Sydenham Section - Series #3 : June 17 - 19, 2025.
Sydenham Section - Series #3: June 17 -19, 2025.
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Day One - Side Road 22/2nd Concession Road N. (58.4 km) to Bothwell's Corner (72.5 km) - June 17, 2025.
Hiking With Friends returned to the Owen Sound area for the last of our three spring series and we are going out to go out with a bang...but first, we will need to travel 14.5 km from a famous intersection (at least within our group history), that will become even more acclaimed tomorrow, over to Bothwell Corners, just east of the city...and we plan to "polish" it off with ease...
The dropping of cars on Clearview Crescent goes smoothly and a short while later, our assembly of 14 hikers is poised and posed at the start on a warm and humid morning...myself, Annette (H.C), Barbara, Catherine, Andrew, Donna, Doug, Georgia, Renu, Lesley, Laura, Nancy, Frank C, and Sandra (Sweep)...the mailbox firm of McCutcheon & Hastings were either in court, or busy with important financial dealings...in either case, they could not join us...let's see what they missed...
For starters, there is a fair bit of a pretty country road to cover, Side Road 22...and sidling across said side road is a small snake...we could hear Andrea's shrieks all the way from home...Sandra takes it all "in stride", and the long ribbon of gravel stretches before us...
We are grateful to finally get under the cooling comfort of the forest canopy...if only for a while before we emerge into beautiful open meadows with par-tick-ularly long grass...
Summer will only officially arrive in a few days, but make no mistake, this is summer hiking today...lots of water breaks and "seeking of shade"...
We make no concessions while walking on the concession...and we get a friendly visit from an a) llama or b) alpaca...you pick, either way, very entertaining while strolling down the roadside of a side road...
We emerge from the woods for another regroup and hydration stop...after crossing 6th Concession South, we began to follow the allowance trail for Side Road 22...
There's a bit of a tricky descent here that requires our shared attention...Steve K may remember this spot for the (then) wet root induced slide into ignominy (no harm done)...with that in mind, we take extra caution and Andrew provides support...
Fortunately we weren't being accosted by too many bugs on this warm, humid day, but we did get "buzzed" by this small aircraft arriving at the (very) nearby Major-General Richard Rohmer International Airport...it was plain to see...
The last stretch we enjoy has a trail that transects the 42 acre BTC protected area called The Pines (guess the predominant tree here) to the south east, and the 94 acre BTC protected area called Lesich to the northwest...it's a great finish to our hike today and, near the end, we pause to check out the famous "Polish Soldier Tree"...we took a shine to the emotional back story that resulted in its creation...
End Of Day One
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Followed by a great dinner at the Tipsy Fox Pub...
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Day Two - St. Vincent/Sydenham Townline (41.7 km) to Side Road 22 and 2nd Concession Road N. ( 58.4 km) - June 19th, 2025.
What's better than hiking 17 km on a warm June day in the forests and countryside of a pretty rural landscape?..doing it with a friend who footsteps today will close the one remaining gap in her 7 year quest to complete the Bruce Trail...end to end!
Today, yet another HWF member will earn that badge of honor as we travel from the side road parking on the St. Vincent/Sydenham Town Line to the (previously famous but soon to be legendary) corner of Side Road 22 and 2nd Concession Road North...
Excitement percolates and it's reflected in the smiles of the 17 hikers ready to make tracks...myself, Catherine C, Rhonda, Frank C, Andrew, Georgia, Barbara, Lesley, Steve R, Renu, Annette (H.C), Sandra, Doug, Peter, Nancy, Laura, and Donna...
This woman is the focus of our attention today!..Catherine's smile has traveled along the Bruce Trail for many years. For some, completing their End to End is a hurried and time constrained experience, an "I'm gonna get this done and dusted" attitude...for others, they may see the Bruce Trail more like a mental health balm, that can be applied as needed...but those timely doses are sometimes elusive as you confront injury, health or other life challenges. Knowing that, if you continue to self-prescribe this magical natural elixir over the years, one day you will get to bathe in the satisfaction and appreciation of your conquest of the Bruce Trail (and you can still keep taking the medicine!)...
But first, people, let's look at some cows.
I'm never sure if this sign is a warning or a comment...either way, it graces the entrance to a large section of BTC Protected Areas and then the magnificent woodlands of the Bayview Escarpment Provincial Nature Reserve...
The forest is extremely lush and dense here...and, as per one of my most favourite plaques on the trail implies, it's also a close friend of Hiking With Friends...
Some challenging hiking is rewarded with a spectacular view of Georgian Bay at Bayview Bluff...
Tough hiking and a decent pace combine to conclude a refreshment break is in order...some enjoy a moment of quiet contemplation while in the most beautiful of environments, others chat about this, that, or the other thing...
The woman of the hour...only a short way to go now...
I dated this fractured tree back to the "Precarious Era"...
After Georgia sneaks in a quick blue side trail with a view (she is tackling that "side" of the B.T ledger), we emerge from the long forest trail and prepare for some serious country road walking...Catherine poses with some of her long time hiking friends...the emotions are getting high...it is such a cool experience to share these moments on a hiker's filling in of the last piece of their Bruce Trail puzzle...it's my 7th or so now and it never gets old...let's get that picture complete!
But before that, I think we need to look at some more cows...
We approach the end of our hike, and Catherine's journey...ironically, she will finish at the exact spot where I experienced my first witnessing of such an event...It was here that Marleen and Nancy concluded their quest together in October of 2021...
And it's a wrap!..she has done it all...
Congratulations Catherine and welcome to the E2E club!..we are so proud of you and this great accomplishment...you have sewn many small pieces of the Bruce Trail fabric together over 7 years and created your own quilted masterpiece of memories...well done!
End of Day Two
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Day Three - Bothwell's Corner (72.5 km) to Centennial Tower (81.1 km) - June 18, 2025.
It's the last day of the last Spring Series for Hiking With Friends and the weather gods have turned upon us...it's a relatively short hike (8.5 km) from Bothwell's Corners to the Centennial Tower on Highway 6, but there's a fair bit of road (shoulder) walking on Highway 26 and 10 Concession South (past the KOA campground that no longer allows the trail on its grounds) before turning into the spectacular crevices of the Boyd BTC Protected Area...
It's a bit smaller group this morning as a couple of hikers returned home yesterday and a couple more (including myself) exercised their option of prioritizing dryness over soaking adventure, but hat's off (well, maybe keep them on, along with your poncho hood) to the 12 who did brave the elements including Doug, Donna, Rhonda, Andrew, Sandra, Lesley, Renu, Annette (H.C), Laura, Ron B, Peter, and Barbara...
Heading west on Highway 26...all you need to know about what Bruce Trail hiking can throw at you occasionally...
Things get way more interesting (but no less wet apparently) once they are off the road and into the BTC protected area, where a series of crevices transport you back through time...
Kudos to this brave group who negotiated the steep descent in tricky conditions...wet rocks and roots do not make for secure footing...
Well there's still some smiling going on, but I doubt this will go down as a top ten hike for many involved...nevertheless, the route was completed without incident and it marked the end of a great three days up in the Sydenham Section...time to get home and get dry...hope you enjoyed our HWF adventures and we'll see you back on the trail soon!
End of Day Three
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Our ship has sailed, but apparently this semi-permanent Laker in for repairs at Owen Sound has not...for a while.
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