Caledon Hills Section - 7th Line Parking (43.3 km) to 4th Line EHS (54.9 km) - April 10, 2025.

 Caledon Hills Section - 7th Line Parking (43.3 km) to 4th Line EHS - April 10, 2025.

Hiking With Friends has had this day marked on their calendars for a while (and not just because it's my wife's birthday)...a 12 km hike up and down and up again through the heart of the Caledon Hills that will spell the conclusion of one member's journey, and his entry into E2E immortality...as it turned out, the day would capture all that is best about what HWF tries to bring in walking this great trail together...

After 675 days, and a whole lot of travelling the Bruce Trail as a group of like minded individuals who appreciate what the shared hiking experience can mean, Hiking With Friends will finally again see one of its most respected members complete his "end to end". It's been close to two years (June 15, 2023) since we got to witness Doug and Barbara finish together up on East Linton Road in the Sydenham Section...but this next few months will bring E2E status to a few of our long time participants, and Andrew is the first of those (if he makes it through today...spoiler alert, he does).

So we sidle down the short side trail from the 7th Line parking lot off of Airport Road and gather by the iconic inukshuk to begin witnessing history...our group today includes myself, Annette, Georgia, Rhonda, Barbara, Doug (Honorable H.C), Frank, Rita, Marleen, Andrew, Ivan, Faryde, Ron B, Sandra (Honorable Sweep), Lesley, and Frances...

Andrew will certainly appreciate these two who have often led, and swept, him along his soon to be completed 900 km journey...

So it's down 7th Line, and into the woods we go, to get the day underway...

One of the many benefits of belonging to our group is having newer hiking friends, like Faryde and Ivan, witness the pride we have for, and respect that is given to, those who have stuck it out and embraced completing the Bruce Trail as a personal life achievement...I'm sure it helps motivate them to continue on...even on days when the going gets tough, which it hill, uh...will, soon enough...

  And so the climbing begins...apparently you can't reach new heights without it...

A solemn pause to show a moment of respect for the main founder father of the Bruce Trail, Dr. Philip Gosling at a plaque in his honour...

We must not allow the grim sight of "death by blaze" to deter us from continuing our journey with purpose...I hate to think of how many examples lie up north after the recent ice storms...

The day has started out in fine fashion...lightly cloudy skies, little wind and a firm trail all mean that...hey, we should take a break and enjoy the moment!...sound a little sappy?...well too bad, it was sweet...

The forest is showing the ravages of a harsh, icy, windy winter (almost) past...a ton of debris and fallen trees litter the way (fortunately very little on the trail so kudos to the clean up volunteers of of the Caledon crew)...apparently "death by blaze" does not see color, or direction...

 And the living blazes sometimes even have to exist right beside their fallen brethren...

Lots of stile smiles are in order as we make our way across the Airport Road runway...anticipation is growing for the grand finale, but there are still a few "bumps" in the trail ahead...

There's a bit of tiredness creeping in, but the trail is in such great shape and the naked forests allow for some amazing views, so that we are mostly distracted from the rigors of the incessant undulations that are characteristic of this glacially formed landscape...

 

Our featured performer takes a well deserved refreshment break (along with the rest of us)...what thoughts are going through his mind?..personal satisfaction?.. internal reflection?..a cold beer at the local craft brewery after the hike?..hmmmm

Part of hiking in a large group means sometimes being patient while we regroup and...chat...and linger...nobody appears anxious at all, right?..

 We can almost feel Sally and Dave smirking at us as we tackle the dual pinnacles of their namesakes...this is "peak" hiking energy time...but we finally reach 5th Line and don't feel quite as dead as this fallen monster of a tree...

It often looks like a massive game of "Pick-Up Sticks" gone awry on the forest floor...scenes of nature's chaos contrasting with the  collective calm of our choreographed cavalcade...

The final stile, the last road crossing, and the remaining few steps on a journey that began about 2 1/2 years ago...a chance reunion and a realization that we were both passionate Bruce Trail hikers happened to bring Andrew and me together, and ultimately him into the Hiking With Friends group...it has been a pleasure walking with him and sharing some amazing hikes together (including my only ever 2 day End to End in the Toronto Section)...he embodies the spirit of our merry band.

Done and dusted...congratulations on a great achievement and welcome to the E2E club!...Hiking With Friends salutes you.

And he got that beer!..

The End

"He's been to both ends...and everywhere in between"