Backcountry Hike – Trailchew https://trailchew.com Trail Maps, Photos, Stats and Info Thu, 01 Oct 2020 15:03:52 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.3.2 https://trailchew.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/cropped-Trailchew-Icon--32x32.jpg Backcountry Hike – Trailchew https://trailchew.com 32 32 Frontenac Provincial Park – Little Clear Lake Loop Hike https://trailchew.com/frontenac-provincial-park-little-clear-lake-loop-hike/ https://trailchew.com/frontenac-provincial-park-little-clear-lake-loop-hike/#comments Tue, 09 Oct 2018 21:01:45 +0000 http://trailchew.com/?p=698 Two and a half hours east of Toronto, you will find Frontenac Provincial Park. Frontenac has 160 km of trails that are situated on a section of the Canadian Shield…

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Two and a half hours east of Toronto, you will find Frontenac Provincial Park. Frontenac has 160 km of trails that are situated on a section of the Canadian Shield where it meets the Adirondack Mountains. One of the best hikes in Frontenac follows the Little Salmon and Little Clear Lake loop. Starting out, the trail heads northward through the middle of the park under a canopy of Oaks, Beeches Birches and Maples. This section of the park is effortless, and lets you soak in the wilderness.

  •     Total Distance: 15 km
        Elevation Gain: 268 m
        Time: 3 to 4 Hours

Frontenac Little Clear Lake

Lots of Deer

Once you get north of the 401, the drive to Frontenac Provincial Park is quite enjoyable. But take your time, because there are lots of deer in the park. Subsequently, after two days of hiking, I ended up removing ten black legged ticks from my poor dog. My Ridgeback is basically a miniature deer, so no chance I will be bringing her back in the fall. More importantly, bring a tick removal tool and don't use your fingers.

 

Campsite

Fall camping at Frontenac Provincial Park is all about good timing, or being flexible at the last minute. So, waiting for a warm weather system and some sunshine will work wonders. Tripping during the week is sometimes the only option when booking last minute. Luckily, Frontenac had sites open on the weekend. Its worth noting, these back country sites are clustered, which means you will have neighbors. On the other hand, a weekday trip will offer a better chance for a quite evening. The Little Clear Lake site has a tent platform, picnic table, grills and an outhouse. Which is pretty great compared to other back country sites in Ontario. 

Frontenac Little Clear Lake
Frontenac Little Clear Lake

The 160 km trail system is massive and well planned. Portaging is a great option, yet almost all the campsites are accessible by foot. Most routes are broken down into loops, which wrap around the lakes. The trail markings were interesting and super easy to follow. Another reason why this is one of the best hikes in Frontenac, is because the sites are clustered. Was so nice not having to constantly look at the map to link trails together. To sum it up, all you need to know is the campsite number to casually hike km's into the park.   

 

History, Howls and Leaves

Frontenac Provincial Park has some history, as some trails include really old rusted out farming equipment. Yet, deer and coyotes seem to run the place now. My dog is not a fan of the late night howls, but it was pretty cool for the first 20 minutes. The main reason I came to the park was to check out the autumn leaves. The earthy smell and warm feeling of autumn is strong here. With the park being open later in the season, it is a great option for your next fall camping trip.   

 

Ultra Marathon and The La Cloche Trail

The Frontenac trail system is huge, which sets up nice for a marathon trail run/walk. The Frontenac Challenge is a personal feat you can sign up for at the Park's Office free of charge. To clarify, it involves an attempt to complete the 11 trail loops in the park during the months of Sep and Oct. Total distance clocks in around 160 km's of backcountry fun. Great way to experience all the best hikes in Frontenac Provincial Park. Another Ontario trail system with 82kms of nature is the La Cloche Trail in Killarney Provincial Park.

