Local History

Jun252025

Lochalsh Local History: Prospecting Adventures With Dave Racicot

Elorah1 Comment on Lochalsh Local History: Prospecting Adventures With Dave Racicot

On these hot summer days, we’re as far as we can be from trekking through late November snow, sleeping out in the dark woods of the Chapleau Crown Game Preserve in a rainstorm, and feeling the shocking chill of plunging through ice— but that seems to have been just another day out around the bush for prospector and Camp Lochalsh owner Dave Racicot.

We just uncovered the August 1954 issue of Outdoor Life, which includes the article “Survival” by Roy E. Howard. Read the full story on our blog and follow along with a bold prospecting adventure across Wabatongushi Lake, its smaller neighbouring lakes, and the Canadian Pacific Railway.

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Feb272021

Lochalsh Local History: Tourism 100 Years Ago (Part 2)

Elorah4 Comments on Lochalsh Local History: Tourism 100 Years Ago (Part 2)

Last week, we looked at the early days of tourism in the Algoma region. With all of the trips and sights being advertised, did tourists’ experiences meet the advertisements from the Canadian Pacific Railway? What was it actually like to take one of these train and canoe expeditions?

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Feb202021

Lochalsh Local History: Tourism 100 Years Ago (Part 1)

Elorah8 Comments on Lochalsh Local History: Tourism 100 Years Ago (Part 1)

For many of us, thinking of the “old days” of northern Ontario tourism evokes images of roaring two-stroke outboards, crackling radiotelephones, and campfires with grandparents and friends who have long passed on. At this point in time, one can rarely hear a camp story from the earlier part of the twentieth century. Many of the lodges and cabins in this region were only built in the 1950s and 1960s. However, the trails and waterways around Lochalsh were travelled by tourists long before then. So what was tourism like over one hundred years ago?

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Apr272020

Lochalsh Local History: At Goudreau, Not All That Glittered Was Gold

Loch Island Staff2 Comments on Lochalsh Local History: At Goudreau, Not All That Glittered Was Gold

As we had such positive reception to the post about the Cline Mine, we’ve got another piece of Lochalsh area mining history for you, this time at Goudreau.

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Apr182020

Lochalsh Local History: The Wabatongushi dam…plus the oldest local photo!

Loch Island Staff5 Comments on Lochalsh Local History: The Wabatongushi dam…plus the oldest local photo!

Near Loch Island Lodge, a bay of Wabatongushi Lake narrows into a dam, and the water spills over into the rapids of Glasgow Lake, our top portage destination. Another portage leads to Loch Lomond. Many guests have asked us when the dam was built and how its construction changed Wabatongushi’s depths and shorelines. In this post we’ll look at the history we’ve uncovered so far, and reveal a relevant photograph which we believe is the oldest to exist of the region!

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