I had often heard about the Fire Tower in Temagami and the hiking trails all around it, but I never took the opportunity to climb it myself. So, when my nephew, Dylan, and his girlfriend, Victoria, said they wanted to hike the Fire Tower and invited me and my mom to join I said "Definitely!".

The path to the tower is quite wide and covered in gravel. It is a short and easy walk.

We picked a perfect day to go. The sun was shining and the trees were donning their beautiful robes of red, orange and yellow leaves for the autumn. 

At the base of the tower is a set of large stone steps covered in fall leaves and pine needles. We didn't head up them right away because off to the side there were some lookouts at ground level that we decided to check out first. 

But it wasn't long before we were making the climb up the tower. I was excited to get to the top and look around and see just how far away I could see. About half way up the tower, I leaned over the edge to take a picture of the stone stairs that we had left behind so far below us. From here I was looking down at the tops of the trees and thought to myself "so this is what the birds see when the fly high above the trees". 

The higher up the tower we went the more windy it got. Also, the more narrower the stairs became. By the time we reached the top it was so windy that it felt like the whole tower was shaking, I had to hold on to my hat so that it wouldn't blow away. Oh, but the view though! It was breathtaking! 

From way up here you could see lakes and trees for miles and miles around. To the right we thought we could make out some sort of fish hatchery or something. To the left we could see someone's summer cabin. We all agreed that we wouldn't want to have that cabin because everyone who climbed this tower would be watching you. No privacy at all. 

Behind us we could see the parking lot. All the cars looked like toy cars that a child would play with. 

The top of the tower was so small that only a few people could be at the top at the same time. The wind was unbelievable but it gave it that extra sense of excitement. My mom and my nephew, Dylan may look like they are posing nicely for the picture below, but they are probably just holding on to each other for dear life.  :) 

We eventually made our way back down in order to let others get to the top. As we climbed back down, I took note of how beautiful the coloured leaves were from up here. 

When we got our feet firmly planted back on solid ground, I noticed that even the flowers were matching in colour to the leaves on the trees. God has made everything in harmony. 

We were already enjoying ourselves and we hadn't even made it to the trails yet. We went back over to the look out for another peek and to rest for a minute on the bench swing that was there. Unfortunately the battery on my camera died on me right after this picture. Luckily I still had my phone with me to take pictures but they are not as good as my actual camera would have been. 

We wandered around for a bit looking for the trail head. There are actually about 8 different trails up here, some longer than others. The one we had decided to do was called the "White Bear Trail". It was just under 3 km long and starts as a straight line and then turns into a large loop. It runs through a stand of Old Growth pines. 

Finally we came across a map that was posted at the trail head. 

The White Beat Trail is one of the newer trails in the White Bear Forest. It contains trees that are between 150 - 300 years old. 

Parts of the trail were marked with white plastic hiking placards to show the way. These were few and far between though. However, the trail was not difficult to follow at all. 

By this time the sun was starting to hide behind the clouds a little. We were expected to get some rain later on in the day. Even though the sun didn't want to show it's yellow colours, that didn't stop the leaves from doing so. 

There were not a whole lot of other people on this particular trail. However, we did run into one gentleman named Doug from Northland Paradise Lodge who was in the middle of giving a guided tour about mushrooms. He told us that he had been in the bush giving tours since 9 a.m. that morning.  We found this to be quite interesting and we may have to look him up one day in the future to go on a guided mushroom hike of our own. After speaking with him for a few minutes we left them to their tour, but all along the way we would find mushrooms sitting in unusual places and we knew that Doug and one of his tours had been through there. 

Not long after, the trail went down a fairly steep, rocky, hill side. It was steep enough that a rope was provided to help you with your descent, 

The rope made it feel adventurous and we felt like rock climbers. It was even more fun to climb back up on the way back. 

At the bottom of our rock climb we came to find a huge fallen tree. It was hollow inside and was big enough that if we had wanted to we might have been able to climb inside. We looked inside to see if we could see anything living in it. But it was too dark inside to know for sure if anything was there. This tree had been very very tall too. We walked beside it quite a ways before we came to where the top of the tree was. 

Next we came to some rocks with big crevasses in them. One was big enough to almost fit a person inside. 

So, Dylan took a stab at seeing how far in he could get. It wasn't too deep so he didn't get very far. 

The Old Growth forest was quiet and peaceful. At this time of year there wasn't a whole lot of wildlife to be seen. 

We did hear some birds though, and a grey squirrel froze like a statue when we crossed paths. It was probably hoping that we hadn't seen him. 

