Offline
findingfontinalis wrote:
+1 vote for the Opeongo route. Did it for the first time last year and it did not disappoint!
Thanks for the recommendation FF!
Offline
Can anyone advise on the approximate time it takes to paddle north through Dickson towards the upper end of Lavielle?
Would you recommend staying on Dickson night 1 after the 5470m portage or try pushing up to Lavielle?
Thread StarterOffline
It took us 2 hours last fall to get from the north end of Lavielle to the island site across from the Bonfield- Dickson portage on Dickson. That included paddling against a tough wind for a good chunk of Lavielle.
Regarding whether to stay on Lavielle or Dickson, they’re both really nice. I personally preferred Dickson, but that was also because we had a better site the night we were on Dickson (that island site has great views) and the weather was better for that night.
Offline
It took us 2 hours last fall to get from the north end of Lavielle to the island site across from the Bonfield- Dickson portage on Dickson. That included paddling against a tough wind for a good chunk of Lavielle.
Regarding whether to stay on Lavielle or Dickson, they’re both really nice. I personally preferred Dickson, but that was also because we had a better site the night we were on Dickson (that island site has great views) and the weather was better for that night.
Thanks, that’s good to know in terms of timing. We’ll have 4 nights for Dickson/Lavielle with the plan to run day trips from there.
Thread StarterOffline
I welcome a rational discussion on this point if you have personal experience with this, Peek
I do have experience with this. I am the reason the note was originally included. On a trip to Catfish Lake in 2013, I observed cockroaches all over the main area of the campsite. It really threw me off and I was confused as to how this could even be possible.. I never considered the following: these aren't your typical 'house' roaches. They are 'forest cockroaches'. So personally, I don't think it's anything to be concerned about. I stayed there again in 2017 - didn't see any roaches. But a report from a tripper who stayed there last year confirmed they saw roaches.
So it's not about 'keeping people away' at all, in fact Jeff goes out of his way to show all the cool areas - he's not the type to make something up to mess with people.
This is what lives on Shangri-La: Ectobius sylvestris - Wikipedia
Offline
Swift Fifteen is not the only person who's let me know that they haven't seen any roaches at that site, but I've heard from a few people recently - in fact someone actually PMed me a week ago - who have seen them there. I have not seen them personally, but I've only stayed at that particular site once.
I looked into it a bit more a few years ago, because I got a couple of reports re: a couple of sites in Killarney as well. Like Peek pointed out, they aren't actually cockroaches but rather are another related species. My best guess is that they're transient - I'm not sure if it's a seasonal thing, or what.
Nonetheless I'm not adding a note about them to the new map. I'm convinced that even if they're there sometimes, its intermittent and unpredictable. As well, it surely must affect more than that one site. In the past I included anecdotes like that, but I'm trying to shy away from that going forward (i.e. unless there's a clear reason that only one site is affected, I don't think it's useful to call one site out because that's all the info I have)
Offline
beetles
Offline
Thanks for your comment, Jeff.
And to be perfectly honest, I agree with Swedish and think you guys are seeing beetles. Maybe tone it back a bit with the Johnny Walker 
Edit: Mike33, sorry for hijacking your thread!
Last edited by Swift Fifteen (4/05/2023 1:07 pm)
Offline
Nah, I say forest roaches.
But do go on and tell me all about what I, and several others have seen, but you admittedly haven't.
Offline
Nah, I say forest roaches.
But do go on and tell me all about what I, and several others have seen, but you admittedly haven't.
Absolutely. I too am interested in your response. Diana and I have encountered them as well.
Offline
We call them 'wood roaches' down here in PA. Their appearance evokes that uneasy or queasy feeling at first...and then a mystery tingle on the back of your neck or under you clothes like after you see a tick!
While a healthy dose of skepticism is nearly always appropriate, the manner in which it is expressed can create a bond or a division. "To be perfectly honest" might not be the sweetest way to introduce an idea compared to "a similar thing has happened to me before and I was mistaken".
Regardless, varieties of those cockroaches are relatively common in forested areas of North America. Capturing a good photo of one would make identification much easier to compare with the images on this site:
