Road Walking and Wet Feet
Back to the Bruce Trail
Unfortunately,
at the end of yesterday’s trek our rental car was broken into and we lost our
camera and with it all our pictures from the Beaver Valley section. In
response, we took a day off from hiking the Bruce Trail to report the incident
and think about whether to proceed or just call it a wash and go home
early. Not really up to continuing, we
were nonetheless uncertain as to when we would be able to find the time to get
back to this area.
And so,
since time and tide wait for no one, we ultimately decided to push on. Aiding
in this effort was a local Bruce Trail volunteer who had heard about our
troubles and sought to help us trek from Rocklyn Creek Management Area through
to Owen Sound. Her generous offer was to
transport us from our parked car at the end of each day’s stage back to where
we were due to begin. Her kindness
enabled us to approach the next three days of hiking in a new way. It meant that we would be able to return to
Owen Sound each night and stay in a local motel room – avoiding wild camping any further on the BTC. In addition, it
also meant that we would be able to slack-pack, or not carry our gear, for the
estimated 100 km push to bridge the gap between Rocklyn Creek Management Area
and Owen Sound. While 35 km or so a day
of hiking is definitely possible under full-pack weight, it is also far easier
and more enjoyable without such encumbrances.
Sydenham Section of the Bruce Trail
Having
thru-hiked the Beaver Valley section over the course of four days, relying on a
combination of wild camping and cabin rentals, we had previously ended our last
walk just beyond the boundary between the Beaver Valley and Sydenham sections
of the BTC. This meant that after dropping off our car at the Silent Valley
Side Trail parking on the northern boundary of Bongor Marsh, the wonderful
volunteer drove us back to the western boundary of Rocklyn Creek – a trail
distance of some 38 km.
The
Sydenham section of the Bruce Trail is the eighth of nine clubs, and it spans
170 kilometres between the Beaver Valley and Peninsula regions. Starting in Blantyre and weaving north, the
trail in Sydenham ventures through forests, wetlands and valleys, passes
stunning waterfalls and protected conservation areas, and visits the
communities of Owen Sound and Wiarton.
Setting out onto Sydenham
Thanking
the volunteer for her kindness today, we stepped away from her car and slipped
on our day packs to enjoy our first full day on the Sydenham section of the
BTC. As we watched her car pull away, we
were both ready to hike off our frustration.
Crossing Deviation Rd we ventured into a field, re-entering Rocklyn
Creek Management Area. Immediately, we
followed a dirt track into the woods and over a long wooden bridge that spanned
Rocklyn Creek. According to a sign on
site, the Rocklyn Creek Bridge was built by the Canadian Army’s 32 Combat
Engineer Regiment!
Our
route, now proceeding on a sectional wooden boardwalk, then continued uphill to
the top of a rocky forested ridge along the escarpment. From there we descended down the undulating
landscape through a low-lying marshland and toward the next concession
roadway. Following the St.
Vincent-Sydenham Townline, we climbed … and climbed …and climbed back uphill for
the first of our many road treks for the day, to the entrance of Walters Falls
Conservation Area.
Walters Falls Conservation Area
Climbing a
wooden stile over a wire fence we entered into Walters Falls Conservation Area and continued along the ridge of
the escarpment before crossing another concession. There we came to the junction of the Walters
Creek Side Trail – a route which could cut about 4 kilometres from today’s trek
if we took it. However, despite the
temptation, we aren’t here to take shortcuts.
Following the main BTC route, we turned south, once again crossing and
following the same concession we had just traversed. Back off the road, we descended into a river
valley through a cedar forest toward Walters Falls.
Passing a
hotel on the edge of the escarpment, we took a few moments to admire the
falls. This region was purportedly
developed in the mid-nineteenth century by John Walter, who settled the region
in 1850 and subsequently built a saw, feed, and wool mill near the falls. Today, both the feed and wool mills can still
be seen. Located just to the south of
the conservation is the small town of Walters Falls, also named after John
Walter, which has a wonderful variety store with Ice Cream. Discovering this on the cell phone,
regardless of it being a little early in the day to take a break, we
nonetheless enjoyed the opportunity to buy ourselves a cold treat.
Refreshed,
we returned to the Bruce Trail, which wove 3 kilometres north along the edge of
the escarpment to where we met with the other junction with the Walters Creek
Side Trail shortcut. Once again
descending into the river valley, we arrived at Grey Rd to commence our next
round of concession trekking for the day.
Boxing Concessions and Roadways
Off dirt
trails and out of the forest, we had 4-5 kilometres of road hiking in front of
us, which boxed around three sides of the same region– down 2nd
Concession South, along Holland-Sydenham Townline, and north up the 4th Concession. Throughout this stretch, we were rewarded with
open views of the pastoral landscape and gently rolling hills around us. We walked past dairy farms and fields of
sheep and were grateful for the lack of traffic. Amid it all we were nonetheless stunned by
the sheer amount of litter and garbage along the roadside.
Trudging
on, some 40-50 minutes later, we crossed the Big Head River on the 4th
concession and were soon back on the actual pathway. There, with 15 kilometres of
the day’s trek behind us, we took a break at the trailhead into the Big Head
property on the edge of regenerating agricultural fields.
Bighead Property
Walking
on, we traversed fields and growing brush before climbing out of the Bighead
River Valley back up onto the escarpment. Once at the summit, we found the
Bighead Campsite – the second legal camping area we'd encountered in two days
of trekking – a real rarity on the BTC.
Standing at this campsite, it was easy to see why it would make for a
great evening on the trail. From that
spot, there were great views of the region!
