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Published: June 30th 2008
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27th June 2008
Slept in this morning until 7-30am. A misty morning and very still, but warm at about 20 degrees. The mosquitoes and black flies however were out in full force.
Sitting on the deck at Bill and Susie's a chipmunk came to look at us and soon found some peanuts Bill had put out for him.
After some breakfast Bill and I went 8km into Dorset to get some supplies and the morning papers. On the way back Bill spotted a couple of moose grazing at the side of the road and we went back to take a longer look at them. A bit further up the road a group of white tailed deer sprang into the road in front of us.
Back at the cottage we saw a muskrat swimming up the creek, which Dinah managed to snap. All this wildlife and and it is only just 10am.
We left at about 10-30am for a day out in the Algonquin Provincial Park. This is a wilderness park of 3,000 square miles and there is only one road through a small section the southern edge of it. The only access to vast majority of this park is by canoe,
there are 2,456 lakes most of them with linked waterways and in a few places you need to porterage your canoe.
There are some areas designated as total wilderness which you are not allowed to access and there are also some small areas where controlled logging is still allowed.
We entered the park by West gate where we had to stop and get a permit for entering the park and then drove through the park 45 kilometres towards the East gate to get to the Algonquin Logging Museum. It is very interesting museum that has reconstructed buildings typically used by the early loggers who would spend 6 months working in the logging camps. As we parked up we spotted a snowshoe hare sitting on the edge of the car park, which Dinah managed to photograph. During our walk round the museum exhibits we passed a lake and saw a great blue heron fishing and duck diving to catch fish.
We went on to the visitors centre which has a restaurant with a magnificent view over a section of park. The expanse of every shade of green sliced through with silver water is very beautiful. The clearer areas beside the streams
and rivers are often the work of the beaver. They dam the streams and create ponds which kill the large trees and this changes the area and opens it up which attracts more bugs and therefore more birds and other wildlife. When the beaver moves on the pond disappears and leaves an open meadow which then attracts deer and moose for the grazing.
After watching an excellent short video about the park and looking at all the displays about the park we made our way back to the cottage always on the lookout for the elusive Mr Moose whom everyone in the park has seen but me!!!!!
While Bob and Bill mowed the lawn Susie and I watched the humming bird feeding from the nectar feeder. Then Bob and I had a short paddle round the nearest bit of the lake before supper.
Late to bed after a splendid day.
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Neal
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Very jealous but enjoying the pics
It is great to see you have stepped straight back into the intrepid travellers routine. The photos are excellent and make you want to pack up and get on the road. Good luck, Mum, finding the moose!