When I was around 6 years old my family was car camping at Killarney campground. One morning my father and I headed out for a quick canoe trip on George Lake before breakfast. The light breeze turned into a stiff wind that blew us to the far eastern end of the lake. Try as he might my dad couldn’t fight the wind with my meagre assistance. We were windbound. Not only did we miss breakfast, but lunch and dinner as well.
My mom was beside herself, but thanks to her composure and perseverance we got a tow from park staff near the end of the day. My dad was quite worried, but stayed focused on keeping me calm. While both of my parents had a very stressful day, thanks to their efforts it was one of the most fun and exciting days of my young life. The details are quite fuzzy now, but I’ve remembered that day for the last 30 years.
I haven’t had the good fortune to return to Killarney since. When I planned this trip to explore the backcountry I had only read about I didn’t know that my dad would pass away before I made the trip. It made the bittersweet memory of that day so long ago all the more poignant as we paddled through the park.
Planning
Planning a trip to Killarney, like any of Ontario’s popular provincial parks is a bit challenging because of the disparity between supply and demand. I planned a trip along the Three Narrows Lake Loop as described in Kevin Callan’s “A Paddler’s Guide To Killarney” and in the park canoe guide. It looked like an interesting mix of scenic lakes and challenging portages. It would also give me the opportunity to find two of the parks three geocaches.
I woke up early in the morning and called the park three months before my trip start date to book my sites. Despite calling at the earliest allowable time for my itinerary none of my sites were available! I solved the problem by reversing my route and eliminating the break day we had planned near the end of the trip on OSA Lake, and camped on George Lake instead the first night. I wasn’t completely happy with these changes but it was the best I could come up with quickly on the phone.
There was also a communication breakdown with the operators of the reservation system. When I reserved an earlier trip I had asked if Killarney trips were booked by campsite or by lake, and I was assured that it was by site. This caused considerable confusion when I called back because Killarney is booked by Lake, not by site. Ontario Parks was in the process of switching reservation providers (again), so hopefully these bugs have been ironed out by now.
The advantage of booking by lake is that you can see the sites firsthand as you choose them. The disadvantage is that it is difficult to get the site you want, and to find a site that is well positioned for your tripping needs, particularly on the longer lakes like Threenarrows. There is a sense of competition as various paddlers head out from a portage to grab the best sites, and night owls are definitely at a disadvantage.
Day 1: Saturday Site 002
The chief disadvantage of spending the first night on George is that we couldn’t make any real progress Saturday. To make matters worse I mistook a log at the westernmost campsite on George for a canoe, so we paddled past it only to discover that all of the sites were taken. We stopped on a tiny rocky island near the last site on the lake and I pulled out the paper map in the rain to see if I had missed entering a site on my GPSr. They were all there and in the correct locations, so we turned around despite being only a few hundred meters from the next mornings portage. As we paddled back to check the sites again the rain intensified and we were soaked despite our rain gear. When we finally found the site I had assumed was occupied earlier we huddled under our tarp on a rocky beach just a few hundred meters from our parked car and tried unsuccessfully to make a fire with wet wood.
The rain held strong for quite a while preventing us from making camp. The tarp kept us from getting wetter but we were already soaked. Xander set his tent up under the tarp and we moved it into position when the rain let up, then I hung the bear bag and my hammock.
Site 002 is located on a pebble strewn beach at the base of a rather steep cliff. As a campsite it’s not terribly good, but it does have an impressive view of the spectacular scenery of George Lake. The rocky beach littered with driftwood is reminiscent of the BC coastline. There isn’t much flat ground near the tent pads. It took us a while to locate the thunderbox since it’s located at the top of the cliff. The view from the lookout nearby is even more impressive than below, but I wouldn’t want to have to go to the bathroom in the dark and the rain. It’s a challenging climb.
Day 2: Sunday Site 032
The sun came out in the morning, but we had to fight a light breeze as we recrossed George. The trip through Freeland and Killarney was easy yet spectacular, and when we arrived on OSA we were rewarded with an incredible view of its idyllic beauty. Site 028 at the east end of the lake was available and I was tempted to take it to avoid a repeat of the previous days fiasco, but Xander persuaded me to try to get one of the more appealing sites at the far end of the lake.
Most were occupied, but there was one really great island site left. We were just setting up our tarp to mark the site ‘taken’ and hanging our food in preparation for the trip to the “First Killarney Geocache” when another group of canoes showed up scouting for sites. We had just managed to get this great site by 15 minutes!
