Fri, Jun 20 2014, Sat, Jun 21 2014, Sun, Jun 22 2014 - Beginner backpacking overnight in Bruce Peninsula National Park (View Original Event Details)
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Two days of backpacking in the Bruce Peninsula National Park, whose rugged dolomite cliffs overlook the crystal clear turquoise waters of Georgian Bay. An area so spectacular that it has been declared a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, complete with 1,000-year-old cedar and rare limestone barrens. Perfect weather, sunny and clear with highs around 23 C. And best of all – a high-energy, easy-going group of hikers. This trip couldn’t have been better!
There are many great photos from this trip, taken by Jessie, Laura and Suvam. Check out some of the best in this
We drove up Friday afternoon in two cars, stopping for dinner along the way and meeting at our car camping site in Bruce Peninsula National Park’s Cypress Lake campground. It was a good one, for future reference, site 102 in “Birches.” It was right by the lake, in one corner of the campsite so relatively private. However, we could still hear some groups of campers talking very loudly into the wee hours, waking us up… maybe next time we’ll try the “Tamarack” section as it’s supposed to be radio-free – which might mean fewer partiers!
We woke up early and had breakfast after packing up, then headed off for a short day hike from our campsite, strolling along the shore of Cypress Lake itself then along the Georgian Bay Trail, the quickest and easiest way to get to the park’s scenic cliffs. Along the way we saw four or five brown hares among the grasses, brilliant yellow lady slipper flowers and other varieties, and best of all, 15 plump ducklings and their mama riding the currents and bobbing for food right below a footbridge, only 10 feet or so from us. When we reached the shore, we saw boulder beaches and some great lookouts from the overhung cliffs of the escarpment. The highlights were definitely sites where waves over the centuries had hollowed out sea caves: the Natural Arch and The Grotto. Laura, Suvam and Anindita were adventurous enough to scramble down the cliffs into the massive Grotto cave – photo op! A huge thanks to Jessie for suggesting this side hike first to see the park’s most renowned attractions before our main backpacking began. It was a great start to our adventure.
We were back at our campsite in slightly more than two hours, in time to check out before the 11 a.m. deadline, then hoped into the cars and drove to our backpacking put-in point up the Emmett Lake Road and to the parking lot at the Halfway Dump Side Trail. With our packs, we hiked slightly less than a kilometre (930 m) along the easy side trail to another boulder beach. Knowing it was our last access to water until we descended to our campsite later that day, we ate lunch while listening to the waves lap.
Then we set out along the Bruce Trail main route from Halfway Dump Side Trail to High Dump Side Trail, a distance of only 6.2 kilometres but – according to the Bruce Trail Reference Guide – containing some of the most challenging hiking along the whole Bruce Trail. It mainly stuck close to the top of the escarpment, sometimes ducking back further into the mixed forest and sometimes emerging at the edge of the cliffs with some spectacular lookouts of the water far below. The trail started as a gentle walk on soft needles through the forest, getting tougher with the last stretch near the High Dump campsite often calling on us to scramble up and down short ledges and pick our way through jagged rocks. Those who had hiking poles put them to good use! There were very few people on the trail. We ran into one trio who said they had encountered a rattlesnake sunning itself in the middle of the trail earlier that day, but thankfully we didn’t meet any scaly friends.
The trail eventually met up with the High Dump side trail leading down an old logging road and then a short section so steep that the park has left a rope in place for hikers to cling to as they descend.
When we reached the campsite, we all naturally gravitated first to the dramatic boulder beach that lines the shore, then went back into the steep wooded hills leading to the escarpment to find our tent platforms. Ende and Christine did a little bushwhacking before they finally figured out where our wooden tent platforms were – sites 6 and 7. Six was a prime site, very handy, not hard to get to and close to the beach. Seven was more challenging to get to, a bit of a hike up the hill, but very private and right beside a cool cliff face. Since Christine was testing a “MEC Wanderer 4” tent, a.k.a., a huge four- person, 10-lb tent nicknamed The Palace, she and Ende shared one platform while Jessie and Laura shared one tent and Suvam and Anindita the other at site 7.
Then Jessie recruited some sous-chefs and whipped up an amazing dinner of chana masala with basmati rice – absolutely delicious, everyone had seconds. And Laura had the perfect desert of date and coconut balls, fantastic. After that, Christine did the dishes and sacked out, while the rest hiked down the beach to some cliffs to see if they could find any caves. Then they watched the start of the stars coming out in this light-free sanctuary before retiring for the night.
We were up bright and early the next morning, for gourmet oatmeal again and the remains of Jessie’s curry and rice. Christine sat on a rock recliner listening to the waves while the rest hiked down the beach again. Then we packed up and headed back up the cliff, retracing our route to the beach at Halfway Log Dump. This time the hard part came first and it got progressively easier. We still worked enough of a sweat to justify cooling off in the icy waters at the end of our trek. Jessie and Christine went waist deep, enough to cool down. But Ende led the Polar Explorers Club, as the first to dive into Georgian Bay. He made the icy water look almost enjoyable so Laura, Anandita and Suvam followed his lead, some twice, with reactions ranging from quiet, desperate dog paddling to shore, screams, shouts or cool, calm smiles (Anindita).
Finally we hiked the short distance back to the car and drove to Wiarton, where we found a great fish and chip place by the beach for dinner. Then home. A great trip.
Have some photos from this event that you'd like to share in our photo album? Please forward them to Erik Sonstenes at photos@torontooutdoorclub.com. Please note that we prefer to receive the photos in approximately 640x480 or 750x500 pixels - do NOT send original high-res photos. If you have a LOT of photos, please submit up to twenty of your favorites (only) for a day event, or up to forty of your favourites for a multi-day event. Thank you.