It’s hard to believe 2016 is drawing to a close. And it was quite a year when it comes to outdoor adventures, both close and far. With a three-week road trip all the way to Los Angeles, lots of camping with family and friends, my first solo trip and endless microadventures, it is next to impossible to narrow down ten best. But I’ll still try.
sunset
From despair to hope with friends and nature
There is a mural along Lawrence Avenue in Toronto that I pass on my way home. It depicts human impact on the planet culminating in apocalyptic vision of the future.
Pokémon Go? No, it’s Algonquin go all the way!
Algonquin’s visitor centre has a board for recording wildlife sightings. When we stopped by the centre a couple of weeks ago, one of the entries read “Mewtwo at Mew Lake” (for the uninitiated mewtwo is a Pokémon, and no, I didn’t know that until our son, who 
used to watch Pokémon, told me). I don’t know if it was an actual “sighting” (can I even use the word “actual” in this context?) or if it was meant as a joke (judging by the entry right above it could be). Regardless, it speaks to the latest Pokémon craze, which has been the centre of many debates lately. Proponents of this augmented reality game say it gets people outside and helps them get connected with other players and places they haven’t seen before. The “Pokémon go away” team, on the other hand, doubts if people even notice what’s around them with their gaze glued to the screen. I do think playing Pokémon Go outside is better than Assassin’s Creed in the basement, but I still find it hard to understand why virtual characters are needed to get people out of their house. To me, outside on its own is exciting enough, with all the bunnies, loons, bears and other real life “Pokémons.”
used to watch Pokémon, told me). I don’t know if it was an actual “sighting” (can I even use the word “actual” in this context?) or if it was meant as a joke (judging by the entry right above it could be). Regardless, it speaks to the latest Pokémon craze, which has been the centre of many debates lately. Proponents of this augmented reality game say it gets people outside and helps them get connected with other players and places they haven’t seen before. The “Pokémon go away” team, on the other hand, doubts if people even notice what’s around them with their gaze glued to the screen. I do think playing Pokémon Go outside is better than Assassin’s Creed in the basement, but I still find it hard to understand why virtual characters are needed to get people out of their house. To me, outside on its own is exciting enough, with all the bunnies, loons, bears and other real life “Pokémons.”Paddling my own canoe: my first solo trip in Killarney
“Be strong, O paddle! be brave, canoe!”
The Song My Paddle Sings by E. Pauline Johnson
If you read my previous post, you know that for my 40th birthday I decided to go on my first solo canoe trip in Killarney. Or should I say ended up going, because originally I planned backpacking in Algonquin. I even had sites booked on the Highland Trail. Backpacking seemed easier to execute and required less gear – just two feet and whatever fits into a backpack. Then, after our Killarney trip at the beginning of July, it became clear: I love canoeing way more than backpacking, I love Killarney, and hence I should go canoeing in Killarney. So two weeks before the trip I changed my reservation, got in touch with Killarney Kanoes to book my mode of transportation and started watching Bill Mason’s videos on how to paddle a solo canoe. After some deliberation I decided to go with a solo canoe instead of a kayak for a number of reasons: I prefer canoeing to kayaking, a canoe is easier to portage and easier to pack, i.e. you can just throw stuff in. As a bonus, ‘paddling my own canoe’ works as a figure of speech.
On turning 40 and travelling alone
“You don’t have to go, you know,” said my husband as I was preparing for my first solo canoe trip in Killarney.
“I know,” I replied, “but I really want to.”
Good thing he didn’t ask why because I am not sure I would be able to explain.
In books and movies, protagonists usually set out on a solo trip because they find themselves at metaphorical crossroads and feel stuck/confused/lost hoping a solution will reveal itself during those solo nature pursuits.
That wasn’t my story. Apart from occasional detours, the road ahead looked clear if not always level or straight. Sure I was turning 40 but I wasn’t losing sleep over it. I made peace with getting older long time ago. Occasionally I would turn around and think, “Where did the time go?” But then I would look at my children, my husband, my friends, think of all the wonderful things I’ve seen and learned, great trips I’ve taken, and beautiful moments I’ve shared with the people I love and knew: that’s where.
Although, I should say, my 40th birthday did have a role to play in my decision. I felt this important milestone required something bigger and more special than the usual sunrise ritual. So a solo canoe trip it was.
Our Canoe Adventures in Killarney: Part II – From spoiled plans to Portage Tunes
Part I of our canoe trip to Killarney ended with a beautiful night by the campfire. Part II starts with some rain. Three millimetres of it, to be exact.
Our camping trip to Silent Lake or a recipe for a perfect de-stressing experience
Recently, I read an article about a newly published study that suggests not all people find escape into nature soothing and restorative. On the contrary, they crave a bustling city scene when they need to relax. The idea that traffic and crowds can be anything but stress-inducing is foreign to me, but who am I to judge. One thing I know for sure is that I am not one of those people. I definitely need nature to de-stress and unwind.
Queen Elizabeth II Wildlands on Victoria Day weekend: an unlikely combination of queens and backpacking
Our younger son likes to share stories, solve math problems and study new scientific concepts while hiking. So during last weekend’s backpacking trip his dad was teaching him about factorials and permutations. Don’t ask me to explain what those are because I wasn’t really listening. I was working on a scientific formula of my own, one that would explain why backpacking works so well as a de-stressor. My theory is that there is only a certain amount of baggage our bodies can handle. So the more weight you pile up on your back and the longer you lug it around, the faster you shed the other kind of weight, the one that is made up of schedules, deadlines, to-do lists and digital noise. Add a few dozen bug bites and there is little else you can think about.
New Year’s Celebration in Killarney Provincial Park
Back in our home country, there is a superstition that the way you ring in the new year determines how you spend it. So for the past six years or so, we have been heading into the woods to spend the first minutes of January 1st around a campfire. And it seems to be working: we have had no shortage of campfires and incredible camping moments for the rest of the year.
The Best Camping Moments of 2015
It is the season to tally up accomplishments over the past year and make plans for the next one. Our New Year resolutions are usually summed up with “camp as much possible, visit as many new places as possible, try as many new things as possible.” Putting together a list of 2015 best camping moments is a slightly more difficult task since there were so many of them. Nonetheless, here is my attempt to narrow the list to our 10 favourite camping memories of 2015 (in no particular order).
Gone Camping 