After making camp we headed back to the middle of the lake to find one of the few geocaches within the park. The cache is located high upon a ridge that affords an incredible view of the lake. We observed several recent deposits of bear and deer scat on the climb. This is a spectacular spot to visit early in the evening with the sun low in the sky, and we spent quite a while taking pictures and enjoying the view.
I had planned our trip to coincide with the full moon, and after dinner we stayed up late, lying on the rocks and watching the moon rise over the lake. The white quartzite hills reflect the moonlight and give the lake a ghostly quality. It was an awesome experience.
Day 3: Monday Site 048
After a long breakfast we headed out a little late at 1. No sooner had we left the island than we heard voices from the other side. A small family had landed on the far side as we left the launch by the campsite. Their kids were exploring the island excitedly as the patriarch paddled around to the landing. An older couple was sitting on some nearby rocks and commented on the invasion. I hope that they weren’t waiting for the site to be available. If so, their politeness was not well rewarded.
The portage to Muriel Lake isn’t difficult, but we still stopped to take a breather when it was finished. We goofed and left our tent on the shore. We didn’t notice it was missing until we were unloading the gear at the artist creek portage, so we had to paddle back across Muriel Lake to get it. Fortunately we hadn’t carried the canoe over when we realized the tent was missing.
The portage to Artist Lake is short, but quite steep. I was surprised at how marshy Artist Lake is. With the mountains as a backdrop it is quite scenic, but it presents an almost uninterrupted field of lilly pads interspersed with floating bog mats. There was so little evidence of other travellers passing through that it was the first time that we felt like we were truly alone in the wilderness.
This illusion was shattered when we finally reached the far shore. After being uncertain about exactly where the portage was we spotted five canoes beached on shore. We soon met many travellers who’d decided to turn back after scouting the infamous “Pig” portage.
The feeling of being in the backcountry was laid to rest completely when we followed the trail down to Baie Fine to fill our water bottles. Not only was “The Pool” full of boats, there’s a cottage in the middle of the bay, and an abandonned pickup is parked at the end of the trail. To add insult to injury the silt near shore plugged up our water filter so we had to attempt the challenging portage with only a half litre of water each.
We had taken our gear to the base of the hill, and while returning empty handed to get our canoe Xander told me to get out of the way because a canoe was coming. One after the other three fit young men trotted by, each with a full pack and a canoe on their backs. It was slightly unsettling how easy they made it seem. They were almost jogging. It turns out they didn’t go over the mountain like we planned, instead they went around it by paddling out of the park and back in Baie Fine. Still it was a reminder that we were only newbies at this whole tripping business even if we were about to attempt the parks steepest portage.
We met the experienced trippers again at the put in point on Artist Lake when we retrieved our canoe. They repeated a common refrain amongst those we met that day. They had portaged the Pig before, but they weren’t doing it today. Or possibly ever again. I can see why. The Pig was one of the challenges for our trip. In that regard it didn’t disappoint. It is a brutal trip up and down the mountain and the sense of accomplishment for having conquered it is palpable. But the trail is more than just steep. It’s incredibly rocky, and other than Topaz Lake it doesn’t offer much in the way of scenery.
Topaz Lake isn’t even really on the portage, it’s a side trail. It sits perched on the edge of the mountain in a bowl of quartzite that juts out of the hill in an improbable way. We hiked up to the rim of the bowl to see this little gem, but we were too short on time (and energy) to explore further.
We continued doing the portage in short segments, switching between carrying gear and canoe to give our muscles a rest. I was soon out of water, and when we got to the top there was no view to reward us, only trees and road. I was too tired to climb one of the quartzite peaks on either side of the trail to catch a view.
There’s another truck parked at the other end of the hill, along with sheds and a dock for motorboats. The second drawback to the Pig is that when you enter Threenarrows lake this way you’re greeted with a rather unimpressive view of some dingy cottages and a marshy area. It began to feel like the only purpose in conquering the hill was to say we did it, because Threenarrows felt much less remote, and was less pretty, than OSA where we started the day. In the end the Pig is about sweat and determination, and the biggest payoff is knowing that you did it. I’m glad I did, but next time I think I’ll go another way as well.
It was dark by the time we were on the water, and fortunately for us the first site we encountered (048) was available. I didn’t want to cook dinner and then clean the dishes in the dark, so we had tuna wraps, pepperettes and trail mix for dinner before turning in early.
Day 4: Tuesday Site 015
The next morning I was surprised to realize that our site was nicer than I’d thought the night before. It was quite pretty, even without being surrounded by a ring of quartzite mountains. One downside was that we could actually see a cottage from our site, but the bay was quite pretty and there were plenty of opportunities to observe loons, heron, hawks and even a hummingbird in the early morning sun.
