Suluk 46 - Ultralight Backpacking Adventures

This is the Adventure section. Here you will find various trip reports that I have put together for your reading enjoyment. With each adventure, I have included a link to the gear list (pdf format) used on that particular trip. You will also notice that the terrain, weather, and conditions, are clearly stated in the trip reports. This will allow you to view the gear list used on the trip, compare it to the terrain and conditions encountered, and perhaps build a similar gear list for your future adventures.

FORT LA CLOCHE PROVINCIAL PARK AND SURROUNDING AREA
HEAVEN'S GATE TRAIL, MAY 2011

I didn't even know about this trail until last year. After being told about it, I searched the internet but found no information and only a couple of references. I immediately started looking into hiking this trail and what it would involve. With no plans for the long weekend, I packed up my gear and headed north with my friend Jay to check this one off the list.

ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK
WESTERN UPLANDS TRAIL (FIRST LOOP), FEB 2011

Winter was quickly passing me by and with all my new gear, I needed to spend a few days in the backcountry. With super low temps and lots of snow in the forecast, I made my way north of the city for a great 3 day snowshoeing trip on the Western Uplands Trail in Alonquin Provincial Park.

SLEEPING GIANT PROVINCIAL PARK
KABEYUN TRAIL LOOP, AUG 2010

I had always wanted to visit this park, but the problem was that it was so far away, I never had the time to go there. Finally, I had some unexpected time off and drove the 17 hours to get there and hike The Kabeyun Trail. Weather was perfect and I had an amazing time.

HALFWAY LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK
HAWK RIDGE TRAIL, JULY 2010

It was that time of year again...beerpacking! We picked a nice short trail call Hawk Ridge Trail and spent 3 days in the woods. A total of 15 km meant we could bring all the luxuries required to make this a nice relaxing weekend getaway.

ZION NATIONAL PARK
TRANS-ZION TRAVERSE, MAY 2010

I was headed down to Las Vegas for a giant stag for 2 of my good buddies and decided it was the perfect chance to take some additional time off and visit Zion National Park. I hiked from the Northern End (Lee's Pass) to The Grotto. I had originally planned on it taking 4 days of hiking but my UL pack and speedy legs allowed me to finish in 3 days.

KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK
WINTER TRIP TO SILVER PEAK, FEB 2010

We were finally getting some real winter weather and decided to make the best of it by hiking across the frozen lakes of Killarney Provincial Park and up to the top of Silver Peak. I was joined, once again, by my good friend Jason for a nice overnighter that took us to the top of the 3rd highest point in Ontario, Silver Peak.

WAKAMI LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK
HEIGHT OF LAND TRAIL, AUG 2009

My good friend Jason and I spent 5 days and 75 km hiking around Wakami Lake on the Height Of Land Trail. This loop crests the height of land which splits the Arctic and Atlantic watersheds. Great weather the whole time, but major bushwhacking, chased and stung by bees, charged by a jack rabbit, and battling condensation left us a bit tired on the last day. Would we do it again? Of course!!!

BON ECHO PROVINCIAL PARK
ABES AND ESSENS TRAIL, AUG 2009

A nice day hike which I made an easy overnighter of. I hiked all 3 loops in the entire Abes and Essens Trail in a figure 8 loop with 5 pounds of gear and a total hiking time of 5 hours.

ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK
WESTERN UPLANDS TRAIL, MAY 2009

With the girls away at the cottage for the long weekend, we found ourselves with nothing to do. Were we really in the mood for a tough backpacking trip? Not really...after all, it was the long weekend. Sooo, we figured a good Beerpacking trip was in order!

LAKE SUPERIOR PROVINCIAL PARK
COASTAL TRAIL, APRIL 2009

I took about 8 lbs of gear on this 5 day trip along the Coastal Trail in Lake Superior Provincial Park. I had to deal with temperatures ranging from 28*C to -3*C and from sun to snow. This trail has some challenging terrain and a lightweight pack makes it much more fun!

