Sunday, May 31, 2015

Frontenac Hiking Trip Reflection - Daniel Knight

     My first experience interior camping was truly an eye opening one. Through a rollercoaster of different emotions, challenges and experiences, this trip will be one that I soon not forget.
     Day one was filled with a nervous but extremely excited energy. Considering I had never been interior camping before, I had never experience the “logistics” of it if you will. There were two people that pitch the tent, one to cook, and two to go get firewood. I was assigned the role of tent pitching. After Tristan and I pitched the tent, I began to wonder if I had packed all the necessary food items. This feeling was all too common for me over the last 48 hours.

     The Friday before our camping trip, we had sat down in class as a group and decided upon who is bringing what. The wise thing to do was to write it down so we could go through every meal in our minds and make sure we have the appropriate materials to make it. This crucial sheet was to be brought home by me as I had already given everyone else their responsibilities. However, as I go to fetch the list from my binder while I begin to pack my pack, I come to the dreadful realization that it’s not there. What do I do now? Well first I text everyone in the group asking if they have it, all but one answer saying no. I had a gut feeling it was still at school, so my Mother and I took our chances and went to school on a lovely Mother-Son bonding trip to Cairine Wilson on a sunny Saturday afternoon; no luck. The next day I began proceeding otherwise convincing myself it had been thrown out. Retracing my steps, and based off of what everyone had told me they were responsible for bringing besides that same group member who hadn’t answered the first time, I was able to recreate what I was responsible for bringing. Lucky.

     Back again to the first night. We stayed at Campsite 12 with two other groups as well as Ms. Trumpower and another man. At approximately 5 pm we ate pre-cooked hamburgers, which might as well felt like a thick sirloin steak at that point. Everyone seemed pretty impressed as far as my burger cooking skills went, however that may have just been the hunger talking. The burger felt good to eat as well as the Kit Kat’s for dessert. After doing the dishes and cleaning up the campsite, we all came to the realization that we had to put up a food bag. The real first problem for our group was determining who would have to fully unpack their pack to put the food in it to hang from a tree. I was immediately out of the picture considering I was using someone else’s personal pack and we didn’t want it to get mauled by a bear or any other animal. To decide we drew sticks - Devan lost. Tristan and I found a decent tree to hang it from, however perhaps not decent enough as s. Trumpower came and helped us out by adjusting it for us. It didn’t make her job any easier considering Patch had wrapped the rope around the tree 2000 times, but anyways. We then discovered that we had marshmallows, and another group had graham crackers and chocolate - s'more time! The three groups of students sat around the campfire speaking of how much school work we have, sports, cracking jokes at each other, the usual for teenagers around a fire. The s’mores turned out amazing and it filled us all right up, me included. At about ten o’clock, the groups (myself especially) began to drift off. We called it a night at about 10:15, and all slept soundly through the night. What had I learned that night? That setting up a pre cooked dinner for 5 teenage boys wasn’t as difficult as I thought it’d be, I should leave the fire making to the other group and that hiking for 11 kilometers definitely can be felt the next day.

     Tuesday - Day 2. Tristan I woke up at 6am to catch the sunrise over the lake; what a sight. The two of us combined took 50 pictures within 20 minutes. We allowed the rest of the group to sleep until about 6:30 before barging into the tent to tell them to to come help us out and make breakfast. That morning we had pre cooked eggs and oatmeal, which overall turned out. I wasn’t a fan of the oatmeal so I passed mine on, but the eggs I thought I did a pretty good job on! I think one of the most difficult parts of every night was the packing up the next morning. Ms. Trumpower had told us all to be prepared to leave at 9am, so we were - barely. There was a reason behind the 6am wake up call and that was because Tristan had a strange “feeling” that our group maybe wouldn’t work quite as quickly or efficiently. I packed up the tent, and quickly assumed the role of the “who has this” and “who has that” guy. I was scrambling around the campsite to ensure no one left any food, belongings, tent pieces etc behind. Surely enough no one left a thing, and we ready at precisely 8:59am. From that note we went on to campsite 9 to get the rest.

     Throughout the trek on Tuesday, water became much more of a demand. The temperature rose steadily up until about 2pm to about 19℃. For lunch we stopped at one of the most scenic and beautiful lookouts I had ever experienced. We all stepped out on to the rock that overlooked much of Big Salmon Lake and quickly had our breath taken away. Some by the sheer height and fear factor of the rock hanging over the lake 100 ft in the air, but rather the sights that came along with it. I for one was amazed at how nature really can be an artistic masterpiece. After a quick lunch with veggies and cold cuts, we headed off to Campsite 4. Our group decided upon Campsite 4 because we wanted to have as little as a hike as possible for our last day, however Jakob may not have agreed. We hit a small bump on the road as it is believed Jakob had not totally filtered his water properly, so he began to feel quite ill. Despite the volcano like stomach feeling he had, he built up the power to get to Campsite 4. Upon our arrival, Tristan and I quickly pitched the tent as Mr. Brouwer suggested to Jakob he take a nap. The group had no issues taking on any of Jakob’s roles as we would’ve hoped for the same courtesy had either of us been in his position. For dinner that night we made an attempt to have pasta - an attempt that probably could not have been worse. It turns out the uncooked pasta doesn’t taste the greatest when u don’t empty the water out of the pot. I was the lucky one of the group however. A group of 5 girls had been working on a stir fry at their table while we attempted the pasta. Caylee saved me as she came over and offered a bowl of it to one of us, I was quick to say yes. The stir fry made up of rice, green and red peppers, celery and many more things tasted like heaven at that point. After dinner we assumed the same routine as the night before. Dishes, clean up, food bag. Food bag this time went to Tristan. At this campsite we had many better options for food trees, as Tristan and I quickly scouted one out upon arrival. We proceeded to the fire and s’mores as the night before, indulging in more chatter among my classmates and Mr. Brouwer and a kind lady from Sir Wil. She went on to ask us questions about our daily routines in our class, as well as the sports we do, Mr. Brouwer’s teaching styles, etc as she is attempting to make an Outdoor Education Program at Sir Wil. We were accompanied by a beautiful sunset over what seemed like a glass covered lake. We hit the pit slightly earlier at about 9:30 as I was just as tired if not more compared to the night before. We did however have new guests to the class camping trip, as coyotes were heard howling not to far away from us. Mr. Brouwer claimed they were just at the top of the ridge, which frightened one or two of my group members upon hearing the news but were quickly reassured “they are more scared of us than you are of them”.

