| Although I love the city the summer always makes | | | | mountain bikers and 12 slopes for downhill skiers. |
| me itch to get out into the country. So I called up | | | | We continued our drive south to the Town of Milton, |
| my friend Karel with whom I had helped organize a | | | | which according to the 2006 Census, is the fastest |
| conference many years ago and asked him if he | | | | growing community in Canada. The population of |
| would mind getting together in his neck of the | | | | Milton has grown by more than 70% between 2001 |
| woods near Burlington for a country driving tour of | | | | and 2006 and stands about 56,000 people now. Milton |
| the Niagara Escarpment. Since we had not seen each | | | | dates back to the 1820s when English settlers Jasper |
| other for a couple of years it was a great | | | | Martin and his wife Sarah were granted 100 acres of |
| opportunity to catch up and enjoy a beautiful drive | | | | land from the Crown. |
| at the same time. | | | | Martin built a grist mill along Sixteen Mile Creek and |
| So we met this morning on a parking lot just off | | | | also created a pond, Mill Pond, which is still in |
| Guelph Line in the north end of Burlington. I parked | | | | existence today and has become a popular recreation |
| my car and off we drove in Karel's convertible. We | | | | area for local residents with its walking trails and the |
| drove north into the green countryside and up a | | | | gazebo that overlooks the water. |
| slope to get to our first destination: a nature area | | | | Main Street in downtown Milton still speaks of its |
| called the Mount Nemo Conservation Area. We | | | | Victorian heritage, old City Hall, the Post Office |
| parked the car and walked about 15 minutes | | | | Building and several other churches and secular |
| eastwards through a forest until we reached a steep | | | | buildings date back to the mid to late 1800s. Many |
| cliff and a lookout point that offered a beautiful 180 | | | | restaurants and cafés have sprung up in the |
| degree view over the rolling farm country that was | | | | downtown core which beckon visitors to sit down |
| sprawling far below us. | | | | and relax on some of their outdoor patios. |
| The Niagara Escarpment is a geological formation that | | | | From the quaint town of Milton we headed |
| extends from western New York State through | | | | northwest towards a small village called Aberfoyle, |
| Ontario to Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois. It originated | | | | north of Highway 401. Karel suggested that we have |
| as a result of unequal erosion where a top layer of | | | | lunch at the local Aberfoyle Mill, an actual mill that was |
| harder and more resistant dolomitic limestone | | | | converted into a restaurant in 1966. Aberfoyle itself |
| overlays more easily eroded shale. The gradual | | | | was first settled in the 1840s and is famous for its |
| erosion of the shale leaves behind cliffs of resistant | | | | Aberfoyle Spring Water. |
| cap rock. The limestone itself stems from an ancient | | | | The Aberfoyle Mill itself was built by a Scottish |
| tropical sea and contains some of the most | | | | immigrant by the name of George McLean in 1859 |
| astounding fossils of the Ordovician-Silurian geological | | | | and even won a gold medal for its oatmeal at the |
| era. | | | | 1867 World's Fair in Pairs. After stopping operations in |
| In Ontario, the Niagara Escarpment features the | | | | the late 1920s the mill was purchased by the Owens |
| Bruce Trail: Canada's oldest and longest footpath that | | | | family in 1960 who then spent six years renovating it |
| extends over 800 km (with side trails) from Niagara | | | | and turning it into one of the most unique country |
| Falls in the South to Tobermory in the north. The | | | | restaurants in Canada. |
| entire area has been designated a UNESCO World | | | | Karel and I sat down at a table on an elevated |
| Biosphere Reserve due to its unique fauna and flora. | | | | platform that overlooked the restaurant. Various |
| The Bruce Trail itself is marked by white blazes | | | | farm implements and even an entire sled were |
| (white markings about 8 cm high and 3 cm wide) and | | | | suspended from the ceiling and the mechanism of the |
| is maintained by the Bruce Trail Association while side | | | | old gristmill was still visible in a stairway to the |
| trails are marked by blue blazes. | | | | basement. I enjoyed a tender trout filet with garden |