After having the Shepherd’s Pie that we skipped the night before for breakfast we headed out. It was nice to have a long uninterrupted paddle for once, and as we proceeded north and then east the terrain around the lake improved in character. The eastern end of the lake in particular is quite scenic with lovely granite rock formations and a backdrop of white quartzite hills.
Our water filter was still clogged and it took several cleanings to pump some water before we attempted the 3km portage back to Killarney Lake. We did a double carry again, in multiple stages. The first stage was only 500m of the 3K trip but it brought us to the highest point on the trail which made the rest a lot easier.
On the second leg I managed to pick up a good speed and was almost jogging down the trail with my pack. I went almost a Km and a half before stopping, then waited for Xander to catch up. I was really in a good groove, I don’t think I’ve ever moved so fast with a full pack. This portage is much more scenic than The Pig with lots to see.
When we finally made it back to Killarny Lake it was almost sunset again, and I was worried that we’d spend the whole night searching for a site. The first one we checked (024) was in fact taken, but the two island sites at the north end of the lake were both unoccupied so we lucked out again with a great site and no neighbours.
We made camp in the dark, and I quickly set up the bug shelter because we could hear the angry drone of mosquitoes in the distance. We swatted a few of the little vampires, but to our surprise the clouds of them we were expecting never materialized and we didn’t need the bug shelter. We enjoyed the view of the moonlight on the quartzite hills once again before going to bed.
Day 5: Wednesday
Wednesday we woke to a cloudy sky streaked with blue. It wasn’t great weather, but not bad enough to call off our ascent to “The Crack”. We had a quick breakfast of oatmeal, packed up our campsite, and headed to the Kakakise Lake portage.
The wind on Killarney Lake was strong enough to slow us down, but not so strong that we couldn’t stop for a rest once in a while. When we arrived at the portage it was evident that it was quite mucky. Xander managed to exit the boat from the stern onto a log. I took my socks and shoes off to wade in. Even though the water was only a few inches deep I sunk into the muck up to my knee. My second step was no better, and my foot touched something solid beneath the mud. When it moved I yanked my foot back out quickly.
My feet were so muddy I had to use my socks to dry them and scrape the mud off before putting my shoes back on. We were soon glad that we weren’t portaging the canoe and our gear to Kakakise Lake. The trail is steep in places and very rocky. We met three women doing a single carry half way along the trail going in the opposite direction. It was a tough slog and one of them asked if they were close to where it started to go down. We assured them they were close to the peak.
Soon after Kakakise Lake the trail got steep and the trail blazes were replaced with rock cairns. Almost every hiker we met told us “It’s tough, but it’s worth it” upon seeing our sweaty faces. We returned the favour by passing the encouragement along on our way back down.
The final ascent up The Crack itself is quite fun, and the view at the top is beyond compare. The sky was still grey, which always diminishes the impact of a view, but the view was still one of the best that I’ve ever seen. Were I to return in bright sunlight (which I hope to do one day) I would be struck dead by the beauty of it all.
After admiring the view for a while we found the geocache at the crack. We admired the view some more, took some more pictures, re-evaluated our life priorities, and finally, reluctantly, decided that we’d have to head down the mountain.
It had started to rain. It was only a light drizzle, but it made the rocks slick and I slipped a few times without incident. Going down is much easier than going up, but there were a few times when we were shocked at how steep the slope we had ascended was.
We spent some time planning our embarkation and managed to get away with dry feet this time. The rain was on and off as we paddled to the Freeland Lake portage but it was only a light drizzle.
We decided to try our first single carry for practice. We had three bags instead of two, so we still had to make a second trip, but it let us see how feasible it would be to do portages in one go in the future. We both agreed that in some ways it was easier than a double carry.
The rain really came down during the portage but we were under the canoe so we didn’t get that wet. As we crossed Freeland lake the sun came back out, and by the time we reached George it was a beautiful sunny evening.
Conclusion
We encountered several day paddlers out of George Lake campground. It felt odd to see people who seemed so ‘civilized’. We met many people in the interior who were on much longer and more difficult trips than us, so we had no delusions of grandeur, but returning to the car campground felt a bit like walking on air.
I originally planned this trip to be a mix of quiet scenic camping interspersed with some tougher challenges to help us push our tripping skills. The scheduling issues I encountered forced a more gruelling pace on us than I had intended. Still, while I could easily see enjoying five restful days on OSA or Killarney Lake I’m glad that we incorporated the Threenarrows portion of the trip because of the feeling of accomplishment it afforded us.