Pushing on, we continued through forests and fields for only a few
kilometres before crossing a concession road, traversing a marshy stretch and
then crossing another roadway prior to entering Massie Forest.
Massie Hills Management Area
Massie Hills Management Area is home to the Massie Ski Trail,
which the Owen Sound Cross Country Ski Club has maintained since the
1980s. In this green space of rolling
hills, wetlands, and pine plantations there is a network of trails that
visitors can explore. For its part, the
Bruce Trail, sadly, only cuts across the eastern edge of the Massie Hills
property. While we enjoyed the chance to
take a break in the shade of the pine forest, we nonetheless had the sense that
the Bruce Trail had woven across several concessions and almost 10 kilometres
of roads just to bring us into this property for a few brief minutes. After only a short stint in Massie Hills, the
Bruce Trail again returned to another long stretch of 4-5 kilometres of
concession trekking, before descending into the forest and crossing the
southern boundary of Bognor Marsh.
Bognor Marsh Management Area
After an
hour under the scorching heat, trudging along the exposed concessions and
access roads of the region, we took a break on the southern boundary of Bongor
Marsh. Thankfully, upon our arrival, we found a large roofed picnic shelter and
washroom, both of which were welcome and provided a chance to take a
break. Bongor Marsh Management Area is one of the largest marshes in Grey
County, and it features almost 12 kilometres of trails which take visitors
along boardwalks and to an observation tower.
The wetlands of the region also make Bongor Marsh a hotspot for
naturalists and birders.
With
approximately 7 kilometres of trail left to hike today, we set off, only to
almost immediately discover that there was another blue-blazed route – the
Bongor Marsh Side Trail – that could again cut several kilometres off our
trek. I would be lying if I said that
after 31 kilometres of hiking today we weren’t tempted by the shortcut. Nonetheless, striving to remain steadfast in
our resolve, we turned west and continued to follow the main trail around the
property.
Crossing
the Bongor Marsh, we walked along a floating wooden boardwalk amid tall reeds
and with the sound of Mallards quacking excitedly around us. Put another way, the first few kilometres of
Bognor Marsh were … well, a marsh. This
stretch also reminded us to beware of what we wish for. Now that we were no longer walking on roads,
we were soaking wet and being inundated by lots of mosquitoes, deer flies, and
black flies.
Beyond
the marsh, the trail became a bit of a challenge as the low-lying pathway was
wet and the grasses and brush around us were tall. As a result, we were soon soaked to the skin
from our knees down and trekking in very wet and muddy shoes. Given how wet the
trail was despite the hot weather we've been having already this year, I can’t
imagine what trekking through this region during a rainy season would be like.
The path soon transitioned into a cedar forest, where we spent most of our time
carefully navigating tree roots. The Bruce Trail soon joined with a wider path and began a tough and exhausting climb up the escarpment. Once back on top, we followed the edge of the
escarpment and soon reconnected with the northern terminus of the Bognor Marsh
Side Trail, as we walked through a forested stretch overlooking the wetlands
below.
Beyond the Bog
With our
climb done, we had hoped for an easy trek along the top of the escarpment. Instead, we found the footing to be tough as
the trail navigated a lot of crevices, traced mossy outcrops, and passed along
startling drop-offs. With that said, the
topography was not the only thing that garnered our attention. The dense mosses on top of the erratic rocks
spread throughout this stretch were stunningly green and lush. In addition, we
could periodically catch views of the landscape spreading out around us. Between the dense stand of trees, we even
spotted a number of hawks and Turkey Vultures playing in the clear skies high above
us.
Just
north of Bognor Marsh we reached our destination for the day, the Silent Valley
side trail, which we followed back down the escarpment to our parked car.
Dropping our day packs into the trunk we finished off our bottles of water,
bringing our 35-kilometer trek to a conclusion.
We soon whisked off to Owen Sound and checked into our accommodations
for the night to plan our return to the Bruce tomorrow. Given how warm, wet, and muddy we were, I think
it is safe to say that we were both grateful for the chance to escape the
mosquitoes for the night, take a relaxing shower, and attempt to dry out our
sodden shoes before tomorrow’s trek.
Reflecting on the Bruce Trail
Our first
full day on the Sydenham section of the Bruce Trail, while wonderful, was a
mixed trek. On one hand, it took us
through a number of naturally beautiful properties, while on the other we spent
a great deal of our time walking along roads.
At certain points it seemed as though we were boxing along gravel
roadways, only to add kilometres to the BTC trail system.
In
addition, today we came face-to-face with the increasing seduction of side trails
along the Bruce Trail. Specifically, we
passed a number of blue-blazed pathways that when combined would have cut 5-10
kilometers from our route. Amid the
challenging terrain and long concession walks, the temptation to trim distance
from the day increasingly called to us.
That was until we remembered that we weren’t hiking simply to get from
point A to point B in the fastest possible way.
Instead, we are trekking to enjoy the moment, explore the region, and get away from being strictly focused on efficiency, schedules, and
distances. Our goal is to hike the full
length of the main Bruce Trail, and so despite the temptation to do otherwise, we are proud to have stuck to our goals and not ventured downside trails to shorten the journey.
With the
day’s trek done, and now some 35 kilometres more of the Bruce Trail completed,
we were grateful for having continued on with our thru trek. Being back in nature put recent events a
little more into perspective, and the rugged terrain certainly gave us the
opportunity to focus our energy. Instead of venting about our loss in a motel
or while driving home, we focused on being grateful for the opportunity to trek
the Bruce Trail, for being physically capable of walking such a long distance,
and for being able to spend so much time in nature.
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