Wesley Brooks Conservation Area and Fairy Lake in Newmarket

I don't think you will find a photographer novice or pro who doesn't love taking pictures in the Fall.  It's almost impossible to take a bad shot once the leaves start changing colours creating beautiful backdrops and pathways.  

After we had our lunch, we revisited the Mabel Davis Conservation (seen on this blog) heading north to George Richardson Park and looped back south to the over 15 hectares of the Wesley Brooks Conservation area along Fairy Lake.   

The paths are crushed gravel and shared with cyclists so it gets quite busy on weekends.  Red squirrels are common as you move further and further away from Toronto.  (The central core usually has an over abundances of black and grey squirrels which may look different, but they actually come from the same species.  Unlike the eastern grey squirrels, red squirrels are smaller.

The red squirrels are easily distinguished because of the changes in their coat color that depends on the season. When it is warm, their fur turns reddish with patches of white on the belly. 

 

When the temperature drops, the white patch on their belly becomes grey.  Their tale only measures about 10 cm making them super cute (like the chipmunk!).  I've had a love for squirrels all my life and will always try to remember to bring some nuts with me (of course in the past year or so, bi-laws have become more pervasive asking people not to feed them due to over population in the cities.

 

I included a picture of large lichen in this post, as they are incredibly similar to the flowering cabbage plant.  If you do research on lichens you will most likely find out what they are not.   

They are not moss, or plants though there is a similarity in that they use photosynthesis to survive.  They are able to withstand the toughest environments and have been seen living in and around old rock formations.   The pink by the way on the lichen is NOT a natural colour, but spray paint that was found along the pathways on rocks alerting cyclists.  It kind of bothered me that they (Parks staff) would ever think it's okay to spray paint something that is considered life.  It wasn't directly in the path either!  

 

 Happy Trails!

White Water Walk in Niagara Falls

The White Water Walk in Niagara Falls, Canada is a must see, if only just one. It can be expensive - it can run you up to $20/person during the peak season.

For starters you'll go down to the rapids in an old manual elevator with handle lifts and an elevator operator while you travel 70 metres to reach the base of the Niagara Gorge.  

 

As you exit you immediately enter a long arching tunnel as nostalgic to me as the Brady Bunch (if you don't know who they are - you're too young, lol)

At the other end of the tunnel there's an impressive quarter-mile of boardwalk that runs along the shoreline of the Niagara River. Imagine the poor workman who had to do that job!!

 

 

 

This was the part I enjoyed the most.   There are several lookout points along the boardwalk which literally take you to rapid - level where you will experience crashing waves with an awesome view of the 400 million year old rock formations/layers in the gorge.

 

 Now for the scary part!  The Whirlpool Rapids have been clocked as the most ferocious in the world with a class 6 (according to the whitewater rapids classification guide.  Class 1 being gentle waves; 2 - you might get splashed; Class 3 - you'll get wet; Class 4 - you'll get soaked; Class 5- high adrenaline; and last Class 6- non-navigable!

The boardwalk itself is not very long at quarter mile, so it won't take you long to view the rapids in this self-guided experience, so we went back and forth a few times so I could do it all over again!  

 

If you are a photographer, novice or pro - you'll get the best views at the lower platforms of the water's rage so you might find it worth it to pay the admission.

Happy trails!

Barrie's beautiful Arboretum - Sunnidale Park

Another perfect day on Saturday! Not much changing yet with the colours of the leaves, but it's still early.  I'll bet by the end of this month these pictures will look a whole lot different.

As with every season that passes I always miss the green.  Although the autumn weather brings with it less humidity - it's also a reminder of the impending long winter nights.  For me that means less exercise as I love cycling. 

 

Barrie's Arborteum in Sunnidale Park was a project that began with the tireless effort and inspiration of Norman E. Synnott, a horticulturalist and past president of the Barrie Horticultural Society in 1973.  

 

As chairman of the Arboretum Committee its first ten years, Mr. Synnott spent most of his time nurturing the young plantation through the critical stages of its development.  His hard work and leadership paid off well into the beautiful park that we all enjoy almost 50 years later.

The layout of the park is accessible for everyone with his paved walkways that circle in a loop with intricate pathways in the centre allowing you to experience different species of trees and gardens with ease.

In the 'Tranquil Garden' I never saw so many squirrels and tiny chipmunks scurrying about filling their cheeks with nuts running off to hide them than coming back for more!  It was so cute.  People brought their treats to sit around a circle where one by one the animals would come.

The park offers a great backdrop for wedding pictures as you can imagine - as we were looping back out of the park I noticed a small wedding party walking across the lawn so I took a shot as the sun streamed a light down through the trees on the bride.

There was a curious bundle of wood with holes in it that resembled a bee hived structure, when we got closer I learned it was actually a shelter for native bees which unlike honey bees are solitary and make their shelters in tunnels instead of hives.  They're 100x more successful at pollinating plants than honey bees and are the only bees able to pollinate tomatoes!  They're also gentle are never, but rarely ever sting.

Another curious piece of art work off in the middle of a meadow just to the far east of the park were beautifully crafted metal mushrooms with a little visitor in the centre.   It's amazing the work that went into piecing (fusing) everything together.  The talent of some people!

The Sunnidale Park loop is only 2 km of trails so it doesn't take that long to loop around but chances are you'll want to spend time just enjoying the peace and the scenery anyways.

 Happy trails!

Oro-Medonte Rail Trail (Barrie to Orillia)

Well we finally made it to the Oro-Medonte Rail trail (commonly known as the 'Barrie Rail trail')   We've been wanting to come up to Barrie to check it out for a couple of years now.  The weather was perfect, not too hot like the weekend before and not too chilly as September sometimes shocks the system!

The Barrie Rail trail runs from Shanty Bay (more or less) to Orillia covering the easiest bike path and most beautiful I might add that you'll ever travel on.  It takes 6 hours out and back, but as I mentioned you're biking on mostly flat crushed gravel with very little elevation.

In 1869 The Toronto, Simcoe and Muskoka Junction railway bought a right-of-way through Oro to link Barrie and Orillia.  To accommodate the railway, Concession line 1 was re-aligned along the north side of the newly built track. 

The bridge constructed to take the Ridge Road over the track was called, Thunder Bridge.  Whenever a car drove over the heavy timbers forming the road-bed on the bridge, they moved a bit in the steel braces, causing a loud rumbling noise.

In 1871: the railway from Toronto to Orillia was completed and a new era dawned in Oro-Medonte.  

For decades the railway station was a community focal point.  Long before the automobile became common, passenger trains took villagers for day-visits to Orillia and Barrie for shopping, doctor appointments, music lessons and high school.  During the summer, extra passenger cars were added to the north-bound trains bringing cottagers and visitors to this area's summer resorts.

Today, any remnants of the train tracks and old lodges where the Section men and yardmen lived at Watt's Crossing are all gone.  What remains is and will always be the history of what once was.

You'll see the occasional cyclists or families on foot walking the trail after lunch.  The area is so quiet and peaceful.  

 I love that they've preserved this land so others can enjoy it for decades to come.