Featured Parks - Missinaibi and French River

Ontario Parks Insider

French River
It’s the sense of history that draws most visitors to the French River Provincial Park. The moment their paddles dip into the same waterway used by the great Voyageurs of the North West Company the imagination runs wild. It’s a feeling of kinship with these great early explorers – not that lightweight Kevlar canoes or streamlined kayaks match or even compare to their 36-foot birchbark canot du maitre - but the prospect of adventure is identical.

The men of the North West Company were made up of an astonishing consortium, known as “pork-eaters,” “coureurs de bois”, “Voyageurs”, “Canadians.” They were the work horse of the north, a part of a commercial empire that opened up new routes across the continent and at the same time laid the groundwork for what Canada is today.

Missinaibi
Many paddlers are enticed to paddle the full length of the Missinaibi River, from Missinaibi Lake to the Moose River and the salty waters of James Bay. It's pure wilderness and a prime place to sense Canada’s rich historic past. If you don’t have time or experience to take in the two full week trek, however, one of the best alternative routes is to simply take a few days to paddle to the northern tip of Missinaibi Lake, close to where the river flushes out of the lake and begins its journey to the Bay.

This is the spot where all the real action happened. A grassy patch amongst a stand of jack pine and black spruce marks the home of buildings once used by both the Hudson’s Bay Company and its rival North West Company. As both companies began to move their posts inland - the Hudson’s Bay Company moved from its original base camp at the mouth of the Moose River, while the North West Company moved from the north shores of Lake Superior - competition between the two trading groups intensified. This gave rise to a now 140-year-old link between Hudson Bay and the Great Lakes by way of the Missinaibi, which quickly became the most important transportation route in northern Ontario.

Outpost Magazine / Ontario Parks / CBC Expedition
Ontario Parks is about to embark on its own voyage of discovery on a trip down the Missinaibi River. This August, Ontario Parks, in partnership with the CBC and Outpost Magazine, will be paddling the Missinaibi River to relive our history and tell the story of this historic waterway. Keep an eye out for the spring issue of Outpost for a full trip report.

New Exhibit
Take note that on September 11, 2009, the epic voyageur chapter in Canada’s history will be brought to life in a major exhibition at the Canadian Museum of Civilization – titled Profit and Ambition. For further details check out www.civilization.ca

How to - Be Healthy by Nature

Ontario Parks Insider

There was a time when we didn’t need to be told to exercise. There were no commercials giving you tips on how to sneak mini workouts during coffee breaks and exercise equipment wasn’t a million dollar industry. This, of course, was a long time ago when physical activity was a part of our everyday life. Now it is just too easy to go from the bed to the car to the office desk, back home to the couch and back to bed.

It just might be time to give your body a physical wake up call and there is no better way than on a backcountry trip. Wilderness trips in Ontario Parks are not only great for the mind – allowing you to unplug from the stresses of the world – they also provide an enormous physical reward.

If you have been on several canoe trips before, why not give your legs some action on a multi-day backpacking trip. Hiking trips offer up a great cardio workout and the trails in Ontario Parks take you to some pretty spectacular places.

Killarney La Cloche- Silhouette Trail
The La Cloche Silhouette trail demands both good physical condition and a high degree of hiking ability. You should be equipped to be self-sufficient for the 7-9 days needed to cover the trail's approximate 80 kilometres. The highlight of this trail is the ascent to Silver Peak. At 539 metres above sea level, it is the highest point in the La Cloche Range. On a clear day, the panorama encompasses the entire park area. The city of Sudbury can be seen 45 kilometres to the northeast, as well as much of Georgian Bay to the southwest.

Lake Superior – Coastal Trail
This 48.5 kilometre coastal hiking trail follows the rocky shoreline of Lake Superior and offers many spectacular views over the mighty lake. Ascending and descending the cliffs, you'll find this to be a challenging multi-day excursion. There are a large number of designated campsites on route, as well as several access points if you can't do the whole trail at once.

