this trip - a Grand Trunk Ultralight.  The night before I was cold so at my brother's suggestion I placed my Thermarest mattress inside the hammock which coupled with a touque made for a cozy nights sleep, the best I've had in some time in the bush.

Relaxing in the Hammock

My brother challenged me to make the night's fire using the bow and drill so I obliged using an excellent piece of cedar I found that was in just the right state of decay. There were also some silver birch trees that supplied excellent tinder along with some punkwood from the decayed cedar. I also found some chaga that was growing on one of the white birch trees.

The next morning we waited out the rain before we set out on our hike up to the summit of Silver Peak. The trail is accessed from the south end of David Lake between sites 104 and 105 which is actually a portage to Boundary Lake. On the way to the summit we came upon a black bear feeding on the blueberries which were in abundance on the slopes.

 

Black Bear Feeding on the Blueberries

The hike to the summit was fairly strenuous and rocky but we took several breaks before making it to the top.  At the top you can see Georgian Bay and Manitoulin Island as well as the stacks in Sudbury.  The four stone foundations are still there as a reminder of the fire watch tower that once stood there back in the fifties.

On the Summit of Silver Peak in Killarney Provincial Park

We made it back to our site after a total of around five hours and enjoyed another meal around the campfire. Tonight's challenge was to boil water in a plastic water bottle, something my brother had seen on Survivorman.

There are some very large white pine trees around site 100 which I understand were logged extensively in the early days of the area.  Most nights the loons would call each other from lake to lake and would continue off and on early into the morning.  Here's an example.

The next morning were awoke to another calm lake and a beautiful sunrise.

Morning on Site 115 on Balsam Lake

We broke camp and proceeded to chase a Loon across the lake on our way to the next portage to Balsam Lake.  It is easy to lose your bearings while on the water but the GPS coupled with the park map led us to the portage entrance.

Loon on Balsam Lake

We chose to stay at site 115 which was close to the portage we would need to take the next day to Three Mile Lake on our way out.  The boys tried there luck at fishing and were able to catch rock bass with just about every cast and my brother caught a nice sized pike.

There are indeed many Balsam Fir trees on Balsam Lake so I decided to try another bowdrill fire using a partially decayed specimen.  I tried several times unsuccessfully with one section but was successful on the first try with another section.

The Treasure Chest on site 115

We set of on our final morning over what was once a lift over that once employed a trolley that you could steer your canoe onto and push it over into the next lake.  I remember using it back in the nineties on our last visit but it was apparently removed after some clowns decided to ride it while sitting in the canoe which injured themselves and the trolley.

We continued on against a moderate wind  to our put in point and drove into the town of Killarney which was once a favorite stopping point for the voyageurs years ago.  We made a stop at the Herbert Fisheries fish and chip bus for a plate of fish and chips before heading home.

Fish and Chip Bus in Killarney Ontario