u/sketchy_ppl

I’m currently on a backcountry canoe trip. This lake is the only source of drinking water. Me and my dog have been drinking this water (treated with Aquatabs, which I know is not effective against blue green algae) for 24 hours already, prior to finding this near the shoreline. The water was taken from the middle of the lake about 1-2km from where this was found. I assume this is blue green algae?

Happy "Gotcha Day" / Birthday!! 🥳 🎉 Elo is truly one-of-a-kind. She’s wicked smart, ridiculously goofy, dangerously teethy, and absolutely adorable. From the day I got Elo, I knew I won the doggy-lottery.
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When I’m having a rough day and it ends with giving Elo a hug, everything feels better.
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When we’re on a canoe trip and I’m sitting by the fire, she’s always protecting me by watching the forest to make sure no scary monsters come get me.
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When we’re doing long road trips and I look in the rearview mirror to see her face smiling with her tongue sticking out, it literally makes me laugh out loud.
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When we see wildlife, whether it’s a small bunny or a huge bear, Elo sits and watches in silence, and it makes me so proud of how well-behaved she is.
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I could give a thousand more reasons why Elo is the best, but I need to end this post because I promised Elo we would spend all day chasing water from the garden hose.

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You can see more of our adventures together on my IG: instagram.com/algonquinbeyond

In my basement I have a gym taking up half the space, and have used the other half for my theatre area. But I have 2 extra bedrooms upstairs, both are just big enough to fit my 77" TV, speakers, and couch.

Here are my considerations...

• I live alone so I don't care about sound travelling throughout the house.
• House is detached but I still want to be a respectful neighbour.
• The basement will have better soundproofing from the concrete foundation.
• Keeping the theatre in the basement means the audio can be used for both theatre + gym. If I move the theatre upstairs, I'll need to buy new speakers for the gym.
• I assume sound will travel outside / to neighbours more easily from upstairs?
• Adding walls and/or changing layouts is not really an option.
• The basement is unfinished and will probably stay unfinished for the next 1-2 years

Would you move the theatre to a dedicated room upstairs, or keep it in the shared basement space?

Ice Out was just announced which inevitably means the "how are the bugs!?" questions will be coming soon. This megathread will be used to keep all updates in one location so it's easier to browse through, while reducing clutter on the main subreddit feed, and also to create a summary of the year for future reference; for example, here is the megathread from last year: https://www.reddit.com/r/algonquinpark/comments/1kbmwgx/bug_status_2025_megathread/

If you've been to the park and would like to provide an update, some suggested info to include:

i) the dates you were there

ii) specifically where you stayed since bugs can vary throughout the park

iii) if you were in the backcountry, some info about the campsite would be helpful; exposure direction, if there was heavy tree coverage, etc.

iv) the type of bugs eg. mosquitos, black flies

v) if they were worse at certain times eg. dusk/dawn, during portaging

You can find more information about biting insects in Algonquin Park from this page on the park's website: https://www.algonquinpark.on.ca/visit/park_management/mosquitoes-and-blackflies-(biting-insects).php

Other websites like The Weather Network can provide forecasts, though with questionable accuracy.

And since Reddit is weird and requires an image link to create a thumbnail for the thread, here's a photo of some bug spray: https://www.algonquinpark.on.ca/images/insect_repellent_sample.png