September 2021 – Aaron & Caroline's Grand Adventure

September 24, 2021September 24, 2021

#12 – Southern Ontario

After we unloaded from the Ferry in Tobermory, we headed south in the sunshine and made our first stop at Sauble Beach. I can see how this would be so popular and busy in the summer, but because we arrived mid-week in Sept, it was pretty quiet. We enjoyed an afternoon with some sand, sun and chips from the burger stand.

We drove across the Pennisula and stayed the night in Owen Sound, boondocking at the Walmart there, which, conveniently was right beside a Swiss Chalet, our favourite restaurant. However, our wishes were dashed as they were “out of chicken”. So we had Harvey’s burgers instead. We carried on the next day to camp at Meford, in a wonderful municipal campground that was beautiful. We had a great site, good showers, power and a wonderful beach. We also had a visit with some of Caroline’s family and a chance to catch up and share about our trip.

After Meford, we headed northeast on our way to the Muskokas and Algonquin Park, where we had 3 nights booked at Lake of Two Rivers. We wanted to do a lot of Canoeing and so we rented one from Algonquin Outfitters and it was great! We explored multiple lakes, waterfalls, portaged and biked around the park. It was mostly good weather, except for the Tornado warning we got, but never actual materialized.

It was super nice to slow down for a bit, canoe every day and enjoy the changing of the seasons into Fall. We had full sun, fog, some wind, a little thunder and a little rain during our 3 days, but we stayed dry, warm and comfortable in our camper and canoe.

Finding lots to explore in little side rivers

Here is our video and below are some pics of this segment of our trip

Photos from this segment here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/CEJdwgFV2zmbCLCBA

After Algonquin, we are shifting gears for a bit as we visit with family in Montreal and Ottawa. It will be good to park the truck for a bit and enjoy some indoor time and catch up with our family and friends back east.

September 17, 2021September 17, 2021

#11 – Northern Ontario

We came into Northern Ontario pretty excited. The Prairies were great, but hitting the border with Ontario signaled a new chapter in our adventures. We were coming to our home Province, where we were both born and have lots of family and friends to see and visit.

Our first stop was just outside of Kenora, at Rushing River Provincial Park. We had a great site and a good swim with some nice hikes along the river.

During our drive from Kenora to Thunder Bay we drove through the most intense thunder, rain and hail storm we both have ever seen. We had to pull over and wait for the rain to let up three separate times! All the cars and trucks were crawling along the highway with hazards on and barely able to see more than 40 feet ahead.

When we arrived in Thunder Bay, the sun was shining and it was a good couple of days to go camping out at the Sleeping Giant Provincial Park. We had a wonderful time there and did the epic hike to the top of the Giant and to see the dangerous chasm!

After Thunder Bay, we headed south again, after stopping at the Terry Fox Memorial nearby. It was an incredibly beautiful spot, and was quite sombre to be there and think about the sacrifice and contribution that Terry was able to give to the world.

We stopped a few times along Lake Superior for some incredible beaches, waterfalls and camping at Rabbit Blanket campsite before we headed into Manitoulin Island where we wanted to catch the Chi Cheemaun ferry down to Tobermory and Southern Ontario. On Manitoulin Island, they have very little light pollution and the stars were so amazing. I was able to get a good photo of the milky way from our campsite!

The Chi-Cheemaun Ferry from South Baymouth, Manitoulin Island to Tobermory

Below is our video from this segment of the trip, as well as a link to some more photos from this leg of our trip.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/1XWcWqSwQcDaG5zD9

September 10, 2021September 10, 2021

#10 – The Prairies

We spent a full week exploring the Canadian Prairies. We had great weather and good driving conditions for the whole time. We tried to stay north as we came down from Fort St John and skip along northern Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Our first night was in Fahler, Alberta and it was full on harvest time. Combines in the fields, farmers working and hay rolls everywhere. Fahler is also the honey bee capital of Canada and had a huge bee in town. We stayed at a beautiful municipal park with power, showers and just a couple other campers.

We drove through Cold Lake, Alberta, home of the Snowbirds and giant air force base. We spent a night at Beaver Creek provincial campground. It was decent, but busy.

Next day we crossed into Saskatchewan and visited Athabasca, which was a nice stop and had some interesting history. We then spent two gorgeous days at a giant, empty mega campground near Battleford, Saskatchewan. It was strange to be at a spot that had thousands of campers a week earlier and now it was just us and the retirees.

We had power, showers, sunshine and space, and so we settled in for 2 nights. We had a few nice hikes, a couple of refreshing swims and lots of time to read.

After Battleford, we headed straight for Saskatoon to do some laundry and also get a hotel room for the night! (Our first one!) We also enjoyed a nice dinner out to celebrate Caroline’s birthday. Good thing we brought some nice clothes.

After Saskatoon we went south and aimed to hook up with the trans Canada #1 highway. Our main road for the rest of the trip. We also had our check engine light come on! We knew it was a minor issue, most likely related to some bad fuel. We got it looked at it Winnipeg and it’s been fine ever since.

