The Passionate Hiker: Blueberry Mountain

Sun. 10 August: Blueberry Mountain

Blueberry Mountain, Lanark County's highest point

I’ve hiked up Raspberry Ridge, and into the Strawberry Hills, and today I would explore Blueberry Mountain.

Getting there was half the adventure today, following a rough map provided on the website for this area. I had made an early start today, and so the road was empty as I drove through sleepy Lanark on my way north. Turning left at the hamlet of Brightside, I followed the paved country lane into a different land – rolling forested hills and swampy valleys. I was less than fifty kilometres from Perth, but this was a very different countryside. I had entered the Lanark Highlands.

At Joes Lake, I turned right onto a gravel road. The mist was rising off the lake, and a low sun was reflecting in the waters. I turned right again onto the Hills of Peace Road, a narrow lane which climbed up the hillside through the trees to my trailhead. It was marked by a “Seven Wonders of Lanark County” sign, the last one on my list.

This is private land. I had completed my waiver form at home, which I deposited at the trailhead kiosk. The trail immediately climbed up the hillside along a pretty lane, through an avenue of young trees. I passed a small swamp on the right, where the trail leveled off and continued in a northerly direction past another swamp. A bench on the trail marked the point where the path turned left, climbing steeply up through the trees. A short scramble brought me up onto the open ridge and the sudden surprise of a spectacular view.

From this rocky ridge I could see lines of similar flat ridges with valleys below them, with possibly higher hills far off towards the horizon. On my vantage point were two perfectly positioned benches, on top of a sheer cliff. Below the forest I could make out a lake with a white house on it. This was probably Flower Round Lake.

It had only taken me twenty nine minutes to reach the summit. Yet I felt on top of the world. And indeed I was at the highest point in the whole of Lanark County. A light breeze had sprung up, making this a very pleasant place to linger.

After exhausting my options for scenic photos, including pictures of my shadow (early morning gives the best light, with the sun directly behind me), I returned down the trail. While not attempting to race, it still only took me twenty four minutes to reach the car. I signed the visitors book and drove back down the hill.

The start of this hike was fifty four kilometres from Perth. I drove another hundred kilometres on my return journey, largely down well-graded gravel roads, exploring trailheads at Flower Station, Lavant Station, and Snow Road Station, on the K&P Trail. There was very little traffic. Some advice to the reader: get yourself a copy of the Eastern Ontario Backroad Mapbook before you leave the main highway. You can have a lot of fun exploring remote routes without getting lost!

Blueberry Mountain is a hidden gem. I saw from the visitors book that it is not frequently hiked. I was only the third person to sign the book this month. The ridge lies on private land, and it is thanks to the generosity of the owner which makes such a magical outing possible. And given the number of maple trees along the way, I will want to return this Fall.

Statistics:

Total Distance: 5.0 km (hike)

Height Gain: 230 ft.

Max Elev.: 1,000 ft.

Time on Trail: 1 hr. 12 mins.

Start: 7.37 am

Top: 8.06 am

Ret. to car: 8.49 am

Temp: +10C and rising

Weather: Cloudless, light breeze on top