In Pukaskwa National Park

We hike in Pukaskwa under the rain. The weather doesn’t alter the beauty of the place. We don’t get the blue shades of the water but we get all the amazing green shades in the forest. And the place is even more serene than in Lake Superior Provincial Park. It’s just us and a million mosquitoes. The “greatest of the Great lakes” is home to fewer than 2% of the 40 million people who inhabit the lakes’ shores. It’s the coldest and the cleanest of the lakes, holding 10% of the planet’s surface freshwater. This preserved giant surrounded by quiet forests is well worth the detour. There was a sign on one of the hikes in Pukaskwa that I found really well written: “As human beings, we are the dominant element in the ecology of Lake Superior and its surroundings. We are also the only organisms in the ecosystems with the power of choice. We can maintain the lake and its shores for the well-being of all life involved, or we can neglect them, as we frequently have in the past. We have the right to be here and to use wisely resources that are available to us – the forests, minerals, waters, canoe routes and trails. Our action and attributes now will determine whether generations to come have the same rights and choices.”