In late August we headed up to Rock Lake for a week. We were able to book a waterfront site, which is always a bonus. Camping in the non-electrical area, is far more civilized than the other electrical campground here, which is akin to being packed into a sardine can.
It is a really nice drive through the Ottawa Valley to get to Algonquin Park. In particular, Eganville is home to a favourite treat...the Chelsea sticky bun.
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| the most important sign in Eganville |
Most sites were filled with tents or trailers, lots of summertime activity happening. Plenty of sun on our site, so in addition to the awning, I put up a couple of the Coolaroo sun shades I had created last summer. This provided some nice shade for a corner of the mat where we put Barley’s enclosure. He loves being outside so we make it as comfortable for him as possible.
We were joined on this trip by Ian & Karen and Malcolm & Tanya, long time fellow Alto owners, as well as Harold & Janet, longtime friends of Ian & Karen, who have a nice looking Lance truck camper. Always fun to camp with friends.
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| merganser |
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| the mornings were cool |
One afternoon we went to the Algonquin Logging Museum and walked their interpretive trail with Ian & Karen. It provides an excellent view of the history of logging in the park, and how the process moved forward with the evolution of mechanical tools to help the workers. Reading the info boards and looking at the machinery and original logging buildings gives one a good sense of the hard sweaty work these men endured...and the ever present danger of the job.
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| massive logs back in the day |
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| a pulley system to haul logs up a hill...note the hand operation |
We enjoyed a few happy hours at each others sites, and like at Driftwood, we shared evening meal hosting with Malcolm and Tanya. This is a great way to ease the meal prep when camping with another couple, and always a tasty experience.
We got in a couple of nice paddles both down the lake and then through the river connecting to Whitefish Lake to the north. Dale also got in a nice long paddle with Karen. The weather all week was perfect, comfortably warm during the days and cool for sleeping at night.
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| the water was like glass |
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| a little guy giving Dale the swerve |
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| Tanya & Malcolm |
Some observers along the little river to Whitefish Lake.
Malcolm & Tanya tried out their new Solo Stove. As part of their purchase package, they received the new pellet adaptor, so we gave a pellet fire a test run. The pellets are available in most hardware stores, and Malcolm started out with about a two inch layer in the bottom of the stove. Using fire starters, the pellets got the fire going well in about ten minutes. Soon after that, the secondary burn through the upper holes got going and that is when the flames became absolutely amazing to watch, and the heat output was incredible. This heat would be great in the shoulder seasons to take the evening chill off. With the absence of logs, it was a different type of fire, the constant secondary burn made the flames roll and dance...quite mesmerizing. Definitely pellets are great accessory to have, especially if the camp wood is crappy or wet.
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| amazing flames |
One afternoon we drove to the Lake of Two Rivers camp store, as I was on the hunt for a new Algonquin T-shirt, and the real reason...they serve Kawartha Dairy ice cream cones. We shared an ABC (apple,bacon,cheddar) grilled cheese with fries, and of course, the cones for dessert. We headed back to the site stuffed to the gills, and with a new T-shirt, and other camp store goodies.
It was great to spend this week at Rock Lake with friends. We were so fortunate to get an entire week of sun, blue skies, and the lake water was so warm. Excellent place to paddle and swim, with lots of trails to explore in a classic Canadian Shield provincial park.
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