     Wednesday - The last day. We arose 6am once again to prepare breakfast for the last day of our trip. We woke to see of a picturesque sunrise over the lake, something I will soon not forget. We had a solid breakfast of sausages and leftover eggs from the day before, which filled us all up to take us to the parking lot 4 kilometers away. After packing up the tent, food and garbage, we were ready at precisely at Mr. Brouwer’s designated time of 9:30 with 10 minutes to spare, something out group was relatively proud of. The hike to the final destination of the parking lot may have seemed longer due to the anxious feeling of a warm shower and working plumbing. At approximately 12 o’clock we reached the parking lot and awaited the arrival of the other class. As friends of mine in Ms. Trumpower’s class approached us, a certain twitch in their eye appeared as they came within range of the smell that is a 3 day showerless teenage boy. We made jokes saying how they had no chance of survival and there was a bear they would run into, all to be taken lightly.

     We arrived back at school for about 3:10, just in time for the bus I wasn’t taking - thanks Tristan’s Mom! As students came to load the bus, I got some looks as if I had just been pulled out of a landfill, all of which I did not care as I was half an hour away from a shower. Upon arrival home, Dad took the “after” picture for the “before and after” series of photos my Mother had requested for my brother and I despite my efforts not to.

     This trip is certainly one that I will soon not forget. I learned many valuable skills sich as fire making, tent pitching, and hiking techniques that will for sure come into play at some point in my life. My favourite part of the trip had to be the community fires we had both nights. Stories and laughs lakeside by a fire and an epic sunset - simply can’t top it. My least favourite part of the trip had to be the hiking part of it. The hiking was simply tiring and at times painful due to the heavy pack and risk of heat stroke and cramps, but a pain that was tolerable for the end goal. Things I would do differently include ensuring I have the required sheets to bring home, double and even triple check packs and communicate more within our group in regards as to who is bringing what.

     The Frontenac Hiking Trip is one that I recommend to any outdoor enthusiast, or perhaps anyone looking to become one. It has by far been the highlight of my high school experience.

Frontenac Hiking Trip Reflection

I went to Frontenac Park on April 29 to May 1, 2015 with my Outdoor Education class. My class went on this hiking trip to gain survival and tripping experience. The trip was awesome, and it taught me about team work, how to be resourceful and other important survival skills.
                                                                                                                                                

I learned in class what to prepare for on the camping trip. We made groups of four deciding who will cook and were we will sleep. My teacher taught our outdoor Education class how to prepare for the weather, clothing, tent, sleep, how to pack and repack. We also learned the “leave no trace” method. The “Leave no trace” is set of guidelines on how to keep our natural environment clean and safe. This preparation, set us up well for the camping trip. The only thing I would have liked to prepare for more was the hiking by doing a little bit of cardio and weight bearing exercises in the weeks before.

Overall I enjoyed the trip because my class has a lot of good and fun people to hang out with in the wilderness. I enjoyed hanging out and talking with everyone around the camp fire. Also I loved the first campsite we stayed at (campsite 9) which had a beautiful sunset view and a really nice lake.


I learned a lot of skills from this hiking trip and I will apply them next trip. For example, I think that it would be a good idea to look through my group members’ bags the day before we leave, to see if they can use smaller bags, if they forgot anything or if we can distribute the equipment more equally. Next time I will choose different group members because I noticed that some other groups seemed to work better together. I was frustrated with my teammates because some forgot food or did not help around the campsite as much as I wanted them to.


In closing I would go on the hiking trip again because of the beautiful scenery that the trail goes through and the park’s amazing campsites. I would go at the same time of year because there were few bugs and the temperatures was just right. I loved the big group camping experience and I found it made the trip a lot more fun than going with a small group.

Frontenac Park Hiking Trip reflection.

The Hiking trip was a great experience that I will not soon forget. I had a great time and learned many things along the way. There is a few things we could have improved on,and a couple things we could have not forgotten.Generally we were pretty well prepared other than a few minor errors. Overall it was a great experience and i would do it again in a heartbeat.

