There is a long (18km) hike in the park that takes you to a suspension bridge and a waterfall. Initially we planned to hike it, but couldn’t find the energy and commitment to do it. Plus it was very muddy after all the rain. Instead, we walked over to an ATV suspended bridge by the highway for our morning walk.
The Other Suspension Bridge
I’m sure it wasn’t as beautiful as that other bridge. Maybe next time.
That’s our van in the distance and the suspension bridge is in the middle of the picture.
The Crack
We decided to try and find the illusive Crack again, this time we were armed with better directions and we found the entrance to the trail right away. No wonder we didn’t find it the first time as it was a bit out of sight.
There is Tony disappearing into the wilderness.
A rocky, Rooty, steep trail led us towards the Crack.
Along the way we saw a couple of prospector’s claim stakes,
They were really cool to find.
Did you know that some claims are for mining, but some are also surface claims and you better not pick anything in those areas? We don’t know how to tell the difference between the two different kind of claims, and does anyone know where the claim starts and ends in relation to the stake? The two stakes were fairly close to one another.
We then almost stepped in some very fresh bear poop.
You can see that the bear’s diet consists mostly of blueberries this time of the year, and we hoped that the bear is hungry for berries still, and is not looking for keto diet or any other diet variations that will include us. We made some noise for the rest of the hike until we came to a creek
that had a few slippery logs laid across it. It did not end well. After Tony slipped and ended in water and mud (sorry, no pictures I was too busy laughing), we turned around and hiked back making some more noise for the benefit of our friend the bear.
Back on the road, we made another attempt to get to the river from the bridge side to see if we can get to The Crack from below, but there was a sheer drop.
No crack for us. I guess the crack was not meant to be. Still, we consider this venture to be semi-successful since it was a beautiful hike and we didn’t get eaten by a bear.
Marathon Heritage Museum
On the way back to the campsite we stopped by another Algoma moment and a Group of Seven Plaque just outside of the Marathon Museum,
The Marathon Museum
is a small local museum with lots of interesting displays. Some of the displays were under construction, but even with the lack of full displays we found it very interesting.
Marathon used to be a mill town and there was a lot of interesting info about the mill
including a cool scale model.
and background info.
Of course, we were interested in the rock display, especially the locally found rocks and minerals.
Pukaskwa Pits
And Port Coldwell, a local town that is no more.
We left the museum and had lunch in the van with Pebble Beach views ahead of us.
On our way out of the parking lot qw discovered a new trailhead that we haven’t’ seen before. Perhaps tomorrow’s hike?
Back at the park and after our hosting duties were over, we went for a night hike. It was a good night for Aurora Borealis, so we headed on a trail that leads to the beach.
It was a bit spooky to walk in the bush in complete darkness.
The night sky took our breath away, but there was no Aurora tonight.
In fact my amazing photography skills produced this photo.
We spent some time watching the night’s sky and listening to the invisible waves,
before heading back…
No campfire tonight.
All that rain that you had made for some slippery walking. Looks like you put in a good walk anyway. Very nice. The scenery is always beautiful. A little adventure stirs it up 😂
A little adventure is always fun!
Nice Post
Thank you!
that does sound like a hike that would require a serious commitment. but you still got to explore and sicover other parts of the park. (although I was hoping there would be some waterfalls! 🙂 )
I like the video in the dark with the sound of the waves – a perfect way to tend the day…
I hope that you saw the photos of the other waterfalls from this trip! That walk in the dark was really cool. Standing still and listening to the waves in the dark is kind of amazing.
I just went back and found your post about Mink Falls – spectacular!
There’s also Magpie Falls! https://backroadsandotherstories.com/2022/09/17/pukaskwa-camp-hosting-september-11/
that one I had read… 🙂
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Bravo to the inhabitants who proudly create these local museums with their history, when you take the time to visit them you learn a lot about the reality of the past. And thank you for documenting them in this way.
i am a big fan of small local museums! There is usually a very passionate person behind their creation and there is so much to learn! Thanks for visiting with us!
That is quite the hike you did during the day! That bear poop was quite the discovery and I certainly would’ve pooped my pants at the thought of being near a bear. The night sky photo you took is award winning! 😊
Hahaha, I agree 🤣
I’ve noticed from many of your posts that you have an interest in geology. (So do I.) Was that related to your career, or just a side pastime?
It is interesting to wonder how someone is supposed to know where one claim ends and another starts. You might have more than just a few bears angry at you.
I always loved rocks and geology and just collecting and finding stuff, so in a way it’s related to archaeology. I did develop a much keener interest now that I have more time!
I love being near the water and hearing it as I fall to sleep. Sorry your Crack adventure has been a bust so far. I’m so curious to see it now!
Me too! I was able to find this video to give me an idea of what we missed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDdw1qAeyKE
Like!
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It looks and sounds like you are having so much fun! We also love to hike and where we live there are no woods, rivers, beaches, or lakes to enjoy. Maybe that’s why we love hiking when we travel. Anyway, I’m sorry there was no aurora. We have never seen it, but it is at the very top of our list of things to see. One day we will be able to travel north in the fall and winter, so maybe we will see it then.
Is there desert where you live? That can be fun to hike too. I’ve only seen the aurora twice, once was in Algonquin Park fairly low in the north sky, and once it was so far south that it was on top of our house. It was spectacular!
No desert, but almost. We live in an area that is primarily surrounded by farmland and fields. With a long drought, the desert is going to encroach soon.
We’d be up for all of this especially the hike to the waterfall!
Yeah, it was all pretty cool!
Loved the museum and the walk in the dark. LOL on hoping the bear didn’t change his diet to keto.😂
Haha, thanks for coming along!
Many years ago I was in Coober Pedy which is an opal mining area and my mate and I stepped onto a miner’s claim. He fired a rifle shot in my direction and when we turned around he lowered his rifle and then explained everything we needed to know about claims. After that he looked after us very well.
https://wp.me/p8PuzR-4W9
Lots of interesting stuff. So glad you didn’t get eaten by a bear.
Right? Me too! i think he was looking for something fresher!
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It’s too bad that you weren’t able to hike to the White River Suspension Bridge, but hiking 18km in muddy conditions doesn’t sound all that appealing. I was really hoping you’d get a win by finally finding the Crack, especially given how hard you tried! I got a good laugh from your attempts though. Poor Tony.
Some trips are smoother than others and everything seems to fall into place. Others, not so much (and you just seem to fall). But this is part of the fun.
Glad Tony only got wet and didn’t sustain an injury. That looked like a rocky trail.
It was just a slip really and he got mostly muddy as he managed to not fully fall into the river 🙂
Good to hear.
I’ve been in Daniel Boone national forest .great post thanks for sharing
I think that this is meant for another post 🙂
Lol it was. There was another story link below this one. I also read and It was meant for that one. Not sure how it happened.
Haha, it’s all good!
I have a friend who is a forester and sometimes hikes to locate “corners”, markers that deliniate old mining claims. I’ve gone along a few times. They look different from those posts you saw, carved into rock or trees. Too bad about the crack!
Oh, cool! I realized that I don’t know anything about claim stakes so I am looking for more info about it. Not that I really need to know!