Alvin Lake Peak

Posted by Derek on Jan 11, 2010

Rank: 15
Height: 2116 feet / 645 m
Lat/Lon: N47 14.729 W84 16.387
Line Parent: Ogidaki Mt
Key Col: N47 20.237 W83 59.589 (1345ft / 410m)
Clean Prominence: 771ft / 235m
Date Summited: N/A

Overview:
Located 8 km south of the Montreal River and 5 km west of Grey Owl Lake, Alvin Lake Peak is a 2116 foot hill residing in the remote Algoma Highland wilderness. Officially the peak is unnamed, but in keeping with the naming conventions set by ottertooth.com, it has been given the name of the closest significant body of water; Alvin Lake, which is 2 km north of the peak. Interestingly, Alvin Lake does not drain into nearby Montreal River, but in fact is in the Batchawana River watershed. The Algoma Central Railway passes within 8 km of the summit.

Proposed Route::
These routes and their feasibility are unconfirmed. There is no trail up Alvin Lake Peak, however satellite images (Google Maps/Earth and GeoBase) show a maze of logging/bush roads in the vicinity, with the closest approach from the southwest 2.4 km away and alternatively, a route from the northeast, 4.1 km away.

The shortest route (Route A: 36.5 km + 2.4 km bushwhack) begins at turnoff to the Montreal River Power Dam on Highway 17 (N47 14.573 W84 35.264). This route is dependent on whether the road is open to public traffic, as the road crosses over top of the dam. The road then follows the southern shoreline of the Montreal River Reservoir to the upper dam (Mackay Dam). At the upper dam, the road curves south, paralleling the Algoma Central Railway. 15 km past the upper dam, the road crosses the railway and then heads north and eventually curving to the east, where at 8 km past the railway line, it ends at a small lake. From here it is a 2.4 km bushwhack northeast to the summit of Alvin Lake Peak.

Alternatively, if the Montreal River Dam road is closed to public traffic, a network of logging and dirt roads beginning from Highway 17 at Mica Bay lead to an intersection with Route A at Big Pike Creek, about 6 km before the road crosses the Algoma Central Railway (Route C). Satellite images reveal a maze of roads and intersections along this route, but the main road proceeds generally in a east-northeast direction for 32.2 km until the intersection at Big Pike Creek. The entire route is 46.5 km + 2.4 km of bushwhacking to the summit of Alvin Lake Peak.

Route B is a completely different route, which starts on turnoff to Mile 38 Road on Highway 17. The route follows the main road and the Chippewa River for much of the start of the way in. 30 km from Highway 17, the route departs the Chippewa River and heads due north to meet up with the Batchawana River and the Algoma Central Railway, which are both shortly crossed. The road heads north-northeast towards Grey Owl Lake, and at 58 km from Highway 17 (N47 15.903 W84 13.619), passes by a small lake which provides the jump off point to Alvin Lake Peak: 4.1 km away. The small lake is part of a series of lakes and rivers runs southwest for 2.1 km. If one were inclined, the lakes and rivers could be canoed to shorten the amount of bushwhacking, with N47 15.351 W84 14.850 being the approximate end of the canoe route and the start of the bushwhack. From here it is a 2.3 km bushwhack to the peak.

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