Reading week. A time to focus on priorities. Realign my goals. Evaluate my work so far. Fall is an awesome time of year, a good season to gain perspective and see the bright fall colours. One way that I like to gain perspective is to travel, you’re challenged, you meet new people and most importantly you’re out of your comfort zone.
A few Instagram posts had been drawing my attention to
a hike in Ottawa scenic valley. Eagle’s Nest Lookout – less than an hour from
the nation’s capital or 4 hours from Toronto.
If I had to put a theme on the blog it would be the
awesome beauty of the Ottawa river. I have been to Ottawa several times and
witnessed some of the damage of the floods in 2016 & 2019. Seeing the
length of the Ottawa river to Mattawa was a reminder of the historical and
economic importance that gave this region it’s identity.
I encourage you to dive into the history of the region
before you visit. You will understand the significance this river and region
played in the forming of our nation and our capital city Ottawa.
Getting there:
I left just before 4 am to get a head start on the day
and skip the Toronto traffic. Just after 6 AM I was pulling off the 401 in Belleville
and took Hwy 37 north to the town of Tweed & Hwy 7. From here I took Hwy 7
eastbound. In my travels to Ottawa I always preferred this scenic route over
the typical 401 landscape. It was just after 7AM by the time I was in this
area. With the winter season approaching the sun was just rising. This was one
highlight of my trip; I could barely make out the marshes and landscape that
was familiar to me and then as I rounded one corner…the brightest red sky it
was awesome no pictures would give it justice. The road signs read 180 kms to
the nation’s capital. In the small town of Kaladar I turned north and
immediately there was a steep incline giving me a nice view of the sunrise to
the south east. Some small towns were outside of Kaladar like Northbrook the
last stop for gas for the next hour. Hwy 41 is quite remote from larger towns
but the beauty is worth it. One nice stretch of road was along Mazinaw Lake
(Bon Echo Provincial Park). Mazinaw Lake is the 7th deepest Lake in
Ontario including the great lakes. Steep cliffs mark the border of the lake.
Definitely have to return to spend time in that area. There was a lot of scenic
lakes, I stopped at one (Tooey’s Lake) with the mist coming off the lake it was
so quiet. A good place for reflection.
By 830 AM I was at the trailhead, there was some rain.
The trail is pretty easy, in total to the lookout it takes 25 minutes. In the
last 10% of the trail there is a steep incline. There are many viewpoints along
the ridge and one ledge that is the site of many famous Instagram shots. I
highly recommend this trail. It is worth the stop, in ideal weather you could
definitely spend some time here.
After this hike I passed through the town of Calabogie
which has a ski resort definitely an ideal town to visit in the Fall or Winter
for a weekend.
From here, the rugged Canadian Shield ends and the
Ottawa River valley starts.
Nearby is Quebec, with the Laurentian mountains, an hour drive through this region provided a scenic drive. Towns I went through included, Portage du- Fort, and Fort Colougne.
By midday I was back in Ontario in the town of Pembroke – the heart of the Ottawa valley. There were many beaches along Hwy 17 to get glimpse of the Ottawa River, which is huge. There were murals in the town of Pembroke that displayed the history of the town. About 10 minutes down the road is Petawawa, known for the largest army base (by personnel) in Canada. Once again, I stopped at the river to see the view, there were quite a few islands between Ontario and Quebec. Definitely would love to come back to the Petawawa beaches in the summer. From here I got on Hwy 17 North another option would be to go through Algonquin Park on Hwy 60 if you would like to explore other areas. The next town is Chalk River where there is a large nuclear plant. Security is tight in this area as both sides of the road is an army base and there were many convoys on the road. After Chalk River, is the town of Deep River, I went to Lamure Beach which was on the south side of town.
Here is a picture looking east to Quebec.
Opposite of Ontario on the Quebec side, the area is
remote with mainly parks for camping. One bigger town in this area is
Temiscaming which I visited in May of 2019.
The highway follows the Ottawa River to Mattawa where
highway 17 heads to North Bay another 45 minutes. I passed the road (Hwy 630)
to Kiosk, Algonquin where I had gone camping 4 years ago.
North Bay has been a favourite town of mine to visit
for awhile, with a population of approximately 50,000 + it is a town for
outdoor activities. I was in this area last in May of 2019. I recommend
Duchesnay Falls on the north-west side of town. In the winter you can go ice
fishing on Lake Nipissing and North Bay has many trails for snowmobiling, known
as the gateway to the North. North of this town you can drive many hours into
Quebec even reaching eastern Quebec townships like Saguenay and Charlevoix via
Hwy 113&167. From North Bay I headed south and made a stop in Huntsville.
During this trip I used a different method to
communicate the sights I saw. I used more videos and vlogging, the key to which
is storytelling. I hope to improve this skill to interest those in exploring
our province & country.
I hope you find this blog useful, I wanted to document
my experience as I travelled instead of recommendations where to go, but if you
would like to find out more about certain areas feel free to email me at makinghorizonshistory@gmail.com
Get out there & explore! Stay tuned for winter
adventures!
Elijah Reinhardt
