Canoe through Point Pelee National Park

Guest blogger Michael Zhang is a professional writer and translator (in Chinese) based in Toronto, Ontario. Michael writes and translates regularly for media both in China and Canada on traveling, lifestyle and culture. His translated works are included on The New York Times Best Seller list and as columns in National Geographic Traveler magazine. He loves traveling, photography and outdoor activities.

_______________________________________________
I’ve been to Point Pelee National Park many times, sometimes with my wife, sometimes with my wife and friends. In fact, Point Pelee is the park that I showed to some of my friends when they just arrived in Canada as new immigrants. But not until last summer did I find the true beauty of this park at the Southern-most tip of mainland Canada.

I’ve walked the boardwalk, explored the trail and seen the sunrise and sunset over the water. Last summer, for the first time, I sat in a voyageur canoe and went further to the heart of the beautiful marsh. And I was shocked! There were just too many things to see and hear—frogs, birds, turtles, grasshoppers, fishes, water lilies, only willow tree and even a floating piece of “land”, which I hopped onto from the canoe. Along the way, we said Hi to many fellow canoeist and kayakers.

The water lilies are the most attractive part of the park. They are so white, so beautiful. I remember there were 7 different water lily species in the park and one of them was so unique. The lilies formed a big, big circle after years of blooming and dying and expanding. Paddling with a naturalist interpreter through the soothing colors was a both relaxing and learning experience.

Today, when I hear someone saying Point Pelee is a small park not worth driving all the way from Toronto, I know they haven’t been in that big canoe and I know how much beauty of the park they have missed.

Click here for exciting Ontario canoeing adventures.