Row Row Row The Boat

I survived the great Canadian wilderness! We decided that it was time for us to go and explore the beautiful landscapes and become a true Canadian outdoorsy. Now was the time the leaves were in their most beautiful colours and the temperatures still suitable to be outdoor. We picked one of the most famous National Parks in the region called Algonquin. The park is located about 350km north of Toronto, so we had to get up very very early in the morning to catch the bus taking us there. I was giddy and excited, nonetheless. I was hoping to see real wild animals, a moose or even a bear! I really wanted to see a bear! Still, as soon as we got on the bus my eyes got heavier and heavier and finally, I dozed off.

It took us several hours to get to the park. As we got off the bus, it was a great deal colder outside than it was in downtown Toronto. Luckily, I brought the newest addition to my meagre wardrobe: my possum pullover!

Our first stop was at a lake on the outskirts of the park. There, a little wood cabin rented out canoes and canoeing gear. We all got into line and were each handed a paddle and a life jacket and given some final instructions. Carefully, we got into these slim and wobbly canoes, one person at the front, one at the back and one in the middle. The sight was beautiful! Trees of amazing colours bordered the lake, little fish were causing the water to ripple and it was simply peaceful. There were no sounds except for the paddles diving into the water making repetitive little splashing sounds, birds calling out somewhere and the rustling of the foliage in the wind. I could have stayed in that boat all day long just paddling along, enjoying the peace and beauty of nature and letting the mind drift off. Unfortunately, there were some more things to do and we soon had to paddle back.

The bus took us to our next destination: the first hiking trail for the day. The journey went well at least until the bus turned off the main road. As the bus drove on a little dirt road I grew more and more concerned. The trees´ branches were hanging low and the path was ever so narrow. As soon as I expressed my doubts that this road was probably not meant for busses we could hear an awful scraping noise and the bus came to a sudden halt. The bus had run aground on a bump in the road! We all had to leave the bus and stood around watching, while some of the guys and the organizer tried digging at the dirt. It took them two hours to free the bus. By the time the bus was slowly moving back down the dirt road we were growing hungry and restless. We wanted to go and explore!

Finally, we started the hike around a lake that took us through lovely woodlands. It had rained all morning, therefore everything was wet and slippery. Nevertheless, we had a lot of fun. After that long and tiring walk all we wanted was food. We went to a tourist cabin where hikers could take a break, buy some lunch and rest. Due to the delay it was decided that we would have only half an hour for our lunch break. This was rather stressful because it took us ten minutes just to wait in line and order food, let alone find a place to sit and eat our meal.

The last stop for the day was another hiking route. This time the trail would lead us to a cliff from where you had an amazing view. On our way there we came across a little chipmunk that was awfully upset that we intruded its territory. I did not know that these little fluffballs were that loud! There was a thick blanket of leaves on the ground and it was really fun kicking up the leaves and ruffle through them. Also, I turned back into a little girl picking up the prettiest leaves and taking a whole bunch of them back home with me. When we arrived at the cliff I was speechless. You could see for miles and miles and miles. There were thousands of trees in all different colours, a lake far far away and a clear blue sky. We sat down on the edge for a bit just looking at the sheer beauty of the place.

When we were on our way back home, I was extremely tired. Not only did we get up really early in the morning, we also had a lot of exercise with all the canoeing and hiking. Luckily, it took us nearly four hours to get back home, so I had plenty of time for a nice long nap.

I don´t think I have ever experienced the fall season to be as nice as this. Autumn is completely different here, than it is at home. It is more fun, not as wet (at least not yet) and the colours are so vibrant! I reckon this is my new favourite season of the year! And although I did not see any wildlife (except for the little chipmunk) the canoeing made up for it all.