Sydenham Section - Jones Falls (102.7 km) to East Linton Access (118.2 km) - June 13, 2023.

 Sydenham Section - Jones Falls (102.7  km) to East Linton Access (118.2 km) - June 13,2023.

 It's the final Spring 3 day trip to the northern sections of the Bruce Trail for the Hiking With Friends group and it will be a special week (but more on that in the following blogs)...today, we start with a 15 kmish walk from Jones Falls in the Pottawatomi Conservation Area to the access at East Linton Road to the north...

Our bird's eye view of the route which will take us 4 1/2 hours to traverse and require only 165 meters of ascension (pretty much the lowest I can recall of any hike on the Bruce)...so a relatively relaxed start to the trip...our group was here last fall, and while there will be many new faces (and feet) this time round, for those of us that were here, it has been decided (as part of of our group decision making process), that we will do the 3 scheduled hikes in the opposite direction from last year...offering those that were here previously, a bit of a "twist"...

And here are those faces, including myself, Annette, Dan (my friend and guest hiker from Ottawa), Barbara, Brian, Frances, Steve K, Laura, Sandra, Nancy, Doug (our H.C for the week), Frank, Muris, and Peter...

 After some instructions from Doug, we set off, using part of the Merle Gunby Side Trail (actually a little more than necessary when we missed the connection) to access the main trail...Sandra and I stop on what we know consider hallowed ground to commemorate our completion back in October of our E2E at this beautiful spot...unfortunately we could not locate the memorial plaque that we anticipated being placed here...it must be on back order still...

I crouch down to capture the upper side of Jones Falls...

We catch a glimpse of the falls from the main trail before Steve, Brian and I elect to venture down a portion of the Memorial Forest Side Trail to get a better look from below...it was well worth the extra effort...

After rejoining the group (who waited patiently for us to catch up...thank you), we continued on through the beautiful Pottawatomi Conservation Area...

There are a couple of decent look out spots, with a view of the Owen Sound area to the east, before we reach Derby-Sarawak Townline and exit the C.A...

We stroll down West Street a short distance before reentering the forest...

We pass by, and over, some pretty deep crevices (this would be a theme over the next few days), and meander beside an open meadow, before coming across a very nice example of a "flower pot" in the woods...

After a fairly steep descent off the escarpment, it's back to some road walking through a peaceful Owen Sound neighbourhood...the morning sun is warming...the day is just glorious...

Walking along Range Road, we pass a farm with a large herd of cows (I am starting to really like these farm animals)...then, it's a left turn onto the Georgian Bluffs Rail Trail...

 The freshly laid gravel is a bit sluggish underfoot, but the pleasant surroundings and great company make the steps wile away...I did come to realise (and verified by the elevation profile in the bird's eye view diagram), that there is a slight uphill gradient in this direction...that's why this stretch seemed so easy last time in the opposite direction!..

It was great to spend some quality trail time with my good friend Dan, who made the seven hour trek from Ottawa to join us for a couple of days...I think he enjoyed meeting our amiable group of B.T enthusiasts...and vice versa...

After our break at the corner of the rail trail and Gordon Sutherland Parkway, we travelled north on the trail and reentered the woods for a short stint...

We enjoy a very lovely stretch of hiking, with a lot of the classic elements that make the escarpment such a cool place to hang out...

...and that, of course, brings smiles to our faces...

After Doug ushers everyone up and out of the forest, we slide onto Indian Acres Road West, and will then make a right turn to rejoin Gordon Sutherland Parkway for the final push to the dropped cars...

At the end of the "parkway" (really just a wide country lane), we cross a stile to travel the last kilometre or so to the end of our hike...

One of our last visual treats for the day is a beautiful pond in the Fossil Glen Nature Reserve, a 68 acre gem opened in 2015...

We arrive at our dropped cars and agree that this was an excellent start to our three day adventure in the Sydenham Section...perfect weather, few bugs, and a relaxing evening enjoying each other's company to look forward to (as well as two more great hikes to come!)...thanks for spending time with us on the trail!..there's some big days ahead so see you again soon...

The End

Chapman's Ice Cream truck headed to stock up Owen Sound in anticipation of Doug's arrival...