19 August 2016, Friday It was finally cool last night. The high today will only be in the 60’s. We devour our cinnamon buns and then drive to the historic East Gate of the park, historic because this is the only original entrance structure remaining in a national park in Canada. The day is drizzly and gray when we leave camp. We catch a glimpse of the view from the
18 August 2016, Thursday We wake eager to get to the White House Bakery in Wasagaming for breakfast. As we drive down Rt 10 we pass a doe and two still-spotted fawns. We find the bakery and true to reviews, there is, at 7:52 am, already (a short) line waiting to get in. The doors open precisely at 8 am. We find a table and await our cinnamon bun french
17 August 2016, Wednesday I am awake at 4:30 am this morning listening to a torrential downpour accompanied by rumbles of thunder. Some of the contractors are already awake, talking and laughing quietly. By the time our 6 am alarm goes off, the rain has ceased. We walk over to the restaurant and are greeted by Steve. He asks if we would like bacon and eggs again. I ask for
16 August 2016, Tuesday The sky is blue and the tent and tarp are soaked, not from rain, but from dew. We take our time over breakfast hoping that the sun, now peeking over the pines across the river, will dry our equipment. Turns out we have to help the sun, hand drying the tent fly and poles with a small towel and vigorously shaking off the tarp. Not until
15 August 2016, Monday We are up at 6, showered and at the restaurant by 6:30. The contractors are gone already. Steve is waiting to cook our breakfast. He says our timing is perfect. While we are eating he snaps our picture. He and Thiti, his wife, are hoping to post pictures of people who visit to hike the trail to the falls. We chat for awhile and, inevitably, the
14 August 2016, Sunday We bid adieu to La Chaumiere du Village and drive north on Route 6 for over 400 miles, passing the 55th parallel on the way. It seems a long way north, until I look at the map of Manitoba and find we are only half way to its northern border with Nunavut. Expansive fields of soy give way to boreal forests of balsam pine and aspen.
13 August 2016, Saturday After a very restful night and a delicious breakfast we laze around in the cozy living room at La Chaumiere B&B. I work on catching up my blog. O researches new pocket sized cameras. Alas, before we left home his six plus year old camera was left in a pants pocket and took a spin through the washer and dryer. We took the chip and the
12 August 2016, Friday The sunrise paints the sky across Marie Louise Lake a brilliant red as we strike the tent and repack the tarp. We arrive at Tina’s Breakfast and Lunch restaurant in Thunder Bay before 9 and eat a rather substantial breakfast. We are soon back on the road westward. There is still a large expanse of Ontario to cover before we arrive in Manitoba. We pass many
11 August 2016, Thursday The forecast today is for rain. Our only plans are for showers and laundry. We sleep in until 8 am after yesterday’s long hike. Following our breakfast of a golden brown cheese and bacon potato cake we drive to the main campground. The showers are empty. I guess no one wants to shower on a cold rainy morning. After my very hot and very welcome shower,
10 August 2016, Wednesday We are up early having blueberry scones with local blueberry syrup to fortify ourselves before our 22.4 km hike up the Sleeping Giant and back. We need to get a fairly early start in order to get back to camp at a reasonable hour for supper. We pack plenty of water, lots of snacks, and rain gear for the 20% chance of showers. The hike begins