| One of the Niagara Escarpments distinguishing | | | | fresh vegetables and rice while my friend and tour |
| features are the many lookout points on the rocky | | | | guide savoured his mixed grill. After our meal we |
| outcroppings over an otherwise rather flat area. In | | | | walked around the entire mill and admired the scenic |
| addition, the Niagara Escarpment has dozens of | | | | pond that was home to a group of Canada geese. |
| waterfalls where streams and rivers tumble over the | | | | Then Karel introduced me to another famous |
| limestone cliffs. The most famous of these waterfalls | | | | destination in Aberfoyle: the Aberfoyle Antique |
| is of course Niagara Falls which is also reachable on a | | | | Market, which although closed today, holds more than |
| side trail from the Bruce Trail. | | | | 100 vendors of antiques during market days and has |
| The Niagara Escarpment's unique natural environment | | | | become an extremely popular weekend destination |
| includes many bird species (some of them | | | | for collectors. |
| endangered) such as the Bald Eagle, the | | | | One more nature area remained for us to explore: |
| Red-Shouldered Hawk, the Black Tern and the | | | | the Spencer Gorge Conservation area, north of the |
| Hooded Warbler. Rare reptiles and amphibians also live | | | | City of Hamilton. We parked our car at the entrance, |
| in the area, for example the Eastern Massassauga | | | | paid the $5 day use fee by depositing cash in the |
| Rattlesnake and the North Dusky Salamander. 37 | | | | self-serve box and started walking on the trail that |
| species of orchids have been found in the northern | | | | would lead us to Dundas Peak. Just about 150 m |
| parts of the Escarpment, including the Calypso | | | | from the parking lot we stopped to admire Tews |
| Orchid, the Ram's-head Lady Slipper and Alaska Rein | | | | Falls, a waterfall with a height of 41 m that is almost |
| Orchid. Considering that about 7 million people live | | | | as high as Niagara Falls. The water level was pretty |
| within close proximity the biological diversity in this | | | | low since we have not had any significant rain fall in a |
| unique area is astounding. | | | | while, but I could only imagine how picturesque this |
| We started walking on a trail right at the edge of a | | | | waterfall must be when the water level is higher. |
| cliff and Karel informed me that the Niagara | | | | A serene 20 minute hike with occasional views past |
| Escarpment is extremely popular with rock climbers. I | | | | the lush green trees into the Gorge took us to |
| wanted to take a good snapshot of the cliffs and | | | | Dundas Peak, an elevated cliff with a platform of |
| crevices, but my fear of heights and the shear | | | | natural stone that provides a magnificent view of the |
| vertical drop prevented me from exploring the very | | | | Town of Dundas, the City of Hamilton and the |
| edge of the cliff. The many caves are also popular | | | | Niagara Escarpment which encircles the entire area. |
| with spelunkers. We walked about 20 minutes | | | | The rocky platform is an overhang and with my fear |
| northwards and had a beautiful view towards | | | | of heights I made sure I stayed about two metres |
| Rattlesnake Point, another rocky outcrop along the | | | | away from the edge since the edge of the rocks |
| Niagara Escarpment. Then we took a side trail back | | | | continues into a sheer vertical drop into the valley. |
| through the forest to the parking lot and continued | | | | After our hike down we drove just a few minutes |
| our drive. | | | | to Webster's Falls which is also part of the Spencer |
| About ten minutes further north we stopped in the | | | | Gorge Conservation Area. Another waterfall was |
| village of Lowville to have a look at Lowville Park. | | | | enchanting a group of children who were playing at |
| The Sixteen Mile Creek slowly meanders through the | | | | the bottom of it. Picnic areas and grassy meadows |
| park and nature trails branch off from the parking lot | | | | surround the river on both sides and a unique stone |
| area. Right next to the park is the Lowville Bistro, a | | | | bridge connects the parking lot with the waterfall. |
| recently renovated restaurant that offers upscale | | | | At the end of this 20 minute walk we continued on |
| casual dining, a licensed outdoor patio, an ice cream | | | | towards the Town of Dundas which dates back to |
