Trail Tales

New Parking Area

     No more pulling over in sketchy areas not meant for parked cars to get your canoe or kayak into Long Lake Provincial Park.  Atlantic Developments, Polycorp, the government of Nova Scotia, with consultations from the volunteer group the Long Lake Provincial Park Association  have teamed up to build proper access off of Northwest Arm Drive, along with a 5km trail system extending from Old Sambro Road to a loop around Witherod Lake. (Have a look at my map for reference).

New 60 car parking lot

     Those of us who have been clamoring for a safe and easy place to park to get access to the lake will only have to wait until late April for that wish to come true.  The parking area which is designed for 60 vehicles will be at the end of a short driveway, set back from the road to "maintain the natural esthetics of the area".  The look-off park area on Old Sambro Road across from Dentith Road will also have its own new parking spaces.

    As for the trails, they more or less augment existing trails and paths.  There will be 5 kilometers of trails from Old Sambro Road to the Witherod Lake Loop.  The existing trails will be upgraded to a 4 meter wide gravel pathway with minimal grades making it fully accessible.  Woodchips alongside the parking lot and trail will help buffer the industrial look. Picnic areas, benches, outhouses, doggie bags, garbage cans and other overdue improvements were also part of the plan.

Witherod Lake

     The project was made possible by a $600,000 investment from both developers. The LLPA volunteer group will be managing the project after it is complete with the assistance of a $40,000 provincial grant.

    This is a good example of developers, volunteer organizations and government coming together to improve access and accessibility to our amazing and under-appreciated natural areas.  It's no coincidence this area is directly across from the companies newly developed Long Lake Villages, but in this case I think everyone benefits.  It's too bad a similar approach wasn't brokered during the destruction of the Whopper Trail in Bayers Lake.

     H.R.M. is undertaking an alignment study of the Northwest Arm Greenway project which proposes connecting Long Lake Provincial park with the Chain Of Lakes Trail via Northwest Arm Drive and St. Margaret's Bay Road.
   
   

Top 5 Fall Hikes In The H.R.M.

Dog parks, walking trails, sports fields, and active transport.

My latest excursion was to a place that I had heard good things about but never been.  With a new camera begging to be taken on a tour. I decided to check it out.

 The trail, like many throughout the province, is not marked or signed very well. Once you pull onto Duncan's Cove Road, there is no hint of where the trail is other than a small gravel parking area on the side of the road near a private access road entrance. I guessed that this was where we enter even though it looked a bit sketchy.


 Right away as you walk down the main road toward the private road you get to see a glimpse of the great views you are about to encounter. The unique community of houses are also blend of classic nova Scotia coastal communities and modern architecture. The first few hundred meters might seem as though you are trespassing but once you reach the top of the hill, the beautiful rugged coastline and the rest of the trail become visible. It is a great example of some of the hidden gems that are everywhere in the province. The coastal views are as good as it gets. For a short day hike which isn't a far drive from Halifax, you'd be hard pressed to find a better spot than this.

 It was late august and the blueberry bushes which saturate the coastal Barrens were in full bloom. A few seconds of foraging bore a handful of delicious Huckleberries. My sister in law later visited here with my nephews and I received some fantastic arctic blueberry jam! (Recommended reading: "Field Guide to Edible Plants in Eastern and Central North America")

 There are a couple of world war one era lookouts which mark roughly the mid point and end point of the trail. When I reached the first lookout which only took about 30 minutes I felt like there was no need to go any further, as the views here were spectacular. My stop here probably added 20 minutes to the trip but I would advise others to do the same. I'm sure that spotting whales from here can be achieved with the proper amount of dedication and daydreaming.

 The second leg of the journey includes some really great rock climbing opportunities and great spots to watch the powerful surf up close (caution strongly advised). The trail gets more rugged toward the end and there is potential for a catastrophic fall in a couple of places if you aren't paying attention. These dangers are to be considered if you bring kids along but otherwise add to the character of the trail.

