Fall Color Report for 2011

October 8, 2011. Colors everywhere are prime this weekend. A few of the birch leaves and most of the shedding pine needles have fallen now due to high winds a few days ago. Sunny and warm weather is predicted for the next few days so it's a good time to grab a pair of hiking boots or canoe and your camera and then find some beautiful photos on your favorite trail or stream. Escartments or other high lookout points will provide a panorama of clear dry air for quality time behind the lense.

September 26, 2011. We've had a few nights of frost over the past week and colors are now starting to show up in the maples. Birches and poplars are just beginning to show some yellows. The white cedars and both the red and white pines are shedding last year's needle growth and the whole forest has a yellowish-brown tinge to it now. It will probably be another week or two before we're at the peak of the fall colors. A few flocks of geese have been migrating south already and they are travelling in large flocks and flying quite high which makes them hard to even locate on some days. All of the humming birds have departed for warmer climates. Mushroom harvesters are saying that this has not been one of the better seasons yet. Hopefully the recent rains will encourage more fungi growth in the forests.

Photo Tours

The lodge is located directly in front of Temagami's White Bear Old Growth Red and White Pine Forest. Originally destined by the MNR to be a clear-cut logging operation, the community rallied together in the early '90's and had it preserved as a Conservation Reserve.This classification permanently prohibits any resource extraction (logging and mining) while still allowing traditional uses such as hunting, fishing, trapping and farming (picking nuts, fruits and berries). An extensive trail system now interconnects this 800 hectares (2,000 acres) of unspoiled ancient wilderness which contains many red pines over 1 Meter (3 Feet) and white pines up to 1 1/2 Meters (5 Feet) in diameter and is the sixth largest stand of old growth pine remaining in the world. Several species of plants, including rare northern orchids and fungi which are native to an undisturbed eco-system can be found here (described in more detail on the Orchid Page and the Mushroom Page).

Guided or self-guided tours are available all year either by hiking boots, cross-country skis or snowshoes. During the summer, a water taxi is available for a drop-off at one location and pick-up at another to eliminate walking the same path twice for people preferring a self-guided tour. Departure and arrival times can be arranged for your convenience. Guided tour departure/arrival times are also easily arranged to suit any schedule. In the winter months, shuttles by snowmobile can be arranged to the beginning of the trail system at several locations for people looking for quick access. Others prefer the scenic 2 km. excursion by snowshoes (rentals available) or their own XC skis, directly from the lodge.

Guided tours by a semi-professional free-lance photographer can be arranged by the half or whole day. Come as an individual or as a group to see nature through your own still format (film or digital) camera or VCR. Camouflaged stands are available for wildlife viewing opportunities. A user-friendly portable tree stand is available for photographers, painters or anyone just wanting to catch a glimpse of the forest from an elevated position. We can supply everything except cameras.

White Bear Forest Tours

Guided or self-guided tours are available all year through the White Bear Forest. Summer hiking boots and either winter snowshoes or XC skis are the preferred footwear for these informative and picturesque trips. Some of these ancient trails (the Nastawgan, pronounced na-STAW-gan, in the Ojibway language) through this forest have been documented to be 5 to 6,000 years old or approximately 2,000 years older than the Great Pyramids in Egypt. Countless pines (both reds and whites) and eastern white cedars are over 200 years old (note: Canada is almost 150 years old) while a few of the ancient white pines are in excess of 500 years of age. These massive specimens were mere saplings when Christopher Columbus first visited North America (but not Temagami) in 1492. Today, these pines are obviously very healthy and are still growing and producing hundreds of pine cones with thousands of seeds in them every year.

Our guided tours offers boat access directly into the center of this ancient forest and can then be custom made to accommodate various age groups and/or physical fitnesses. A typical guided tour last from 2 to 4 hours and explains the interactions that wind, weather and fire has played in the ongoing development of the forest. Along with the big trees, several varieties of wild native orchids and colorfull fungii and mushrooms will provide ample photo opportunities for all guests. At various times throughout the summer, various plants and berries can be collected for tasting. Animal sightings of large animals such as bear and moose or of small animals such as rabbits and grouse will be rare (we make too much noise in our travels) but foot prints and droppings will be proof enough that they do inhabit this undisturbed ecosystem.

These tours can usually be arranged on a short notice of a day or two and occassionally on the same day.

Prices