As per my earlier trip announcement, it was my hope to finally complete the Lacloche Silhouette Trail in Killarney this spring. As with my previous two attempts at this loop, the itinerary was dictated by my available time off from work. In this case, essentially two weeks where I work five days followed by two days off, then two days off followed by five days at work. . . . this is both a benefit and serious limitation of working in retail.
Once again it was this time limit, combined with the distance to the park, that forced an alteration of the original plan. After arriving at my in-laws' house (approximately 3.5 hours from where I live, and another 1.5 hours from the trailhead) late Thursday evening, it soon became apparent that getting everyone coordinated for the coming days was going to be a bigger challenge than anticipated. It was well after midnight by the time my wife and I had sorted out the repackaging of our meals, making final decisions on shared gear, and debating at length just how much insulating clothing she would be comfortable with. With an early start required the next morning, it was difficult to sleep, and I was still decompressing from a long difficult stretch of work. In the morning we made the decision to scale back the scope of the trip, and simply spend three nights in the park, and enjoy the more scenic sections of trail versus trying to cover the entire loop. While this was a bit disappointing, it felt a lot more appealing than a death march to get this trail 'done'.
Once at the park office, about 150 kilometers from home, we again altered our plan to do just two nights out, and then return to civilization on the third day. This took a tremendous amount of pressure off, as I would have faced the hike out, followed by the 150km return trip to my in laws', then another 350km home to Kingston. With an extra day 'off', there could be some actual down time between driving, hiking, and work.
Anyway, enough preamble, on to the hike!
Following a couple kilometers of flat terrain, primarily covered on an old logging road, the trail crossed a bridge and soon began some serious climbing. . . . well, serious for Ontario.
A second, much longer uphill section towards 'The Crack', a boulder filled chute which the trail climbs to reach the top of the ridge. This marks the beginning of the quartzite rock formations for which the park is famous.
A look back down at the cairns used to mark the trail on open rock sections.
Back down from where we had just come. Georgian Bay is on the horizon looking SSW.
Looking WNW towards the northern ridge of the Lacloche Mountains.
Fearless adventure dog Panzer.
The campsite we arrived at very late the first night. I can't recall its name, but it's well known. It features
a small pond atop the ridge with campfire area next to it.
Looking away from the lake the land falls away steeply and there is a spectacular view of the southern portion of the park and the northern edge of Georgian Bay. Although not easy to pick out in this photo, the eastern most tip of Manitoulin Island can be seen from this campsite, as can the light from the lighthouse in the village of Killarney at night time.
At the end of two days, Panzer was one tired out doggy. Also, positioned himself strategically in order to be first into the tent at bedtime.
Climbing back up onto the ridge from the north early on day three.
Back at 'The Crack' for lunch time. We enjoyed what I consider to be perfect hiking and camping conditions throughout the weekend. Daytime temperature was around 10 - 12 celsius, and night time dropped to just below freezing. Being mid April, we were ahead of the insects and the hot humid weather that tends to dominate the traditional 'camping' season.
Looking SW to Georgian Bay and Manitoulin Island (far right, at horizon).
My hiking buddies enjoying one last photo op before moving downhill and heading for the car.
