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Day Trip to Algonquin Provincial Park

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Ray skipped school last Friday to join the law exchange students from Singapore for a visit to Algonquin Provincial Park, hoping to catch the fall colour before the trees lose their leaves. Equipped with a Chevrolet Impala from Hertz, whose clerk noted it was my birthday but gave us no special discount, we set off on a 628 kilometres road trip.

We didn’t realise we needed a permit to drive on the stretch of Highway 60 known as the Parkway Corridor, which runs through the south end of Algonquin Park, or we would have gladly paid $12 to help maintain the park. The scenery was spectacular; it was a sea of colours for as far as we could see. Little wonder why Algonquin Park inspired much of Tom Thomson’s artwork.

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Lunch was taken beside a scenic lake; I wasn’t enjoying the meal or the scenery much due to the freezing weather, although it was quite an experience to eat outdoors on such a cold day. As I munched down on the Snickers bars and stuffed my mouth with Oreo cookies, I tried to convince myself that I needed the sugar and fat to keep warm; the fact was I’m just too lazy to prepare sandwiches for the trip.

I didn’t feel that our trip to Algonquin Park would be complete without some trekking, and it was by chance that we came upon a trail called Lookout Trail. Although we all agreed the name sounded cheesy, I doubt we would have made the trek if we hadn’t seen the word lookout, which promises great scenery.

During the trek I saw a chipmunk for the first time; but it was moving so fast that I only managed to get one good shot with my camera. We also discovered a giant rock shaped like a peach; as much as I would like to believe that there’s a legend or story behind it, there was a more scientific explanation: the rock was disgorged from the glacier which melted back during the last Ice Age 11,000 years ago. Sometimes science and logic just spoil all the fun.

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The view at the cliff top was beautiful; we marvelled at the wild, rugged country that lay before our eyes. We were busy taking photos on one side of the cliff, only to discover the view on the other side was even better. That’s when a digital camera comes in useful: delete the redundant photos and you’re good to go again.

I would love to visit Algonquin Park again for an overnight stay in one of the lodges. I wonder how it’ll be like to look up at a sky full of stars and listen to the mournful howl of a wolf in the middle of the night.

21 October 2003 · Travel

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