The Passionate Hiker: The Rideau Trail: Sydenham (03D) to Bedford/Salmon Lake Roads (04E)

Thurs. 18 September: The Rideau Trail:

Sydenham (03D) to Bedford/Salmon Lake Roads (04E)

Rising above the rooftops of Sydenham

Today I entered the wilderness.

Heading north out of the village of Sydenham, I passed through several large fields. But they would be the last I would see for some time. Reaching Freeman Road, I followed the signs into the forest, and here the scenery changed in the blink of an eye. The trail dropped down into a different country; rocky forested land, with sudden elevation changes, surrounded by lakes and swamps, some huge and many small. It would be utterly impossible for me to have charted a reasonable course through this land without the help of the trusty orange triangles. It would be easy to have panicked when for a minute one could not immediately see the next link in this communication chain.

The first very large lake I came to was Knowlton Lake. It’s about four kilometres long by up to one kilometre wide. I stood on a rocky outcrop high above the waters, with a stiff breeze blowing down the lake. A miracle had occurred as I travelled North. From a cloudy morning, the skies suddenly cleared and now it was the most perfect, yet cool, sunny day. The waters of the lakes shone dark blue.

Turning east away from Knowlton Lake, I followed woodland roads to the entrance gate to Gould Lake Conservation Area. The next two and a half kilometres might have benefited from some trail maintenance as I hiked along a forested roller-coaster trail, often in tall brush, past swamps, and through a forest glade where a resting area had been crafted under the tall trees.

At one time, you could camp at Gould Lake, and I passed through a field where camping stoves rose oddly above the long grass. The campsite is now closed. I missed the beach at the south end of Gould Lake, turning left at a key junction. Nevertheless, I did make up for it further along the trail.

After some particularly arduous ups and downs, and crossing of a large swamp on an old beaver dam, I found myself high above the western side of the lake. This really for the first time on this trail felt much more like the foothills of Alberta than the gentle country of Eastern Ontario. Passing the junction to an interesting optional trail called The Ridgewalk, I came close to the edge of Gould Lake. First, however, I climbed up onto a narrow forested ridge, which for added adventure had several deep mica mineshafts along each side of the trail.

The waters of the lake lapped up against the rocky shoreline, with shafts of silver reflecting the sunlight along the shore. This was truly a paradise. Across the lake, perhaps a kilometre away, sat a lovely house with a million dollar view. But this lake looked to be almost unspoiled and largely unchanged by man.

Finally the trail left the northwestern edge of the lake and headed back into the crazy wilderness before finally exiting onto Bedford Road, a quiet paved route through the forests.

Soon I was at the junction with Salmon Lake Road. Here Frontenac Outfitters has a large base, with canoe and kayak rentals and a hidden campsite. They were closing down for the year, with final sales of their rental boats. They had kindly allowed me to camp here overnight. I had the small campsite to myself. It sat under a canopy of tall trees, with bright sunlight shining through the trees.

As the sun dropped, so did the temperatures, and during the night it would fall to around minus 2 C. I was well prepared. I got a good fire going, and my sleeping bag, used to Alberta winters, was more than up to the test. I slept well.

Statistics:

Total Distance: 16.7 km (hike)

Height Gain: Say 600 ft. in small gains

Time on Trail: 5 hrs. 43 mins.

Sydenham (03D): 10.13 am

Freeman Rd (04A): 11.12 am

Gould Lake Gate (04B): 12.11 pm

Beach Jn (04C): 1.05 pm

Brook Jn (04D): 1.48 pm

Salmon Lake Rd (04E): 3.56 pm

Temp: Cool, rising to +12C

Weather: Cloud clearing away