FULL LIST OF TRAILS

Ottawa River & Algonquin Park

Bonnechere River & Valley

Madawaska River & Highlands Tours

> Home > Walking Trails > Bonnechere River & Valley > Walks of the Little Bonnechere River Information ValleyExplore features a condensed version of the Walks of the Little Bonnechere River by historian Roderick MacKay and ecologist Mark Stabb. This self-guided tour book features ten hikes along one of the Ottawa Valley's historic waterways. The booklet is available to purchase from the Friends of Bonnechere Parks and describes in greater detail the cultural and natural features of each site.

1. McNaughton's Walk This walk is within Bonnechere Provincial Park. Also in the Park, but not described here are three small loops: Beaver Marsh (1 km), Oxbow (2 km) and Meandering River (2 km). McNaughton's Walk sits atop a sand delta that formed over thousands of years as glacial meltwater spilled into an ancient lake. This route is named after James McNaughton who was given the daunting task of accurately surveying the entire stretch of the Bonnechere River in 1847.

Rating: Easy stroll with some hill areas. Excellent trail for a fitness walk.

Type: Out and back to loop (~2km)

Time: 40 to 60 minutes

Start/Finish Trailhead near River Loop campground, .4km from Park beach on Round Lake.

Highlights - variety of habitats - home to a diversity of small mammals and birds - meandering river - wetland and beaver pond

Surface: Gravel topped in most sections; needle-topped through pine planations.

 

4. Whispering Winds Lookout on     Egg Rock The Bonnechere River Valley is known for its faults. Here two such parallel faultlines (cracks in the bedrock) form the sides of a colossal trench which once carried massive volumes of glacial meltwater down from the north. After crossing the undulating valley bottom, climb up the steep granite ridge. When you get to the top, the panoramic vista from the Whispering Winds Lookout awaits.

Rating: Challenging. Steep rise as trail follows sharp contours up to lookout.

Type: Out and back.

Time: 30 to 40 minutes.

Start/Finish 14.7 km from Cty Rd 58. Trailhead off Turners Road east of Algonquin Park Boundary.

Highlights Spectacular panoramic vista: - Bonnechere Valley - Stringers Lake - Madawaska Highlands - granite ridge

Surface: Natural forest floor; rock/gravel; flat rock plateau at top.

5. Payne's Pine Trail This trail skirts a spruce bog environment. Black spruce, sphagnum moss, pitcher plants, sundew and cottongrass are typical inhabitants of vast bogs such as this that cloak much of northern Ontario. Payne's Pine Trail eventually leads to a bayou-like silver maple swamp on the banks of the Little Bonnechere River.

Rating: Very easy.

Type: Out and back to loop.

Time: 1 hour.

Start/Finish 15.6km from Cty Rd 58. Trailhead off Basin Road .4km northwest of the Algonquin Park Boundary.

Highlights Spruce bog environment: - wetlands, lakes and the Little Bonnechere River - Payne's Pine

Surface: Natural forest floor covered with pine needles

 

Links of interest
		• The Friends of Algonquin Park • The Friends of Bonnechere Parks • Ontario Parks

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First Posted: September 9, 2003

Authors: Roderick MacKay & Mark Stabb