It’s not too late … you might be thinking that summer is almost over and you should just hold off and start planning for next year. No way, fall is a perfect time to plan a multi-day canoe or hiking trip. Not only have the crowds and bugs dissipated, but it is also your last chance to tone up before the winter slumber.

Inside OP ? Woodland Caribou

Ontario Parks Insider

What do you do if, in order to survive, you need massive tracks of relatively undisturbed boreal forest? You head north. And that is exactly what the Ontario woodland caribou have been doing for the past century. Once roaming as far south as Algonquin Park, this primitive species of the deer family has been continually forced north by development and logging.

Woodland caribou are among the first species to be actively protected under Ontario's Endangered Species Act. The health of a caribou population can be considered an indicator of the overall health of the boreal forest. They thrive only in untouched forest, roaming vast distances in solitude and feeding on lichen. They are extremely sensitive to development, and often stay deep in the forest, avoiding edge habitats where they may be more susceptible to predators and disturbance.

In Ontario, the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) in partnership with the Natural Resources DNA Profiling and Forensic Centre have initiated a project to examine the genetic population structure of woodland caribou populations across the province. The goal is to determine the genetic make-up of the caribou groups. This will enable MNR to allocate its conservation effort more efficiently and effectively.

To study the caribou, researchers needed to develop a non-invasive technique for acquiring DNA from the animals. They did this by collecting faecal samples – or caribou poo. These samples allow for the creation of a DNA library for evaluations such as historic and recent population distribution, population size, gender ratios, migration between different groups and the degree of isolation of relic populations. The library will also allow benchmarks to be set that can be used to evaluate changes in population size and distribution in the future. Female samples have also been analyzed to determine pregnancy rates which reflect the health of a caribou population.

Despite being immortalized on our 25-cent coin, there are few who get a chance to spot an Ontario woodland caribou each year. Woodland Caribou Provincial Park near Red Lake and Wabakimi Provincial Park near Armstrong will give you the best odds of spotting these majestic creatures.

Identification
Caribou are easily distinguished from moose and deer by their white neck, ventral mane, limited white areas on the belly and rump, white “socks” above the hooves, thin but spreading antlers and small size compared to moose. Woodland caribou stand about 107-122 cm (3 1/2 - 4 ft) tall at the shoulder, intermediate in size to moose and deer. Males are larger than females, with bulls ranging in weight from 118-205 kg (260-450 lbs) while adult cows weigh 80-110 kg (175-240 lbs)

Did you Know? Outside of North America, Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are known as reindeer.

Switch to Bullfrog Power today!

Ontario Parks Insider

Choosing Bullfrog Power is an easy, practical and powerful way to take a stand for low-impact renewable electricity, reduce your environmental footprint and create a cleaner world for today and tomorrow.

Bullfrog Power is Canada's leading 100 per cent green electricity provider. Bullfrog Power is the only company providing everyone in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia with a 100 per cent low-impact renewable electricity choice. When you choose Bullfrog Power, Bullfrog ensures that as much low-impact renewable electricity is injected into the electricity grid as you use. Bullfrog Power’s green electricity comes exclusively from wind and hydro facilities that have been certified as low impact by Environment Canada under its EcoLogoM program, instead of from carbon-intensive sources like coal and natural gas or higher impact hydro facilities. Bullfrog Power customers are providing the demand to enable new generation facilities to be built in Canada. Thousands of Canadian homeowners and organizations have made the decision to become bullfrogpoweredTM.

Bullfrogpowering your home (including condos and apartments) or business (including leased premises) is simple. It only takes a few minutes to sign up on-line, there is no start-up cost, and no special wiring or new equipment is required. Plus, you can receive $25 off your first residential bill if you quote the following promotional code: ONTARIOPARKS. Simply type this code into the promotion code field in Bullfrog’s online signup form.

Choosing to support 100% green electricity from Bullfrog Power is a big step toward a more sustainable future for our families, our communities, and our planet.
Taking action is easy. You can make a difference.

For more information, visit Bullfrog Power.

This is a paid advertisement from Bullfrog Power.