When we got to where the loop began, my mom decided that she wanted to sit and enjoy the quietness of the forest on her own for awhile. I completely understood this because it is something that I like to do myself from time to time.  Dylan, Victoria, and I were a bit more talkative and so we continued on and left her to commune with nature. 

Dylan, Victoria, and I had a great time talking about the different things we saw. We spotted a yellow leaf on the ground that had some holes in it. We laughed because it reminded us of a yellow emoji that looked like it was scared or surprised. 

We were amazes by the size of the roots of the trees that were draped and cascading over the edges of rocks on the trail. 

I was particularly intent on finding inspiration in the changing colours of the leaves for a painting that I wanted to do. I really liked the way the leaves of a small maple went from a red-peach colour and melded into a light green. Beautiful! 

Dylan spotted a tree that was full of lumps and bumps. He said that he knew someone who was able to take tree lumps and turn them into wooden bowls and things like that.  I wonder how many bowls the guy could have made from this one! 

After making our way all the way around the loop, we met back up again with my mom. She was waiting for us under the beautiful orange leaves of the oak trees. 

We began to head back to the beginning of the trail again. We came across a sign posted on a white birch tree that stated the name of the trail "White bear Trail". Somehow we had missed it on the way in. I liked how it was made using a wood burning technique on a piece of wood and not one of paint or plastic. 

As we walked out the leaves continued to amaze us with the variations in the colours. God is such a wonderful artist! 

Eventually we completed the trail and headed back to the tower for one last look over at the look out. I was almost tempted to climb the tower one more time but it was getting late and the weather was starting to turn. 

It had been a wonderful day and we had all enjoyed it immensely. We will have to come back another day and hike one of the other trails next time. Apparently the trails are open for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in the winter.  I think that autumn is my favourite time to come here though. 

It's was a cool, grey morning. It's supposed to thunderstorm in the afternoon. Funny how every time I go camping with my dog, it rains. Hoping my tent doesn't leak. But for now, no rain, so I set about to enjoy my morning. 
I ate  breakfast and sat around leisurely reading a magazine for awhile. 

Since it wasn't very sunny, I eventually got cold just sitting around. I figured this would be a good time to walk around and explore the park a little. Moving around would warm me up and would keep Balto from getting too restless. 
One of the reasons I chose this park was because I knew there were no hiking trails here. With an old dog by my side I knew he couldn't handle a hiking trail. There are, however, some great hiking trails just outside the park. I might have to come back here one day just so that I can hike up to the Caribou Mountain Lookout that I hear is spectacular.
Instead of a hike, we just walked the roads of the park. We walked in the opposite direction that we had traveled in the previous day. From time to time little red squirrels would come out to take a look at us. Balto paid them no attention and set his mind to all the smells he could smell along the way.

We started off by going down to the mini boat launch to see if there were any ducks, turtles, or even frogs, But there was nothing. I didn't even see any minnows in the water. 

I did notice that the dock had permit posts for boats though. This is the first time I have ever seen that in a provincial park. This park really keeps the boaters and  fishermen in mind. 

Right next to the mini boat launch is the second beach. It looked almost identical to the first beach, except it had two benches to sit on instead of just one. The buoy lines were only about 7 feet out here too. Maybe a bit further, but not by much. 

It was at this site that I caught a glimpse of a little ovenbird. Sadly it wouldn't sit still for a clear picture. So I had to settle far a couple of blurry and behind the branches photos instead. 

The first signs of Autumn were beginning to show.

High up in a pine tree a raven watched as we walked by.

Most of the flowers here are common flowers like the "Devil's Paintbrush"otherwise known as  "fox-and-cubs", or "orange hawkweed" (although these ones were more red than orange).  

There was plenty of Crownvetch flowers.

And the Birdsfoot Trefoil was abundant in this area too.

Although the wild roses were done flowering for the season, there were plenty of rose hips hanging from the thorny branches. 

And I spotted an occasional mushroom here and there. However, I don't know my mushrooms so I couldn't tell you what kind these are. 

The road back was lined with lovely smelling cedar trees. We must have walked for about an hour. Maybe even an hour and a half. 

I was surprised that Balto lasted that long. I really didn't think I would get very far with him. He did remarkably well, however, he definitely went for a nap when we got back. 

It started lightly raining by 3:30 and by 4:30 it was raining harder. So, I retreated to the tent to watch a movie for the afternoon on my tablet. And what movie did I watch on my camping trip? "Back Country" of course. That reminds me... I should pick up some bear spray one of these days. 

