***OUT AND BACK VARIATION***
We finally made it to the trail head!!! Getting here was 3 years in the making. Chantal had surgery in Feb 2020, and we thought we could hike this beautiful Puksawka National Park trail system in August of the same year. Unfortunately, year after year, Chantal was still dealing with issues from her surgery. It's completely backcountry, so we wanted to be 100% sure we were being responsible starting the 127 km out and back journey healthy and ready to tackle it.
Day 1-We camped in the National Park and got a decent night sleep. We even got to shower the morning of. We got things rolling a little before 7 AM. It had rained the previous day and it was still misting when we started. The rocks were really slippery and we had to be careful not to slip and fall. Things were going pretty well. The first little bit is inland. Before we knew it, we reached the first suspension bridge which was amazing. We took a minute to take it all in and enjoy the view. The trail started going towards the coast of Lake Superior which meant some rock hopping, but more beautiful views. After about 13 hours on our feet, we made it to Fisherman's Cove campsite and set up. We had a private beach, nice flat spot for the tent, privy and food lockers. Spoiled for sure.
Day 2-After a great night of solid sleep, we got moving. It was chilly first thing. We even put on gloves and our puffy jackets. Our goal today was to make it to the end of the trail(our halfway point) and back to the same camp sight. That would be splitting the trail in about 3 even sections. We noticed fairly quickly that the south portion of the trail became tougher and also less traveled. This made for a tougher second day. We made it to our turn around and still had a lot of work to do. A lot of people get dropped off at the south trail head via water taxi. Quite expensive though and that made our decision to do an out and back easy. We kept trucking along while taking advantage of the coastal rocky sections to filter our water and top up. We made it back to Fisherman's Cove and were ready for bed.
Day 3/Finish-Last day! Another solid sleep and warmer temps in the morning. We still had lots of work to do though. We tried to take advantage of some of the less technical sections and move well. Still very tough terrain though and you really had to focus on your footing. At least the trail has been dry though. Perfect weather today and yesterday! We eventually made it to the first suspension bridge, then the second one. What a great feeling it is getting closer to the end. We talked lots and embraced what was left. We got to the visitor center, took our finishing pics, stopped our watches and that was it. We walked back to our vehicle and talked to a couple who were just starting out on their journey. We told them how beautiful the trail was and how great the campsites are. You can basically have a beautiful beach with pristine waters all to yourself. We saw only 7 people on the trail for the entire out and back. This is one we will never forget! We are very happy to have done it together.