Frontenac Little Salmon Lake Loop
Frontenac Little Salmon Lake Loop
Frontenac Little Salmon Lake Loop

Trip Advice

  • 4 Hour Hike

  • Try to Prevent Tick Bites

  • Great Sites but they are Clustered

  • Amazing Fall Colours

  • Deer and Coyotes

  • Frontenac Challenge 160 km

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]]> https://trailchew.com/frontenac-provincial-park-little-clear-lake-loop-hike/feed/ 1 La Cloche Silhouette Trail – Killarney Provincial Park – Multi Day Hike https://trailchew.com/la-cloche-silhouette-trail-killarney-provincial-park-multi-day-hike/ https://trailchew.com/la-cloche-silhouette-trail-killarney-provincial-park-multi-day-hike/#respond Fri, 24 Aug 2018 14:55:40 +0000 http://demo.codesupply.co/authentic/?p=26 Just North of Toronto, the La Cloche Silhouette Trail in Killarney Provincial Park offers one truly amazing multi day backcountry hike. The 80km trail is unforgiving, rugged and worth the…

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Just North of Toronto, the La Cloche Silhouette Trail in Killarney Provincial Park offers one truly amazing multi day backcountry hike. The 80km trail is unforgiving, rugged and worth the effort. The bright quartzite peaks gleam under the sun, and provide a beautiful contrast to the windex blue lakes. Deciduous trees are a plenty, which makes it a great fall camping adventure.

  •     Trail Distance 80 km
        Total Elevation Gain 2800 m
        Total Time 1 to 8 Days

Getting Started

On a good day, the commute is around 4.5 hours north of Toronto. The La Cloche Silhouette Trail starts and ends at the George Lake Campground, but it is close to a 20 minute walk across the campground. Parking closer to the finish might be in your best interest, as normal people will want their last day to be as short as possible. Choose your direction wisely, as the elevation chart below points out the trail is significantly more challenging while you are hiking through the La Cloche Mountain Range.

Killarney La Cloche Elevation Counter Clockwise

Trail markings are colour coded to distinguish between side trails, campsite access, and the La Cloche trail. In addition to the trail markings, there are also giant rock piles that hikers have added to help blaze the trail. Even with all the markings, rock piles, and three sets of eyes, we still went off course a bunch of times. Downloading an offline map is super handy for getting back on course. One option is Gaia GPS, Another option is AllTrails. Unfortunately, you will have to pay some money to download the offline maps.    

Finding water was a bit challenging, so plan your stops ahead of time if you have some big days planned. I have been using the Sawyer Mini, and feel fairly confident dipping it into almost anything, so far so good. After water, the next thing to think about is your feet. If you get blisters like me, you might want to wear two pairs of socks, and lube your feet to avoid hot spots. Nothing worse than twisting an ankle halfway, so please watch your footing. Of course, on day two it rained for the entire 7 hours of hiking. We bailed on the slick rocks close to six times between the three of us. When it gets wet, watch out for those dark slimy rocks.

 

Wildlife

We heard a moose walking through the marsh before sunrise. One passerby mentioned they came across a family of black bears. Thanks to the wet weather, the number toads along the trail was crazy. Night two at Threenarrows, I forgot to remove an empty wrapper from my backpack, and we ending up hearing a mouse beside our tent side for most of the night.

Route

The park recommends tackling the trail in 7-10 days, which is around 12-8 km a day. Eric Batty completed the entire 80 km loop in 9 hours and 25 minutes alongside Ryan Atkins. There at least another dozen times on Strava, where the trail was conquered in one day. Regardless, if you go max speed or relax mode, you have signed up for some suffering, so why not tackle the 2nd highest peak in Ontario. Silver Peak is a 2 km hike up 300 meters of elevation. It doesn't look much higher thank the other peaks, but it is that spike in the elevation chart. Great trail!  

 

Shortcut or Swim

If  you are feeling a bit rough, and are in need a 3 km short cut. Its easy to cross the dam 1 km north of Topaz Lake. Lots of boaters enjoy parking at the Pool so they can hike into Topaz Lake. Whisky Jack lake is another Windex lake close to the trail, but you will have to bushwhack to find one of the clearest lakes in the park.

 

Campsites

We camped at Silver Lake and Threenarrows Lake. The La Cloche sites have to be called in and can't be booked online. Bookings for Ontario Provincial Parks are available five months in advance. The difficulty of the trail and the weather can sometimes cause people to unexpectedly alter their campsite schedule. You never know when the weather is going to peak, but early fall camping is a pretty safe bet. If you have the right sleeping bag, then maybe consider visiting the last two weeks of September or the first two weeks of October for a glimpse of Killarney when the Autumn Colours Peak.

