JOURNEY #45: August 30 - September 2, 2004

Point Pelee Region: "The Point Of Paddling"

MAPS & PHOTOS

DAY 1 (KAYAKING ON LAKE ERIE AND IN POINT PELEE PARK) Finally, ready to go Hey. that's where we are staying Portage marker for entering the park Beautiful flower Scooting through the small channel Heron in flight Barely enough surf to play Relaxing after a good day DAY 2 (WALKING IN POINT PELEE PARK) Southernmost land mass in Canada Together on the tip Gorgeous sunset DAY 3 (KAYAK/WALK: LAKE ERIE, MIDDLE ISLAND, PELEE ISLAND) Inviting sunrise We're going to kayak in the same water as you? Starting out from Fish Point beach Our distant destination Arriving at Middle Island Strong island foundation Barf missile The puker Lots of room at the inn Sharp teeth no match for hungry cormorants Ready to go back Snake sighting Miami mist...in Canada? Lighting the way Biggest operation on Pelee Island DAY 4 (PADDLING IN HILLMAN MARSH) Julie in the marsh Egret in flight Bald and beautiful

TRIP REPORT

Point Pelee is a long drive from Ottawa (8 hours or so depending on what happens going through Toronto) but we were thrilled with the area and the variety of paddling opportunities available in the same region. We had a wonderful home base at a rental cottage (more of a house, really) called Herons' Haven. If you are considering a visit to the area, definitely check out heronshaven.com. It backs right on Lake Erie with the Hillman Marsh across the lane on the other side. The sunsets over the marsh are spectacular and sleeping in the back room or hanging out on the deck you will think you are on the ocean.

DAY ONE

For our first trip we decided to put in at the small beach at the end of the lane and paddle south down the shoreline and make a short portage into the feature marsh of Point Pelee National Park. We haven't been out much this year, and being on a large body of water like Lake Erie was a bit unsettling for the first few moments, but then we were fine and soon enjoying it immensely. The paddle south was uneventful but pleasant. There were large ships in the distance, and tasteful homes and cottages along the shore until we reached the park boundary, where it is sand, shrubs, and trees.

The portage was easily located by a large white pole with a red flag and it was only about 100 metres. We slipped into the calmer waters of Lake Pond where we saw turtles and the usual big birds (usual for this area at this time of year is several varieties of herons, gulls, cormorants, and ducks) and lots of smaller birds most of which we could not identify. We paddled through the tiny channel that takes you to the start of the marsh boardwalk. There is a small canteen there that raises money for the Friends of Pelee Park. We enjoyed cheeseburgers and ice cream while finding off the stable flies (nasty little things that look like houseflies but love to eat your ankles, socks or no socks).

For the paddle back we ventured a bit further out into the water. The sun was really beating down so the extra breeze was welcome. We coasted back into the beach, briefly played in the surf, and called an end to what was a 20km trip in total. A good start!

DAY 2

The weather was not expected to be great, so we took the day off from paddling and drove into the park to explore some trails on foot. The area called "The Tip" is where we spent most of our time. It's an intriguing place, and also the southernmost land mass in Canada. There are many warnings about the dangerous currents off the point, and lots of warnings to kayakers in the literature we read before the trip. In bad weather you can definitely see how the sandbars on the tip could produce riptides, but today it looked rather harmless (for kayakers, but maybe not for swimmers) even with a good wind blowing.

DAY 3

This was the big day. Keenan had built up a huge fascination with the southernmost point in Canada, which is not Pelee Island, it is Middle Island, right on the US border, about 5 km south of Pelee Island. It is just north of the 41st parallel, and lines up with Salt Lake City. Who knew!

It has an incredibly colourful history of human involvement, including being part of the underground railway for slaves making their way to freedom, and more recently as a headquarters for bootlegging operations, including Al Capone. The island was in private hands for some time, but Parks Canada and the Nature Conservatory of Canada got together to purchase it at auction for 1.3 million bucks in 1999.

In addition to various strange artifacts resulting from the activities mentioned above, Middle Island is also a place of ecological significance, featuring a Carolinian forest, migrating birds and butterflies, and fossils carved into the bare limestone ridges that ring the island.

To get there we'd have to make a crossing from Pelee Island. We took the ferry out of Kingsville (you have to reserve, it is very popular, and pretty damned expensive too) and it was not all that good for our confidence looking down on the huge waves and watching enormous ocean freighters passing through.

There was supposed to be a launch site right near the ferry dock (which is also where pretty much the whole "town" is situated) but we sure didn't see it. This was a good thing, because we just stuck to the shoreline and ended up at the start of the Fish Point trail, which offers a short path to a lovely beach, and we could see Middle Island in the distance. It was a very comfortable way to get started, because the beach is sheltered and it was very calm today.

