Day 7 - Angler Lake to Mowat Landing
(23 km)
Maps 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.
Day 7 - Angler Lake to Mowat Landing (23 km)
We broke camp earlier than usual on our last day. We had to get back into Sugar Lake, across the 1500m portage into Lady Evelyn, through the windy west end of Lady Evelyn, up the Montreal River to our car, and drive the 5.5 hours home. Though it was calm and the lake was like glass, we wanted to get through it before any wind picked up by the afternoon. We'd been so lucky with wind on this trip that we didn't want to tempt fate.
We made our way back across the 420-meter portage into Sugar Lake. By then, we were beginning to feel the wind come on a bit. In our quest for a campsite the previous day, I had forgotten to get any pictures of Sugar Lake, so I snapped a quick one at the put-in.
The portage into Lady Evelyn was one of the easier ones on the trip despite its length of approximately 1500 meters. It started with an open, scenic traverse over large slabs of rock and then descended dramatically into swampy wetlands. The trail was relatively dry, however. It rose over a bluff just before the end and then declined down to the lake.
At the put-in, we came across an elderly man and his son, who have a cabin on Sugar Lake. We chatted for a bit and learned that they have been coming to the area for over 30 years. They were interested in our opinions of the area.
Paddling out and to the south of the massive island that dominated the southern bay of the eastern section of the lake, we passed a few fishing boats. The prevailing wind was coming from the southeast and it was a bumpy crossing indeed to get across the large bay. It was much better as we moved north and then east around the headland. Thankfully, as we moved east, the wind seemed to change direction and was at our backs.
We stopped to have lunch and refill our water bottles at a site on an island at the mouth of the Lady Evelyn River. From there, it took only a little more than an hour for the wind to push us back down to the Mattawapika dam.
Taking out at Mowat Landing, we ran into David and Gwyneth again! They were there waiting for friends and family members to arrive. After their 10-day trip, they were heading out once again in a larger group for another 7-day trip! Wow!
We stopped for snacks in Latchford, and again in North Bay to pay our respects at my grandparents' gravesite. We hit the Boston Pizza for a pie and a very welcome pint of beer on the way out of town. While downing our well-deserved treats, we reflected on the unforgettable week we just had in the heart of the Temagami wilderness -- truly one of the best weeks of canoe tripping that I had experienced.