The Root Glacier Trail is a fantastic trail on the outskirts of Kennecott. As close, and easy, as it is to access the trail, it’s an adventure in of itself to actually get to Kennecott, Alaska!
Cut-off from the outside world for part of the year, Kennecott is one of those places where you can risk taking a wild ride by road to get to it, or take the quicker route and go by bush plane.
We took the plane route, as it was the end of the season for Kennecott, being the last visitors in town for the year (we timed our trip with the infamous Last Man Standing party).
Flying over the Root Glacier on our arrival, and seeing the amazing beauty of staring down at the Wrangell Mountains and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park was worth the trip on its own.
Hiking the Root Glacier Trail was tons of fun.
Starting off with a walk through town, there are numerous trails in the area, some exploring deep into the wilderness, others heading off towards the nearby glacier.
With our super spikey crampons packed and great guides from St. Elias Alpine Guiding, we set out for a day of exploring. It wasn’t long before we were actually standing on top of a glacier. How cool is that? (ha, literally!)
Putting on our crampons, we ambled along the icy surface with ease. There were some deep crevices, crazy coloured ice, waterfalls, and even a swimming spot that we encountered. Yes, some of people did choose to go swimming on a glacier in Alaska!
It was a beautiful blue sky day, so the brightness of the sun reflecting off the white ice was intense. Everyone was careful to make sure we put on enough sunscreen to keep ourselves from burning in the cold, but bright landscape.
Those contrasting bright colours provided for some great photography. I’d been to glaciers in other parts of the world like New Zealand, Greenland and Antarctica, but this was the most exciting glacier experience of them all. The hike was exciting, but not overly challenging. Being right on top of this enormous glacier helped put things into perspective, after seeing it from high above in a plane.
Nature is pretty awesome, and this was a big highlight from my travels in Alaska. Maybe even better than the wildlife spotting and hiking in Denali National Park!
Have you been to Kennecott, or glacier hiking anywhere?
I’ve always found it worthwhile to head to remote locations, whether in Canada or beyond our borders. When it comes to Ontario Parks, some of my best hiking and wildlife experiences have been in the most northern parks I’ve visited.
Sign for the Teck Lake Trail
Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park
A little off the radar for many campers, Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park is up near Foleyet, Ontario. That’s over an hour east of Chapleau or an hour west of Timmins. Still not sure? How about 8-9 hours of riving north from Toronto!
It’s a beautiful lake, with spacious campsites and plenty of privacy. The nosiest neighbour we had was a mamma duck who kept waddling around our campsite with her babies in tow.
There are actually quite a few decent hiking trails at Ivanhoe Lake. The first one we did was the Teck Lake trail.
Teck Lake at Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park
Hiking the Teck Lake Trail
At only about 1km long, this is a short trail. Even so, this trail offers a nice range of scenery, as it meanders through mature forests and takes you to a pretty kettle lake (Teck Lake).
While the trailhead for Teck Lake isn’t very far from the campgrounds, we didn’t see, or hear, any other hikers our entire time on this trail!
The only sounds were our own steps, and the birds and squirrels chirping and chattering away at us.
Hungry Red Squirrel at Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park
It was a pretty hot mid-summer day when we hiked this trail, so upon reaching the little lake, it definitely looked refreshing to swim in! No beaches or anything here though, so we headed back to our waterfront campsite, where we had lots of space on Ivanhoe Lake to enjoy the water.
The trail itself is quite easy overall. It does have some decent inclines and declines to get your heart pumping a bit, but there are no real challenging areas.
Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park – Teck Lake Trail
Most people should be able to do this trail in decent running/hiking shoes. I still tend to hike in my hiking boots on such trails to avoid possible ankle injuries, but they weren’t really needed on this hike.
Expect to see some forest dwelling creatures along the way too, mostly red squirrels. Maybe chipmunks too.
Berries by the trail at Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park
In terms of vegetation, it was a lot of big pine trees, as well as some smaller berry bushes, and mixed forest in areas. A good variety! Some decent sized, colourful mushrooms were spotted too.
Teck Lake, a kettle lake, at Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park
The pathway was narrow in many places, and slightly overgrown at times, as can be expected at the lesser-visited parks further north.
Overall a fun trek in the woods that only takes about half an hour of hiking.
A bit off-the-beaten-path, El Rey National Park, Argentina doesn’t get huge visitor numbers, but if you can manage the time, and the bumpy roads, it is well worth the effort to visit.
Bird in El Rey National Park
A small group of us hit El Rey for a day of hiking with Federico from Norte Trekking Expeditions based in Salta.
Hiking in El Rey National Park
Upon arrival, we quickly came across an abundance of wildlife, with wading birds and butterflies seemingly around every corner as we hiked along a river and through some marshlands. While there are some larger animals in the park, such as the tapir on their park logo, you’re more likely to come across a plethora of birds as there are numerous streams and marshlands in the park.
