Cache Lake Abandonded Railway

J.R. Booth was Canada(a)s lumber baron at the turn of the 20th century. He had the rights to logging in a large section of what is now Algonquin Park. To move his lumber to Ottawa he built a railway through the park. This railway was eventually completed from Ottawa to Parry Sound and was known as the Ottawa Arnprior and Parry Sound Railway. It was completed in 1896.
In 1933 the Cache - Two Rivers trestle was closed. This cut off the western end of the railway and meant that trains no longer went past the Highland Inn. There is a long stretch of trestle that has been left abandonded and is rotting into Cache Lake. The photos presented here were taken in May 1998. There could be much less left above water now that an additional 13 winters have passed. We investigated the old trestle by canoe and when we got too close I used my paddle to push away. The wood was so badly rotted that the paddle just cut right in like a hot knife through butter. Remains of the Railway can be found in other places in the park.