Chasing Waterfalls on the Englehart River at Kap-Kig-Iwan Provincial Park
Marvel at the magnificent Englehart River, which flows through Kap-Kig-Iwan Provincial Park in a series of rapids, cascades, and waterfalls.
Lookout over the landscape
At the first lookout in Kap-Kig-Iwan Provincial Park, I take in the expansive forest before me and wonder if there was a time when you could see the river from this spot.
Ridgeview Trail
I located a path that I believe was called the Ridgeview Trail. It clung to the river’s edge, and I had only gone a few hundred meters when the ground destabilized beneath my feet.
I was quickly sliding into the river.
I flopped sideways onto the embankment and stopped my progress. From this vantage point, I surveyed the path ahead and decided the rains had probably made the shoreline quite slippery.
I had no intention of ending up in the water, so after testing my footing, I backtracked up the hill to seek out the waterfalls of the Englehart River.
More Northeastern Ontario Adventures
High Falls Lookout
The next stop at this park was the lookout over the river and waterfalls. I could hear the Englehart River from the parking and a quick, easy walk led me to this popular viewing lookout.
From the platform, I can see the smooth water coming around a bend before crashing through a series of waterfalls. There are trail systems that follow the river – you can see them down below and a portion of the flat gravel and paved section, which allows for some accessibility to the riverside.
Hell’s Gate Trail
Before heading downstream, I followed Hell’s Gate Trail to the first waterfalls. I sat on the rocks while the sound of water thundering through the chutes filled the air – and took a selfie. What a rarity!
High Falls Trail
The High Falls Trail was relatively easy. While on the paved section, following the riverside was nice, but this quickly gave way to a rough trail and walking over rockfaces.
To descend to the bottom of High Falls, there were stone stairs with some pretty tall steps!
Thank goodness there was a railing in most places. A few shorter hikers needed a hand from their partner to step down; otherwise, they would have to sit in a few places to reach the next stone step.
I could have spent most of the day at the bottom of the falls. I vowed to return.