Two wonderful little books were written by Mary McCormick Pigeon back in the early 90's. They've just been added to Algonquin Adventures' Resources / Publications / Historical sub-section.

For more details, click on the top-menu's Resources .. and then through its left-menu's Publications and its sub-menu's Historical option. You can order copies at the Friends of Algonquin website.

In keeping with the Government of Canada’s commitment to protecting and preserving Canada’s environment, and the health of our wildlife populations, the Honourable David Anderson, Minister of the Environment, announced on February 17th that he will soon propose regulations that will bring about an eventual prohibition on the import, manufacture and sale of fishing sinkers and jigs containing lead.

A sequel trip-log by Randy Born is online now. It's "Pen - Clydegale - Welcome - Harry & Rence Lakes, May 2004".

The Algonquin Forestry Authority has sent us their 2005-2006 Annual Work Schedule Summary Information. This provides the locations of harvesting, road construction and renewal work areas .. so that you can plan your canoe trips to avoid logging work areas. Their detailed annual logging map usually comes online by the second week of April. This early information helps those of us who want to make interior-trip plans or reservations prior to April. Unfortunately, this interim information doesn't distinguish between Spring-Summer and Fall-Winter work scheduling. On the otherhand, the detailed April maps typically do make that distinction.

Another trip-log by Randy Born is now online. It's "Rock, Louisa and North Grace Lakes - May 8-10, 2004".

Through rain, wind, waves and snow .. Randy and Robert hunted the elusive trout ...

"We awoke early to a cold tent and no sound of rain ... Robert was first dressed and out the door when he confirmed that it had stopped raining for he exclaimed, “Hey Randy, right you are. The rain's over. Instead, now we have SNOW!”

Sunday January 16th, 2005 . . . . .

The Raven Talks About Fish & Lakes is a new addition to this website's Resource section. If you're planning a trout season opening trip, you may want to order a copy at the Friends of Algonquin website.

It will definitely help get you in the trout-fishing frame of mind.

Tuesday January 11th, 2005 . . . . .

Doug Mackey writes a local history column entitled Heritage Perspectives in the Community Voices regional supplement to the North Bay Nugget newspaper. He writes on a variety of topics which draw heavily on his historical research of the north around North Bay. Luckily for fans of Algonquin's history, a lot of Doug's columns recollect instances in the park's past and usually include some topical photographs. We can thank the folks at Past Foward Heritage for making all Doug's columns available online.

From Doug's CNR’s Algonquin Route ...
"For over eighty years, from (1915-1995), the Canadian National Railway ran from Ottawa to Capreol through the north side of Algonquin Park and was a major influence on the way of life in the areas it traversed. The line was abandoned in the mid-1990s and the rails were pulled up, leaving little but memories ..."

Ken Born has dusted-off some of his older trip-notes and submitted his recollections of an expeditionary spring fishing trip that he and his wife took back in 1990! While they unfortunately hadn't taken a camera along, the story certainly is up to his usual highly informative and entertaing standards .. so read on!.

"We weren't having any success on the lake so we decided to go up the Little Madawaska River a ways and fish in the deep holes we had noticed on our way in. My modesty prevents me from telling you how many specks my wife and I caught and released that night. You probably wouldn’t believe me anyways and just chalk it up to another fisherman’s tale."

Another trip-log by Chris Lawson is now online. This time it's "Winter Camping By Mistake, Western Uplands Hiking Trail, Algonquin Park, November 26-28, 2004". This time, the plan was to canoe up to Big Trout Lake. However, unforseen ice turned the intrepid National Capital Region YMCA/YWCA Canoe Camping Club members back .. forcing them to "Plan B".

"Sonja bashed away at it, jamming her paddle into the ice and hauling the canoe's bow on top of the ice, where the boat's weight would crack the ice, creating a sort of channel. This is why they didn't use canoes to clear the Northwest Passage. This went on for about 100m. We headed to shore and tried to pull and push our canoes along the shore, playing a sort of canoe curling for a while. After an hour we'd made 300m. It didn't look like it was getting any better ..."

Chris Lawson's "The Barren .. Barron Canyon, Algonquin Park, November 5-7, 2004" is an extremely well presented and photo-illustrated trip-log recounting his 3-day trip to the Barron Canyon .. from Achray to Squirrel Rapids .. through the below-zero nights of early November .. along with five other members of the Ottawa YMCA Canoe Camping Club.

"The Barron Canyon must be one of Algonquin's most picturesque places. I don't know how high its walls are, but they rise up sharply from the river bank, in some places, and in others the rock walls are buried by boulder slopes. And all topped by gnarled spruce and pine ... we saw no other paddlers as we coasted through the canyon today. Only the subdued hues of granite and green, occasionally lit up as the sun broke through to bring a particular cliff into startling relief against the November sky.."

Over the years some of us have described the remote parts of Algonquin as our private sanctuary or as our common church. It's often been expressed that after a few days in the interior we feel inwardly rested, refreshed and at peace. It's in this spirit that I'd like to share a prayer which was recently introduced to me at the Mnjikaning First Nation Thanksgiving Pow Wow. I've added it to the Resources/Poety section and it's simply called An Old Indian Prayer.

Janice and Bill Stauttener took a grand 15 day looping September 2004 exodus from Kawawaymog Lake .. through North Tea, Biggar, Nipissing R., Cedar, Laurel, Mink, Erables, Manitou, North Tea, Mattowacka, Manitou and North Tea Lakes. Their Algonquin Access One trip-log is a 9-page text account in PDF format.

" ... Well, we're up and on the water at 8:15am. It is 8 degrees C and there is a thick mist gently rising off the water. There is no wind and the spider webs just sparkle in the sunlight. This is nice! The river is still curving its way through the marsh, but it feels as if we are actually getting somewhere."

Earlier in the summer, they took a 3-day Weekender .. from Smoke Lake, looping through Big Porcupine, Bonnechere, Kirkwood, Harness, Head, Cache, Little Island and back to Smoke Lake .. also a text account in PDF format.