Paradise Found

Wed. 29 April:  The Route to the Madawaska

The Madawaska River

“Doctor Livingstone, I presume?”, I wanted to say, as we unexpectedly met the owner of the land through which we were travelling on our quest to reach the Madawaska River.  For in my mind, the search for the Madawaska was reaching Zambesi-like proportions.

And when we did reach the river’s edge, although there may have been no signs of towering waterfalls, this truly was a stunningly beautiful stretch of water.

During the course of our hike, from the Eagle’s  Nest trailhead on Highway 508, through to the new Barrett Chute sub-division, we discovered several potential new hiking routes, some of  them possibly quite challenging loops.  The most fascinating would be to follow the river-side trail upstream, with picturesque scenes of small islands and distant hills, to explore distant lakes. 

Other possible routes would connect to the existing Calabogie Peaks trails, to Manitou Mountain Lookout and beyond.

Our route today passed two “jewels in the crown” on its way to the river.  Eagle’s Nest Lookout provides good opportunities for photos of hikers standing on precarious cliff-top rocks jutting out over the forest, far below.  Here we met a couple from New York State enjoying the scene.  The other gem was Manitou Lake, hidden in the forest, with views to the Calabogie Peaks.  There is more to discover at the lake, which has two separate sections, one not easily accessible.

We will certainly return to this magical area of wilderness which may still remain largely unknown except to hunters and sub-division builders!

Enjoy their promotional video:  http://www.barrettchute.com/

Note:  single-click on the first picture above to scroll through the photos separately

Statistics:

Total Distance:          9.5 km (hike)

Height Gain:              Say 100 ft.

High Point:                932 ft.

Time on Trail:            3 hrs. 29 min.

Start:                         10.19 am

Eagles Nest:             10.43 am

Jn. Manitou Mtn. Tr:  11.10 am

Manitou Lake:           11.30 am

Opeonga gate:          12.10 pm

River (arr.):               12.37 pm

River (dep.)                 1.04 pm

Sub-div. gate:              1.48 pm

Temp:                      +15C rising to +20C

Weather:                  Cloudless, perfect day

Calabogie Peaks Hotel:  our base of operations

Some ski hill snow remaining

The clock-tower

Route to the Eagle's Nest

Eagle's Nest

Eagle's Nest

Dreamcatcher

A sacred site

Trail south from Manitou Mountain Trail

Spring flowers

Manitou Lake, Calabogie Peaks

Gate to Opeonga property

Powerlines from dam

A key junction:  R. up to Eagle's Nest;  L. follows river upstream

The Madawaska River

Looking upstream

On the river

Giant bugs here

The road heading to the end of trail

Possible side trail to Manitou Mountain Lookout

End of trail at the sub-division

Our route in BROWN (ignore the red route -  is another separate journey)