Beaver Valley Section - Metcalfe Rock (27.9 km) to Kimberley (46.8 km) - Sept. 7, 2022.
Beaver Valley Section - Metcalfe Rock (27.9 km) to Kimberley (46.8 km) - September 7, 2022.
Day 2 of the first of three, 3 day trips to the northern sections of the Bruce Trail for our HWF group has arrived and, as usual, it's the longest of the 3 hikes on our schedule...an 18.9 km behemoth that I (along with our leader, "been there, done that" Steve) had a chance to complete back in mid-May. For those who were about to tackle it for the first time, they were about to experience what I consider one of the best all round and highly challenging hikes on the B.T.
A route that has just about every kind of terrain you could imagine as it passes through fields, into and out of forests, past the looming rock face of the escarpment, ups (to the tune of 400 plus meters) and downs (one major league near the end) will take us 6 hours and 33 minutes to complete (including a well earned visit to the village store for ice cream and refreshment)...remarkably, that time is within 1 minute of our time in May (including that same stop!)...
We have a slightly larger group this morning as we get set in the parking lot at Metcalfe Rock in the Kolapore Highlands...myself (back to selfie mode), Arpi, Lesley, Steve (leader), Muris, Steve R (on the hiking leg of his 3 day triathlon- having cycled yesterday and golfing on tomorrow's agenda), Sandra (sweep), and Catherine (who has driven up for the day).
As the women stroll confidently up 10 Line to the actual trail intersection, the men wait patiently at the start (I'm just the photographer in the middle recording what I see, honestly...).
Another beautiful morning beckons, and we soon settle in to a single file on the path...
I don't ask for "fun" shots too often but once in a while, I propose a pose...
We are keeping a good pace and eventually enter the Duncan Escarpment Provincial Park...
Cotton candy clouds accumulate as convection coalesces the cumuli...(this is a poetic not scientific observation)...we are being drawn through a looking glass of natural beauty and we revel in it...
The trail has been very favorable...although the dappled sunlight does make it a bit visually challenging in spots to pick out roots and rocks...
Our next visual treat is Pinnacle Rock, a huge slab of dolostone from the cap of the escarpment lying by, or perhaps more accurately, looming over, the trail...a plaque denotes that the surrounding property, Pinnacle Rock Farm, was donated to the Conservancy in memory of Peter Ogden Richardson (1932-2011)...
A short but fairly technical climb ensues...options exist...advice is offered but it's up to you where you step next...
A spectacular view on a perfect day for hiking...
We lumber on through cedar forests and trail along golden fields...
Eventually we spill out into a small parking lot at the park entrance on Side Road 9...
A short walk later, we arrive in the small village of Duncan, where a grassy knoll affords us a pleasant spot to take a break and enjoy the sunshine...we are well into the hike now but with still a ways to go, it's important to pace ourselves...
There's another stretch of road walking on The Blue Mountains- Euphrasia Townline (we're not mailing it in), before the blazes point us into the fields again just north of Fox Ridge Road...
We breeze through the meadows and along fence lines enjoying another classic late summer day...
Eventually, the trail pops us out onto Fox Ridge Road and heads us westward...time for a "Fox Trot"?..
The road takes a sharp left and becomes more of a lane way as it slopes upward to the escarpment face...
...where we find a cool spot to take our next break and enjoy Arpi's excellent fruitcake!..
It's a good thing we rested and re-fueled as we are soon into the most challenging part of this hike...a technical descent beside a very imposing rock wall, and then a long tricky stretch along the base of the escarpment in which the footing was not always secure...amazing beauty all around us makes it hard to concentrate...
The imposing escarpment face pays no heed to the mere mortals passing by...
The dense undergrowth at the base, fed by groundwater seeping through the rock, makes the trail difficult to follow at certain points and footing is treacherous...
We are through the worst part and we've earned a moment to pause and regroup...
It's time to tackle McCluskey's Rock, our gateway to the top of the escarpment...about a 200 meter climb up through a large crevice...challenging once again, but equally magnificent...
If you want to add a soundtrack to these shots, focus on the words "huff" and "puff"...
The great expanse of Beaver Valley comes into view as we pass what is essentially the halfway point of the Bruce Trail, a somewhat quirky sign in that even though you are walking southward, you are in fact technically northbound on the trail...
Legs are definitely beginning to tire as the trail meets up with Side Road 7B and we begin the long descent to the bottom of the valley...I spoke last week of a particularly big hill we walked down...this one will be even longer and steeper...but at least gravity is on our side!..
Steve R poses by a cross road sign that could be his moniker...well maybe the "old" part is not quite accurate...
Under a cloudless sky, with the afternoon sun directly upon us, we all felt the intense warmth on this dry, dusty downhill...
Just about at the bottom, we are afforded a nice view of the real Old Baldy in the distance...
We have made it down to Beaver Valley Road and that deserves a "thumbs up"...and we deserve some refreshment for our efforts!..a visit to the Kimberley Village Store provides just that...it has been a long one, but a really great hike that everyone call feel good about (once the boots are off...).
One more to go for this trip...thanks for joining us on this one!
The End
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