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Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park is the largest provincial park in Southern Ontario, south of Algonquin Provincial Park, located in Apsley, Ontario. Founded in 2003, it is 376 square kilometers dedicated to backcountry camping with no car camping sites within the park. This means access to campsites is only possible by canoe and/or portaging.

Access Points
There are 9 access points in Kawartha highlands Provincial Park for campers to enter the park. The two most southern access points are the Coon Lake Access point (1) and the Mississauga river take out point (9). Another access point, the Mississauga river access point (8) connects down to the Mississauga river take out point. Traditionally the most used access point is the Long Lake access point (2) which also includes Long Lake Lodge, which provides canoe rentals and other camping supplies for sale. Northwest of the park, Cold lake access point (6) is present technically outside of the park boundaries but is widely used by campers regardless and Bottle Lake access point (7) which only allows access to Bottle Lake and Sucker lake. Northeast in the park, there are three access points located off of Anstruther Lake Road; Loon Call Lake access point (3), Wolf Lake access point (4) and Anstruther Lake Access point (5). Loon Call Lake access point is only intended as a day use only access point with no campsites. Anstruther lake access point is minutes from the Anstruther Lake Marina where one can rent canoes’ and other equipment.

Portages
Portaging occurs when canoeists must cross a stretch of land between two waterways in order to connect and complete a route due to waterways not always being connected. A portage will affect the difficulty of a canoe loop depending on the amount of portages, the elevation and the distances of those portages. Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park has very rugged and rocky trails so plan accordingly to the terrain and your skill level.

Long Lake Loops
The Long Lake Canoe loop is a well-used loop due to its ease of access from Ontario Highway 28 and the presence of Long Lake Lodge as an outfitter to rent equipment. From Long Lake canoeists can choose a variety of options in which to complete the route in several different ways. Within 6km from the access point canoeists can take the 342m portage into Buzzard Lake. Once into Buzzard Lake, the canoeists can choose to complete three routes, either go south into Shark Lake through Vixen Lake and repeat the entire loop backwards on the return journey or go into Stoplog Lake through two portages, one 684m and the other 680m, where two options arise. They can choose to go north up to Compass Lake by doing a 297m portage and go up to Loucks Lake, which connects back to Long Lake by doing two portages, one 70m and the other 397m. The other option is to go west from Stoplog into Turtle Lake through a 993m portage. From there, a 345m portage north takes the camper into Cherry Lake and Triangle Lake. From Triangle Lake a 1280m portage connects the loop to Cox Lake and depending on water levels, beaver dams might cause a canoeist to engage in a few lift-overs in order to get back on to Loucks Lake. All of the routes can be done by following Long Lake onto Loucks Lake and Cox Lake, therefore making the loops possible backwards and forwards. The majority of the loops outlined are under 30km and can be completed in 2-3 days for the average paddler.

Serpentine Loop
The Serpentine loop is another widely travelled loop in the park due to its ease of travel for novice canoeists. Anstruther Lake access point is the entry for this loop and it takes the paddlers onto Anstruther Lake. From there canoeists paddle approximately 4km northeast where after that they encounter a 162m portage into Rathburn Lake. From this point on they can choose to go about the loop clockwise or counter-clockwise. If going counter-clockwise a 260m portage followed by a short paddle to a 370m portage into Copper Lake. From here on they will paddle through a small creek to a 223m portage into Serpentine Lake. There on canoeists will paddle northwest to 1411m portage into North Rathburn Lake. Therein they can take a 164m portage back to Rathburn Lake where they can come out the way they came into Anstruther Lake. Canoeists will experience lower elevation levels by going counter-clockwise which will provide a predominantly downhill set of portages specifically for the longest portage; the 1411m portage into North Rathburn Lake. This loop can be completed in 2-3 days.

Short Routes
For overnight trips, Bottle Lake Access point can provide a very short paddle into Bottle Lake and into Sucker Lake for campers looking for an easy one night camping experience. This route is under 2km with a very short 80m portage into sucker Lake. Furthermore, Wolf lake Access point provides a one night camping experience from Wolf Lake into Crab Lake with a 140m portage in-between. Furthermore, campers can also take a 610m portage into Anstruther from Wolf Lake to provide more route options.

Other Routes
Cold Lake access point leads into Anstruther Lake and Cold Lake which connects to Cox Lake connecting the Long Lake routes. This access point provides a myriad of options connecting Anstruther Lake to Long Lake and many more opportunities for custom routes in the park. Mississauga River access point leads to a winding river canoe experience filled with multiple portages ranging from 60m to 525m due to low water levels. This trip does not create a loop rather it provides a long there and back trip. Canoeists who prefer staying on smaller water bodies will prefer this loop over the others mentioned as the waterway is very narrow. With proper route planning and attention to acquiring proper orientation skills, there are many opportunities to experience the Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park. Park maps can be bought at Long Lake Lodge and individual route maps can be found scanned from original park maps online.