Incredible Canuding in Ontario

patjub · #1 05-13-2002, 08:08 PM

Last summer I spent a few naked days up at McCrae Lake, off of Georgian Bay in Ontario. Before I made my decision to go I gathered as much info. off the internet. There were a few negative reports, but then I got ahold of some canoe clubs up there. Here is my straight and first-hand report on McCrae Lake.

Because of its rapids (very short portage) the lake is quite isolated from motor boats, and the masses. Yet it is easy to get to by canoe. I wouldn’t do this trip without a canoe by the way, and back-packing gear. McCrae is a fairly large lake with beautiful rocky shores, pines, and pretty good fishing. I took the advice I was given, and went in the middle of the week (tues-thurs). After paddling around to find a private spot, I layed claim to a large,secluded penninsula. The sizable coves skirting it were all my own. Actually I felt like a strange visitor in a very wild and beautiful domain ruled by loons, bull frogs, and bugs. Oh yes, bugs. I was unable to heed the advice to go later in August due to vacation schedule. I had to go in July and brave them all. I brought along one of those electronic watches that repels mosquitos, plus bug-spay. It worked extemely well. (You can pick them up on-line in the Heartland America site).As long as you go in at dusk in your tent, and wait an hour or so to come out, then you’ll miss the feast. Ants were another huge problem on the rocks during the day when I wanted to sunbathe. I solved this problem by laying on my foam sleeping pad. The bug thing did’t bother me in the least. It was worth having the little challenge to be totally naked in the outdoors.

There were a few other campers. No nude people. But the nearest occupied camp was about a mile away. The next nearest to them was another mile off.
At night, when the mosquitoes calmed down, and the stars came out, I layed in my back-packing hammock under the trees, taking it all in. A bug net was an extra precaution for such ocassions.

If you want an easy canoe trip, safe for a novice solo trip like mine, and you want to enjoy it clothes-free, then I highly recommend McCrae lake in the Muskoka region of Ontario.It is just off the 400, north of Toronto, at the Georgian Bay Road exit. You can park there, and paddle- first on McDonald Lake, then portage under the newly built snow mobile bridge (not as ugly as it is made out to be), then a few yards portage, and then out eventually onto McCrae. Negative reports of this area off the internet are truly not realistic. By the way, this supposedly has been a place for nude recreation for decades.

Do a search for the "Friends of McCrae" Lake web site.They have some nice photos.

Patjub

patjub · #2 05-13-2002, 08:08 PM

Last summer I spent a few naked days up at McCrae Lake, off of Georgian Bay in Ontario. Before I made my decision to go I gathered as much info. off the internet. There were a few negative reports, but then I got ahold of some canoe clubs up there. Here is my straight and first-hand report on McCrae Lake.

Because of its rapids (very short portage) the lake is quite isolated from motor boats, and the masses. Yet it is easy to get to by canoe. I wouldn’t do this trip without a canoe by the way, and back-packing gear. McCrae is a fairly large lake with beautiful rocky shores, pines, and pretty good fishing. I took the advice I was given, and went in the middle of the week (tues-thurs). After paddling around to find a private spot, I layed claim to a large,secluded penninsula. The sizable coves skirting it were all my own. Actually I felt like a strange visitor in a very wild and beautiful domain ruled by loons, bull frogs, and bugs. Oh yes, bugs. I was unable to heed the advice to go later in August due to vacation schedule. I had to go in July and brave them all. I brought along one of those electronic watches that repels mosquitos, plus bug-spay. It worked extemely well. (You can pick them up on-line in the Heartland America site).As long as you go in at dusk in your tent, and wait an hour or so to come out, then you’ll miss the feast. Ants were another huge problem on the rocks during the day when I wanted to sunbathe. I solved this problem by laying on my foam sleeping pad. The bug thing did’t bother me in the least. It was worth having the little challenge to be totally naked in the outdoors.

There were a few other campers. No nude people. But the nearest occupied camp was about a mile away. The next nearest to them was another mile off.
At night, when the mosquitoes calmed down, and the stars came out, I layed in my back-packing hammock under the trees, taking it all in. A bug net was an extra precaution for such ocassions.

If you want an easy canoe trip, safe for a novice solo trip like mine, and you want to enjoy it clothes-free, then I highly recommend McCrae lake in the Muskoka region of Ontario.It is just off the 400, north of Toronto, at the Georgian Bay Road exit. You can park there, and paddle- first on McDonald Lake, then portage under the newly built snow mobile bridge (not as ugly as it is made out to be), then a few yards portage, and then out eventually onto McCrae. Negative reports of this area off the internet are truly not realistic. By the way, this supposedly has been a place for nude recreation for decades.

Do a search for the "Friends of McCrae" Lake web site.They have some nice photos.

Patjub

mhookem · #3 05-16-2002, 08:33 PM

Thanks for the info. Sounds like a great place. I only wish I had more time to be actually nude in the outdoors.

Lilwilly · #4 06-14-2002, 08:17 PM

Canuding is good fun. I have done it in Algonquin and Killarney parks in northern Ontario. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Lilwilly · #5 07-25-2002, 07:37 PM

I have been camping with 3 friends for several years now. Last year before we left, I asked each one of them individually if they minded if I was nude while we were camping. They all said it was no problem, so I began spending more time at the campsite nude when it was warm enough. This year the weather was superb and I spent most of the time nude both at the camp and canoeing. It was great and I think I have started to influence my friends. They have all given up using swimsuits while at camp, and this time, one of them often sat by the water nude after swimming. I was nude from about mid morning until sundown when the mosquitoes came out. It was such a feeling of freedom and so great that they accept my lifestyle choice. Hopefully as time goes on they will participate more. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]