Today's hike was called, Crossen Road/DeJong Rd. Area. I am going to suggest a new name:
Hill/Nice View/Hill/Nice View/Hill/Nice View/Hill/Nice View/Hill/Nice View.
10 hikers, who-knew-there-were-going-to-be-hills-and-still-chose-to-come-out, met on Leach Road, just south of Rose Rd. I think they were all happy to be out hiking again. Hills or no hills.
First hill and nice view. It is only January 7 and looks like March 7 or April 7. Wheat fields are showing green.
One portion of the hike was on an unmaintained road. We needed to go off-road to avoid the mud there. You see interesting things when you leave the traveled path.
Back on the unmaintained road, if we stopped and turned, we got to see ourselves reflected in the puddles.
The day started out gloomy, but the forecast was for sun. More than one conversation included the desire to see the sun again. Under that gloomy sky, we traveled through a mixed forest.....
.... beside a beautiful maple woods......
.... and next to a planted pine forest.
11 km covers a lot of ground. Leach Rd>Crossen Rd.>Harwood Rd.>Minifie Rd.>DeJong Rd.>Honeywell Rd.>Ferguson Rd.>Rose Rd. The sun made a welcome appearance by the time we reached Minifie Road. We stopped for a moment and soaked it in.
And, yet another hill.
And, another view.
My favourite view of the day was this one below. The sun had finally broken through the clouds and was reflecting off a strip of water far out on Lake Ontario.
The sun continued to shine on us as we stopped for a chat with Josh? Kapteyn. He gave us the lowdown on why dairy farmers use hutches to raise their calves.
And, the calves all stepped out to say hello.
From one kind of farm to another. Productive to pretty.
I'll end with a nice view. It's just not right to end with a hill.
Along the hike, many conversations happened. One was about the book, Finding the Mother Tree. I think today's hikers would probably resonate with this quote:
“Such a marvel,
the tenacity of the buds to surge with life every spring,
to greet the lengthening days and warming weather with exuberance,
no matter what hardships were brought by winter.”
Suzanne Simard (Finding the Mother Tree)
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