la vase portages

City of North Bay has reserved the last remaining undeveloped 300 hectares of eastern Lake Nipissing shoreline as a nature reserve know as La Vase Park.   Bordered by La Vase river to the North and usually accessed by crossing the frozen river in winter, La Vase Park runs south to Cranberry Road.   Lake Nipissing forms the natural western park boundary with beautiful sand beach areas and surrounds a large natural wetland called Gauthier's Marsh. 

Taking a left (east) turn after crossing La Vase River from Champlain Park, the north trail loop follows the river and then runs beside a large granite ridge.  For the most part the park area is quite flat, the lone rock ridge to the east boundary provides one of the more scenic parts or the trail.

tamarack mark the border areas that surround the large central wetland area called gauthier's marsh.

Insulating snow, flowing water and a mild winter have left a lot of thin ice along gauthier's creek as of February 2010.  Tread carefully or at least try and avoid the holes in the ice made by previous passers's by using the trails.  The creek opens onto Lake Nipissing not far from where Cranberry Road also meets the lake.

Bright red mortar and a few well placed stone are all that remain of this old cottage, a sign that others once had seasonal cabins here in the early 1900's. The low flat land and proximity to the mouth of La Vase Portages also makes it a likely historical camping area for those travelling across Lake Nipissing and La Vase Portages.