Tag Archives: activity

Waterfall Walking in Grey County

Bridal veils, cascades, double plunge – what an abundance of waterfalls Grey County has!  A largely sunny Easter weekend provided the perfect opportunity to enjoy them in full flow.

 

The steep climb up through the woods to Indian Falls gifted us not only with stunning views of the falls themselves, but also a glorious meadow, cut through by the sinuous stillness of the river. A bat, flying across the blue of a daylight sky, transfixed us (I hope that this was not an aberration caused by the fungus that is attacking bats in Ontario) – and a butterfly echoed the blue of the sky. A scramble down rocks to the foot of the falls increased our sense of their size and power – I had a momentary awareness of what it must have been like to arrive, all unsuspecting, at Niagara in its natural state. If you look at the photo to the right above, you will just see Paul, photographing under the falls, which helps give a sense of the size of them.

Sitting at the foot of Jones Falls, I marveled at the strands of diamonds behind the white shrouds as the cascading Spring water roared.

Ingliss Falls, in the past harnessed to various human purposes (flour, bran, wool), pound their way down an impressive drop – a lovely spot for an Easter Monday picnic.

Walters Falls impressed us least, though almost made up for this with a serenely still millpond above a weir.

 Our Easter break had started with Kayaking; the Beaver River, as a novice, I left to Paul as it included scary-sounding class 1 rapids;  Lake Eugenia was a great spot for my first paddle of 2012 –  disconcerting in the pull of wind and current as we paddled out to the island, blissfully still and peaceful in the lee, then exhilarating using the edge of the wave to power my stroke on the way back (though I rightly guessed that my arms would tell me about it later!).

There was still more water at the Scandinave Spa – hot pools (with man-made waterfalls), steam and sauna punctuated with frigid plunges and quiet time in rooms with panoramic windows looking out into the trees.

Having spent a couple of nights with old friends, we spent three nights just south of Wiarton making new ones at the wonderful Evergreen Forest Resort B&B in the heart of the forest – thank you, Doug and Carolyn, for being such warmly welcoming hosts!

The only thing wrong with our Easter break was that it went much too fast!

For more photos, see Grey County in our Ontario Photo Gallery

Another tick on the bucket list . . .

For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to skate a canal. Last weekend we laid claim to some ‘real winter’ and headed to Ottawa to skate the Rideau during the Winterlude festival – pure magic!

We were lucky – this weekend, as for most of this year, the ice is closed. The ice may have been ‘poor’, but we skated all 7.8km of the world’s longest skating rink (at an average skating speed of 5.25 mph and a top speed of just over 9mph!). We stopped for a free technical lesson along the way, not to mention for hot chocolate and  ‘Beavertails’ (a Canadian classic!).

Then on to Snowflake Kingdom, a wondrous winter playground for the young and young at heart (we couldn’t resist the ice slide!).

Later, after night fell, we were enchanted by the ice carvings in Confederation Park, probably not quite as exquisite as when they were carved a week before, given the freeze/thaw cycle of this winter, but still lovely.

Winter festivals are awesome!!!

(See the Ottawa – Winter Album in the photo gallery for more pictures)

Our new favourite place to skate

Shh! Don’t tell anyone. We almost have our own private rink with a view . . . (The down side is that it’s a bit unpredictable when and if the Zamboni will have come, so the ice is sometimes great and sometimes not!). This is part of the new port lands development, more or less next to Corus at Sherbourne Common.

 

And yes, there are two of me, a trick I wish I could replicate in other areas of my life.

Wonderful Winter!

A few photos from a wondrous winter hike (5 –6 miles) through the ravines and Don Valley  last weekend; cold but invigorating, with delightful ‘grazing’ to be had at the Brickworks (organic hot-dogs and hot cider, gourmet hot chocolate, fish tacos and the most amazing savoury spiced  Indian cake made from fermented chickpeas) before the short walk up the hill to the car.

     

   

(More photos in our Winter in Toronto Album)

So far, this has been a winter of freeze and thaw, not my favourite conditions. But last weekend was stunning; fine snow-dust glittering in glorious sunshine, and blue-black shadows.

Then there’s the sound of winter; a muffled quietness that soothes my soul, punctuated by a scrunchy squeak . . .

What a ride!

(Written the weekend after Labour Day but held back for video and images – and then we didn’t have time to sort these whilst concentrating on Paul’s parents’ visit – much more important!)

The last three weekends have overwhelmed us with their rich texture of experiences!

An encounter with Charlie, the Black Crowned Night Heron at Toronto Harbour (a great urban legend) on my way to Japanese Taiko drumming at the Toronto’s Music Garden; the incredible physicality of the drumming blew me away.

Then, on Friday with dear friends Steve and Paul,a last minute decision to take in  Buskerfest; beat-box, contortions, giant ants, music – another great Toronto street party.

Swimming at seven pm on Saturday evening after shopping and chores –  Lake Ontario is always bracing, but so beautiful to swim off a glorious beach as the sun sinks.

Then, on Sunday, brunch at the TIFF Bell Lightbox (home of the Toronto International Filmtection – Festival) before heading for Toronto Islands to try out our new hi-tech Frisbees (driver, mid-range and putter each) on the 18 hole course. Next time I will wear long sleeves and trousers for probeing very much beginners, much of our time was spent scrabbling in the bushes searching for our stray shots (hoping not to encounter poison ivy!). On the plus side, by the end of the course, we had gained two Frisbees.

Last Friday we headed north out of the city for our home from home in the Blue Mountains (a chalet owned by my ski instructor, Richard, for whom we have been doing some web consulting, creating a new website for his company, Eagle Adventures).  On Saturday evening were behind the scenes at Georgian Downs racetrack, watching a friend, Sabina,  take blood samples from a selection of the horses before climbing into the starter car for a unique view of harness (buggy) racing.

Wreck of the Mary Ward in Georgian BaySunday’s adventure was a trip on a Zodiac four kilometres out into Georgian Bay to the wreck of the Mary Ward – sadly a storm was brewing and we couldn’t snorkel as planned, but it was certainly a great taster for a future expedition. With the simple but effective tool of a glass bottomed washing-up bowl, we were still able to get a great view of the wreck.

On Monday (Labour Day) we had a lazy paddle down the Nottawasaga  river, trying out what will shortly be our own Kayaks.

This weekend the focus has been a BBQ, trying out the versatility of our Big Green Egg (everything from the cornbread, to pizza and steak) for Paul’s 50th birthday.  How amazing to be able to sit outside in shorts, with not even a cardigan, until nearly 2am (OK, we do have a patio heater)! We felt blessed in so many ways, but particularly by the beginnings of a shared sense of ‘history’ with our closest friends, something that is a potential casualty of uprooting midlife.

I can’t remember another time in my life quite like this, filled to the brim with such a range of unique experiences, some exhilarating, some poignant, many of which just seem to find us! It truly is an amazing ride . . .