Hike # 15 : Hills and Valleys

Hike # 15:  November 15, 2015 - 18.2 km.

During this hike we once again covered three maps - Caledon East, Glen Haffy and Hockley Valley.

We were blessed with a pristine November day. We started out with layers of sweaters plus hats and gloves, and hour by hour shed our layers until we were just in one layer. The trails through this area are lovely and wide without too many rocks to navigate around. The leafless trees allowed us to see far in the distance surrounding us. There were plenty of ups and downs - we would reach the top only to be lead back down to the bottom. Up, down, repeat.

As we set out I knew it was going to be a tough day for me. I was reminded of the importance of being properly hydrated and eating the right foods the day before for stamina. My legs felt like lead the entire way, but I mustered on, drinking all of my water, and grazing on snacks along the way. Physically my body was not cooperating, but I was able to overcome/endure by focusing on the the trail, the beauty that surrounded me and telling myself that I could do it, one step at a time.

We came out of the trail 0.9 km short of our 300 km goal for this season. We will be hiking again (and celebrating) next weekend. Stay tuned!

I am so bad at taking selfies!

Carpeted forest

Karen, can I have some of your energy today?

Lone apple tree

Apples left on the tree

Grand old Oak

There is a good message in the lower left hand plaque :  "Make Today Matter"

Hike # 14 Hills and Horses

Hike # 14: November 1, 2015: 21.9 kms 

This was Valerie's note to Karen and me about the hike she had planned for us this week:

"We'll start at km 6.5 (Creditview and The Grange) and end at km 28.4 on Escarpment Sideroad, between St. Andrew's Road and Mountainview Road. That will be a total of 21.9 km. It will be a 3-map walk -- 14, 15 and 16. Apparently there will be a lot of hills on this hike -- eek!"

Valerie was right.  It was hilly.  My quads and glutes are reminding me of that today.   It was a hike of constantly changing scenery and weather.  There were steep inclines and declines.  One such decline through the Forks of the Credit was steep enough to have a permanently attached wire rope attached to the face of the escarpment.   We enjoyed sunshine in between periods of rain and wind.

For the first time we came upon a closed section of the trail that had not been marked with a suggested re-route.  If you  have ever hiked 20+ km in a day you will know that backtracking is not something taken lightly.  Thankfully Karen's "nothing is stopping me" personality had her looking for a way through the closed off section.  With just a little slipping and sliding (and Valerie learning the splits) we were back on the blazed trail without having to backtrack.

During the long parts of this hike that were along the road I found myself longing to be back on the trail with it's twists and turns.  For some reason I don't like walking along the road where I can see the trail (road) stretch out far in front of us.  I like not knowing exactly where we are going to end up.  I like the changes in the landscape. From open fields, to narrow trails along a deep valley. Up hills and into dark pine and cedar forest to suddenly come in to another forest of nearly bare maple and beech trees with a carpet of wet decaying leaves.

Unfortunately I do not have many pictures that I am willing to share this time. As we set off on our hike and I proceeded to snap pictures as usual it quickly became obvious to me that something was wrong with my camera settings.  Too impatient (and busy walking) to try and find out what was wrong I continued on and only managed a handful of decent shots. The camera will be going in to Henry's for a checkup.

There are a lot of farms with horses in this area.  Of course we had to say hello

This was at the beginning - not a good picture but I couldn't leave it out.

Hike # 13 - Fungi

Hike # 13: October 25, 2015: 22.3 kms from 8th Line to The Grange Sideroad & Creditview Road.

We started our hike today at just after 8:00.  The drive to our starting point is now taking longer as the route goes further northeast away from where we live.  Of course we know that this is going to be something we need to contend with as our hikes take us further and further. We will be glad for the extra hour of sleep this Sunday as well as the extra morning light when the clocks change for daylight savings.

As we get nearer to reaching our goal of 300 kms for this hiking season (we will take a hiatus during the winter months for the most part) I am starting to realize how much I will miss these outings - as are my fellow hikers.

Every time we hike I can’t imagine that we will see anything more lovely along the way then we did the last time, but we do.  I am constantly in awe of the beauty of nature. 

Since the Springtime we have seen the trees along the trail change from leafless, to blossoming with the tiniest of buds which quickly became a haze of chartreuse, then the dark shades green of summer to the glorious rainbow of colour that autumn has brought.  It won’t be much longer before the trees will be leafless waiting to be decorated with the white frosting of snow. 

Besides the glorious trees that surround us on the trail there are many other works of art that nature has given us: steams and ponds glistening in the sunshine; tiny creatures that crawl at our feet or fly overhead; the soft green mosses that cover many of the rocks along the way; wildflowers and berries that dot the green landscape with a hue of bright colours, as well as many more sights that delight us.

This time we noticed many different and interesting fungi. 

Our hike took us along the Caledon Trailway which was a smooth and easy section to walk on. We passed quite a few people out for a Sunday walk (or run).   

There were some very narrow and extremely deep crevasses on some sections of the trail that reminded us of how treacherous walking the trail could be in the winter, when the edges of crevasses appear to be solid ground.  

Though we had been looking forward to seeing the Cheltenham Badlands, the trail skirted the main part of the Badlands, so the only part we saw was a stretch on the west side of Chinguacousy Road.  

Towards the end of our day's hike there was an extremely long and high climb up Chinguacousy from Olde Baseline. The final push at the end of a day's hike is tough, but we are tough too.

Tough & cool

A large wasp nest

Cool bean pods on a honey locust

Spirt Tree Cidery 

During our hike we happened upon this cidery along Boston Mills Road.  We popped in to see what it was all about (and use the loo), and found it a busy and happening spot with baked goods, cider and other treats.  On the way back home with the car we made a stop and stocked up on a few things (Cider, Ostrich sliders and asparagus ravioli to name a few).  And so with goodies in tow we ended our day tired but happy.

HIke # 12 part two - Unusual Vegetation

Along the route of our last hike Valerie noticed these strange seed pods hanging from vines.  They were unlike anything we had seen before and we thought perhaps they were an invasive species but Valerie found they are actually a native plant - Wild Cucumber - which I never would have guessed.

Hike # 12: Colours

Hike # 12: October 18, 2015: 22.5 kms from  Bruce Trail Pear Tree Park, Speyside to 8th Line in the Silver Creek Conservation area.

Looks like it was funny hat day!

We set off from home at our usual time of 7:00 am at which time it was still quite dark.   After 5 weeks without a hike we were smiling and eager for our day on the trail setting out from our start point at 8:20 with the pale morning sun trying its best to warm up the chill in the air and thaw the frost that shimmered on branches and leaves.

Frosty start

The trail was the most forgiving we have been on for quite a while with mostly even terrain and hardly any climbing except for the many stiles, and a climb down through the crevice in the rock at Limehouse Conservation Area.  Although predominantly flat and easy going, the trail was in many places carpeted with leaves making it hard to see the path itself (or tripping hazards).  We were extra vigilant looking for the trail blazes to mark the way.

On the trail again

A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. That means I can be brief with this post leaving the pictures to tell the tail.  A beautiful, crisp autumn day with glorious colours surrounding us everywhere.

Canopy of colour

Bounty of apples

Glorious Autumn

Fungi

Colourful trail

Cool roots

Creek at Limehouse Conservation Area

Powder House

Kiln

Mighty Maple

Golden carpet

Llamas

Multicoloured carpet

Corn fields and snow clouds

View down the hill from the trail to
where the car was parked