Map provided courtesy of Toporama which contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. I have marked my route in blue and portages in red. 

It was cold overnight. 

My sleeping bag was rated to -8 degrees Celsius, I had a sleeping bag liner and a few layers of clothing on, and yet, I was still cold. The forecast was for -2, but it felt colder. 

I lay in my bag until the sun popped over the eastern treeline. After putting on more layers, I went out to let the rays of the emerging sun warm me. 

I warmed up by the fire and made coffee and oatmeal. By 8 AM, the clouds of the previous day had dissipated, and I knew I was in for a wonderfully sunny day. I was happy about this after a couple of days of overcast skies. The icing on the cake, however, was that there was no wind and the lake was like glass. Gorgeous.  

I was packed up and on the water by a quarter to nine. I snapped a shot of my island campsite as I paddled away. 

Paddling in the still calm of the morning on a sunny day is one of my favourite things to do. Cutting through the mirror-like reflection of the skies on the lake with easy, smooth paddle strokes is wonderfully satisfying and therapeutic. When there isn't another soul around to disturb my absorption of the surrounding beauty, those moments become even more magical. Paddling to the south end of Islet Lake that day was one of those moments. My brain told me that I should be fishing for a second, but I was so enthralled in the moment, I ignored the thought; I was happy just paddling. The only sound to be heard was the odd bird and the drip of the water from my blade between strokes. Bliss.  

Reaching the far southeast corner of the lake, I approached the liftover to Weed Lake. What separated the two lakes was a narrow hump of land resembling a beaver dam. 

After lugging my canoe and gear over, I put in on a sloping slab of granite past some logs clogging the narrows. 

Weed Lake is a small lake with two bays separated by a narrows. As I approached those narrows, a breeze came up, ending those wonderful glass-like conditions that I enjoy so much. I didn't care, though; the area was beautiful in any kind of weather. 

Out on the lake, it was apparent how Weed Lake got its name. It was shallow and, indeed, weedy. 

When I got to the south end of Weed Lake to take the 600-meter portage to Wee Lake, I got concerned for a second. From the water, it looked like I might need to wade or pole my way through a shallow weed bed. Indeed, Maps by Jeff indicated that this section is a slog later in the year at lower water levels. 

However, as is often the case in Algonquin due to the high volume of canoe traffic and park maintenance, there was a clear path through the weeds to the take-out. Here is a shot looking back at Weed Lake from the take-out. I was glad to be going through at spring water levels. 

The 600-meter portage was relatively flat and easy. The trail was wide and well-used. 

Wee Lake was...well...wee. 

Paddling across that pond, it reminded me of the time I got fired from my first part-time job when I was 16 years old. I was a little under the weather and called in to my Scottish boss to tell him I wouldn't be in to work. 

"Sorry, boss, I can't come in today. I have a bit of a cough." I whispered in a throaty, hoarse voice. 

He replied in his lyrical Glaswegian accent, "You have a wee cough!?"

I exclaimed, "Really?! Thanks, see you next week!"

I learned the hard way that cultural miscommunications can get you into trouble. 

True story. 

It was mere minutes before I was taking out again at the 570-meter portage to Way Lake. 

The trail to Way Lake had more elevation change than the previous one, but thankfully, it was mostly downhill in the direction that I was heading. It was a particularly steep decline down to Way Lake. Here is a shot from the put-in looking back at the trail. 

After looking out at Way Lake when I arrived at the put-in, I was shocked. It seemed as if someone had dived into the middle of the lake, descended to the bottom, found the drain plug, and pulled it out. 

I mean...what the...? It was the first week after ice out! Water levels should be high, right?!

Looking at my topo map, I saw that Way Lake appeared to be fed by three small creeks coming in from the surrounding hills and small ponds. My guess for the phenomenon was that one or more of these feeder creeks was dammed by beavers and/or choked by winter deadfall, blocking water flow to the already shallow Way Lake. If so, it sure made access to the water difficult while entering and exiting the lake. 

To gain access to the lake, I used what rocks and logs I could step on, but I still managed to sink knee-deep into the muck ( what I like to call loon$&!%) a couple of times. Paddling across the lake, I don't think it was above two feet deep at any point that I could see. 

