Algonquin Provincial Park
So, whats the big deal with this park I keep talking about, you ask? You have to have been there to see it yourself. First off, its big - 7700 square kilometers or thereabouts - larger than a fair number of countries, . It was created in 1893 to protect the head waters of the rivers that flow from within its borders, and to provide a place where people could see nature.
Untouched by humans Algonquin is not. The area has been logged since the early 1800's (check that), and some parts of the park are still logged today, by the Algonquin Foresty Authority - an Ontario Crown Corporation. Now, the logging that goes on in the park today is heavily restricted - you could travel all over the park and never see a cut area, unless you knew where to look. Logging is not permitted within 500 meters of water front, and cutting is restricted to certain times as well.
Rail lines were cut aross many sections of the park - at first to pull lumber out, and then to bring tourists in. There is even a few abandoned airfields. One of the interesting things about this is to see how quickly nature recovers from our intrusions. You can walk along several of the old rail lines, and unless you knew that there was once trains passing as frequently as once every twenty minutes, you might never know. In some places, you can come across wreckage of various sorts, like abandonded boilers, or parts of logging equipment to heavy to haul out, but nature is working on those as well.
Or, I can talk about the abundance of wildlife - bears, moose, deer, wolves, beavers, squirrels, chipmunks, many species of birds and fish, as well as many others.. Oh, and lets not forget the insects - big, hungry black flies as well as other insects very interested in their pound of flesh. I have seen some interesting spiders, and some really bizaare looking bugs that I haven't had a chance to caputure on film. Come to think of it, I can't off the top of my head recall seeing deer in quite some time, although I know they are there. The experience of waking up to a moose walking through the campsite one morning isn't something I'll likely to forget either.
Algonquin is about all of that, and more. The land itself is great - a dome on the Canadian shield, covered in great forests, lakes, rivers and streams. When people go there, they change. I certainly do. Not a day goes by that I do not think about the park in some way - wishing I was there, recalling experiences there, or thinking about my next trip there.
Algonquin gets into your blood. For me, its like my liver. It cleans my soul of the garbage that accumilates between each visit, much like my liver (and yours) cleans the blood in my veins.
Sitting on the lakeside and watching the sun set across the lake, paddling onto a lake early in the morning where the mist is so thick you can't see the other side of the lake until you are 10 meters from it, or seeing the view after an hour long climb up a trail and looking out over all that can be seen. It gets right into you.
As I am typing away at this I find myself wishing I as there now, watching the campfire burn itself down to coals, geting ready to put it out and head into the tent with my wife.
You can just sit and watch it all around you. One of the things I greatly enjoy is lying in the hammock and watching the pine trees sway in the breeze. Its so relaxing, its hard to describe. You can be hanging there, and then hear a gust of wind coming across the lake. You open your eyes and look up at the tall pines and watch as the breeze gently pushes the trees.
Another interesting feature of the park is the weather. It is amazing just how fast the weather can change. In minutes (I kid you not) it can go from a nice, sunny day to raging thunderstorm. Which, of course, I'm happy to sit and watch that as it unfolds before me.
