Aug 21st: Day 2

Breakfast under the tarp in the rain. A hash made of hunter sausage, onion, garlic and dehydrated potatoes and peppers. We had been dehydrating food for several weeks before we left. 

Our neighbour decided to idle his car for half an hour to charge the battery until we, on the verge of carbon monoxide poisoning, suggested he just drive it around. He did.

The weather cleared as we packed for our canoe trip. This involved menu planning and portioning for the next three days. We're traveling with a bin full of dehydrated delicacies. Once we were packed, we were quickly out on the water with Vinnie enjoying his first ever canoe ride.

Site 56 sat high on a rocky point with an eastern view so we enjoyed both the sunrise and moonrise. Almost immediately, the loons began supplying their cliched northern ontario soundtrack. When combined with the sound of the tiny waterfall across the bay, it was New Age CD worthy.

This is what we were after.

                                              

 We lit a fire and got dinner under way.

 Rehydrated lamb and sweet potato curry on brown basmati rice...

...with the last of our cellar wines which we have been diligently

drinking rather than move them.

Aug. 20th: Day 1

The drive to kilarney was sunny and uneventful. We stopped in Orillia for the first of many (we think) fish and chip meals. It was at the historic French’s Fish and Chip stand, erected in 1920 and staffed by the entire local high school girls basketball team, so it seemed. The fish and chips were excellent and we ate them at a table with a plaque informing us that in 1930, Stephen Leacock took his tea in that very spot.

We arrived in Kilarney Provincial Park at around 5pm. The plan was to stay in their car campground for one night, followed by 3 nights of canoe-in camping on Carlyle Lake. The night of car camping was a very bad idea. If you’re used to back-country camping, this form of camping seems ridiculous. Upon pulling into our campsite, we were immediately aware of our neighbours. Our many, many neighbours and their motorized vehicles.  Immediately next door was a couple - he, a dude of indeterminate age, somewhere between 22 and 27, and his high school-aged girlfriend. Let’s just say there were many wine-coolers and much bad music. 

Dinner consisted on cheese, salami, bread. raw vegetables and wine. We sat around the campfire awhile before going to bed early. It rained all night with intense thunder and lightning which did not make Vinnie, or us, very happy.

Okay, here’s what’s happening.

We are Doug and Lorraine (I'm the tall one). We left our jobs in Toronto and are driving across the country with our dog Vinnie to relocate to Vancouver Island and live there.  We are going to attempt this in or 2006 Honda Pilot, which we’ve named Darth, equipped only with a blackberry, a laptop loaded with season 1 and 2 of Mad Men, an ipad, two ipods, an in-car electric cooler and a lot of GoreTex. Our trip starts from my parents home near Belleville where this picture was taken. Our first destination is Kilarney Provincial Park.