 The second lookout marks the end of the trail and again the views are spectacular. Green rocky barrens stretch as far as the eye can see to the west, blue skies and ocean as far as you can see to the east. Another great example of modern architecture lies further down the coast on what has to be one of the nicest dwellings in the province. I'm not sure which aspect of this place is the most impressive: the house, the pool, the property, or the immense rock wall surrounding the property.




 After this point the trail ends and you must turn back around and head back the same way you came. Usually I'm not a big fan of linear pathways and prefer looped trails but in this case there is so much scenery to take in, that doubling back isn't a chore.

 All in all this was another unexpectedly spectacular day trip even to someone who was born and raised in Halifax but had never been.  I recommend it to anyone who wants to see one of Nova Scotia's greatest coastal landscapes. You can snap some great photos, get back to your childhood rock climbing days, breathe in some fresh ocean air while getting top quality exercise....and end up with some fresh blueberry jam! 


For more detailed info on Duncan's Cove, visit my website.

On the weekend I set out to accomplish a couple of goals, and redeem myself with the Earth. I planned on doing a long hike, and not get lost and have to spend the night in the woods, and the next day to have a successful fishing trip. 50% is a pass in my books.

The hiking trail we decided on (well after noon) was Pennant Point trail, otherwise known as the Crystal Crescent trail. I had been on this trail before with my brother, nephew, and dogs. The trail I remember is a popular one with dog walkers and didn’t seem too challenging or exciting. The trail I remember turned out to be about 10% of the full trail. The actual trail is 12k and full of amazing scenery and landscapes. I added a few pictures to my all time bests on the trip (still nothing beats the old one of a big wave crashing behind me as I stand on a rock pondering the ocean, taken with a kid’s disposable camera). The first part of the trail was boardwalks and bridges, typical beachfront trail; the remaining part is un-maintained and is a lot more fun. Anyone can think themselves a rock climbing adventurer on this trail. As I scaled large boulders and hopped nimbly from rock to rock I gloated each time I successfully did not break my ankle.

The scenery here is like Peggy’s Cove for miles upon miles. The scenery almost inspired me to break out a bottle of whisky and start singing some Irish folk songs. I spotted a couple of seals and about 10 porcupines. The porcupines seem to love the area, and I’m surprised every pooch leaving the park didn’t have quills up its nose.

There is lots of sea debris to be seen here, from extremely large buoys, to DVD cases, shoes, books, and your standard oil cans and eco-friendly plastics. I did manage to snap an unexpectedly awesome picture of a washed up lobster trap, next to an old tire.

After walking for a couple of hours, the boys and I sat on some rocks, made a fire, drank some beer and cooked hot dogs. This is what you are meant to do on this hike. There is no shortage of dry wood lying around, and it was a pleasant change from our last attempt at making a fire. We could have easily spent an hour relaxing there, but our previous experience told me to check my watch and get a move on. We set out again with a limited amount of sunlight left and a hefty part of the trail yet to go.

We walked for a few kilometres through some marshy areas, where my football training came in handy as I did the “high knees” drill through a good portion of it to avoid swamp foot. After only 2 soakers, we were through the swampy stuff and came upon the yellow sign we were looking for which directed us into the woods and eventually back to the parking lot. We weren’t sure how far it was, but I was playing it safe and assuming it was a lot further than we thought. The sun was setting and would be gone in another 15 minutes, and we were just now heading into the unknown.

I snapped a quick picture of the sunset (another one of my all time best unexpected pics) and two of us started into a jog, leaving the others on their own to scold themselves for not accomplishing more on the treadmill. The trail was ideal for jogging, and as we came out of the woods we hit a field which seemed to stretch as far as we could see. The sun was now set as we reached the peak of a hill, where we were able to see that the parking lot was in the distance. We were in a good stride, the only thing keeping us from a sprint were our ankles reminding us to be cautious. A good 30 minute jog and we were now back at the car, extremely tired. The others would no doubt be a while, and the fact that it was now dark left us wondering if we were going to have to get suited up for a search and rescue mission. A few minutes later my cell phone rings, the boys have reached our booby trap (black electrical tape tied between two trees across the trail) and were now in a creek, which we never saw. They had obviously taken a wrong turn courtesy of the same guy who lost the map in the previous excursion, with an assist from the total darkness. Even though the trail was quite easy to follow, it seems they had strayed from it, and the two of us were too tired at this point to go trekking back in, so we told them to carry on. 15 minutes later I get another call. They are down walking along the main road....somehow. I’m not sure how they ended up all the way down there, but we were all glad that the excursion was over, and didn’t result in another overnight clinic on hypothermia.

