Blue Lake is awesome! We went with the Young(?) Couples Group from FGUC to Vermillion Bay Ontario. It is about 80KM East of Kenora. This is truly a jewel.There was a large group camping area that had a nearly new picnic shelter and washroom building. And it ran alongside the lake, so we basically had our own private beach as well.
Being that it was later in the season, we had some cooler temperatures than on past trips, but al in all, it was a really great time. There were 8 or so families, and just about 25 people. The layout threw off Tannis and I as we are not used to having such an expansive campsite. Kitchen tent and sleeping tent have never been so far apart! But we tore down the kitchen tent after a day or so due to the wind and made do in the kitchen shelter on site.
We took a canoe out for an afternoon tour around the lake. Mitch hates canoeing. 100M from shore and he wants to go back. He's so worried about the thing tipping. Dude. You're wearing a life jacket that would keep us all afloat. Relax. I tried to keep him interested by dripping water from the paddles onto his legs. He wasn't buying it. I think he got a bit too much sun on that journey, though, cuz he was a bit pissy that evening. Brooke seemed pleased enough.
I had one of those parental "ping" moments watching Brooke play with some of the other girls. They had gone off on their own to some little piece of bush beside the lake to, well...be girls. They established territory in their place on the Canadian Shield. They had a bathroom...no, two bathrooms. One for pee, and one for, well, you get it. They had a stump that the one who was talking would stand on and the rest would have to listen. There was a kitchen, and I think a living room. When I asked about the absense of the bedroom, I was told that there was NO WAY they wanted to be out here in the dark.
We went out to do a few geocaches on one of the days. It was totally fun. We did a few caches, built an anukshuk, and got some snacks. These pictures are at Wanapigow falls. There was a cache nearby, so we couldn't resist the view. Tannis was wearing the worlds worst caching shoes, so she had to be extra careful. I think we ended up finding 5 or 6 caches. So It was a productive day by anyone's measure.
We all went to Fort Vermillion to do some miniature golfing on one of the nights. Great time. Everyone had a blast. The mini golf course groundskeepers were 8 and 3 years old. But they kept a tidy course. It seems that family issues may be forcing the privately run Fort Vermillion to close. I hope not. That place is a treasure.We ended up staying an extra night after everyone else left. The last day we spent there was kinds gross and dreary. I approached Tannis to suggest we go into Vermillion Bay to get some ice cream or hot chocolate and shop around in the general store. She beats me to the punch and says "Wanna go do that other geocache on the trail behind the fort?" Why, yes. Yes I do! I love her.
That hike turned out to be the highlight of my weekend. It is less than 2 KM, but it is absolutely beautiful. Instead of turning back on the trail and returning the way we came, we did the entire trail loop and I am so glad we did. That is a beautiful piece of the world. Loved it.
On the day we packed up, the sun was shining brightly and the temperature was nice and warm. Would have rather had this weather on the previous day, but you take what you can get.
