Entry 13 – Ontario, Canada. – August 2022
Leaving Mikisew Provincial Park our next target experience was to be at Driftwood P/P located about 130 kilometres from North Bay on the Trans-Canada Highway towards the Canadian capital of Ottawa.
We liked the provided description on the Driftwood P/P web site and booked a camp site. There were no reviews available for a further assessment, a thing we had also been utilising when selecting locations to visit or stay. Even conversations with like-minded people we met along the way whilst experiencing other Provincial Park settings, none had heard of Driftwood P/P.
After a long day, packing up a wet tent, driving to North Bay, a few more hours spent travelling to various locations around North Bay attending to our needs, (a tarpaulin, small spade, extra bedding, phone issues, food, etc) followed by more drive time to Driftwood P/P, we arrived late afternoon, around 5.30pm.
Our first impression of Driftwood P/P felt positive. It was a smaller scale, not as crowded with less background people noise, a blue sky certainly helped adding to a lovely backdrop colouring, there was minimal wind, all aiding to a sense of wonderful wellbeing, settling over our bodies.
Driftwood P/P was located in Driftwood Bay attached to the Ottawa River. It was another beautiful, special Canadian setting. There were a number of camp sites located in secluded bush settings, with beautiful water front views.
We were relegated to one of the “back blocks,” not having the time advantage of access to booking a water front setting, requiring a minimum booking at least 5 months in advance. Though we weren’t complaining.
We enjoyed the selection of many optional walking trails. Some we found overgrown, covered by fresh bush growth requiring us to look down through the leaf canopy, monitoring our foot placement with a watchful eye on the direction of the trails. Other trails passed through pine forests were easier to navigate due to minimal plants able to grow at the base of pine forests, the same as in Australia.
There were the constant visits at our camp site from one of the locals, requiring us to be on the alert, watching out for any mischievous endeavours.
We enjoyed having a look at a pop-up environmental display and Steve managed to highjack some of the attention when he produced our show and tell photographic book of Australian scenes. There were a few converts, wishing to add Australia as a destination.
After four nights at Driftwood P/P we packed up, heading to our next destination experience. Driftwood P/P had been extra special with no rain to dampen our spirits during our stay and it felt gratifying to pack up a dry tent.
Once again, we transited through North Bay where we topped up our food supply. We arrived at Marten River P/P and were set up by 2.30 pm. This was to be our last camping experience in a Provincial Park setting, surrounded by Canadian flora and fauna during our time in Canada for 2022.
Our first night at Marten River P/P there was a possibility to witness a meteor shower. After the sun had set, we sat at a table on a beach overlooking the river, away from our camp site setting surrounded by trees. We could just see the outline of someone paddling a canoe with a photograph displaying more than could be seen by eye. Unfortunately, there was cloud about restricting any views towards the heavens, with only a glimpse of an occasional star.
Marten River P/P was to be our final opportunity to get up close with Canadian nature for 2022. We walked its available trails surrounded by magnificent greenery. The different bush smells at times were a delight. The constant presence of water all about also provided a good environment for some annoying insects and we were often battling with the annoying buzz around our ears from mosquitos. After our walking exploits, we would cool our heated bodies in the river waters, experiencing the Canadian cold, brrrr.
We spent a few hours viewing a magnificent replica of an early 19th century Canadian logging camp, located in the Provincial Park. The buildings were one fifth of the original sizes. The logging camp had been established by a couple of elderly gentlemen who had personal experience of the logging camps. There were a lot of original artifacts and Steve did enjoy reminiscing some of his early youth days experiences using very similar equipement.
Every now and then we would spot birds flittering about, watching their activities. The density of the beautiful bush made it challenging to obtain a good photograph. We persevered, rewarded every now and then, with a photograph of the local wild life.
One of the rangers from a provincial park we had visited, a couple of parks back had recommended to take in the view at the township of Temagami from a fire tower nearby the town. It was located about 40 kilometres north of Marten River, providing an opportunity to explore some of Marten River nearby locations.
Temagami was a hub, alive with many people parking up their vehicles for a period whilst joining groups trekking with canoes around its vast waterways. We located the tower, which provided a good cardio work out climbing to its top. There was a large selection of hiking trails scattered around the country side of Temagami. It was a great destination with a positive atmosphere, focused on physical activity, revolving around nature.
Whilst taking in the views from the height of the tower, in the distance we could see a marina and the provided storage for boats when the water freezes during winter. To avoid damage to boat hulls from pressures generated by water freezing, they are removed from the water during cold timelines of winter.
During our travels around Provincial Parks, we had seen a lot of camp sites with large tarps erected to shield tents and tables from the ever-present rain. We had purchased a tarp, hoping to assist with minimising the annoying nuisance of packing up wet equipment. With the prediction of more rain during our time at Marten River we decided to give it a go and string up the tarp. When the rain did come down it made an impressive difference with the comfort of living outdoors in a tent.
All of the different Provincial Parks we stayed at were a good experience. The similar but different settings provided us with a good sense of well-being. We chatted with many different people, shared a camp fire with others and our daughters’ in-laws came to visit after work one day providing good conversation.
Luckily, we were able to pack up after our last night at Marten River P/P with dry conditions. It was good to pack everything into its rightful place, not needing further drying time before being packed away.
We spent a couple of nights at North Bay at our daughter’s home where we repacked our suitcases, preparing for our flights home to Australia.
It was good to have a final Canadian family fix, just prior to our departure. Our daughter’s wedding had been our priority reason for visiting Canada 2022. What a wonderful wedding it was, with a setting showcasing the Canadian lifestyle.
We travelled to Toronto, where we were planning a day to explore some of its highlights. Unfortunately, the rain set in, thwarting our planned days activity. Toronto was a large busy city with a huge network of highways, difficult to navigate and was a very foreign environment to our easy-going Australian lifestyle. Wet busy city roads extinguished any desire to attempt any further exploration of Canada. The provided picture shows the road we needed to enter from our accommodation. We had the vehicle dash cam providing directions and utilised google maps on our ipad for further assistance, planning ahead for the right lane we needed to be in at any given point of time. Often, we were travelling on crowded 5 laned highways needing to select a correct lane for the next exit to connect to another highway. It was a daunting experience.
We readied ourselves the best we could for our flights, with flying timelines of around 24 hours in the air and additional timelines navigating various airport terminals along the way.
We were now focusing our attention for more travel time in 2022, out and about with our caravan in Australia.
It was a good time in life for us. Though we did feel the need to participate in life while we could, not to reminisce later in life wishing we had accomplished more with our time.
