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Good evening everyone…Tea Lake is situated forty-five kilometers from Huntsville in Algonquin Park and is an access point that connects you to Canoe and Smoke Lake and beyond. The site is forested by deciduous trees, a variety of coniferous pines, and other plants and wildflowers. At the far end of the lake is Camp Tamakwa, a well-established youth camp since 1936. You can hear the camp bell summoning the community to mealtimes and special programmes. On some occasions, you can hear the howls and cheers of campers at events. Our base camp was located on the east side on a ridge that overlooked the Tea. Some days you could hear an ancient French Canadian paddling song and watch a flotilla of canoes racing past the site. We were up early at the crack of dawn, later now, as it was becoming more fall-like some mornings. We were packed and ready to explore. But it was still a thick dark grey and not for the sun trying its best to breakthrough. “Well, what do you think?” “Should we head out not?” At that, very instant a crack of lighting could be seen in the distance and within the proverbial five seconds, you could hear the rumble of mighty thunder. “Guess not!” For three and a half days we experienced rain in every form; soft, hard, crashing and smashing, in buckets and panes, sheets and…well, you get the picture. All the while the winds encouraged and supported the attack. There were times that the beating of the wind and rain made it impossible to carry on a conversation. At night we lay in our cots being tortured by the drop, drop, drop…or was that, “Let me in there so I can make you super wet!” Finally, it was over sort of. The heavy pines and leafed trees continued the attack by letting go of the many droplets of water that had clung so dearly to the leaves, boughs, and branches. You know how strong friendships are when you are confined to close quarters and the only entertainment are the antics of the guy beside you…and the rain. And cold? I’ve always packed a coat, sweater, and toque, no matter how warm the weatherman says it’s going to be. They have a tendency to lie. It’s amazing what the weather can do, in this case, dampen your enthusiasm and make things a trifle testy. All was well in the end, for soon the skies turned that brilliant blue and the temperatures soared to their rightful place. It was time to move out.
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