Algonquin Provincial Park is a provincial park located between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River in central Ontario, Canada. It is the oldest, largest park in Ontario, covering about 7,725 square kilometres. Its size, combined with its relative proximity to the major urban centres of Toronto and Ottawa make it one of the most popular parks in the province. Highway 60 runs through the south of the park, while the Trans-Canada Highway bypasses it to the north. Over 2400 lakes and 1200 kilometres of streams and rivers are located within the park, including Canoe Lake and the Petawawa and Nipissing rivers. These were formed by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age. The park is in an area where there is a transition between northern coniferous forest and southern deciduous forest. Because of this unique mixture of forest types, the park contains thousands of species of plants and animals, including moose, beaver, black bear, lake trout, maple, and spruce, and is an important site for wildlife research. The park also provides protected habitat for the Eastern Red Wolf.
In the 19th century, the logging industry harvested the large white pine trees for shipbuilding. Homesteaders and farmers settled the area. In time, the area's beauty became recognized by nature preservationists. In order to manage the conflicting interests and offer some protection, the Province of Ontario designated Algonquin a provincial park in 1893. It quickly became popular with fishermen and hunters, as well as artists such as Tom Thomson and the members of the Group of Seven, who found the landscape inspiring. Thomson served as a guide in the park and did much of his painting at Canoe Lake. He died under mysterious circumstances at Canoe Lake in 1917. Up until 1994, the main line of the Canadian National Railway passed through the northern part of the park.
Today the park is a popular year-round outdoor activity area. There are eleven designated campgrounds along the edges of the park, especially along Highway 60, but it is possible to camp further inside the park in sites accessible only by canoe or on foot. Other activities include fishing, mountain biking, horseback riding, and cross country skiing. Algonquin is also home to a very popular Natural Heritage Education program, the most popular program being the weekly wolf howls on Thursdays in the month of August, and sometimes in the first week of September if there is a Thursday before labour day, weather and wolves permitting. Park staff attempt to locate a pack Wednesday evening and if successful, they announce a public wolf howl the next day.
Logging continues to this day in Algonquin Park, but it is strictly managed in order to maintain the park's natural environment and to prevent interference with any other activities taking place.
Interior camping
Although there are numerous drive-in campgrounds in Algonquin, the park is better known for its interior camping, that is, campsites which are only accessible by canoe or hiking in the summer, or ski or snowshoe in the winter. Algonquin Park provides some of Canada's best canoeing, with hundreds of navigable lakes and rivers forming a vast interconnected system. The further a camper progresses from access points, the more wild the park will become, and it is possible to spend several days in the interior with little or no sight of other campers. Park staff maintain portages between all major and even smaller lakes, and interior campsite reservations must be made through the main Ontario Parks reservation system (for North American residents dial 1-888-668-7275). Potential interior campers should note that there are two types of portages in the park; those marked as red lines on the map are well-maintained and usually well-traveled, while those marked in black receive much less maintenance and can be considerably more difficult to follow.
Portaging Canoes
Interior campsites can vary widely, and aside from the historic ranger cabins none have any permanent shelter. Sufficient bad-weather gear (tents, tarps, etc) should be brought so the trip can remain enjoyable in the face of less-than-perfect weather. All campsites have prepared firepits, which should be the only location used for fires. Fires made in non-prepared sites can cause underground roots to burn, allowing the fire to spread. Park rules and suggestions for gear can be found on the reverse of the official Algonquin Park map.
Interior camping can provide excellent wildlife viewing opportunities. The eerie call of the common loon can be heard from every campground and loons can be seen on almost every lake. Moose, deer, and beaver are not uncommon, especially along waterways, given sufficiently quiet campers. Black bears, although present in the Park, are seldom seen, especially if appropriate precautions to avoid attracting them are taken. Wolves may be heard, but will likely remain distant from campers.
Summer camps
Algonquin Park is home to many historic summer camps, including:
Camp Ahmek (boys) and Camp Wapomeo (girls) (The Taylor Statten Camps), on Canoe Lake
Camp Arowhon (boys and girls) on Joe Lake,
Camp Pathfinder (boys) on Source Lake,
Northway Lodge (girls) and its affiliate Camp Wendigo, a tripping outpost for boys, on Cache Lake,
Camp Tamakwa (boys and girls),
Camp Tanamakoon (girls) on Lake Tanamakoon (linked to Cache Lake).
Camps are members of the Ontario Camping Association.
Fishing
Fishing is allowed in the Park for holders of valid Ontario fishing licenses, with the purchase of a daily or seasonal vehicle permit as well available through the Ministry of Natural Resources. Fish such as bass, yellow perch, trout and pike can be found in the waterways of the park. The further an angler is willing to travel from an access point, the more likely that the fishing will be outstanding - those willing to make the effort to portage their gear to a more secluded interior lake will often be rewarded.[link]
Rivers
Beautiful Sunset
The park contains and protects the headwaters of these rivers:
