Bruce Trail - Beamsville, Ball's Falls to Quarry Road.

Both of us were a little late leaving and then had a bit of a drive from our meeting place in Grimsby to where we were dropping the cars, so we didn't get started until about 11:30am. By then it was sunny and warm enough that we could wear fewer layers than for our last hike.

We were not sure what to expect with the wildflowers. There had been so many out when we last hiked, two weeks ago, that we thought most of the spring ones might be over.

We walked along the valley beside Twenty Mile Creek, in flood. Very fast and very mucky looking.

Then it was a steep climb up

to the Ball's Falls Conservation area with this old mill,

a number of other buildings and

Ball's Falls. According to the Bruce Trail Guide, Ball's Falls is two thirds the height of Niagara Falls.  Twenty Mile Creek flows 50 kilometres from Hamilton to Lake Ontario and these falls dry up in the late summer.

Waterfall over the churning pool below and

colourful rock layers around the bowl created by the falls.

Info boards, yea!

Grape vines were still looking pretty bare but fruit trees were just starting to blossom.

We started to see Trillium

and Jack-in-the-Pulpit.

I had one in the garden in Paris. Never more than one. So I was excited to see so many.

Nicola had downloaded a free wildflower identification app and we gave it a workout.

These were Bellwort.

We didn't need any help identifying the Violets or the Periwinkle.

But these had the app stumped. It said they were a Trillium but I don't think so, the leaves don't seem right.

I haven't been able to find it on the internet wildflower sites either. Beautiful though.

The green colour of this creek was from a weed already covering the rocks, under the water.

There were numerous flooded creeks to be forded, often on loose stepping stones or wobbly logs.

Just before this road there was a construction site, with, Oh joy, a portapotty. So much better than having to "go" in the woods. At this time of year there is not much cover. We stopped on a stile and ate lunch; snap peas, cheddar cheese and trail mix.

We passed a hobby farm with lots of chickens and a herd of floppy-eared goats.

Like the other wildflowers, the dandelions have loved this cool, wet spring.

No flowers but the leaves are lovely.

The App confirmed my identification; Buttercups.

Nicola and I agreed that this was the most difficult section we had been on yet. There was a great deal of up and down the Escarpment, usually on steep, loose rock steps or muddy slopes

and often we had to negotiate when the trail itself had turned into a small creek or was blocked by an impromptu pond that we had to wade around.

There were masses of Trout Lily still out

The Jack-in-the-Pulpit and Trillium were so abundant that we had stopped really noticing them.

The one small clump of Red Trillium stopped me in my tracks.

I used to have one on the garden in Paris and it would bloom occasionally.

Nicky made the comment that the Bruce Trail was older than she was.

It's been a good year for moss as well as wildflowers.

We needed the App for this one; Virginia Saxifrage.

Not a particularly helpful trail marker.

The last couple of kms were right along the edge of the Escarpment which made for great views but the footing was very bad and we were tired. At one point I tripped and went to great effort not to fall on all those uneven rocks. Nicola said that I was quite elegant in my attempts to stay upright and that it seemed to go on for a long time.

Someone carried this in and placed it here ! Why ???????

11.3km took us 4 1/2 hours. Not a great pace and we were both pretty sore at the end of it. All plans to go to Fabricland in St Catherines or the nursery in Grimsby went out the window and all we wanted to do was get to the hotel for a hot bath. The hotel had a restaurant on the 8th floor with a great view over the Lake to Toronto so we didn't even have to drive. Really good food and service too. We shared Fennel Cured Salmon as an appetizer, Nicky had a chicken breast with melted brie on top and I had Eggplant Parmesan. We were in bed by 9pm. Woke to pouring rain and decided the trail would be too slippery and mushy for the planned 5km today.

Long Point - Bulldozers and birds

The same as everyone else, I can't believe how cold and wet spring 2019 has been. Cold and rain withstanding nature still provides some hints of warmer weather to come and the sand still has to get moved before the end of April.

In April, often mine are the only footprints on the sand. By May there are many more beach walkers.

Last winters erosion and this springs high water levels have resulted in high sand cliffs

and reduced beach.

The birds are back, eating me out of house and home, along with a chipmunk who has taken up residence under my walkway, to be close to the feeders.

Red-bellied Woodpecker (even though there is no red on his belly!)

I have a flock of these at the feeders every day and I haven't seen them before. White-crowned Sparrow and my bird book says they are more common in Western Canada. They summer up in the arctic so I think they are only hanging around waiting for it to warm up.

There have been 3, male Rose-breasted Grosbeaks fighting it out with the Red-winged Blackbirds. Both breeds are quite aggressive around the feeders.

I have to admit that I root for the Grosbeaks.

Even their backs are beautiful.

My daffodils are finally out

and maybe soon I will get occupants in the bee and butterfly house.

Bruce Trail - Grimsby, Quarry Rd to Mountainview

Breakfast at the hotel and then back out on the trail. Dropped a car at Mountainview and then drove to Quarry Rd.

Sunny and cool today, perfect hiking weather.

Nicola downloaded an App that helped identify wild flowers and I think she said these were Trout Lily.

There were still some creeks to ford and some mushy bits to navigate but overall the trail was a little drier than the day before.

The moss and the spring wildflowers look brilliant against the drab tree trunks, rock and fallen leaves.

I may be 63 (Ok nearly 64) but I can still scream like a 12 year old girl when a snake skitters down the path towards me. He was disturbed by Nicky walking ahead. And I like snakes!

The trail went beside Mike Weir's winery which we were sad to learn, from a sign on the tasting room door, is in receivership.

There are so many wineries in this area in must be very difficult to keep all of them profitable. This was taken from the tasting room deck.

With the Skydome gleaming, in the sun, across the lake.

We hiked 5.6km in 2 hours and then headed home so that we both still had some Sunday to play with.

While we were in the Peninsular, Christine sent a picture of the Flipside Patio, dressed for spring. She is licensed for 12 outside and now has a pretty yellow door and pansies in her black planters. The sunflowers were courtesy of the Distillery District, part of their yellow themed weekend.