All things considered, the trip was awesome. I would recommend leaving before 3pm, bringing more beer than we did,packing some really good food and a beach towel. Bring your camera and take a lot of pictures, this place is like being paparazzi outside a nightclub in Hollywood, only you can’t sell your pics to TMZ, but you can enter them in HalifaxTrails.ca’s photo of the month contest!

My most recent outdoor excursion took place last weekend (March 21) in Enfield. Two friends and I had planned this trip for a week. The trip was to a very basic hunting camp in the middle of nowhere. The variables included in this trip were numerous and added a large element of the unknown to our adventure. The camp is located on logging land, and as such, may have joined its surrounding gifts from god in no longer existing. The hike was estimated to be about 15k, or about 3 hours, which made the prospect of our destination being a large clear cut not very appealing, but adventurous nonetheless.

We set out with basic supplies. Backpack including some extra warm clothes, food, water, fire starting gear, sleeping bag, liquor and other essentials. My pack wasn't as light as I would have liked for a 3 hour hike, but then again what I would have liked was to have a pack that defied Newton's Law, and only a couple of federal ones.

I had planned a route through the use of Google Maps, as well as conferencing with my brother who took me to the camp years ago. All was well planned, and supplemented with my extensive navigation skills which came in the form of a GPS system. With my Ziploc bag full of google maps, and the coordinates of the camp punched into my GPS, we were set.

We entered the trail head at about 2:30pm, as prior commitments by one of us dictated this departure time. This was only now just a slight concern, as daylight savings time had kicked in recently, and we had that fact tucked into our back pocket.... as well as our map. If this had been the beginning to a horror movie, organ music would have begun playing, with an appropriate camera zoom into the back pocket containing the Ziploc bag full of maps.

After a tough 5 minute climb, we opted to take a well deserved break to get our bearings. Just as I figured, we had already walked a good half kilometer of our 15. Maybe we should cut this break short, I eventually figure, and we head out. "Do you have that map" I ask. "Yep, right here" my friend says, while confidently patting his back pants pocket providing a "you can kiss this for asking" emphasis. I think to myself that maybe that isn't the best spot for it, but this thought got about as much attention as we did from one of the many 4-wheelers that almost ran us over.

After another 15 minutes of walking, we reach a fork in the road, so we call for the map. The map that is no longer in the back pocket. The map that is causing increasing amounts of concern. The map that is now lost. "Where the hell is the map?! Oh my god, don't tell me...." accompanied by other barrages, our map carrier is now the most hated man in Enfield.

After a 20 minute zig-zag search pattern jog, our map carrier returns, with no map. Decision time. Do we go on, with no map, and only GPS coordinates and my recollection of what the maps looked like? I had told the others to look at the map before we started, so we wouldn't just be relying on my interpretations. You can guess that they did not do so, and you'd be correct. So, 3 young men in unfamiliar woods, looking for a destination that may no longer exist are faced with a decision. The decision came fairly easily: keep going.

While the smart thing may have been to turn back and try again another day, the smell of adventure had begun to increase exponentially, and spurred us into the unknown. As we hiked on, our fast pace matching the setting pace of the sun, we came to a crossroads, an area that was not familiar to me from the map, and where a decision had to be made, fast, before the sun went down. I picked up my cell phone, and called my brother, as a desperate lifeline call on a million dollar "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" question. "Which way do we go?" the conversation is as quick and to the point. We decide to head to the right and follow power lines, looking for a place to cross over to the left. We walk for a half hour, with the sun already set, and the radiating beams are all that remain of our hope. We are definitely going the wrong way, and we are 2 hours into the woods. Our adventure has come to it's turning point, and as our denial of the inevitable wears off, we quickly set out to find a good spot to camp out.