Wow. In August, particularly after a dry summer, I would suspect this lake to be impassable. It would be quite a trek along its shores to get through the route. In fact, later in the day, on the way home, I stopped off at the park office in Kearney to let them know about the water conditions, showing them my photos. I wasn't sure if it was a normal condition for the lake (it sure didn't look like it, judging by the shoreline), but I thought it would be information the park staff should let canoe trippers know about in their route planning. 

Taking out at the short portage to McCraney Lake was a bit more manageable. There were enough rocks on the exposed lake bed to allow me to frog-hop from rock to rock without sinking into the loon$&!%. It was a bit of a balancing act, but I made it through unscathed. 

The 70-meter carry was a short trot over a hill and down to the large and gorgeous McCraney Lake. I turned to take a more aerial view of the mudpuddle of a lake that was called Way Lake from the top of the hill. 

After that experience, it was nice to paddle out onto a large lake like McCraney with its beautiful rolling hills in the distance. 

I set my rod up and began trolling as I entered into the large main bay of the lake. I did a couple of passes along that northern section of the lake but didn't have any takers. Even though it wasn't that windy, the lake had some waves; I could see how this large lake could whip up in a hurry on a windy day. 

After a half hour of fishing, but no catching, I made my way north into McCraney Creek. 

I continued to fish, trolling and casting here and there. Even though it wasn't deep, I was hoping to tap into a brookie in the cold spring water. 

I paddled past another like-minded canoeist along this stretch, the only other person I would see on the water the entire weekend. He, too, was a soloist and was staying on McCraney Lake. He mentioned that he came to that area of Algonquin every year, the first weekend after ice out, to do a little trout fishing. He said that it was the first year ever that he had gone the entire weekend without catching anything. Sad as that is for any fisherman, that statement made me feel a bit better about my own lack of success that weekend. 

Eventually, I gave up on the idea of having a wonderful shore lunch of trout and made my way through Little McCraney Lake and to the take-out for the long 1680-meter portage back to Rain Lake. I took the following shot looking back at Little McCraney Lake from the take-out 

Nearing 1 PM, I made some wraps for lunch at the take-out to give me energy for the long carry.

The trail was flat, wide, and very well-used. The only difficult aspect of it, other than its length, was a few spots that were still flooded from the snow melt. I would not make it through the portage with dry feet by any means. 

Being my first trip of the year, I was not quite in canoe-tripping shape yet. Not by a long shot! Even though I was travelling fairly light, I double-tripped the carry. I was in no hurry, the weather was beautiful, and I had all day. In retrospect, it was a lovely walk in the woods. 

The end of the trail met up with the Western Uplands Backpacking Trail. From there, it was a short detour down a slope to the waters of Rain Lake. After putting in, I turned to take a shot of the landing area. 

I took my time paddling down Cripple Creek toward my vehicle. I didn't want the trip to end! It was a sunny spring  Sunday, and I was on the water. Is there a better place to be? 

I began thinking about all the trips I had planned for the next few months, and I was getting excited. Let the canoe-tripping season begin! 

Soon, I could see the Rain Lake Access Site in the distance. My trip was coming to an end. 

I got the car loaded and was driving away from the site by 3:30 PM. I felt that a stop at Pizza On Earth in Dorset was in order on the way home. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a wood-fired pie after a day of portaging and paddling.

Despite the absence of a trout meal, I felt my first trip of the season was a good one. I had two fantastic campsites and some amazing solitude for a normally busy area of Algonquin Park. After double-tripping 5 kilometres of portaging, I felt I was in a bit better shape for more difficult trips later in the year. (I was aiming to do the Steel River Loop in late June, after all!) Algonquin Park is an amazing place, particularly in the shoulder seasons. 

Pros:  The Islet Lake Loop is short and accessible. It's only a three-hour drive from Toronto. On the western side of the Algonquin dome, its high elevation allows for gorgeous, clean lakes that contain trout in a gorgeous Canadian Shield setting. There are many campsites along this route, and the route is very well-maintained. It isn't an overly strenuous route to take and can easily be done in a weekend. 

Cons: Although I had solitude, I would suspect that this would be a very busy route at other times of the year due to its accessibility. Be prepared to share portage trails and possibly have trouble finding vacant campsites if looking for one at the end of the day. It is fairly portage-intensive given its short distance, as are many routes in Algonquin Park. Dry and low water conditions, especially late in the year, would make travelling between Islet Lake and McCraney Lake quite difficult for those wanting to complete the loop trip. 

Until the next trip...