El Rey National Park Hiking Trail
There were colourful birds I had never seen before, and some larger birds like herons, which gracefully flew by. Years ago I used to ignore birds, but the more I travel, the more I have started to appreciate the differences in birds around the world. Argentina definitely had a few surprises for me.
Berry in El Rey National Park
Bromeliad in El Rey National Park
It was pretty much a full day of hiking in El Rey National Park, with a stop for a lunch break. During that entire time, our little group only crossed paths with one other group of a few people, so we were free to listen to the sounds of the forest.
El Rey National Park
El Rey National Park was quite interesting because it had such a range of landscapes, even a rainforest! Who would expect to come across a rainforest in Argentina? I didn’t expect that. Federico was a great guide, providing enough historic background about things like old buildings, and the variety of landscapes, flora and fauna that we were seeing along the way.
Egret in El Rey National Park
While more elusive animals such as tapir and jaguar did indeed elude us, we did watch a troupe of monkeys swinging between trees across a stream. The Popayán River which is a central part of the park was packed with schools fairly large fish too. Walking along the trails there were plenty of tiny critters to keep us entertained. The weather was bright, hot and sunny, so wading through the water was nice and refreshing.
Hiking in El Rey National Park
I’d return to the area again for sure, and do some camping or more in-depth hiking adventures further into the park.
The Achilles Lake Trail at Fushimi Lake is more of an easy path to a scenic lake view than any sort of adventurous hiking trail.
Achilles Trail at Fushimi Lake
Almost completely flat from start to finish, at only 500m in length (1km round trip) you’ll find many families and campers enjoying this trail at any time of day, because it starts and ends quite close to the campground in the park – only about a 5-minute walk away.
This is the kind of little trail that is perfect for an early morning walk while enjoying your first cup of coffee for the day, or for going on a evening stroll at sunset to see if there is any wildlife hanging out along the shores of Achilles Lake.
Achilles Trail Map
Spruce trees, and small shrubs line the path, which opens up to some rocky clearings along the shore of the lake. There are well-located benches nearby that are perfect for either fishing or just soaking up the views.
If you want a more leisurely fishing experience than heading out on a boat on Fushimi Lake, this is the spot to head to. Spend a bit of time casting a line from the shore and you’ll likely come away with enough fish for dinner, all just a short little walk from your campsite. Doesn’t get much easier than that! Walleye and Northern Pike both being plentiful.
Red Squirrel along the Achilles Trail at Fushimi Lake Provincial Park
Moose and other wildlife such as fox are frequent visitors to Achilles Lake. The easy access makes it perfect for launching a canoe into the lake to do some wildlife spotting. Alternatively, the rocky shoreline also provides some places to explore as well.
A good contrast to the longer, more challenging Fire Tower Trail, the Achilles Lake Trail can be your go-to morning and evening walk in the park. Spend a weekend, or week, camping in Fushimi Lake and chances are pretty great that you’ll come across some moose or loons if you take daily excursions out to Achilles Lake.
Achilles Lake – Bench View
View across Achilles Lake
For people who want to launch their canoe at the lake, there is a small parking area closer to the trailhead so that you don’t have to carry your canoe all the way from the campground. It’s a much quieter, calmer lake than Fushimi (much smaller as well), so definitely a better option for a casual paddle.
If you’re not familiar with the great nature and wilderness of our northern Ontario Parks, Fushimi Lake Provincial Park is just northwest of Hearst, which is about 6 hours north of Sault St. Marie, 7 hours north of Sudbury or 11 hours north of Toronto.
Canoe Rentals are available
Many interesting flowers and mushrooms are found along the trail to Achilles Lake
One of the more remote provincial parks in Ontario that you can drive to, Fushimi Lake Provincial Park is home to a couple of impressive hiking trails.
While fishing attracts most people to this park in Northern Ontario, hiking and camping are equally rewarding with potential wildlife sightings, including iconic Canadian creatures like moose and loons.
Fire Tower Trail – Windswept Trees
Hiking the Fire Tower Trail at Fushimi Lake
This is the more challenging of two main hiking trails at Fushimi Lake Provincial Park.
For the most part, it is an easy trail, which skirts along the shore of Lake Fushimi for a good portion of the trail. There are plenty of places to stop and look for wildlife or admire the views at the lake, or even go for a swim near the start and end of this trail.
Some marsh areas are found along the portions of the trail as well, where you may hear, or spot smaller animals such as frogs, squirrels and turtles. Depending on the time of year you’re hiking, be sure to be prepared for plenty of mosquitos and annoying horse flies.
