Strava link (2021 run): https://www.strava.com/activities/5793766145
Strava link (2022 run): https://www.strava.com/activities/7443086354
Strava link (2023 run): https://www.strava.com/activities/9159029820
The format for this blog post is different as I’m covering three separate day trips that I took in different years, but since the destination is the same Canadian provincial park I decided to group them together into one recap. All three of these trips were solo adventures where I got up early in Gaylord, drove across the border to Lake Superior Provincial Park, explored until I was exhausted, and then drove home to sleep in my own bed. It’s about a three hour drive each way so quite doable without staying up there overnight.
2018
My first day trip to Lake Superior Provincial Park was on a chilly Memorial Day Weekend. I crossed the border at Sault Ste Marie early and followed Highway 17 north towards the park. The route provides views of Lake Superior and quickly transitions to a landscape of granite outcroppings, scraggly spruce, and tannin-stained rivers roaring through impressive waterfalls. A very different feel from Michigan, with an undeniably “up-north” feel. My first stop was Chippewa River Falls, which is easily accessible from a roadside park. I also pulled over to walk and snap photos at rocky shorelines along Lake Superior, which were beautiful and a bit mysterious with a layer of lingering fog.
I also stopped and bought an Ontario fishing license and stopped at a good-looking stream for a few casts. I caught a small rainbow trout and brook trout, and enjoyed hiking along the stream but also a little nervous being out there alone. Black bear, mountain lion, and moose encounters are all possible up there.
And that was all before entering the actual provincial park, which covers about 380,000 acres of rugged wilderness (Highway 17 runs north-south through it, paralleling the shoreline, and there are a few rustic campgrounds and backpacking trails, but otherwise has very little infrastructure).
I stopped at the visitor center at the south end of the park to grab a paper map and then drove just a bit up the road to the Agawa Rocks Pictograph trailhead. The trail to the pictographs was short but interesting. It started with signage (in English and French, of course) warning about recent black bear activity and risk of drowning. Then the trail descended down stairs cut between slabs of granite down to the water’s edge. I could see one of the many islands off the coast of the park, and the pictograph rock itself was a cliff on which the Ojibwe painted Mishibizhiw, the Great Lynx, and other pictographs.
I decided to drive all the way through the park up to the small city of Wawa, Ontario. On the way I stopped at the Magpie Scenic High Falls between the northern park boundary and Wawa.
I stopped for a fish sandwich and fries in Wawa and then made my way back south through the park. The weather got moody (cloudy with a cold wind) so I made short forays from easily-accessible roadside pull-offs.
Eventually the sun reappeared and I found a spot to fish at a road/crossing over a small stream. I rolled rocks over until I found a worm to use for bait and tied on a micro-sized hook to try for the small minnows I could see swimming around near the culvert inlet. I caught a few shiners and then pulled in an unfamiliar fish, a Lake Chub. This remains (as of 2023) my only new fish species added in Canada, and the only Lake Chub I’ve ever caught.
I also checked out the Rabbit Blanket Campground, and fished the shallow lake there. I caught some common shiners, but nothing too exciting there. Then I drove home, while I still had some daylight.
I stopped on the Canadian side of the border for a short run along the St Marys River before crossing back into Michigan and heading home. There are a lot of bridges there…
2021
I failed to get up to Canada in 2019 and it wasn’t an option in 2020 due to the pandemic, so when they finally opened the border in August 2021 I jumped at the chance to get back to Lake Superior Provincial Park. I’m glad I went when I did, because it turned out to be a narrow window. Covid restrictions resulted in the border closing up again shortly after my trip.
Having hit many of the roadside pull-off sites on my first trip, I opted for an inland adventure this time. I picked the Towab Trail, a 12.5 mile out-and-back to a fantastic view of an impressive, secluded waterfall. The trail was rugged, with moss-covered roots and boulders, steep hills, and tight-corners that had me purposely making lots of noise to avoid startling a bear or moose out there. It’s all old-growth forest and wilderness, and I delighted in seeing the wide variety of fruiting fungi (and ghost pipes, which are actually a parasitic, non-photosynthetic plant).
The trail began as a benign single track through a hardwood forest. The biggest challenge here was the spider webs to the face. After a gradual descent for about a mile, the trail reached the Agawa River. The views along the whole river valley were pretty fantastic.
The old growth forest in this wilderness area felt magical.
The trail approximately followed the Agawa River, but it cut inland and uphill and back down many times. The steep scrambles over mossy boulders and ancient roots gave off serious Appalachian Trail vibes.
As I approached the falls overlook the roar of the rushing water grew louder but I couldn’t see the river until the very last moment, when the view suddenly opened into this. Such a wonderful spot, and I had it all to myself. I sat down and enjoyed a snack lunch before turning around to finish the out-and-back hike.
The Towab Trail run was extra special, because I also hit my 1,000th mile of the year during the adventure. Afterwards, I did a shorter and easier hike at the Crescent Lake Trail (next four photos).
I had some daylight left but not a whole lot of energy for more running or hiking, so I spent the final hour or two on rocky beaches basking in the August sunlight, sifting through interesting rocks, and climbing around on the rocky shoreline taking pictures.
I also stopped at Chippewa Falls, outside the park, on my drive back home.
2022
I made my third solo trip into Ontario on July 9, 2022. Unlike my previous day trips, I actually booked a campsite and intended for this to be a two-day adventure. However, I was selected for a required random Covid-19 test by the Canadian border control agency, which ended up being a frustrating process that led me to change plans and end up doing just a day trip out of it.