 

FKT and Similar Trails

The La Cloche Silhouette Trail is one of the biggest adventures you can undertake in Ontario. The Fastest Known Time of 9 hours by Ryan Atkins is mind boggling. If you like to go fast and enjoy a sufferfest, then putting down a fast time on this trail is super fulfilling. Another awesome Ontario trail system is the Frontenac Trail System which includes 160Km of trail. 

  • Trip Advice

  • 7-10 Day Hike

  • Wear 2 Pairs of Socks

  • Look at Elevation Before Choosing Route

  • Amazing View from The Crack

  • Pretty Great View on Top of Silver Peak

  • Bear, Moose and Toads

  • Go for a Swim in Topaz Lake

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]]> https://trailchew.com/la-cloche-silhouette-trail-killarney-provincial-park-multi-day-hike/feed/ 0 Bruce Trail Hike to Stormhaven Beach https://trailchew.com/bruce-trail-hike-to-stormhaven-beach/ https://trailchew.com/bruce-trail-hike-to-stormhaven-beach/#respond Wed, 06 Jun 2018 20:56:42 +0000 http://trailchew.com/?p=656 The Bruce trail meanders over rocky cliffs, and into the forest as it punches up and down its way to Stormhaven beach. Not much elevation, but this is technical Bruce…

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The Bruce trail meanders over rocky cliffs, and into the forest as it punches up and down its way to Stormhaven beach. Not much elevation, but this is technical Bruce Trail Hike will require focus. There are multiple lookouts worth checking out. Sections of the park are busier than others, with the Grotto being the most visited landmark. Only Three hours northwest of Toronto, is one of the best parks in Ontario. 

Bruce Peninsula Trail Stormhaven Beach Campsite

Route

This section of the Bruce trail hike starts off with a gentle graveled pathway, as it takes you from the Half Way Log dump parking lot straight to the beach. Once you see your first glimpse of the bright blue water, it is easy to walk right by the Bruce trail. So, once you are done Instagraming, make sure you come back up the trail and look for the white trail blaze. Note, there is a trail that runs along the beach below the Bruce trail, you don't want to take it. For the next 3 km, you will enjoy fun rocky and rooty sections. The trail is wide, well maintained, and also great for a technical trail run. There are two lookout’s worth checking out. The second one being the better, with a view of Stormhaven beach in the distance.

 

Campsite

Stormhaven beach is great option if you want to get away from the crowds. This backcountry campsite is always full, but it's one of the best options for camping in the area. The sites are clustered together, with anywhere from 30 to 100 feet of distance between you and your neighbor. There is an upper cluster and a more desired lower cluster. The lower cluster is steps away from the beach. The best site can be found at the far end, as it offers the most privacy. All the sites have fairly new decks with enough room for two medium sized tents, or one large tent. Surprisingly, no fires allowed. Even though the campsites are remote, the local Ranger still checks in once a day to see if anyone is misbehaving. If you are up to no good, you better have a listen for the ATV. Big fines for fires. 

 

The Beach

Stormhaven beach is massive. Even though the campsites are a bit too close, the space available for relaxing on the beach is amazing. Head any direction on the beach, and you will find some extra peace and quite. If you head south along the beach, you will find yourself at Cave Point. If you don't mind getting your feet wet, then you can make it all the way to the caves. The caves are actually more like concave holes in the cliff face, yet the sheer size of the wall and boulders is what its all about. There are some other caves on the route if you can find them. 

Bruce Peninsula Trail Cave Point Stormhaven Beach
Bruce Peninsula Trail Stormhaven Beach Campsite
Bruce Peninsula Trail Stormhaven Campsite Sunset
Bruce Peninsula Stormhaven Beach Pebbles

Trip Advice

  • 1.5 Hour Hike

  • Bring Decent Hiking Footwear

  • Lower Cluster Sites are the Best

  • Check Out Cave Point

  • Watch Out for the Ranger

  • Tobermory Brewing Company

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