Before Winnipeg, we spent a night at Moosomin Lake, which has a super nice little regional park with camping. It was also very quiet as everyone had gone back home for school and work. We still enjoyed our time exploring their giant chairs.

In Winnipeg, we got lots done! We did a big shop, loaded up with supplies, got our truck looked at and sorted out and spent a morning walking around downtown. It was a beauty blue sky day and we really enjoyed all the public art and parks by the river.

After Winnipeg, we set our sights for Northern Ontario. We were excited for this next chapter and also to see some family and friends. Next stops will be Kenora and Thunder Bay.

Below is a link to more photos from this segment of our adventures.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Hb4u6phPWmnhTLvW6

September 6, 2021August 31, 2021

#9 – Watson’s Signs, Muncho’s Bison, and Liard’s Hot Springs

When we left Atlin, we knew it was near the end of our Yukon Adventure. It had been over 3 weeks of exploration, driving, hiking, biking and camping. We had excellent weather and met wonderful people in our travels. Our next big stop was at the very famous Watson Lake and we had to check out their sign forest! Over 88,000 signs and growing every day. We took a bit of time to check out a few signs and get lost in the forest.

The drive along the ALCAN highway from Watson to Liard was the most bountiful wildlife we have both ever seen. We wanted to see Bison, and we got to see three herds on the side of the highway. We also saw Moose, Bears, Cariboo, Elk, Mountain Sheep, Porcupine and Fox. We kept our eyes peeled and cameras ready. It was a great drive and one we will remember a long time

We arrived at Liard and grabbed a campsite and our swim trunks and headed straight for the pools. We’ve heard from many of our friends how amazing this place is, and we agree! There is a “hot” end that you can see in the photo above that shows where the hot water enters the pools. It was super hot, and you had to circulate the cool water on the bottom to keep yourself at a comfortable temperature.

We slowed down and spent three days here. We slept in, did’nt drive at all, and snacked a lot. We needed a little downtime as we had been quite busy, active and covered a lot of miles through the Yukon. This was our restful reward. We also needed to recharge for our next big push across the Prairies.

We stayed one night on the side of Muncho Lake and got a good sense of the Northern Rockies. It was a crystal clear blue lake and apparently had great fishing. We explored a nearby resort and had a great campfire.

After Muncho Lake, we headed east and aimed straight for Fort St John. We needed an oil change! After 6000kms, it was time and we also needed to resupply and recharge. This is the end of the Yukon chapter of our trip. We are now heading east through the Prairies and are hoping to get to Ontario region for mid sept.

Here is this segment’s video and below is the link to some epic photos!

Here are the photos from this video https://photos.app.goo.gl/1rxkghfFQEuYkwUW9

September 3, 2021August 31, 2021

#8 – King’s Throne, Sand Dunes and Atlin, BC

King’s Throne. The hike goes up the left side of the stone face, and goes to the ‘seat’ of the throne.

After we left the Bear Corridor on Congdon Creek, we headed a little bit south, to Kathleen Lake, a National park in a beautiful spot. The lake overlooks King’s Throne, a truly majestic looking mountain and hike we scrambled up a few days later.

We enjoyed some great weather and good hiking at Kathleen Lake and would recommend a visit if you are near Haine’s Junction. They had lots of Park Rangers, interpretive content and presentations and even a kid’s scavenger hunt that we did ourselves!

We moved on and toured through Carcross, and its nearby micro-climate desert, the Carcross Desert. It was windy and not too big. Super strange to have that much sand swirling around us in the Yukon cold.

We stayed a night at Conrad Campground, the Yukon’s newest Campground. It was on the way to Skagway Alaska, but we still could not cross the border to the US, so we turned back and headed for Atlin BC!

Our campsite at Palmer Lake, near Atlin BC

Our first night near Atlin, BC, was at a forestry site, near Palmer Lake. It was gorgous and we had the place to ourselves. Atlin BC, is on a dead end road and is only accessible via land through the Yukon. A lot of Whitehorse residents come down often for vacations and little trips as it is only 2.5 hours away. We could definitely see why!

Atlin Mountain, on Atlin Lake, near Atlin, BC

Apparently, Atlin BC, is like the Switzerland of North America. The mountains, lakes, rivers and glaciers that surround this tiny little town are impressive. There is lots of mining nearby as well. We had a very tasty lunch at a little diner here that was delicous.

While in Atlin, we checked out their local museum and rode our bikes around town, up and down the blocks. We also did an epic hike up a nearby mountain and got a great view of the whole lake, town and region.

previously out of breath from a huge climb up

Here is our video from this chapter of our trip. We can definitely feel the weather shifting and the seasons beginning to change. Its time to start making our way south and out of the Yukon.

Here is a link to the Photos from this video: https://photos.app.goo.gl/pZVRAKKmyaBj8khL6

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