Map provided courtesy of Toporama which contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. I have made additional markings to show route information. 

Had it been available to book another night on our site on David Lake, we probably would have, but when I woke up on Day 3, I was glad that we were moving on. I'm a restless kind of fellow, for the most part, with a strong case of wanderlust and love that anticipation of finding out what's around the next corner. I wanted to see more. 

The weather was looking like it would be the best day yet, although it was going to be a scorcher. The humidex temperature was calling for it to be well over 30 degrees.

Having a very short distance to travel on the day, we took our time with breakfast and breaking camp. We left the site just before noon. 

As we paddled away, I turned to take a shot of the Lacloche range and Silver Peak where we had hiked the previous day. It loomed large over the south end of David Lake. 

The wind was negligible and we couldn't have asked for better paddling conditions despite the heat. 

That reminds me, have you ever heard the early eighties smooth and polished sleeper, "A Negligible Wind" by the yacht rock noodlers The Stealy Breeze Brothers? 

Well, neither have I, but just for a second there, I thought it might exist. 

It was a nice paddle through the rest of David Lake. We waved to the many campers occupying the plethora of campsites on the lake. We passed the privately owned islands in the northeast narrows which looked to be the site of a camp. There were a number of sleeper bunkies dotting the larger island. The rocky shoreline was very pretty. 

There were a couple of ladies having their lunch at the take-out to Balsam Lake. We chatted with them for a bit about the lake and the hike to Silver Peak as we unloaded our canoe.

The 620-meter trail to Balsam Lake was easy going in our direction since it was downhill. The forested walk on the clear and wide trail was pleasant. There was a steep, rocky bit at the Balsam end that descended to the lake. It would be considerably more challenging travelling in the opposite direction. The elevation between the two lakes drops about 53 feet, not the biggest climb by any means, but it would be enough to get the heart pumping a bit. 

We pushed off onto Balsam Lake, and I turned to snap a photo of the rocky put-in. 

Balsam Lake is an oddly shaped lake. The northern and southern sections of the lake are separated by a jutting peninsula extending from the east. Five years earlier, my father and I paddled the northern section to take the portage to Pike and Harry Lakes. This time, Dahee and I went through the smaller southern part to our campsite at the east end of the lake. It was a short paddle but it was interesting. The bay had some small islands and small bays, creating a number of nooks and crannies. In no time, we were approaching our campsite. 

The first thing we noticed was an ugly bushcrafty construction of plywood shelves tacked to a beautiful tree right at the front of the site. We walked up to the firepit and I turned to take a photo of it. This is what it looked like. 

This was rather gross. I can't speak for anyone else, but when I sit next to a fire on a campsite on a gorgeous lake in a beautiful setting like Killarney Provincial Park, the last thing I would wish to see is plywood shelving. I mean, it dominated the view of the lake from everywhere at the campsite. Who would do such a thing?! Worse still is that the legs to prop up this eyesore were green. Someone had very recently cut down live trees to make it. This is illegal in a provincial park. Unlawfully harming a plant or tree can result in a minimum fine of $125, and penalties can be as high as $50,000 and imprisonment for up to one year for a first offense, or $100,000 and imprisonment for up to two years if the offense was committed for commercial purposes. Rightfully, Ontario Parks takes this offence seriously. 

We had booked the site, and we truly wanted to stay. Besides the bushcraft monstrosity, it was a nice site. I simply didn't want to look at it.  This is what the view looked like ten minutes later. Unfortunately, I was unable to extract all the nails from the tree without the necessary tools.  

Much better. 

I would suggest to people who can't camp without shelves to rethink if they should be backcountry camping at all. Perhaps they might want to camp at a front country, car-camping location where picnic tables exist, or stick to parks that provide picnic tables at sites like the Kawartha Highlands. Sure, I have stayed at a lot of sites in Algonquin and other places where shelves have been constructed, and I have used said shelving myself, but they weren't built at the front of the site dominating an otherwise amazing view of the water. They are normally tucked away at the back of the site and have been on the sites, presumably with park staff approval, for ages. This was something different. It was newly constructed, cut with live trees, and it horribly detracted from the beauty of the site in its location. I reported it to the park office after the trip.  I still try my best to adhere to Leave No Trace principles. I sincerely hope others do, as well.

That reminds me, have you ever heard the country folk song "Bushcraft Monstrosity" by the Appalachian string band Lunatic Log Cabin? 

Well, neither have I, but just for a second there, I thought it might exist. 

With our new and improved view of the lake, we set up camp, went for a swim, and investigated the site. We set up our tent in a grove of trees that provided plenty of shade on the hot, humid day.  

The rocks at the front of the site tapered off dramatically into the depths of the lake, offering excellent swimming and a place to dive off the rocks. 

Immediately to the south of the site was a weed-choked narrows that led to a back bay behind the site. On the shore next to the narrows, there was one of the most amazing trees I have ever seen in Ontario. It was an enormously old white pine. I could not believe how thick it was around the base and the number of thick branches protruding from it.

I could not even begin to speculate how old this tree might be but I would not be surprised if it were northward of 200 years old. I guess the age of the tree will remain rooted in mystery. 

Here is a shot of Dahee trying to put her arms around it just to demonstrate its girth. Amazing. Perhaps, we were branching out a little too much with this photo, but we couldn't help ourselves. The sight of this behemoth was tree-mendous.  

We made a nice hot lunch at the site and just relaxed at the site for the rest of the afternoon, taking frequent swims to ward off the heat and the deerflies. When the sun got a little lower in the sky, we sat next to the lake enjoying refreshments and reading in the quiet. There was nary a plywood shelf to be seen. 

After dinner, we got back into the canoe and investigated the wetlands to the south of the site. We didn't bring along fishing rods on this trip but wondered if the fishing for pike or bass might be good in that area. We watched a turtle sunning itself on a log next to a formidable beaver dam. 

It was lovely paddling slowly in the quiet of that gorgeous, lilypad-laden bay. Before we knew it, the sun was low in the sky over the trees to the west and we made our way back to the site to watch the sun go down. 

Back at the site, we walked along the shore to the north of the site and were able to get a fantastic view of the sun setting over Balsam Lake. 

Wonderful. 

Just to the north of the site, we came upon a massive fallen red pine. 

Back at the site, we got a good fire going and enjoyed sitting next to it in the twilight hours.