When we got about a kilometre out there we had a pretty good wind blowing northeast, which is not all that enjoyable when you are going south. We travelled 5.75 km in less than an hour, somewhat assisted by the wind but also assisted by adrenaline. Landing on Middle Island was a bit tricky. There's a long gravelly point that looks inviting, but the bottom is very rocky so you have to pick your spot. Also, you have to contend with hundreds (other times it is probably thousands) of gulls and cormorants who are pretty pissed off.

We went ashore and went exploring. Everything on the island is covered in bird poop. And that means every single leaf on every single plant, so walking into the forest means accepting that rubbing up against bird poop is going to happen. It took a while to find a decent way in, and once inside it was downright freaky. There were cormorants in every tree, and herons lurking in the shrubs. They'd fly off grunting their disapproval, the cormorants would shriek at you, and the combined noises were rather disturbing.

When cormorants get very nervous, they puke. Whether they are trying to puke ON you, or they are just puking, we are not sure, but one of them sure took a good shot at us with a giant chunk of fish, which we believe to be smallmouth bass. If you can tell from the photo, let us know. He retched it up and it hit the ground in front of us with a thud. After that, we moved forward with caution.

By stumbling around the jungle-like surroundings (there are lots of vines and such) we eventually found the ruins of the old hotel that had been home to a casino run by gangster Joe Roscoe. Julie laughed out loud at the old lawn furniture still in place on what must have been the front lawn. Apparently that stuff never biodegrades! Other interesting sites included what we presumed to be some sort of farming equipment, possibly in use to clear an old landing strip, which is now completely grown over.

It was hot and stinky in the interior, and we stumbled out somewhere in the middle of the east side of the island and wandered along the shoreline back towards the kayaks. We stopped to look at the many fossils carved into the limestone, and marvelled at the size of some of the dead fish. We had a nice lunch at the base of the gravel point, and the birds got used to us so it was quite peaceful.

The paddle back was, for us, paddling perfection. It was mainly a headwind, and although there were some decent swells and a few splashed over the bow you could really see what was coming and we had no trouble at all. We could see a large sailboat near the invisible US border to the south. It was such a nice day we decided to paddle along Fish Point and go around the tip. This is reportedly a dangerous area similar to the tip of Point Pelee, but today it was seemingly harmless, generating barely enough surf to splash above the elbow.

We reluctantly paddled north along the point, stopping to chortle at a single Canada goose that was hanging out all by himself with hundreds of gulls and shore birds.

As we loaded the gear during one of the trips back and forth from the beach we spotted Miami mist, a mauve flower not often found in Canada. We also spotted a snake, if you know what kind it is, please let us know.

We'd paddled about 12km but it all happened very fast and we found ourselves with time to explore the rest of Pelee Island by boat and by car. There's a really nice marsh at southeast corner, and also a restored lighthouse. We'd seen some fancy posters for a kayak outfitter store so we checked that out. We drove right past it at 20km/h because, basically, it's a little shack. But what the hell, the island has a regular population of 250 so kudos to whoever had the guts to start up a paddling shop.

DAY 4

We couldn't leave the area without paddling the wonderful marsh that gave us such gorgeous sunsets every night. We were anticipating a very short paddle, but Hillman Marsh is really quite large. Large enough, in fact, to host many enormous fish, including smallmouth bass that were jumping through the air in the enthusiastic pursuit of various flying insects. We saw blue herons and night herons (slightly smaller) as well as their relatives the cattle egret (basically a white version of a blue heron) and much to our surprise, a bald eagle, and a wild swan.

Oh, and of course, there were cormorants, including one that definitely was playing with us, much like an otter might do. We surprised him in a small bay, but instead of screaming and flying off, he swam very close to Julie and then did his "walking on water" imitation as he flapped his wings in similar fashion to a common loon and skimmed along the surface. And he them proceeded to follow us for some distance. He'd pop up right in front of us, sometimes make a little noise, and then swim underwater and pop up about 20 feet ahead. It definitely seemed like he was taunting our kayaks and showing off his own speed and agility.

After more than 10 km of poking around the marsh we were just about to call it a day when three egrets put on quite a show in the brilliant sunshine. We watched as they changed positions. One would hunt in the shallows while the other two watched from the nearby trees. Their white exterior gives them quite a look of elegance, but they make the same croaking/grunting noise as blue herons when they take off.

It was a great trip. No, make that awesome. We'd highly recommend all three of the routes we took. If you do go to Middle Island, please try your best not to leave a trace. It's a crazy wild place and the birds definitely own it. We hope it stays that way.

RECOMMENDATIONS...

Place to stay: Herons' Haven
Best place to buy binoculars or scopes in Canada: Pelee Wings Nature Store
Best place to eat in Essex County: The Vintage Goose
What to order: The Epicurious (the chef will surprise you...amazing)