Rather belatedly, I have edited the following posts to add some photos:
– Day 2 in Montreal
– Algonquin Provincial Park
– Bruce Peninsula and Tobermory
– Flowerpot Island
I hope that you have enjoyed my travels in Canada, almost as much as I have enjoyed it.
On Wednesday, we left our B&B at Miller Lake on the Bruce Peninsula to drive back to Toronto for our flight home. However, we had loads of time, as our flight wasn’t until 22.40.
We stopped in Owen Sound, where we sat by the river for a coffee and a bit of cake, brought from our B&B. We spotted a turtle swimming in the river. We had called her on the way out three days before and picked up a leaflet about waterfalls in the area, three of which we had already visited. Two more were fairly close to our route.
We first visited Hoggs Falls, which were only a short way from the car parking area. The waterfall was quite nice, if not particularly dramatic. Then we drove to Eugenia Falls, which were a bit further from the car and a bit bigger. Both were worth the diversion. However, there was a charge for the car park, which could only be paid by phone. As I only had my UK phone, this would also have cost significant call charges in addition to the $6 parking fee, which was too much for a short visit, so we parked at the top of the road for nothing and walked down! This was the second time in a few days we had done this.
From there we decided to go to Eugenia Lake, (where the parking was free despite being a much more popular place!). We had our picnic overlooking the lake, where various boats were coming and going, and kids we’re enjoying playing in a roped off area with a floating dock for them to climb out and dive in, whilst moms and dads sat on the grass!
Our onward journey to the airport was fairly uneventful, calling in a roadside Tim Hortons for a coffee (sadly we didn’t manage to get enough visits on our reward card for a second free coffee of the holiday, but maybe next time!). However, we had to take the beast (our rented Jeep) back full of petrol. We spent the last 20 minutes of the journey looking for a garage, but didn’t pass any, and before w knew it we had passed the point of no return in the airport, so returned it with the tank only 3/4 full. This is where we discovered the extortionate prices charged by Hertz. The cost was three times higher than the pump price! Thanks Hertz! Perhaps your paperwork could include information about where the nearest garage is – or is that going to affect your profits too much?
We were still at the airport very early, so we strolled through the duty free area, picking up a couple of bottles of gin at a ‘bargain price’, having a pizza and coffee before boarding our overnight flight back to Manchester.
The flight itself was very ‘bumpy’ – probably one of the most uncomfortable flights I’ve ever had. It made Chris feel ill, and she didn’t have the in flight meal – not that she missed much! Neither of us got much sleep. In fact we probably slept more on the train home from Manchester than on the flight. Never mind, we are home now and have made some great memories on our trip around Ontario (plus Montreal!).
It must be time to start planning our next holiday! Until next time, goodbye!
On Tuesday, we took the boat trip to Flowerpot Island from Tobermory. Fortunately, the weather turned out better than expected, and we had a lovely day, even though it was cloudier than previous days.
We boarded Blue Heron 8 in Little Tub harbour, and managed to get seats next to the glass bottom. The boat first went into Big Tub Harbour so that we could view a couple of ancient shipwrecks (which weren’t actually far below our Hull!) before heading off to Flowerpot Island, so named for a couple of sea-stacks which are supposed to look like flower pots. After cruising around part of the island, past the lighthouse and the flower pots, we got off the boat for a walk. We looked at the flowerpots from the land side and also visited a cave. On the way we saw a couple of small (harmless) snakes.
We walked to the lighthouse and sat outside to eat our snacks, after which we visited the small museum. We then decided to walk back on the loop trail, which goes over the hill through the woods and is much less populated (and a bit more rugged) than the main tourist route that we had gone out on. We arrived back at the port with lots of time to spare and visited a little bay, where we sat on the jetty, and I dangled my feet in the cool water. I was tempted to have a swim, but it was quite cool, so decided not to bother!
Whilst we waited for the boat, I walked out onto the breakwater, where I discovered a tangle of snakes, far too many to count.
We had booked a different boat back, the Flowerpot Explorer, which is a huge rib. The journey back to Tobermory was much faster with the powerful outboard motors really lifting the bows out of the lake.
In the evening we drove to Lions Head. Sadly the pub was closed so we had a meal at Rachel’s Restaurant, which was ‘OK’, but perhaps not what we had hoped for on our last night.
On Sunday we travelled from Midland to the Bruce Peninsula. On the way we stopped in Owen Sound for information about waterfalls in the area, which our B&B host in Midland had told us about. We then visited 3 of them, which I have to say were worthwhile side trips, especially the Inglis falls which are quite spectacular. Unfortunately, I seem to be having difficulty adding pictures to my blog again, but may try again later. (EDITED TO ADD PICTURE 19/7/19)
Later, we went to Tobermory at the head of the peninsula and watched a film in the visitor centre all about the area. We had fish and chips for dinner.
Yesterday, we went back to Tobermory and after looking around the exhibition at the visitor centre, we climbed an observation tower, then walked the Burnt Point loop of the Bruce Trail. Unfortunately, parts of it were closed, because Lake Huron is at record levels and the paths were flooded. However, it was still a nice walk through the forest, and we saw a number of brightly coloured birds.
We called at the ticket office to book onto a boat trip to Flowerpot Island today, and had dinner in the Princess Hotel. We chatted to a young Greek waitress who had just arrived in Canada, and she was very grateful to chat to people who knew her country well. It turned out that her mother lives in Meteora. She was impressed that we had been there!
We drove through heavy rain on the way back. This morning’s weather isn’t looking too promising for our boat trip with quite a breeze, and the forecast shows 30% chance of showers! Oh well, we will make the best of our last full day before flying home tomorrow night.