| parlour and take-out. The town itself dates back to | | | | 1847. John Graves Simcoe, Lieutenant Governor of |
| the early 1800s and was developed after the | | | | Upper Canada, named the town after Henry Dundas, |
| Mississauga Land Purchase. The descendants of some | | | | 1st Viscount Melville, a good friend of his and a |
| of these early settlers still live in the village today. 36 | | | | Scottish lawyer and politician who never even visited |
| historic buildings and a Pioneer Cemetery still bear | | | | North America. Dundas still has a nice historic core |
| witness to this once thriving rural community. | | | | that features an old Post Office and various other |
| Leaving Lowville behind we headed straight north to | | | | Victorian era buildings. |
| another conservation area in the Halton Region | | | | Karel proceeded to show me the remainders of the |
| Conservation System: Crawford Lake features a | | | | Desjardins Canal, a historic canal that was completed |
| so-called meromictic lake, a deep body of water | | | | in 1837 and substantially promoted the growth of |
| where different layers of water do not intermix. This | | | | Dundas as a settlement, but was later |
| creates an oxygen-poor environment that is not | | | | overshadowed by the opening of the Great Western |
| conducive to living organisms. As a result, | | | | Railroad in Hamilton in 1854. Due to the railway's stiff |
| archeologists are able to drill core samples of soil | | | | competition, the canal fell in disuse and in 1867 |
| from the lake bed that date back several centuries. | | | | sediment blocked direct access to the town, making |
| One of these drillings led to the discovery of corn | | | | it unusable. Today, the canal has largely been |
| pollen and the conclusion that there was once an | | | | forgotten, but there are some walking trails along the |
| Indian village in the area. Subsequent archeological | | | | canal near Cootes Paradise, a large wetland area at |
| digs confirmed the presence of a native settlement. | | | | the western end of Hamilton Harbour. |
| A 15th century pre-contact Iroquoian Village has been | | | | It was now after 5 pm and our driving tour had |
| reconstructed on its original site and features two | | | | come to an end. Karel drove me back to my vehicle |
| wooden longhouses that contain sleeping quarters, a | | | | and I thanked him sincerely for his time and for |
| fire pit and storage areas for tools, animal hides and | | | | sharing his local expertise of the Burlington, Milton and |
| food. Guides provide explanations of the lifestyle of | | | | Dundas areas. We resolved that there were so many |
| the Iroquois tribes that inhabited this area. This | | | | interesting places that we had not seen and that we |
| conservation area is a popular destination for school | | | | would do another driving tour in the area in the next |
| children and summer camps and during our visit | | | | few months. |
| several groups of young people were enjoying | | | | I was also a bit tired, but in no mood to get on the |
| themselves in the grassy areas in front of the long | | | | Queen Elizabeth Expressway during rush hour no less. |
| houses. | | | | So I drove all the way south to Lake Ontario and |
| The Niagara Escarpment is just full of protected | | | | had a quick peek at the Burlington Waterfront which |
| nature areas, and just 10 minutes north of the village | | | | has been beautifully developed in recent years. Since |
| of Campbellville is another nature area: the Hilton Falls | | | | dark clouds were starting to roll in I decided to |
| Conservation Area features excellent hiking, mountain | | | | postpone my explorations of Burlington for next time |
| biking and cross-country ski trails in the area. More | | | | and embarked on a slow relaxing drive back to |
| than 30 km of woodland trails weave their way | | | | Toronto next to the Lakeshore. The western |
| around the Hilton Falls Reservoir and a 10 metre high | | | | waterfront of Lake Ontario is very scenic with |
| waterfall cascades over the Niagara Escarpment. | | | | multiple public parks and stately older mansions with |
| Across the road from Hilton Falls is the Kelso / Glen | | | | beautifully manicured gardens. |
| Eden Conservation Area whose highlights include a | | | | Burlington, Oakville and Mississauga will also remain to |
| sandy beach as well as 22 kilometres of trails for | | | | be explored next time. |