Balto and I left the tent at around 7 to eat supper but it was still raining so we went right back in as soon as we were done. By 9:30 it was raining hard and every inch of my tent was leaking. The walls, the roof, the door, everything. I was sopping up little puddles off the floor with a dirty T-shirt. 

As I lay on my sleeping bag (which surprisingly, was not wet) and was looking at the ceiling with the beads of water running down it, I thought "maybe I should put my rain poncho over the roof of the tent. Wish I had brought a tarp". Then it dawned on me. I have something better than a tarp! I have a dining tent!

So I put my rain poncho on, went outside, and dragged the dining tent over top of the tent. Perfect! I was expecting thunderstorms at about 1 a.m. So, this should definitely help.  Maybe I can open my screen door open  my tent door and watch the lightning from inside my tent without getting wet. Or maybe that's pushing it a bit.  At any rate, other than my sleeves being soaked from moving the dining tent, this was keeping my tent dry. Well, at least as dry as it could be after it's already been soaked through and through. Wish I had thought of this sooner. I will definitely remember it for next time! 

The next morning I could hear Sarah and Daniel and their dad packing up to leave. When I emerged from my tent they were gone, but they had left me a little present. They left me the left over wood that they hadn't used. It was sweet of them, but the thing was, I was going home today and didn't need it. So I took it to the next camp site over and gave it to the couple who were staying on site 35. They were happy to get it and I chatted with them for awhile before going back to my site to pack up. 

Once the car was packed up and Balto was comfortably tucked into the back seat, I figured I would take a quick look around at parts of the park I couldn't walk to with Balto by my side. I drove down to the main boat launch to see what it was like down there. There was a playground and a volleyball net, but no one was playing there at the moment. The ground was a little flooded from so much rain the night before. 

Off to the side, and nestled in between some trees was a cute little picnic shelter. 

The main boat launch had many more docks and opened up to the waters of Lake Temagami. 

Up a little bit of a hill was a fish cleaning station. I can only think of one other park that I have seen a fish cleaning station at. I think it was Fushimi Park if I recall correctly. 

I stopped by the waste management site to drop off my garbage on the way out. They had a neat set up to deter bears and other animals from getting into the garbage. The garbage bin has a door on the top and you have to climb up some stairs to get to the door. The bin itself, hooks up to a truck by a trailer hitch so that they can tow it away,

The last stop on my way out was to check out the dog beach. This area is way too far away from the rest of the park, which is why I left it for last. 

Sadly there wasn't much to look at. There was no sandy beach area. It was just a picnic table pulled up to the waters edge. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised considering the human beaches are extremely tiny here. I guess it's nice that they had anything at all for dogs when you take that into consideration.  

Finlayson Point park is not the best park for swimming, but it is a pretty good park if you are a fisherman or a boater. If you are looking for something small and quiet, this is the place to go. 

I planned this trip in order to get some alone time and to spend some time with my aging dog, Balto. He turned 17 this month and I want to spend as much time with him as I can while he is still around. His back legs betray him now and again but he is still a puppy at heart. So I bundled him into the car and we went to Finlayson Point Provincial Park which is only about an hour away from where I live. 

​As I drove down the lane towards the office I could smell the fragrant scent of something like lilacs through the open car windows. I am sure it was something else because lilac flowers have long since been spent for the season, but whatever it was, it smelled good. Maybe it was just the smell of freedom!

The office had ice and a pay phone outside. 

Apparently you can rent bicycles at the office too. 

The sign outside the door indicated that there was to be a kids program going on that night having to do with frogs and amphibians. 

I went in and registered and while I was there I bought a T-shirt. When I went to pay for it the lady at the desk said it was called the "Goose Lady" shirt in her computer. We both chuckled at that because it made it sound like I was a goose lady with a farm full of geese or something. 

I was just about to head out the door when I stopped and realized that, in my haste to get on the road, I had forgotten to bring a sweater or jacket with me and there was a possibility of rain this weekend. I don't normally buy more than one shirt at a park but in this instance I figured I had better get myself a hoodie to have on hand.  I was happy to hear that the fire ban had been lifted this morning so if I got really cold I could always start a fire as well. 

I got site number 36. It was one that I had picked out on the website while I was researching this park. 

The site is a little small. I had to park my car on an angle and it was sitting closer to the road than I would have liked, but I made it work. Putting up the dining tent by myself was a bit tricky but luckily I didn't have too much trouble since I had a little help from the picnic table by standing on top of it. 

