The Mighty Bruce Adventures: September 2018

Hike # 26 - km 2.3 to km 23.8 in the Beaver Valley.

And just like that, summer is over, it's the first day of Autumn, and here we are hiking once again. It was a wonderful and busy summer for all of us although we weren't hiking - occupied with other activities. Our fellow hiker Nancy broke her wrist! She was still going to join us (what a trooper), but something came up and so it was just the three of us this time out.

The day started out chilly and overcast, but soon the clouds broke up and the sunshine came through. It is our favourite time of year to hike - nice cool air without any bugs to bother us! Plus there are usually apples to pick along the way. We did not see anything in the way of wildlife (we talk too much), but we did see evidence of black bears (or just one bear who also likes this section of the trail) and porcupine. The leaves are just starting to change and in a few weeks time when we return for another hike they should be well along.

The trail took us through some beautiful deciduous forest (Len Gertler Memorial Loree Forest) and along many pastures. We were in one such pasture with a herd of grazing cattle and thankfully they did not notice us. After our last cow encounter, I was less afraid of seeing a bear - ha ha.

It was very cool to find a sign telling us we were hiking on an old mail road circa 1830 - 1850! Once again we enjoyed breathtaking views of the bay, the glory of the canopy of leaves overhead and the sense of well-being that comes with every hike.

As we hiked along, I thought about how we intended to complete the trail, end-to-end over the course of 3 seasons, but how circumstances and the usual stuff that life throws at you had slowed our progress down. Still, we have set our intention to finish, and as we continue along our journey toward our end goal, I am certain we will reach our goal no matter if it takes us another 4 years or more.

Accomplishing your goals does not always come easily or quickly, but every time you move in the direction of your goal you are that much closer to achieving it! Set your intentions and just keep going!