Covid-19 testing fiasco: The test had to be self-administered via supervised TEAMS meeting, and I didn’t have access to wi-fi or an international cellular service plan. I connected to the international towers anyway, to attempt to complete the testing, which ultimately cost me $150 in international data fees, only to find that the private labs’ online form was glitchy so I couldn’t schedule an appointment. I had until the end of the next calendar day to complete the test, so I decided to just complete it from my laptop back at home the next day. I carried on with my trail running adventure, and then just went home that night. I was able to schedule the TEAMS meeting with the lab tech, but at the beginning of the session the tech informed me my test kit was invalid and they would have to mail me a new one. Ok, kind of pointless at this point since my trip was already in the past (I’d have to mail in the test and wait a few days for results anyway, for them to determine if I had to quarantine in Canada or not…). But I wanted to comply because there was a hefty fee and potential jail time for noncompliance, and I didn’t want to lose my right to travel to Canada in the future. Well, the new test kit never came. Canadian health agency staff began calling me and leaving stern voice messages. I was able to talk to them on the phone and explain the situation. They said since I had already left Canada to just ignore future calls (which kept coming). They never asked about my identity, though, so I wonder if I’m in the system as being non-compliant? Will I get slapped with a fine or trotted to prison next time I attempt to enter Canada? I guess we’ll find out! [2023 UPDATE: I visited Canada in May 2023 with no issues].
Having hiked the Towab Trail up the Agawa River valley the previous year, I selected (a portion of) the Coastal Trail this time. This 37.4 mile point-to-point trail hugs the rugged, rocky, and breathtakingly scenic shoreline of Lake Superior Provincial Park. It’s not well-marked, not well-maintained, and is one of the most technical trails I’ve ever run/hiked. I started at the Agawa Rock Pictographs and followed the trail north for about 6.5 miles, ran the road back to the trailhead and restocked at my car, then followed the Coastal Trail south for about 5 miles before again returning via the road. I ran when I could, but the terrain forced hiking or even crawling and climbing on all fours or shimmying through slot canyons at times. You can see by the elevation graph from my Strava activity just how much up and down there was especially that first 10K or so. There’s also a chance to see/encounter black bear, timber wolves, and moose (there were moose prints in the gravel along the road shoulder on my way back towards the end).
The bones in my feet hurt from walking on slanted slabs of rock and running on roots and rocks, but the views were spectacular.
I cut up to highway 17 and ran the road shoulder back once I reached this stream at around the 10K mark. There were tracks in the road shoulder that I am pretty certain are moose tracks (photo below).
After a quick stop at my car to reload my hydration vest with snacks and water I followed the Coastal Trail south from the Agawa Rock Pictographs. The first bit was very verdant, like a fairy tale woods!
The trail quickly became technical, with little scrambles over rock ledges like this one. Then it led to a trail marker that made me laugh, because it almost looked like it was directing me to crawl into the cave.
Oh.
Wait.
Yeah, the trail did go through the cave. Happy no bears or mountain lions were home.
The views of Lake Superior and the many coastal islands from higher ground were pretty awesome!
I was almost alone out there, aside from a pair of backcountry campers hiking through. My friend Julia asked me afterward if I had told anyone I was going out there in this technical wilderness, in a foreign country, alone. “Yeah, the border control agent.” was my response. I suppose need to be a little better about filling friends in about my remote adventures…
Once I reached the Agawa River I again returned via running on the Highway 17 shoulder. I finished with a hard-earned 18.6 miles and 3,510 feet of elevation gain. Tougher than it looks on paper, but a really memorable adventure that reinforced Lake Superior Provincial Park as one of my favorite places on the planet.
I stopped at Chippewa Falls to hike around on the falls on my way home (it’s a tradition now!).
I was able to cross back into the U.S. without any issue related to my pending required Covid-19 test. I’m sure I’ll be fine to revisit Canada, but until I get waved through I’m going to be a little anxious about that the next time I try and travel there.
BONUS CANADA PHOTOS #1 – May 27-28, 2023
I switched things up in 2023 by heading to Aubrey Falls Provincial Park instead of Lake Superior Provincial Park. This one is about two hours from the border and in a more remote section of Ontario. There was a paved highway leading past it, but nothing else nearby aside from a few scattered lakeside resorts.
I ran a section of the North Country Trail in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula Saturday morning before crossing into Canada and checking in at Carolyn Beach Inn in Thessalon, Ontario. I enjoyed an evening run along the waterfront and city streets there. Perfectly pleasant weather for running and I was treated to a great sunset.
I drove another hour north from Thessalon to Aubrey Falls on Sunday morning. I turned my run down the short trail to the falls and back into an 11-mile run along the highway road shoulders (which were littered with huge moose prints!). Why 11 miles? I started that run with 989 miles so far in 2023, and I wanted to hit the 1,000 mile milestone. I succeeded in doing that, on May 28, 2023, making it the earliest in the year I’ve ever hit 1,000 miles running (by several weeks)! Here are some photos of Aubrey Falls. It was certainly worth a visit!
BONUS CANADA PHOTOS #2 – Older Canada Trips
I don’t plan on writing a full blog entry for my even older trips into Ontario, from the Minnesota side, but I made it up to Fort Frances (across the border from International Falls) sometime around 2005 with some high school buddies for a weekend camping trip (but no longer have any of those pictures), and then to Thunder Bay in fall 2007 and again in fall of 2008 with Joy (it was actually on the 2008 trip, during a hike overlooking Lake Superior and Isle Royale, that I proposed to her). She said yes, we married in 2009, had many good adventures together over the next few years, before growing apart and eventually going our separate ways in 2016. Here are a few photos showcasing Pigeon River Falls, Kakabeka Falls, a view from Canada’s longest suspension bridge, and some scenic overlooks, all in the Thunder Bay, Ontario, region.