Everything fit and it was all kind of cozy. Balto seemed pretty happy to be here. 

The site is almost directly across the road from the second of two beaches. 

When the tents were up I took a quick jaunt down to the beach to check it out. there are no dogs allowed on the beach so I tied Balto up at the picnic table because I could see him from there. Or more importantly he could see me. Ever since he went deaf he can't stand to be alone and gets upset if he thinks no one is around. 

Both beaches are tiny. They are sandy and clean with a bench to sit on, but they are small and have no picnic area. 

Not only is the sandy part of the beach small but the roped in area of the water was tiny too. It only went out about 5 to 7 feet at most. It was almost laughable. Bathtubs are deeper than this. You might be able to get your ankles wet before you reached the buoy lines. 

Directly across from the beach, the site beside mine, (I think it was number 38) the site looked more like a driveway than a campsite. I wonder how anyone ever gets a tent set up there. I was glad I didn't pick that site. 

There is a lot of boat traffic on this lake. There was everything from motor boats, kayaks, and house boats. My mom had told me that this park was geared towards fishermen and I was beginning to see that she was right. 

And from the beach you can see (and hear) the highway. 

And to top it all off there was a plane that would go back and forth about 10 to 12 times a day. I am guessing that there is some sort of business that takes fishermen out by plane to the nearby lakes or something. I couldn't see why else  someone would take their plane out that many times a day. 

Despite all the noise form the cars and transports on the  highway, the boats and the plane, there was a solitary loon that would call out both during the day and the night that you could hear above all of this. 

​I am making it seem like the park was really loud. It actually wasn't all that bad. It was just not the peaceful serenity that you look for in a campground when you are just there to relax. Eventually I got used to the background noise and I didn't notice it so much after awhile. 

I decided to go and find the bathrooms and the water tap. I figured it was a good opportunity to take Balto for a bit of a walk. A little Nuthatch flew down to say hello as we were starting our walk. 

It's not too often Balto gets to go swimming these days; if you can even call it swimming. It's more like just sitting in the water. Since dogs aren't allowed on the beach, these little paths to the water seemed to be the perfect thing for him. 

We went down the path that had the least obstacles for him since he has troubles getting up and over anything more than 5 or 6 inches tall. It opened up into this cute little sandy beach area with a bunch of rocks that I could sit on. The water was very clear and clean and cool on this hot day. This mini beach was the perfect size for a dog. 

And Balto thought so too. He loved it! This would be a great place to sit and watch the sunset. You can't really see the sunset from my campsite.

Our destination, the bathrooms, was not much further up the road from Balto's private swimming hole. They are located on a bit of a hill, but nothing too steep. 

I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were flush toilets! I was not expecting that at all. The bathrooms were spotless. Not even the usual spiders or bugs in there. And it even smelled nice.  For a campground bathroom, I was impressed. 

On the way back we went to the water tap and filled up the water jug that I had with me. The water faucet is not where it is shown to be on the campground map. It's close, but not quite. But it wasn't difficult to find. It was a twist faucet and not one of those ones that you have to push down and hold, so, that was nice. 

By the time we got back it was about supper time. Balto was worn out by even that short walk and he went into the tent and took a nap. 
I had thought ahead about food for this trip. I didn't know if the fire ban would still be on or not so I only brought food with me that didn't need to be cooked. Before I left town I bought 2 submarine sandwiches. I had one for supper tonight and one for supper the next night. 
 
After supper, Balto had gotten his second wind and was restless so I took him for another walk. We went past the mini boat launch area (there is a bigger one at the other end of the park) and saw one of the park staff sitting at a table with a blue table cloth. She was hosting the kids event about frogs and amphibians. I caught her at the very end of it because there were no kids to be seen at that point. I talked to her for a few minutes and she said that there had been about 5 kids there earlier and they had all tried their hand at catching frogs. She said that the park is much busier on long weekends and that most of the rest of the time it is pretty quiet around the park. 

I was going to go check out the second beach but the sun was staring to go down so I decided to do that tomorrow instead. 

I could make out a tiny bit of a sunset through the trees but the colours were not very vibrant this evening. I did see a bat fly by over head though. 

I decided not to start a campfire tonight. I didn't feel like sitting around to babysit it. Instead I went into the tent to enjoy a peaceful evening of reading a book. I could hear the loon again and except for the sounds of the transports going by down the highway every so often, it is actually be pretty peaceful here.