So I've been completing different levels of my Duke of Edinburgh Award for the past six years, which has introduced me to the world of backpacking - something I never thought I'd do. To date, I've gone on seven big camping trips: five of them backpacking (including Algonquin which I've written about), two of them with a base camp.
About a year ago I set off on a four day hike in the Bruce Peninsula - one of the most gorgeous National Parks I've been to so far. For anyone looking for a bit of a challenge, I would definitely recommend this trip! The weather at the time was much nicer than what we're experiencing this year, and April/May was the perfect time to go with almost no bugs in sight.
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| Map of Bruce Peninsula |
We started off day one at the end of Crane Lake Road where we headed towards our first campsite - High Dump. Overall the hike was pretty relaxed, some hilly parts but nothing too extreme. The trail was very well marked (as is almost all parts of the Bruce Trail) and we had no problems in terms of navigation.
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| Trail towards High Dump |
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| Securing dry sacks (100 times easier than using a tree) |
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The campsite itself was very nice. A rope was secured at the top of the site to guide us down towards the less hazardly area of the campsite. There were four platforms where we pitched our tents (as the entire area was situated on a hill) and there was a small clearance where a fire pit was located. We were extremely pleased to see an outhouse at the campsite - luxury camping at it's finest!
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| Waterfront at High Dump Campsite |
The second day we headed towards Storm Haven, stopping to admire some of the views along the way. The trail was a little bit more difficult with rocky sections - but nothing we couldn't handle! We got stuck in a couple areas, but we were able to retrace our steps and get back on the right track in no time.
The campsite was absolutely gorgeous. One of the most enjoyable campsites I've ever been to in my life. It was similar to High Dump, however there were flat rocks which lined the waterfront almost like an amphitheater - perfect for cooking and relaxing after the day's hike.
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| Storm Haven waterfront |
On day three we set out to our last campsite by Cyprus Lake. The hike itself was pretty short, so we took the opportunity to detour and stop at a number of sights along the way.
The hardest part of the hike was through an extremely rocky section of the trail. The sharp rocks along with the weight of our packs and our heavy boots made it extremely uncomfortable.
There were some really cool places to climb and explore along the way. At one point we saw two day hikers climb into what looked like a random hole in the ground. To our surprise it led to an even more scenic area closer to the water.
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| Overhanging point |
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| Somewhere under overhanging point |
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And finally - our last night was spent at a campsite by Cyprus Lake. Unfortunately the campsite was not by the water, and there were a number of mosquitoes which wanted nothing more than to attack us. We had to walk about 10 minutes to get to the closest water source which made the task of purifying the water more tedious. Later in the evening as we were building a fire, a lovely raccoon decided unzip the door to one of our tents and explore the inside *yay*. After chaotically chasing out the little rascal we spent our last night playing cards and getting ready for the long trip back to Toronto via Greyhound Bus.
Anddd that's it! :)
-M
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