No better place in the autumn

By Crystal Luxmore

Autumn in Canada is simply the best. For a couple of magical months, a parade of colour marches across Canadian forests, led by the fiery maple tree.

A crisp, northern air stings the cheeks and carries the scent of snowy days ahead.

The nation's wildlife is in full swing. Moose are in the throes of mating season, beavers put the final touches on their winter lodges and black bears frantically forage to fatten up for winter's big sleep.

In my experience there is no better place to witness the brilliance of autumn than in Ontario's Algonquin Park. Stretching nearly 8,000 kilometres, it is the oldest and largest provincial park in the country.

Algonquin is the archetypal Canadian landscape. After a three-hour trip north from Toronto to Algonquin Park, my boyfriend finally broke into a wide smile and declared: "Now this is the Canada I've been looking for."

The Park resonates "Canadiana" partly because of its relationship with Canadian art. The Group of Seven – Canada's most popular and romantic artists – took inspiration from the unspoiled wilderness in and around Algonquin.

Their association with the park was forever sealed by the death of Tom Thompson, the group's mentor, who worked as a park guide and drowned mysteriously there in 1917.

The group's paintings of lonely jack pines and fiery red maples set against cold lakes and rocky outcrops turned the traditional view of Canada – one of man conquering and settling a wild land – on its head.

Instead the Group of Seven depicted Canada as an unspoiled and mighty wilderness in which man was a tiny speck. Their work not only revolutionised Canadian art, it changed the way Canadians saw themselves and their country.

The closest airports to Algonquin Park are Ottawa and Toronto, each about a three hour drive away. Both cities have major art galleries housing Group of Seven collections.

Algonquin's vista makes for spectacular autumn viewing. The Park's hilly west side is dominated by hardwood forest of maple, beech, balsam fir, white pine and yellow birch, while the east side has forests of poplar, white birch, jack pine and red pine.

Autumn's deep colours are reflected in the park's 2,400 clear lakes and ponds.

The key to a great trip is to visit at the right time. The colour change takes about four weeks from beginning to end. Algonquin usually hits its "peak" in the third and fourth week of September.

From September to October, there is always one region in Ontario at its height of colour. The weekly "Fall Colour Report", on the Ontario tourist board's website, painstakingly tracks the season's progress by rating percentage colour change and percentage leaf fall.

Curiously, in my ten years of camping and walking in Algonquin, I've encountered few overseas tourists aside from the day-trippers on tour buses. Perhaps tourists are daunted by Algonquin's seeming inaccessibility to all but the outdoor enthusiast.

But if camping is not your cup of tea, don't rule out Algonquin just yet. The park and surrounding area offer an experience to suit all types of nature-lovers.

The bulk of Algonquin Park is the vast interior. Only accessible by canoe or foot, this rugged area is made up of a series of lakes and ponds with over 1500 kilometres of canoe routes.

The park has a number of outfitters that hire out full kit for one day to a few weeks of paddling and camping. Autumn's chillier nights are a small price to pay for the absence of blackflies and mosquitoes, which disappear by late August.

If, like me, you are a person who prefers a steady stream of food supplies, a flushing toilet and warm shower, the four campgrounds dotted along the east-west Parkway Corridor are for you.

Campsites in Canada's provincial and national parks are in a league of their own. Generous, tree-lined lots complete with picnic table and fire pit are virtually assured, as are clean public toilets. It also helps if you have Canadian parents who own a massive caravan. I've spent many an autumn night sitting next to a crackling hot fire with friends or family blissfully roasting hot dogs and making smores – melted marshmallow and chocolate lovingly sandwiched between two biscuits – washed down with the requisite Canadian lager, mmmm.

Campers can readily explore Algonquin Park as the Parkway Corridor – the park's only road – links to fourteen walking trails ranging from 0.5 to 15 kilometres.

My boyfriend was delighted with the Beaver Pond trail, an easy three kilometre trail that took us past two beaver ponds. Autumn is a busy time for beavers as they drag nearby trees, branches and grass to reinforce their winter lodges, so chances of seeing them above water are good.

The best time for wildlife watching is in the early morning or late evening. Algonquin Park naturalist Justin Peter recommended the 11 kilometre Missy Lake trail in the early morning for the best chance of wildlife spotting.

The trail weaves past six lakes, beaver ponds and a wood of beech trees where you can spot "bear's nests" – piles of branches that black bears break off in their race to pick the beech nuts at the top.

Some of the most frequently spotted animals are moose and white-tailed deer. Wolves also make their home in the park but are rarely spotted. Those with a convincing howl can test their talent at a park-organised howling party and hope the wolf answers back.

For the non-camper, Algonquin has four private lodges ranging from rustic to luxury. However, if you're after a more authentic experience, I recommend doing what Canadians do best, relaxing in nearby cottage country.

Every Friday of the summer Toronto witnesses a mass exodus of urban dwellers to their "cottages" in the network of beautiful lakes and rivers south of Algonquin Park.

The Muskokas and Haliburtons are a truly Canadian haunt with cottages ranging from inherited, wooden lodges to mansions inhabited by famous hockey players and Hollywood starlets.

I have been frequenting cottages as a poor guest of my friends for years and there's nothing like it. Fishing, canoeing, waterskiing, hot-tubbing – a popular verb in cottage country – and just plain chilling are daily pursuits.

The area is still the preserve of Canadians, with few overseas tourists venturing in uninvited.

The Rough Guide to Canada proclaimed: "Locals swear that this summer jaunt to cottage country is the best time of the year, but touring the region as an outsider is mostly disappointing."

But it is easy to become an insider by hiring a private cottage on the internet. Two years ago, a group of friends and I hired a cottage about ten kilometres outside Algonquin.

Although its heyday was clearly sometime in 1975, the lakefront cottage boasted two spacious living rooms and fireplaces, three bathrooms, a wrap-around deck, and a hot tub, all for $300 – or about £15 per person for a long weekend.

So whether you want to glimpse bull moose clashing their antlers for female attention, take a dip in a cold lake followed by a plunge in a hot tub, or just feel the crunch of golden leaves beneath your feet, a trip to Algonquin Park will take you to the heart of Canadian autumn.