On August 23rd, Jim R. and his brother did a twenty eight kilometer day-hike from Basin Lake to Spectacle Lake, following a route immersed in the history of Tom Thomson .. "The Tom Thomson Route: Achray to Basin Depot". As usual, their website's (Algonquin Day Hikers) trip report is well-illustrated by photos.

"We made our way to the first couple of GPS points but still could not find any sign of a logging road or trail. The whole area is covered with dense forest. The old maps and more recent satellite images suggest that the original road went to a spot on Lower Spectacle Lake which is now the location of the campsite on the south shore of the lake. It’s a fairly level area of bare rock that juts out into the lake. Having found no sign of the original road, we decided it would be best to take a compass reading and head in a straight line to that spot on the lake."

Peter Stokes has submitted his trip-log of a seven day solo canoe trip he took in September of last year. It took him from Canoe Lake east to the Otterslides, up to Burntroot, down to White Trout, and home via McIntosh and Tom Tompson, titled .. "September 2023 - 7 Day Solo Loop".

"I made my way down through Longer Lake. It was a nicer paddle, with the sun and a tailwind. I toured around the large island at the entrance to the narrows to White Trout. The wind had risen and was it was harder work getting west to the cliffs .. another pretty section of the park. I took the third site past the cliffs on White Trout (PCI campsite 6). I landed around 1:00 PM to a pretty steady flow of traffic heading east to Big Trout. It was a fairly sheltered site with a great west view."

For those of you still working on your backcountry trip planning and hoping to avoid logging sounds, here's the 2024-2025 AFA Operations Map.

Today, I was reminded by Gord Cumming (AFA's Chief Forester), that its link has been handily placed on the AFA's website's (algonquinforestry.on.ca) upper right "Quick Links", being its first pull-down link..

Evan, of the "Single Malt and Maps YouTube Channel", has posted a forum account of "day-one" of an August 2023 six day loop out of Cedar Lake ... August 2023: Cedar - Hogan - Radiant Loop.

He's also been publishing multi-part YouTube videos of that same trip ... August 2023: Cedar - Hogan - Radiant Loop.

"Once on top of the site you discover three tiers of campsite. The top, where there is a nice flat rock and limited tent area, the middle shelf where we set up our chairs and sat on the ledge all evening, and the bottom tier where a huge rock firepit is nestled. No matter where you are on the campsite you have a spectacular view of the lake, made even better by the elevation. We hung our 4 hammocks all over the site, basically anywhere we could find suitable trees."

Jim R. and his brother did a five and a half hour, fifteen and a half kilometer day-hike to Wilkins, Breezy and Robitaille Lakes .. "Wilkins, Breezy & Robitaille Lakes June 26, 2024". Their website's (Algonquin Day Hikers) trip report is well-illustrated by photos.

"It's always nice when a day hike in the Park provides an opportunity to see several lakes. In this case we were able to get to three lakes by using the cart trail to Wilkins Lk and the portages to Breezy and Robitaille. We parked at the clearing a short distance from Park boundary at the start of the cart trail."

Martin G. posted a very substantial 'photo-rich' trip-log on this website's forum .. "Otter Creek Loop" .. of a very early-season canoe trip with friends Scott and Jeffrey.

"At last falls gathering Jeffrey introduced us to a way to make a loop in the Panhandle. Sounded like a novel trip and a great adventure. Scott, Jeffrey and I did it in late April."

Drew (of the website "All Of Algonquin") has added the over-night trip-log Kingscote Lake" and four more backcountry campsite reports to his website. As usual, they have been linked to in this website's own "Portage and Campsite Inventory".

"Our plan was to paddle Kingscote, then hike up to the Minnow Lakes to check them out. We figured that would be more than enough to stretch our paddling muscles without overstretching anything on the first day."

Jim R. and his brother have started their own website .. "Algonquin Day Hikers" .. exploring Algonquin Park's backcountry.

"We are two brothers who enjoy exploring the backcountry of Algonquin Provincial Park. This website provides detailed trip reports on day hikes we've made in the southeastern and central parts of the Park. From breathtaking vistas to hidden waterfalls, we share our experiences and explore the history of the Park. Join us on our journey and discover the beauty of Algonquin."

"These backcountry hikes were not made on organized trails. Most of these routes require navigational tools such as a topographic map, GPS and/or compass, and bushwhacking experience."

Jim R. has submitted a photo-illustrated account of his March 14th "Day Hike to Robitaille Lake".

"At 11:00 AM we were on a grown-over logging road / trail that made for very hard walking, so we decided we had best take a compass reading and head directly toward Robitaille Creek. This meant bushwhacking for about 700 meters. It was slow going, and we flagged our route just in case we did not find a trail to the lake, and in coming out would have follow the same route we had come in on. The trek toward the creek involved a steep decline. About half way down we could hear the welcome sound of rapids, so we knew we were getting close to the creek. It was a relief to find signs of a trail running along a ridge above the creek."

Cody has added another trip-log to his website "Algonquin & Beyond".

"Questionable water sources and a dangerous cliffside tent setup were just some of the precarious things that were part of my final backcountry trip of the season. It’s rare to see people following leash rules in the park, but hopefully this story can serve as a good example of how unpredictable events can occur."

Jim R. has submitted a photo-illustrated account of his Spring 2022 hike northeast of Basin Lake .. "Day Hike To Basin, Turcotte and Guthrie Lakes".

The account is in the form of a 4 meg. "PDF".

"This hike took place not long after ice off in the spring of 2022. The trek would take us along Basin Lake and to Turcotte and Guthrie Lakes. The starting point was Basin Depot, located 5 km from the Basin Lake access point."

Cody has added one more trip-log to his website "Algonquin & Beyond" .. along with a wealth of 18 new campsite reports from North Tea Lake!

"I met a few more groups along the way into North Tea Lake. At the end of the 280m portage leading into North Tea Lake, I met a man with his girlfriend. He told me they were finished a 6-night trip guiding a Swiss couple who were at the other end of the portage. We spoke for around 15 minutes, which is a pretty long time to chat at a portage landing. He told me his company was called Driftwood Paddle and his property was just a few doors over from Voyageur Quest Outfitters. He told me to stop by and say hi on my way out."

A special update here! Cody has just added approximately 100 new campsite reports to his website "Algonquin & Beyond".

The prospect of listing all of them here on this front page is beyond daunting! Rather, you're referred to his website's "ALGONQUIN PARK CAMPSITE REPORTS", where you'll be able to identify and visit all the later 2023 "Date Visited" entries.

It's also worth noting that Cody is reformating his report pages' layout, and is using more of his outstanding photographs in each of his newer reports!

Drew (of the website "All Of Algonquin") has added nine more campsite reports to his website. As usual, they have been linked to in this website's own "Portage and Campsite Inventory".

Jim R. has submitted his account of a recent winter daytrip .. "Day Ski Trip To Pogonia, Clover & Basin Lakes".

"Our goal was to ski in to Pogonia Lake. In previous years we had undertaken springtime, day hikes from Basin Depot to Guthrie Lake and to Clover Lake by following remnants of old trails that are sometimes shown on older topographical maps. Those older trails are now intersected in places by logging roads. This winter there was almost no snow through the first week of January, but a snowfall at the start of the second week made this first cross-country ski trip of the season possible."

Cody has added another trip-log to his website "Algonquin & Beyond".

"Afterwards, I moved to the beach and did some more astrophotography. It was an incredibly starry night, with the Milky Way directly in front of the campsite behind the opposing shoreline, and clearly visible. It was a really special moment sitting silently on the almost vacant Parkside Bay and watching the stars with Elo at my feet."

Drew (of the website "All Of Algonquin") and his three buddies paddled a four day loop out of Brent, across Cedar, up the Petawawa, via Narrowbag, Catfish, Sunfish, Hogan, Philip, Little Madawaska, Radiant, Clamshell, Radiant, up the Petawawa, and back across Cedar. "Cedar Loop 2023: Hogan, Philips, Clamshell and More!".

"It was a close call, but by loading the boat and pushing off at the furthest edge of the upstream end of the put-in, we had just enough clearance that the current pushed us past the outstretched alder, not into it. From here it was a very nice paddle down the river into Radiant. The Little Madawaska through this stretch reminded me a lot of paddling through a city park. The banks are more open, with the occasional hardwood dotting the shoreline here and there."

From the YouTube channel "Algonquin Park Adventures" comes the host's two-hour-plus "Solo Three Day Canoe Trip to McKaskill and Dickson Lake" .. from the Shall Lake access, looping via Crotch, Shirley, Ryan, Shrew, McKaskill, Animoosh, Dickson, Round, Chipmunk and Booth Lakes.

This video contained extensive well-recorded details of all the lakes and portages within the trip.

This YouTube channel has recently been added to the "Video Links" page of this website's "Resources" section.

Cody has added a trip-log to his website "Algonquin & Beyond".

"I took a short break before launching onto North Tea Lake. The winds were much stronger, but thankfully still at my back. I barely had to exert any energy to paddle. The tiny stranded island in the middle of the lake was one of the first campsites I passed, and it looked beautiful. I usually like to explore the lake a little bit before settling on a site (if it’s a lake I’m unfamiliar with), but this site looked too good to pass up. Tiny stranded island, flat beach landing, spacious interior, flat tent spot, rocky shoreline to swim and enjoy the sun… it checked all my boxes."

Drew (of the website "All Of Algonquin") took his young daughter for their first proper backcountry camping trip .. out of Smoke Lake, through Ragged, Big Porcupine, Bonnechere, Phipps, Kirkwood, Lawrence, Rod & Gun, Louisa .. finishing-up at Rock Lake "Rocking Algonquin – Smoke Lake to Rock Lake with My Daughter".

"My daughter fell in love with it and spent a good twenty minutes mapping out the various hidden spots she planned on sitting and watching the water from. We quickly set up camp then settled in for the night. The rest of the day passed in a pleasant blur. After dinner we took the canoe out so my daughter could practice in the stern. We also checked out some of the nearby sites and roasted some all important marshmallows."

Dave ("Moose Whizzer Dave" on the forum) posted there what is a substantial trip-log of his September 8th to 11th paddling adventure loop out of Rain Lake via Casey, Daisy, Bandit, Mocassin, Cranbill and Islet lakes .. "Nostalgia Trip: Sept 8-11, 2023".

"As I came off the 400-something into Moccasin, I briefly forgot there was another 400-something from Moccasin to Cranebill, but I was soon on it, then on Cranebill. Cranebill is a good-sized lake, with only one (low maintenance) campsite. It was a pretty morning and I was just paddling the length of the lake, so I figured this was a good time to burst forth in song with my traditional rendition of “The Loonicorn Song” (the Irish Rover’s Unicorn song, just swapping out Unicorns for Loonicorns, and it happened that there was a loon nearby). The loon did not appreciate my melodious crooning, and covered his ears by sticking his head in the water."

Cody has added five more campsite reports to his website "Algonquin & Beyond", which have been linked to in this website's own "Portage and Campsite Inventory".