Moose Hunting - Day 6

Having accomplished all my big goals in and around Maynooth (ma-Nooth, not May-nooth, I have learned), what do I do on my final day here?

Maynooth is the jumping off point for Algonquin Provincial Park, a mammoth green swatch of Ontario just to the northwest.  It is big enough to be a national park in the States.

Algonquin Provincial Park

When I got up this morning I didn't actually intend to go to Algonquin; I intended to go to Lake St. Peter (Lake Street Peter, according to the voice of GPS), Barry's Bay, and Combermere.  But after getting to LSP, paying for my every-park day pass, and seeing how much closer I was to Algonquin, I shifted my plans.  After all, I had been told that Algonquin was THE place for moose.

Most of you know of my obsession with moose.  The major unticked box on my bucket list is labelled "See a moose."  As a child, I loved Bullwinkle (and I still do).  Perhaps that is the source of the obsession.

So, off I go to Algonquin Provincial Park to find a moose.  The ranger at the park entrance told me to follow Route 60 for my best chances.  Route 60 (see the red line on the map) cuts across the park for 56 km east to west.  I kept my eyes peeled because I didn't want to run into one of the beasts.  I barely blinked for 56 km west and 56 km east again.  But ... no moose.

On the way back (east), I figured out why.  There are several signs along the highway that look like this:

Did you know that moose could read?

Most of these signs feature moose only.  Obviously, the moose read the signs and avoid the danger zones.  Obviously!

Not to be squashed with complete disappointment, I proceeded to Barry's Bay and Combermere.

Barry's Bay has Tim Horton's (signifying a metropolis > 3000 population, as nearly as I can tell) and I passed a lot full of tiny houses/pods for sale.  Some places here rent these to tourists.  Without plumbing.  To each his own.

This is a pod

In Combermere, I found a rustic little restaurant called the Bent Anchor, which sits right alongisde the Madawaska River.  The entire restaurant and bar are open air, including an open, shaded deck with picnic tables and a covered deck with tables and chairs.  It reminded me of places in Key West I've seen in movies, except here I needed a sweater.  Food was good, fresh, and reasonably priced, but I set off Canadian regulatory distress by ordering my burder too rare.

Dock at the Bent Anchor - boatside service?

My dinner view

Tomorrow I leave Maynooth and Boulter for Napanee and Adolphustown.  This makes me a little sad because I know I am unlikely to ever return.  Scheduling six days here was good planning.