Starting the Fushimi Lake Fire Tower Trail
Red Squirrel – Hiking at Fushimi Lake
Fire Tower Trail – Do you know what kind of Butterfly this is?
The park says to allow yourself 4 hours for hiking his trail. As with most Ontario Parks, this is a generous time allotment, as even with a handful of stops along the way, you can hike this trail in a bit over 3 hours. If you do decide to take a lengthy break for a picnic lunch up at the Fire Tower, or to go for a swim, then sure it could be a 4 hour adventure.
One thing that stood out while hiking this trail was the sheer number, and variety, of mushrooms along the trail. Fungus, fungus everywhere! They added a bit of colour to the landscape, along with the red squirrels that were extra chatty along this trail.
Expect lots of mushrooms and fungus along the Fire Tower Trail
Lots of Black Spruce and Balsam Fir trees make up the majority of trees and vegetation you’ll be walking through on this trail, from start to finish.
The Old Cabin
One of the ‘highlights’ on the trail is the old cabin that was used in the past when the Fire Tower was operational. Both were built in the 1930s. Not knowing what to expect before arriving at this part of the trail, I was expecting a nice, restored cabin that could serve as an emergency refuge even today. But, as you can see from the photos it’s barely a real highlight anymore.
The ruined old cabin, won’t sleep here tonight…
At first, I wasn’t even sure if this was the cabin mentioned in the park brochure and hiking trail map, because it was in such terrible ruins, barely recognizable. But sure enough, this was it. With some imagination, you could picture it in better days. The official trail brochure helps bring the history to life a little more, but for the average hiker, it’s a bit of a disappointment.
Would I call this a highlight of the trail? Not really. It was more of a let down than anything. But, still interesting as it does bring to life some of the history of the area.
Some parts of the Fire Tower Trail at Fushimi Lake Provincial Park can get a bit rough
Good Spot for a Lunch / Snack Break
From the cabin area, you have a choice. The trail here has begun to wind inland, and beyond the cabin you’re going to start climbing up to the Fire Tower. Alternatively, you can take a break and head down a side trail to a beach and picnic area.
The picnic / beach area was somewhat overgrown when I visited and wasn’t the most appealing spot for a swim, but was a decent spot to stop for a picnic lunch or short break to fuel up before heading to the top.
Lake view, plenty of decent picnic spots along this trail
Heart-Pumping Incline
Up until the Cabin, the trail is easy and mostly flat. But as you go past the cabin and the trail turns inland, it also begins to climb. Part of the trail beyond the cabin has a decent incline to it, which can get the heart pumping if you’re hiking at any type of speed.
Typical scenery along the Fire Tower Trail
As you’d expect from a trail with a Fire Tower, the tower needs to be located somewhere with a great 360 degree vantage point of the surrounding forest. That means it is atop the hill that you’re now climbing.
If you’re climbing with kids, there will probably be a few “are we there yet” type of moments, but after some sweating it out, you’ll catch a glimpse of the tower in the distance.
At first sighting, it is a bit deceptive, as you still have a fair distance to cover before actually reaching the tower. Still, nothing motivates you better than seeing the end of the trail, or in this case, the highlight of the trail.
The Fire Tower at Fushimi Lake Provincial Park!
Reaching the Fire Tower
There are very few old Fire Towers still standing in Ontario. Once a critical, widespread network across a large portion of the province, todays modern world doesn’t really have a need for having people stand watch in these towers, peering out across the trees in search of forest fires.
While this fire tower is abandoned and not in use anymore, it is maintained enough to be a real highlight for the hike. Just know that it you are not allowed to climb the tower. There are warning signs reminding you that it is dangerous, as well as illegal.
Fire Tower – Looking Up
It is tempting to want to see the view from “up there”, but gazing up at the tower from the clearing below is as high as you’re allowed to go. There are mossy rock outcrops and plenty of areas to stop and rest while you catch your breath after the hill climb.
The Fire Tower makes for a nice backdrop for some photos as well, before you continue on your hiking trail and begin the return path back to the start.
The return hike is easier (downhill) and a bit uninspiring as it follows the same path you took to get here. It would be nice for this trail to be a loop, instead of a single track, linear path, but even so it is worth spending a morning of afternoon to explore.
Rays of Sunshine atop the hill on the Fire Tower Trail
Overall roundtrip distance of the trail is about 7km (3.5km each way). Allow yourself 3 hours to enjoy the trail and surrounding nature. The suggested 4 hour hiking time is a bit much, unless you stop at the beach for a swim or lunch.
While this is the most challenging and longest trail in the park, If you’re more keen to spot wildlife or relax on the shores of a lake, I found the short Achilles Lake trail to be more enjoyable.
Expect lots of birds to be around while hiking this trail in Fushimi Lake PP
More vegetation from the Fire Tower Trail at Fushimi Lake
