The Orphan Lake trail is a must-do hike if you are in the area.
Round-trip: 8 km
Difficulty: Moderate
Location: Agawa Bay, Ontario
Click Here for Google Map of this Hike
Located a 1.5-hour drive north of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario the Orphan Lake Trail in Lake Superior Provincial Park has a little bit of everything. Make sure you have your day-use pass displayed in your window when you park at the trail-head or you will get a ticket. You can self-register for a day pass at the trail-head information stand, or you can get one at the Agawa Bay visitors centre on your way by.
The first part of the trail goes through a forest of sugar maple and yellow birch to a lookout over Orphan Lake. As you leave the lookout the trail turns south as it follows the shore of Orphan Lake and passes through the site of a 1998 forest fire before climbing to lookouts over Lake Superior.
From the lookouts you can see the mouth of the Baldhead River to the right, straight ahead you can see the Leech and the Lizard Islands and to the left, you can see the north side of the Baldhead Mountain. After the lookout, the trail heads down 100 metres through the cedars to a pebble beach on the shore of Lake Superior. At the beach turn right and walk along the shore to the Baldhead River.
The trail then follows the river past small waterfalls and a footbridge. From the waterfalls, the trail returns steeply up to Orphan Lake along the base of some high cliffs and then the trail veers north-east through a forested area leading back to the parking area.
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