This must be the park’s most reliable beaver. I’ve hiked to this small pond three times and only once have I failed to see this fella working away on his(her?) dam or lodge. The other time I heard crashes and splashes but couldn’t get around to take a look. Great value for time and money since it’s only a 10-minute walk from the car park to this guy’s home.

I always find it amazing how BIG beavers really are. More the size of a raccoon than anything else. And NOISY. The sound of its teeth nibbling away on the branch was like a typewriter.

The kids seemed pretty impressed, except for P, who had had it once she got a couple of mosquito bites. It was fun to walk the ski trails again and let the kids “find” a couple of the huts along the way. Lots of snacks kept morale pretty high. It did start to rain near the end but by that time we were minutes from the car.

Can’t wait for the snow to fall. Bring it on!

Rating:☺☺☺☺  Short. Sweet. Successful outing.

A week alone with four-year-old J opened up the possibility of a quick overnight camping trip. So we loaded up the car and headed to the nearby Gatineau Hills for a classic early camping experience.

Pros:

Thirty minutes from home. Cheap. Plenty of empty campsites. Lots of water sources and toilet blocks. Two lakeside beaches nearby.  J immediately makes a new friend from the neighbouring campsite (see above, with glow sticks). This completely solves the issue of keeping her entertained.

Cons:

Noise. Late in the evening a pick-up truck of lads pulls in. The boys buy half a dozen bags of firewood and promptly set three ablaze in their firepit, plastic bags and all, and proceed to party loudly until the early hours. Peace reigns briefly until the baby next door wakes for his 6:30 am feed. J sleeps through it all. Still, one night sufficient for mama bear who recovers somewhat after two cups coffee.

The whistling kettle from my own family’s camping trips ca. 1975. Still works great.

Overall the trip is tough to rate. Somewhere between 2 and 3 smiley faces. I’d like to take away a star for the noise issue but I’ll add one for one-on-one time with J and the pleasure of meeting some really nice people.

Rating:  ☺☺☺

A climbing party on the third pitch of High Exposure (5.6)

I (Kim) was fortunate enough to find myself with a couple of free days and zero commitments so I set off on a little solo road trip to climb some of the überclassic, moderate (read, easy) climbs in the Gunks. Having long since given up even the idea of lead climbing I hooked up with High Exposure, a guiding service and spent two days with talented local guide Jason Beaupré. The Shawangunk ridge is a series of cliffs ranging between 100 and 300 feet high. Located in New York State, about 150 km north of NYC it meant about a seven hour drive, but a pleasant one down through the Adirondacks.

First climbed in the 1930s, the area boasts literally hundreds of climbs easily accessibly off a wide, flat trail.  On a weekday the routes were not crowded and trad climbing seemed like a perfectly normal activity with men of all ages, families and female teams flaking out ropes and organizing gear at the cliff base. The guidebook shows the likes of Yvon Chouinard making first ascents in the 1960s and on my visit I saw no fewer than three first ascentionists strolling along the carriage road. You certainly felt part of a larger climbing tradition.

A solid lead climber and willing teacher, Jason was happy to let the client set the pace and pick the routes but encouraged a little stretching of one’s ability. He offered good climbing beta and took time to explain the various anchors and rappels we used. The one-on-one formate worked great. Although not cheap, it ensures you do what you want if your time (and ability) is limited.

As such, I had a chance to climb some great routes including Rhododendron (5.6), Jackie (5.5), Horseman (5.5), Ken’s Crack (5.7) and mucked about on some face climbs. But the highlight was climbing High Exposure (5.6), surely one of the most spectacular climbs of its grade anywhere.

Rating:  ☺☺☺☺☺   Memorable

Jugs to glory. The money pitch of High E. Hugely exposed and slightly overhanging but with bucket holds.

Belaying off the Grand Traverse ledge atop the second pitch of High Exposure.

No one was as surprised as we were when P announced she wanted to go canoeing and then declared that it was AWESOME. We yanked the other 40-year-old aluminum boat out of the bushes, knocked out the spiders and had many short little trips around our bay, picking water lillies and smacking at water striders.

All went well until we took advantage of a break in some rainy weather to lift over a beaver dam into a narrow river and into the next lake. The combination of mud, thick lillies and distant thunder gave rise to some serious upset. The storm missed us and order was restored. Then we went swimming.

Gratified to discover while boogie boarding off of of Cape Cod that four-year-old J quickly became adept at picking out the best wave in a set and hooted with delight when a well-timed shove put her on it for a ride She was also small enough to paddle the board like a surfboard out to sea. Had to watch her. Carefully.

In the outdoorsy town of Lake Placid for the week to cheer a family member in his very first Ironman triathlon, we took a day to go cragging on Pitchoff cliff, a slab located just south of town on Hwy 73. The day was booked through Eastern Mountain Sports by my sister-in-law as a special birthday treat for our adventure-minded niece, who turned 11 that day.

Our two experienced guides, Josh and Matt, set up three top ropes for our group of three families. Climbers included three of the mothers, one father and five kids: two girls aged 11, a boy of 8, and P and J. Our Ironman contender wisely took the day to observe, encourage the kids and rest up for his race.

Although the weather was cool with patches of drizzle, the day was a resounding success, even winning over Kim’s husband, a rock climbing skeptic. The off-vertical routes provided lots of chances for kids and adults to try climbing using ledges, cracks, flakes and friction holds, and even a tricky overhang.

The guides were incredibly patient, tying kids in and out of the routes over and over, and helping them work out some basic climbing moves including laybacks, heel hooks, stemming and rappelling. We felt in good hands with our guides who said they didn’t often have such a keen group of climbers ranging in age from 4 to 40(ish). Not a cheap day out by any stretch, but certainly a memorable one. Happy Birthday, K!

Rating:  ☺☺☺☺☺   Outstanding day.

Are ages four and six too young to go to sleep-away camp? Well yes… and no.

Our local girl guide chapter offers a Mummy and Me camp for their youngest members. And mum can bring along a younger sibling for a nominal fee. So we gave it a try.

Camp Woolsey in Ottawa’s west end has been in business for over 70 years. It’s a basic camp, but it has all the ingredients of a geniune Canadian summer: flag raising, bunkbeds, canoes, crafts, songs, and campfires.

Kids loved it. Highlights included s’mores, archery, painting one another with clay from the riverbed, energetic leadership from the counsellors, and late nights to bed. A wonderful introduction to summer camp.

The lowlights? Poison ivy. They warned there was lots of it. The kids were spared thank goodness but Kim reckons she ended up with the urushiol on her shoe, then sat cross-legged and got some on the backs of her legs. Itchy go scratchy.

Rating:  ☺☺☺☺(- 1 for poison ivy)

Rating:  ☺☺☺