Located at 7540 Kingston Road is Toronto's only campground. Even in winter, there are tons of trails to hike each with an average of about 1.5-2.5 km taking you through valleys, meadows, orchards, along creeks and streams and vista overlooking the Rouge River.
It was a cool afternoon after a nice lunch, and I was burning up calories to make up for the chocolate ice cream I had for dessert. A lot of the Rouge Valley is perfect for camping and this place has its fill of customers from May - October. It's far enough from the city (about a 20 minute drive) to get a look at the stars at night. I think one of the bonuses of the Glen Rouge Campground is that it's close enough to home (just in case an emergency comes up) and yet it doesn't feel like you're in the city at all when you are meandering through the forests. Even in the winter, the trees are alive with birds, most of which never migrate.
I hadn't walked over to the beach area and why would I in January? However in mid-summer, you'll enjoy sandy beaches and if you have kids, there's a few swings in a small playground for them and plenty of power stations and water at every camp site.My favorite trees last all year long here, and this is really what I love about this place, the Jack Pines. It's really a toss up between them and the melancholic willow tree.
Funny to see a little woodpecker, I think that's what it was. It was a little blue bird, with a long beak making a rat-a-tat-tat sound against the trees. If anyone knows what kind of bird it is, feel free to send me a line.
Other activities besides hiking, and swimming at the beach are paddling on the creek, cycling on a few of the trails and for a change a scenic drive though the valley along Reesor Road, Lapps Cider Mill (built in 1872), Glen Eagles Vista, Bailey Bridge (1954) and through Bob Hunter Memorial Park.So that's about it, it took an hour or so to finish a trail stopping to take the occasional picture. If you are interested in checking out this campground this year, they take reservations as early as January, so get your name in there soon before it fills up.
Happy Trails!
