Ganaraska #10

So this is it, the last few days of my solo hike of the Ganaraska trail. The days were shorter and the leaves starting to turn from summer greens into vibrant reds and golds. I love this time of year, with the golden sun warming me during the day and an evenings fire chasing away the chill. The late summer crickets added a musical accompanyment to my days hike.

I was now near Victoria Bridge and what was only to be a last one day hike out of the Queen Elizabeth II wilderness to Sadawa and the end of my journey. This was not to be. Again, land use had been revoked and I would have to spend another two days in the park for a loop trail. The weather was beautiful and I started out on the aptly named Hikers Graveyard section. There are very few landmarks along this section of rocky terrain, and I had to be on the alert for every blaze I could find. And of course more beaver dam crossings. At one point on a section of trail little more than an animal tract, a young moose stepped out in front of me within a few feet. I was overwhelmed by the quiet passing of this giant creature who barely acknowledged my prescence, before silently ghosting off the trail and into dense vegetation.

The remainder of this two days hike had me following trails along the Cranberry River and next to the High Falls, a steep eight meter chute of beautiful water. I was suprised by the number of people I met or saw along the way. The hiking trail is crisscrossed by many ATV trails, and I even ran into a group of young boys from Toronto on a trip to experience the backcountry. My favorite encounter was a young man with his not so young dog. He explained that they had been backcountry hiking together for a decade, and that this may be his girls last trip. I wished them well as they slowly made their way down the rocky trail.

My return to Victoria Bridge on the loop trail was the end of my trip. I was done, I had completed more than 540 km of trail on my own. The trail changes had added more kilometers than I had anticipated, but all that had added to my story. The fear of being alone, the fear of the unknown, and the fear of bears, had not been neccesarily conquered, but definetly faced head on. Through all of this, only one person thought to ask me "why". Why did I chose to do a solo hike in such dificult conditions, and continue when things where so challenging. This was such an easy answer, as I worked for several years as a geriatric nurse. I saw so many regrets at things not tried, so many hopes and dreams never even attempted. Life too often gets in the way of living. I am proud of myself and my accomplishment, and it gives me the strength to continue to work towards living life with no regrets. To live life to the fullest. Cheers