FRONTENAC PROVINCIAL PARK
AROUND THE PARK IN 2 DAYS, APRIL 2009

I took this trip to test my Sub 4 lb gear list in the spring. Temps dipped a bit lower then I would have liked but I survived. I ended up hiking a giant loop around most of the park. The terrain is relatively flat in this park but I always end up seeing lots of wildlife in the park. A nice trade off in scenery.

BRUCE PENINSULA NATIONAL PARK
BRUCE TRAIL SECTION HIKE, APRIL 2009

I had some last minute time off so I decided to spend a couple of days hiking with my Sub 5 lb gear list along a section of the Bruce Trail. This section is only about 2.5 hours from my house and I had never been here before. I couldn't believe how beautiful the terrain was. I was lucky and had nice and warm temps the whole time. A little wind to deal with but other then that it was quite pleasant.

KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK
QUARTZITE LAKE ATTEMPT, FEB 2009

Having always wanted to visit Quartzite Lake, I couldn't think of an easier way to navigate the lakes then to walk on top of them! A friend and I attempt to hike the lakes of Killarney to get to Quartzite Lake.

FRONTENAC PROVINCIAL PARK
SLIDE LAKE LOOP, FEB 2008

I was joined by 2 of my buddies to hike the Slide Lake Loop in Frontenac Provincial Park. According to the ranger who was working the station, she knew of no one who had snowshoed the trail in the 17 years working at the park.

KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK
LA CLOCHE SILHOUETTE TRAIL, AUG 2007

I had dreamed of hiking this trail since I was a kid. Finally, after years of talking about it and hiking sections of it, I plan a thru-hike of the entire trail with 2 of my buddies. We did it in 5 days and had great weather the whole time!

NEPAL
EVEREST AND GOKYO REGION, MAY 2007

Traveling through Costa Rica, I had met a guy who was a guide on Everest. We ended up becoming friends and he recommended I travel the foothills of Everest for a few weeks. I flew from Toronto to Chicage to India and finally to Nepal where I spent 27 days...16 of which were spent on a solo trip through the foothills of the Everest and Gokyo Region. This is a trip I will never forget.


This is the Adventure section. Here you will find various trip reports that I have put together for your reading enjoyment. With each adventure, I have included a link to the gear list (pdf format) used on that particular trip. You will also notice that the terrain, weather, and conditions, are clearly stated in the trip reports. This will allow you to view the gear list used on the trip, compare it to the terrain and conditions encountered, and perhaps build a similar gear list for your future adventures.

	FORT LA CLOCHE PROVINCIAL PARK AND SURROUNDING AREA HEAVEN'S GATE TRAIL, MAY 2011 I didn't even know about this trail until last year. After being told about it, I searched the internet but found no information and only a couple of references. I immediately started looking into hiking this trail and what it would involve. With no plans for the long weekend, I packed up my gear and headed north with my friend Jay to check this one off the list.

	ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK WESTERN UPLANDS TRAIL (FIRST LOOP), FEB 2011 Winter was quickly passing me by and with all my new gear, I needed to spend a few days in the backcountry. With super low temps and lots of snow in the forecast, I made my way north of the city for a great 3 day snowshoeing trip on the Western Uplands Trail in Alonquin Provincial Park.

	SLEEPING GIANT PROVINCIAL PARK KABEYUN TRAIL LOOP, AUG 2010 I had always wanted to visit this park, but the problem was that it was so far away, I never had the time to go there. Finally, I had some unexpected time off and drove the 17 hours to get there and hike The Kabeyun Trail. Weather was perfect and I had an amazing time.

	HALFWAY LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK HAWK RIDGE TRAIL, JULY 2010 It was that time of year again...beerpacking! We picked a nice short trail call Hawk Ridge Trail and spent 3 days in the woods. A total of 15 km meant we could bring all the luxuries required to make this a nice relaxing weekend getaway.

	ZION NATIONAL PARK TRANS-ZION TRAVERSE, MAY 2010 I was headed down to Las Vegas for a giant stag for 2 of my good buddies and decided it was the perfect chance to take some additional time off and visit Zion National Park. I hiked from the Northern End (Lee's Pass) to The Grotto. I had originally planned on it taking 4 days of hiking but my UL pack and speedy legs allowed me to finish in 3 days.

	KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK WINTER TRIP TO SILVER PEAK, FEB 2010 We were finally getting some real winter weather and decided to make the best of it by hiking across the frozen lakes of Killarney Provincial Park and up to the top of Silver Peak. I was joined, once again, by my good friend Jason for a nice overnighter that took us to the top of the 3rd highest point in Ontario, Silver Peak.

	WAKAMI LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK HEIGHT OF LAND TRAIL, AUG 2009 My good friend Jason and I spent 5 days and 75 km hiking around Wakami Lake on the Height Of Land Trail. This loop crests the height of land which splits the Arctic and Atlantic watersheds. Great weather the whole time, but major bushwhacking, chased and stung by bees, charged by a jack rabbit, and battling condensation left us a bit tired on the last day. Would we do it again? Of course!!!

	BON ECHO PROVINCIAL PARK ABES AND ESSENS TRAIL, AUG 2009 A nice day hike which I made an easy overnighter of. I hiked all 3 loops in the entire Abes and Essens Trail in a figure 8 loop with 5 pounds of gear and a total hiking time of 5 hours.

	ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK WESTERN UPLANDS TRAIL, MAY 2009 With the girls away at the cottage for the long weekend, we found ourselves with nothing to do. Were we really in the mood for a tough backpacking trip? Not really...after all, it was the long weekend. Sooo, we figured a good Beerpacking trip was in order!

	LAKE SUPERIOR PROVINCIAL PARK COASTAL TRAIL, APRIL 2009 I took about 8 lbs of gear on this 5 day trip along the Coastal Trail in Lake Superior Provincial Park. I had to deal with temperatures ranging from 28C to -3C and from sun to snow. This trail has some challenging terrain and a lightweight pack makes it much more fun!

	FRONTENAC PROVINCIAL PARK AROUND THE PARK IN 2 DAYS, APRIL 2009 I took this trip to test my Sub 4 lb gear list in the spring. Temps dipped a bit lower then I would have liked but I survived. I ended up hiking a giant loop around most of the park. The terrain is relatively flat in this park but I always end up seeing lots of wildlife in the park. A nice trade off in scenery.

	BRUCE PENINSULA NATIONAL PARK BRUCE TRAIL SECTION HIKE, APRIL 2009 I had some last minute time off so I decided to spend a couple of days hiking with my Sub 5 lb gear list along a section of the Bruce Trail. This section is only about 2.5 hours from my house and I had never been here before. I couldn't believe how beautiful the terrain was. I was lucky and had nice and warm temps the whole time. A little wind to deal with but other then that it was quite pleasant.

	KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK QUARTZITE LAKE ATTEMPT, FEB 2009 Having always wanted to visit Quartzite Lake, I couldn't think of an easier way to navigate the lakes then to walk on top of them! A friend and I attempt to hike the lakes of Killarney to get to Quartzite Lake.

	FRONTENAC PROVINCIAL PARK SLIDE LAKE LOOP, FEB 2008 I was joined by 2 of my buddies to hike the Slide Lake Loop in Frontenac Provincial Park. According to the ranger who was working the station, she knew of no one who had snowshoed the trail in the 17 years working at the park.

	KILLARNEY PROVINCIAL PARK LA CLOCHE SILHOUETTE TRAIL, AUG 2007 I had dreamed of hiking this trail since I was a kid. Finally, after years of talking about it and hiking sections of it, I plan a thru-hike of the entire trail with 2 of my buddies. We did it in 5 days and had great weather the whole time!

	NEPAL EVEREST AND GOKYO REGION, MAY 2007 Traveling through Costa Rica, I had met a guy who was a guide on Everest. We ended up becoming friends and he recommended I travel the foothills of Everest for a few weeks. I flew from Toronto to Chicage to India and finally to Nepal where I spent 27 days...16 of which were spent on a solo trip through the foothills of the Everest and Gokyo Region. This is a trip I will never forget.