We started our journey by meeting Mr Brouwers class as they were coming out,hearing their stories and some of their woes along the trip excited me more for the trip and made me hope that i don't make the mistakes some of them made. We packed our bags and i had packed very efficiently so there was extra room in my bag,because of this i ended up carrying a sleeping bag that someone from the previous class had left behind, and two tarps that were brought in case it rained.After this additional weight was added i could barely get my bag onto my back it was so heavy. After this we started our first trek of the trip which was around 9km if I'm not mistaken and would be the longest stretch during the trip. This was not difficult for me and i enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Others struggled with injury and fatigue during this stretch so we stopped often. Although I wish we could have traveled faster I understood that others were not physically able to hike long stretches without stops,which is fine. After this first stretch Nick and I went to campsite 9,it was beautiful there.After setting up camp we ate a delicious dinner of smoked salmon,boiled carrots,and mashed potatoes. It was a great meal after a long day of hiking. We later had some nutella that other groups brought and made the mistake of letting Ghadeer,who we were sharing a platform with,eat lots of and he kept us up until at least 12 because he was so hyper and couldn't go to sleep. For breakfast the next morning we had some bagels that Ghadeer and Mahad were nice enough to share with us as Nick forgot to bring the oatmeal. We also had some carrots and fruits. We packed up and were ready to go for a while before we departed as mr Brouwer had to get the garbage out of the outhouse. My hips and shoulders were feeling it by the end of this hike. But it was well worth it. The lookout which we stopped at for lunch was stunning.Lots of great pictures were taken. We ate hummus and pita. I continued to campsite 4. It was a really interesting campsite and had a cool peninsula on it. We had a nice fire going while cooking our meals that kept us nice and toasty. This night we ate tacos. I had made so much beef that we shared with 3 other groups and still had leftovers the next day. For breakfast this morning we had mashed potatoes, bagels from other groups,and apples. After this we packed our bags for the last time and said adios to the campsite, and departed for our last hike out of Frontenac


I always see camping as an opportunity to separate myself from reality for a little while. Yet again on this trip i came to this realisation. I have learned that i love getting away from it all,leaving everything behind and not thinking about it. I did not bring my smartphone in this trip. No technology at all for that matter. Technology has become such a distraction to us that we forget about just having a good time for the sake of having a good time. It has to be plastered over social media. I enjoy things for what they are, Not for the instagram picture opportunities. I felt bad for the people on this trip that were constantly on their phones.They had an opportunity to escape from reality for a little but instead chose to bring reality with them. I learned that I love escaping from reality,and camping,of course
 A piece of advice for anyone going on this trip,don't bring your phone. If you have to,then use it only to take pictures,it will truly enhance your experience.

I enjoyed many things beyond just escaping from reality on this trip. I enjoyed the scenery,the stress-free environment,being with friends,the card games,the food,the physical challenge... All of these things combined made a great trip. I enjoyed every aspect of it(except maybe the outhouses,they were pretty smelly). I didn't enjoy any aspect specifically more than another.

My least favorite part of the trip was probably leaving the park. On the final day when we were about to start hiking out,I had this realisation that I was going back to my normal life of school, and it made me want the trip to be longer. I remembered about all the tests,and homework,and everything else i have to worry about. It was really saddening having to head home.

The Hiking Trip was an  amazing experience and reminded me of how fun camping is and excited me for trips this summer,and the canoe trip next year.

PAD30 Canoe Trip Reflection



I think the canoe trip was a huge success! It was a different form the grade 10 hiking trip where there wasn't as much responsibility. On the hiking trip all you had to do was hike organise yourself and take care of the other group members. On the canoe trip you had cook for the whole group, help clean everybody’s belongings and dishes, support people when help was needed, and you had to work as a team. If people didn't work as a team this trip would not have been successful. At times we did break apart a little but for the most part we did well.

It was a really enjoyable trip. While working hard for two days on the third day we got a very nice relaxing break on the creek. This break was needed for everybody. The fun part about this trip was that although we worked hard we also had some fun. We relaxed on the creek, went down the naturel water slides, swimming, and talked to each other around the campfire etc... I learned going on this trip that it takes a lot of   responsibility organisation and preparation to cook 3 meals for a big group and it's something I had never done before. I also learned that even though you are tired it's common courtesy to help another group who seem to be struggling (we helped portage another groups stuff).


Although for the most part we did well, there are things that could have been managed better. The main thing that I think that could have made this trip a lot for successful would have been dividing the food. The first morning my group was to make breakfast. Everything went well but for the fact that some people didn't get any beacon. During the plaining for the meal and trip, we made sure to get extra beacon because we knew that it would be popular. At first we handed out the food but towards the middle of breakfast we let people serve themselves. There was one group that didn't get any beacon (although they could have moved a little faster) and Mr. Brouwer didn't get any beacon either. Although none of them left the camp site on an empty stomach this could have been handled better. On the same day we were to make lunch. We made sure not make the same mistake again.


We made grilled cheese sandwiches and had plenty for seconds and thirds and fourths. We had left over beagles from breakfast so when the sandwich bread was all gone, we made grilled cheese out of beagles. The next night we had to make dinner the group. We had pasta, salad, and garlic bread and chocolate fondue planned but we had forgotten the garlic bread at school in the freezer. This was ok because we had a lot of salad and the grade 12s ate the bread on their trip. Dinner went really well. Raven had made a meat sauce for everybody else and a vegetarian sauce for Ms. Trumpower.  I learned that you had to think of what people like to eat and don’t like and in cases like this we needed to had a vegetarian on the trip so we had to think ahead for Ms. Trumpower Although everybody enjoyed the dinner garlic bread would have made dinner a lot nicer.  Everybody was positive on this trip and supporting. This is definitely a trip I would like to go again on.







Algonquin Park Canoe Trip Reflection

The Algonquin Park canoe trip was the trip I was the most excited for this year in Outdoor Ed. I kept hearing stories about past canoe trips and people saying how amazing and fun the trip was. I was not let down. The weather was sunny a lot of the time, the water temperature wasn’t too cold, the sceneries were beautiful, and the company was always enjoyable. Even at night I was never too chilly and I slept pretty well; which is something I always fear on overnight trips. I am really happy to have had the opportunity to spend a few days in Algonquin Park canoeing, portaging, and cooking and I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