As we find our spot, just off of a logging road, the sun is now gone, and it is getting cold. Communicating telepathically now, we all head out to gather up fire wood. We converge on a spot, and start piling it on as if it were the fireplace in our living room. We throw a match on it, and there we have it, some smoke. After the smoke dies off, we are left with a wet pile of branches and 3 men who aren't sure if the smoke is coming from the branches or their ears as their tired brains struggle to figure out how to start a fire. After a skillful application of curse words, and some emergency fire starting gear I had packed, we had a fire. Our spirits rose with the flames, and we began to think this was actually going to be pretty nice night. A quick look at the stars, and the beer and rum in our backpacks instantly renewed our spirits. As I went around collecting pine bows to place underneath our sleeping bags, the fire began to go out. The large pile of small branches did not last even a fraction as long as planned. Spirits take a dive, and we realize this fire is going to be a lot more work than the one we sit infront of at Christmas drinking eggnog. With no axe, and no energy to use one, we are limited to finding dead wood that we can snap off. Normally on my hikes, half of the wood I see is dead, and I always think to myself what a shame it is, but on this occasion, we were in the middle of the healthiest forest on the face of the earth. Every tree was young, fresh, healthy, hydrated.... everything that we were not, at the moment.

The long hike had taken its toll on all of us. No one had the energy to use our Canadian tire flashlights to go searching around the dark woods for a small amount of dead wood. One of my friends had an army issued arctic sleeping bag, and he was quickly asleep. His snoring, combined with the bitter cold, and our "Dora The Explorer" brand sleeping bags ensured that the two of us remaining would not have an enjoyable night. As I broke out the rum, and my emergency blanket, I realized my best option was to stay awake all night, gathering firewood and staying as close to the fire as possible without becoming a part of it. I turned my portable speakers and Ipod on, to help distract myself from the situation (and ward off all of the hungry wolves that were encircling us in my imagination). As I took a moment to enjoy, I laid back and took in the amazingly vibrant night sky. The other two were awake at this time, enjoying a beer, chilled naturally. We sat there, quietly, attempting to enjoy the evening, when we hear a crunching noise, the same crunching noise you make when you walk through hard packed snow, a noise we were very familiar with, as we had been making it all day. As the noise grew, we became silent, to the point of collectively holding our breath. "We're 3 hours into the woods in the middle of nowhere right?" I ask myself. I check my watch, 1 am. I do some quick calculations in my head and determine that this situation is extremely frightening. "Hello!?" one of my friends says, as I mentally prepare myself. No response, the noise continues. "Hello, who's there?" he yells again, as I reach for my knife and prepare an evacuation plan into the woods, where I will hide until we find out who this madman is. Just as I'm about to jump into the woods, the noise stops. Contrary to being a relief, this ruins my plans as I wonder where the hell this person has gone, and what the hell we should do. Then it clicks, the Ipod, the speakers, there was no music playing during this time. I whisper "rewind to the end of that song". Sure enough, it is the end of a song, an outro obviously designed as a cruel joke for people stuck in the middle of the snowy woods 1 am.

After we all breathe a sigh of relief, we continue with our roles. One quickly reverts to snoring, the other to shivering, and me to tending the fire like it is the last one I will ever see. Soon enough, the moon makes its first appearance. It peaks over the horizon in a very bright crescent. It was an interesting sight I had not seen before and is a hard one to process during a bout of hypothermia. I could tell without looking at my watch that the sun was soon to follow. As morning arrived, the sense of relief was quickly challenged by the coat of ice that now covered everything. This was the coldest point of our adventure. We built the fire to its largest point, and put some food in our tin can to cook as we thawed out our boots and laces. Once we were warmed enough to the point where movement would not risk shattering our bones, we headed back out.

The trip out seemed to take us half as long, as our pace was double that of the way in. When we reached the car, the adventure was complete. This must be what it feels like to finish a marathon in Siberia. The adventure left us with a renewed sense of accomplishment, and a large list of things not to do. Lessons learned: bring a tent, a good sleeping bag, earplugs, and do not put your map in the back of your Calvin Klein's, the woods seem to find it insulting.