There are many things that I have learned from this experience not only about canoeing, but also on how to have a successful and pleasant trip. For example, it is crucial to never panic in a situation where your canoe might be tipped over and you could end up in the water. Thankfully, that never happened on our trip, but it was definitely a possibility. While we were canoeing, it was decided that we would all try to canoe through these rapids that were shallow in some parts and had rocks sticking up. It was important that the steering was relatively perfect so that we wouldn't run into any rocks or other canoes. It was also essential that the person in the bow did not stop paddling in some points of the rapids. At one point, a canoe got caught on a rock and was stuck horizontally in the middle of the rapid while everyone else tried to avoid them. It was almost impossible to go slowly into the rapids since the water was being pushed hard, but as my canoe was trying to steer past the canoe that got stuck, we had just hit the tip of the back of the canoe which made ours turn a bit and get stuck on a branch at the side of the rapid. It took us a minute or two to remove ourselves from the situation by pushing off the branch with our paddles and bracing ourselves for the impact that we knew was coming from oncoming canoes that also couldn’t come in slowly. What we learned from the experience is that instead of panicking and letting go of the paddle, it is vital that you stay calm and steer away as best as possible. Kneeling while paddling will also help the canoe feel more secure. There are always the small things that people sometimes forget on the trip that they later regret. For instance, forgetting to reapply sunscreen will often result in huge sunburns that will definitely sting and make the trip a little more brutal. I learned that the hard way. Drinking water and keeping hydrated is also imperative, especially in the heat. Staying warm can often be difficult at times because of the wind or rain, so it is important to bring enough warm clothes and rain gear. Collecting a lot of firewood helps the fire last longer which is also a big factor in staying warm. 

There was never a dull moment on the canoe trip since there was always something that had to be done or taken care of. There was always food to be cooked, tents to be set up, canoes to be unpacked, or camps to be cleaned up. Everyone always had a job and they were all important. As soon as we got to camp and unpacked the canoes, my tent crew made sure to set up the tents right away before it got dark or started to rain. It would never take longer than five minutes, but it was sometimes hard to find a nice place to put the tent that wasn’t too windy but had shade, and had soft terrain that made it easy to peg the tent and the fly down. On the second night, it was more difficult to find just the right spot because there were rocks and branches everywhere, so we settled for a spot that had shade but the ground was hard. We could only manage to peg down half our tent which made our fly stick to the tent. We knew that if it rained we would certainly get wet, so we just hoped it wouldn’t. We collected most of the firewood either after we were finished a portage or at the camp, either way, there was always a lot that had to be cut. I remember from last year on the hiking trip, we found a lot of wood already cut up for us on the second night so we barely had to cut any at all. This year, we had to cut firewood every day and I did try to help out, but I’m apparently not so great at it since I take a while to cut one long log. I also helped out Mrs. Lalonde on the third day to fill up the water jugs which I assumed would take a few minutes. It took longer than I thought though; we canoed to the middle of the lake where the current was a bit strong so we had to paddle a bit upwards so we could make it back to camp. We had brought the two water jugs and a few pots. It took a few minutes to fill them all up and when we brought them back to camp, they were heavier than I thought they would be. All the chores on the trip were necessary but never too straining. 

The food that we ate on the trip was delicious and I probably ate better there than I usually do at home. It was important that all of the cooking crews made sure that their meal was healthy, full of calories to help keep warm at night, and made sure that there was an alternative for a vegetarian diet and certain allergies. It’s true that sometimes the food took a while to prepare and cook, but they were worth the wait. My cooking group had to prepare dinner the second night, which was stew. We had two pots full of veggies such as peppers, onions, and beans. Eventually we added the pre-cooked beef and parsley and everyone got served a good portion of stew along with some chicken noodle and onion soup that was already made. For Mrs. Trumpower, all we did differently was have a separate pot for her without any meat. Although we had started preparing the meal as soon as we had got to camp, it still took a while to finish since there were many vegetables that needed to be chopped. For dessert, we were originally going to make bannock with cinnamon sugar and jam, but there was some miscommunication with the ingredients and we ended up bringing out four different types of cookie boxes for people to eat instead. For lunch the next day, we made quesadillas which contained cheese, chicken, peppers, onions, and salsa or sour cream on the side. Since the chicken was already pre-cooked and the cheese was in packets, we only had to cut and cook the peppers and onions. On the fire, there was only enough room for two cooking sheets at a time which could fit 4 quesadillas each, so it did take a little bit of time to cook all of them. That was one of my favourite meals and everyone had at least one and a half of quesadillas. That day, after a portage we handed out our snacks which consisted of oranges, apples, and gummy bears. My cooking group was also in charge of breakfast on the last day. We knew that that morning was going to be the most stressful, so we got up extra early and started to mix the cream of wheat in two big pots on the fire. It took a while for everyone to come and eat because they were instructed to take down their tent before they could come down. The cream of wheat tasted very bland alone, but really good once brown sugar was added. As everyone started to come down to eat, we added the english muffins on the fire where people could pick them up and put jam on them. We had a ton of english muffins so some people even had thirds for breakfast.  

The gorgeous setting was the part of the trip I enjoyed the most. As we were canoeing along, my eyes couldn't help but wander to the long lake ahead, the mountains above, or the birds flying overhead in the clear blue sky. I go to Algonquin Park every year with my dad to go canoeing and I remember going to High Falls when I was younger and sliding down the water slide. Of course, this year when I saw High Falls for the first time in years, it looked smaller than I remembered, but beautiful all the same. The part I liked the least about the trip was the first time we went canoeing on the first day because the waves were huge and you had to rely completely on the person in the stern to steer at an angle where the canoe wouldn't tip over. I got soaked in the bow and I was constantly thinking about a video we watched in class about how students died of hypothermia after they fell out of their canoes in the freezing water. But it wasn't long before we made it to shore and portaged to a much calmer part of the lake where we eventually tried sailing, which was a cool experience. 


I think the main thing I would do differently would be to challenge myself more. I didn’t try the stern once on the trip because I wasn’t comfortable with steering and I was afraid I would slow my partners down. I portaged a 750m and a 350m portage with a canoe on my shoulders the entire way which I was proud of myself for, but next time I hope to portage an even longer distance with a canoe. All in all, I had a wonderful time on the canoe trip and didn't miss my cellphone at all! I hope to go on a similar trip in the future. 

PAD30 CANOE TRIP REFLECTION

Preparation for this trip began a few weeks before, in which we would organize food and tenting groups. There were no issues dividing the class into these groups, and picking the meals went smoothly as well. We decided to go with eggs and bacon for breakfast, grilled cheese for lunch, and spaghetti for dinner. We chose these meals because not only would they be nutritious for the group on larger travelling days to maintain energy, but they are also meals that can be made quite easily for a large group of people. Finding a tent for our larger group also went smoothly, both Neal and Jake have quite large tents so we were able to find a tent easily. Overall the planning for this trip went smoothly and we were able to move onto preperation for the trip. While packing our food for the trip, we noticed we had purchased a very large amount of food, and we had troubles packing it all. We ended up managing to pack all of the food, however we had to use multiple barrels. One barrel was full of only bread and bagels, which shows how much food we really had. Luckily, other groups didn’t have nearly as much food as our group, so we were able to finish packing with all of our food. The bus ride to the drop off went smoothly, unlike last years hiking trip in which the bus got lost. We arrived at the drop off on time and were ready to begin canoeing just after loading the canoes with our gear, however we were all in for a surprise with the wind when we began canoeing. Nobody was quite prepared for the waves we would face while crossing the first lake as they were bigger on the water than what they had first seemed. With only some issues getting to the first short portage, everyone was okay with the first more challenging paddle as nobody flipped, however there were a few close calls. While crossing the next big lake on the first day, we tied all of the canoes together then held up tarps as sails which ended up working very well. We arrived at our campsite quite early in the day still which gave the cooking group plenty of time to prepare food while everyone else set up their tents. We chose the campsite that was farther away from the rest of the group which made travelling from site to site a lot more work, therefore most of the time we stayed to ourselves at our site. That night we ended up collecting a lot of wood for a larger fire which was very nice to get warm by after a long windy day. The next morning it was our group’s turn to cook breakfast, we ended up making bacon and eggs and bagels for the group which worked out quite well. Warren, Cameron and I all left to go to the main campsite at about 7:00am to prepare breakfast, while the rest of our group spent time taking down the tents and packing everything. Everyone enjoyed breakfast except there was a shortage of the bacon, which may have been due to my handing out too much bacon to those who first began coming for food. This caused there to be not enough bacon for those who came later, however I learned from this and made sure this wouldn’t be an issue when we made dinner and lunch the following days. The rest of the day was mainly a success, despite a few issues the whole group faced while portaging. The first part of the day’s travels went well, along with a fun time at high falls and the water slides, as well as this our group made grilled cheese for lunch which also was done efficiently for the whole group. The later part of the day didn’t go quite as smoothly as we faced issues while portaging, especially during the last one of the day. Once the canoes and packs were across the portage, many groups filled their canoes and immediately left so there could be room for other canoes to be placed in the water and filled. This would have been okay if it was only one or two completely full canoes that left, however it was much more than that as almost every canoe in the group left before even going back to ensure everything was across. This error put us about an hour behind schedule, however we all learned from this and made the rest of the portages go much more smoothly. The second night went just as planned, dinner was made quickly and everyone sat out by the fire until about 11:00pm and then went to bed for the next day. The third day’s travels were much shorter than the other days, however before arriving at camp we had to face our longest portage. The long portage was much easier than I had thought it would be, we did it without facing too much difficulty and even helped another group of students on the way. With everyone going back to get more packs about twice each, this portage was made much shorter and done more successfully than any of the previous days portages. The rest of the day’s canoeing was very nice as we passed through a ravine in which was a very nice spot to enjoy a snack and the sun. That day we arrived at camp early enough that dinner and lunch could both be made at the site. Our group was responsible for dinner, which we had made later than usual because of the late lunch. We made spaghetti and salad, however at that point we realized we had forgotten to pack the garlic bread we purchased which was a mistake for the dinner. Luckily, we had enough food that everyone could eat enough and still be full. Everyone seemed to enjoy our dinner and dessert as everything we brought for it was gone, which made it easy to bring back any containers we used. The rest of the night was also just normal as we sat by the fire and had a nice time on our last night. The final canoe to the bus was much colder than anything we had previously faced, there was even snow on the lake which was actually quite interesting to see despite the cold. The paddle to the bus was much shorter which gave us a lot of time to pack the canoes and packs, then begin the bus ride home which mostly consisted of the group sleeping. Overall, this trip was an excellent experience and a fun time for everyone. The hard work was worth it in the end as it was an excellent trip.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Frontenac Hiking Trip Reflection

Frontenac Hiking Trip Reflection
Class: Mr.Brouwer PAD2O
By: Fatima Abdul-Kader
Thursday, April 30th, 2015.

The PAD20 Frontenac trip was my first ever hiking trip! The hiking trip was amazing and immensely intense that occurred Monday 27th, Tuesday 28th, and Wednesday 29th. Whilst hiking, I was constantly persevered and determined to keep up with the other group members, make it to the lookouts and the campsites to eat lunch or supper and finally rest. My group members were Emmy, Emily, Sophia, and Caylee. My group was completely prepared for equipment such as hiking gear, tents, sleeping bags, utensils, plates, food, and hygiene products. We also were dressed accordingly to the weather for the three days of the trip, and had separated our sleeping area with two tents; one for me and Sophia and the other one for Emmy, Emily, and Caylee.

On Monday April 27th 2015, Mr.Brouwers PAD20 class began a hiking trip to Frontenac. We began our journey at the Frontenac park office where one of their newest members performed a speech to our class about Frontenac’s surroundings and wildlife. We then headed off the bus to start our hike near Arab Lake and along Big Salmon Lake road. After an hour into the hike, the back of my foot started to get sore, but I ignored it as just hiking fatigue and I persisted on heading forth. When anguish had overcame me, I took a look at my foot and discovered a blister had already formed and popped as said by Mr.Brouwer, Mrs.Trumpower, and the two accompanying teachers (one male, one female). The male teacher had given me a blister band-aid, which relieved the pain a lot and kept me on my feet to a somewhat normal pace. The male teacher gave me crocs to travel in for the 
results of  feeling more comfortable during the hike. We stopped along the Salmon Lake lookout to rejuvenate ourselves by taking a break, refill our water bottles with purification tablets and eat some snacks (trail mix and dried apricots). We had taken the long route along Bufflehead trail. After a long excruciating hike along Birch Lake towards campsite twelve, we finally made it! The class had to now split up along with the four teachers, of those who would stay at campsite twelve and who would go to campsite nine. My group along with a few others decided to stay at campsite twelve with Mrs.Trumpower and (male teacher), and the rest of my classmates would hike a bit longer to reach campsite nine. Though we knew in the morning that my group would have a longer hike than the groups at campsite nine and that we would have to wake up earlier. We finally relished in the moment of completing thirteen kilometers of our hiking trip and tended to our tasks at our campsite. Sophia and I set up our tent while Emily, Emmy and Caylee set up theirs. With it being my first time setting a tent up, I learned fairly quickly at doing the task itself. We took out some food from our hiking packs and set it on the bench. While Emmy started heating up our grilled cheese for dinner, Sophia, Emily, Caylee and I searched for firewood. Once we collected enough our group ate the grilled cheese and cooked a few hotdogs over the fire. After, we began a communal fire where all the other groups attended, and each individual collected firewood every once in a while whilst Caylee and I attended to feeding the raging fire. We roasted marshmallows along with our friends and had a joyful time together. Once nightfall fell, I played a game of cards, and Emily and Emmy hung our food up upon a tree to avoid small animals from stealing our resources. Later, the rest of us headed off to bed once the raging fire had subsided and left nothing but ash. I had a rough time sleeping because it seemed as though there was something clawing at the tent, but once I got used to the constant sound of the unknown animal, I fell off into a deep sleep.

The next morning Tuesday April 28th, I woke up to the bright rays glimpsing through the tent and birds chirping at 6:30 a.m. sharp. I gathered information within my knowledge of understanding in the hour of my wake that it was probably just a beaver collecting wood during the night and had I not been paranoid, I would have fell asleep much sooner. Afterwards, we all got up and started to prepare breakfast, which was croissants with nutella, some blueberries and raspberries, and hash browns. The breakfast was delicious and then my group got ready to pack up our belongings and tents. Around 8:30 a.m., our groups left campsite twelve and headed toward where the other groups were, at campsite nine. Once we got there, we left a while after and started our hike to campsite four and five. It was a long and enduring hike with a blister, but I persevered through the worst. We stopped at a mine halfway through our hike and ventured to the forest to find to discover left behind items of old mines. Everyone then took a rest and ate some snacks. When everybody had rested, we moved on towards our destination. The weather was very windy and cold that day but when we hiked upon areas where there was no shade, it seemed as though we were in the Sahara desert. Alas, once again we stopped at a lookout with extraordinary beauty, we climbed upon large rocks to get to where we stood upon a cliff with a lake just below us called Salmon Lake. Alot of bees occupied that area, and some of my classmates even saw snakes which I was unable to see because I didn't bring my glasses. Not once during the trip had the other lookouts been compared to the significant view of the vast lake I saw during that moment. Salmon Lake glistened upon the sun's rays like little gems, blinding the human eye from seeing down into the depths of the water. Once you looked upon the water, you could see the lake reaches a fair distance up until where the trees lined the boundaries, where our view of the lake beyond those trees in the distance could not reach. We finally succeeded in making it to campsite five which was just below the lookout. To campsite five it was about a 6.5 km finish, but alas it was not time to rest because it was my group's turn to walk a further distance towards campsite four. After a bit of a hike to campsite four, we finally made it! Each group member rushed off to find an appropriate and adequate location in which their tents would be placed.  We were still placed upon a campsite along Salmon Lake and beyond the boundaries of trees it was also as breath taking as it was from the lookout. We proceeded to do the same task we had done the previous day, once we found our platform we took out all our food and placed it on the bench. We made veggie stir-fry, it was extremely delicious that I had to ask for seconds. Afterwards, another group had a communal fire and we joined in. We ate marshmallows once again and soon afterwards snoozed off to sleep.

The final day of our hiking trip was April 29th, we woke up around 7 a.m. I had fallen asleep fairly quickly during the night and had not heard a “peep”. For breakfast, my group had oatmeal with some fruits such as blueberries and raspberries. We then packed up our tent and belongings to begin our hike towards the buses. It was very hot this day and everyone was tired. My class made it to our final lookout upon some rocks and we took a quick break. Once everyone had some water and felt somewhat rejuvenated, we recommenced our hike. We finally made it to our destination having had about a four kilometer walk. Everyone was fatigued and sat down to eat their lunch at this location. For lunch my group had tortillas with lettuce and caesar salad dressing. Then Mr.Brouwer announced that we had to take out all the class supplies such as tents, hiking bags, insulate mats, etc. and set them into piles, so that the next class could supply themselves with these items. Once the bus arrived, the other PAD2O class got off and we got on. I was very tired so I had a short a nap on the bus. Finally about two hours later, we arrived at school (Cairine Wilson) just before school hours ended!

           Overall the Frontenac hiking trip was a positive experience. I learned that it is quite comfortable walking in crocs and I didn’t have the displeasure while walking in them. While wearing crocs, I was able to do about everything everyone else could do and more! I also learned to not spit the toothpaste right outside the tent. Therefore after one night of being terrified of the small animals, I went to the outhouse and spat the toothpaste there. I enjoyed viewing the beautiful scenery at the lookouts and having communal fires. What I enjoyed the least was having a blister whilst hiking. Next time, what I would do differently during the hiking trip is take a few more pit stops, so I am not focusing on just getting to our destination and panting all the time because of exhaustion. I would totally do it again, it was extremely fun and adventurous, and it was a stress free related event!

Frontenac Hiking Trip Reflection

This was an amazing trip! From April 29th to May 1st,2015, my class went to Frontenac Park for a hiking trip. While we were there, we hiked several kilometers a day, cooked our own meals, and had a blast. The first night, the class was split to go to two campsites: Campsite 9 and Campsite 12. The second day, we hiked to campsite 4 and Campsite 5.


I have been on several hiking trips in the past (with Scouts). Although, this trip was a different different experience. On this trip, I realized/learned how much closer people can get while being in the wilderness for three days. I now know many of my classmates much more than before we went on this trip, and I’m happy I got to know them better! We also had three great teachers on the trip with us: Mr.Brouwer, Mrs.Trumpower, and Mr. MacFadyen (and his dog, Dakota :) ).  I enjoyed interacting with my teachers and classmates, and cooking meals with my three good friends. Amy,Olivia, Makita and I had so much fun cooking and hiking together, and also sharing a tent together. I also really enjoyed the weather! It was sunny the whole trip, and pretty hot for most of it too! It didn’t rain at all, so we weren’t stuck with wet clothes,packs,or tents. I also really enjoyed the food that my group made.We tested out new recipes and also ate some delicious, original ones too. We also brought a lot of good snacks (trail mix, granola bars,plantain chips, dried mangoes, etc.) for the trail and for when we arrived to the camp sites. These snacks boosted our energy and helped us keep going. I also enjoyed the campsites, and every beautiful scenery that each campsite had. The Lookout that we went to for lunch on the second day was one of the best parts of the trip. The scenery of the water and trees was absolutely stunning and everyone was just having a great time when were eating lunch up there on the rocks. I enjoyed the fact that this trip was very relaxed most of the time! One of the greatest feelings of this trip was when we arrived to the campsite and we realized that we were done hiking for the day. The wide grins that everyone had on their face each time this happened was memorable. My group stayed at Campsite 12 the first night, and Campsite 4 the second night. Both campsites were beautiful and had amazing sceneries. We had a lot of fun at both campsites!


I was surprised that I wasn’t uncomfortable while hiking with my pack, as I usually have hip/shoulder pains while I hike with the pack that I brought on the trip.I felt fine most of the time! Although, I did have some aching joints after the day-long hikes.  I didn’t like how the tent kept on falling off of my pack when it was my day to carry it. I also didn’t enjoy hanging up the “bear bag” the first night, as we spent a long time finding a good tree and also had a lot of trouble with it. The second night, we found a good tree without a problem and spent very little time hanging up the bear bag!The hikes were difficult at times, as there were different types of terrain, and the long distance. Our class was able to get through it! During the hikes, our class talked,laughed, and shared stories to distract ourselves from the toughness of the trail. Both campsites that my group went to were amazing. Although, I would have to say that I enjoyed Campsite 4 the most. This is because although Campsite 12 was amazing and I loved it, there were not a lot a lot of people and it was fairly quiet. It was also a small campsite and did not have a very good lake area to swim in. I really liked Campsite 4 (the second night) because it was bigger, there were a lot of people, and us and the other groups who stayed there talked with each other and we bonded a lot! It was also by a great area of the lake and was great to swim in! Although, it was a bit chilly. I went swimming both days, and the water was freezing! ;)


The pots, etc., were hard to fit into our bags, but we eventually were able to squeeze them in! I would bring less and smaller pots next time. I would also like to divide the tent parts (so every group member has something) instead of one person carrying the tent for the whole day. This is because the tent was quite heavy, and kept on having to be adjusted on our packs while we were on the trail. For the second evening, my group made spaghetti. We did not bring spaghetti sauce (we were worried it would be too heavy or leak if we put into a Ziploc bag), and instead brought red pepper and Parmesan cheese for toppings. Next time, if a group that I am wants to make this meal, I would not be afraid to bring spaghetti sauce in a container or Ziploc bag.

I would DEFINITELY do this trip again! This trip experience and the memories I made on this trip will stay with me forever, and I would without a doubt experience this type of trip again. The bonding of our class and teachers, the meals, and the beautiful surrounding nature at the provincial park were the key things that made this trip awesome.


By Aislinn Defries

Frontenac Hiking Trip Menu Reflection

Frontenac Hiking Trip Menu Plan
By: Sophia Li

Food is an essential part of what made the hiking trip so memorable and unforgettable. Since we went on a three day hiking trip, food is what I look forward to the most because it’s what keeps me going for the long hikes and the long nights. On monday, our group prepared our own lunches but for dinner and snacks we all ate the same thing. On tuesday, our group prepared a really delicious breakfast, lunch and dinner with teriyaki beef jerky for snacks that were generously provided by Caylee. Finally, on wednesday, our group prepared   yummy snacks and a hearty breakfast and lunch, dinner was eaten at home.

On the following table, it shows what our group ate and prepared to make it.


Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Breakfast
----------------------------
  • croissants
  • nutella
  • peanut butter
  • hashbrowns
  • mio
  • oatmeal
  • fruits
  • nuts
  • Tea (Chai, Green, English, etc)
Lunch
Bring own
  • veggies and dip
  • salad
  • beef jerky
  • mio
  • veggie wrap
    • lettuce
    • caesar dressing
    • tortilla wrap
Dinner
  • Grill Cheese
  • Chicken hot dogs
  • Beef Veggie stir-fry
  • Dessert: S’mores
----------------------------
Snacks
  • trailmix
  • dry fruits
  • sunflower seed
  • gummy bears
  • dry fruit
  • gummy worms
  • teriyaki beef jerky
  • flaxseed
  • flaxseed
  • dry cereal
  • rice cakes
Grocery List
  • chicken hotdogs
  • bread
  • butter
  • cheese
  • carrots
  • cucumber
  • peppers
  • trail mix
  • sunflower seeds
  • candy
  • croissants
  • nutella
  • peanut butter
  • hashbrowns
  • tea
  • beef (pre-cooked)
  • onions
  • peppers
  • bok choy
  • leeks
  • broccoli
  • garlic
  • soy sauce
  • ginger
  • graham crackers
  • marshmallows
  • nutella
  • beef jerky
  • oatmeal
  • nuts
  • strawberries
  • blueberries
  • raspberries
  • pecans
  • flaxseeds
  • caesar dressing
  • tea
  • tortillas
  • lettuce

On day one, Monday, Emmy was in charge of dinner on the first night and Emily was in charge of the snacks. The food is an essential part of the hiking trip because of the many benefits it gives us physically. It provides us with energy and nutrition during the actual hike, which is the main part of the hiking trip. During the hiking trip on Monday, Emily bought trail mix that everyone chowed down on, and I bought some gummy bears and gummy worms to give us sugar for energy. Monday evening came soon, and Emmy and Fatima prepared a delicious and hearty meal. Emmy had wrapped five grilled cheese sandwiches in aluminum foil to preserve the butter rubbed on the grilled cheese and also the protect from the elements. We prepared the grill cheese on the pan with a fire underneath it. We waited around for 15 minutes to let the fire grow bigger and hotter. For each grill cheese, we put it on it’s side for ten minutes to let the butter melt and let the cheese melt inside too. After eating the grilled cheese, I was so happy that Fatima brought in chicken hotdogs because after the grilled cheese I was not full yet. Since there were no roasting sticks, I decided to pick up a sturdy stick and skinned it so the surface was clean to put the hot dog on it. The fire was really great and big so, my hot dog didn’t need to be roasted for too long. All the groceries that made such an incredible meal was bought at Walmart and Food Basics. All under $10.

On day two, Tuesday, Emily was in charge of breakfast, which was amazing! We had croissants with nutella with hashbrowns on the side. It was such a great idea to put nutella as a breakfast component because it really boosted my energy on the hike for day two. The breakfast didn’t needed to be heated it was just brought out and eaten in less than 15 minutes. For lunch, we stopped at campsite 5 to eat lunch and take a break. Our group didn’t really eat lunch, we just finished all our snacks which were generously provided by Caylee and Emily. We ate with Daniel’s group and shared food together which was not that bad because sharing is caring! We finished all the flaxseeds, the teriyaki beef jerky, dried apricots, and honey bear crackers. We also ate some salad from Daniel’s group but it only had lettuce in it with a cheese ranch. Most of the snacks were brought from home but only the beef jerky was bought from the stores. Evening came pretty soon, I was looking forward to this the most because it would the most delicious dinner ever, especially if it was made in the wild. For dinner we had Stir-Fry which was prepared by me and Caylee helped cooking it. Also Emmy, brought the minute rice which was pretty decent. I brought broccoli, leek, bok choy, cucumbers, green onions, onions, peppers, chopped up garlic , soy sauce, and ginger. The stir-fry was pretty easy to make. All that was needed to do was cooking the vegetables which were pretty easy. You just need to put one type of vegetables in the cooking pot and let it sit for a few minutes then add a coating or thin layer of soy sauce and garlic, and continue putting in vegetable after vegetable. Later, we got a full pot of boiling water and put the rice in to boil and few minutes later, we have yummy stir-fry! We had extras so we shared with Tristan’s group and they really like it. And my day ended with a good nutritious meal.

On day three, Wednesday, I woke up the latest so I ate breakfast later than everyone else. Breakfast was provided by Emily, again. She brought cinnamon oatmeal and fruits like blueberries and raspberries. All we had to do for the oatmeal was just pour hot water in to the bowl with the oatmeal and stir it until it gets thick. If we felt like it, we could put in fruits to make it taste better but in my opinion I like oatmeal just on its own. Since everyone else, was full from oatmeal and I wasn’t, I decided to eat the last two hash browns. I couldn’t cook it on our frying pan so I used another groups frying pan. Eating the last the hash browns was the cherry on top of a good breakfast. After finally a long hike we got to the parking, something that reminded me of the city. We waited there for the other class to come so we could swap equipment. So while everyone was waiting, we just decided to eat our lunch at the picnic table. Since Fatima didn’t bring the chicken we only had veggie wraps with caesar dressing coated  on it. Our group didn’t eat lunch at the picnic table, we just talked a lot so we ended up eating on the bus. There was a lot of food being passed around. Food like granola bars. apples, crackers, etc. Our group shared all that was left of our food with everyone on the bus. It was fun! :)

So overall, our group had the most food to be given out which was good considering that a lot of people were hungry. It was an amazing experience and to cook in the wild felt really hard but now that I’ve some practice in, I should be fine. The food were bought at Walmart, Costco, Food Basics and Sobey;s, All together our food must have cost us each, approximately $15. The number one tip and most important tip I would say to people is to pack good and nutritious food, don’t bring things like chips or other junk food because they can be easily crushed and can cause a big mess. Be efficient and hard working and you will go far.