The PINERY Then MAC GREGOR POINT Thursday November 24th 2011

305720 - 11.15 a.m.

The weather sounds pretty good for the next few days so we packed up and decided to head to The Pinery Provincial Park in Grand Bend, Ontario.  We have never been there before so we were both looking forward to it.
Very misty start to the day, but the forecast was for sunshine by mid day and +10c.  Sounded pretty good to us for November.

Although it remained misty, even foggy in some places, the drive to Grand Bend was quite nice. 167 km from Durham.

We arrived at the park about 1.45 pm, drove around the camp grounds and straight out of the park.  The Pinery certainly was not a place we would ever enjoy.  The sites were very small.  If you owned a trailer and pulled it with a pick up truck you would have to park both vehicles side by side and probably open your trailer door and step into your fire pit!  We think you would be able to tap on your neighbours window or door without even leaving your own site.  No thank you.

Only one thing left to do - you got it.  Head back to Mac Gregor, where the sites are very large and have lots of privacy.   What a waste of time and gas.  Only good thing is we now know that we will not be going to the Pinery.

There was a lot of construction along Highway 21, but we made it to Mac Gregor before the office closed for the evening.  Still quite misty, but not as bad as this morning.

Took site #69.   4.00 p.m. 306037.   So today it took us almost 5 hours and 317 km to do a 45 minute drive from Durham.   Win some - lose some - right.

All set and sitting around the camp fire by 5.00 p.m..  Not a total waste of a day in the end.  Our little dining room worked very well.   BBQ supper out there again. 

Relaxing evening, after a very different day.

FRIDAY 25th November -  Yes one month to Christmas!

Today the sun was shining and it was great to be here camping again.  Had a nice BBQ ham and eggs for breakfast, then all cleared away ready for the trails.

Decided to hike the Old Shore Road Trail this morning.  A great morning to be out on the trails.

This is the longest trail here, if you do the whole thing.  Not sure if we will manage that.

Quite a few white caps on the lake today, mainly due to the 50 km winds.   It certainly took away most of the seagulls.   But what a beautiful day.

Made it along the Shore Line to the beach area.
It was extremely quiet and peaceful there, and for a while the wind died down some.

The plan we made was to head towards Merganser cove and then decide from there.

We hadn't done this part of the trail for some time so Hiker Mike checked the map, we did not want to get lost out here.

We just wandered along the Old Shore Road Trail, still heading to Merganser Cove.  Came across No Man's Pond.  We had never been here before.  Very pretty area, with boardwalks around the pond.



 

We made it to Merganser Cove.  It was very calm and peaceful, and other than ourselves, there was no one to be seen.

Still nice and warm for November + 15c.

Followed the trail along the side of the stream and into Huron Camp Ground then through to The Deer Run Trail and eventually back to our camp.   This was a welcome sight as we had been hiking for three hours ad covered + 20 km.  Very interesting hike as there were parts of the trails we had never done before.

You can still see the downed trees from the storms along The Deer Run Trail.

 

After lunch we relaxed at our site until

mid - afternoon when we decided it was time to go to the Turtle Pond and feed the Chick-a-Dees.   They were very happy to see us.

Even the Blue Jays were happy to see us.

We followed The Huron Fringe Trail and about 3 feet from us a White Tailed Deer wandered out of the bush area, not at all bothered by us being there.  Now guess what?  We did not have the camera turned on, so just enjoyed the moment.

Lit a great camp fire when we got back, and sat around that until it was time for BBQ in our dining room, about 7.00 p.m.

Played dominoes again before bed.  Mike won again!

Night Night.





SATURDAY 26 November 2011,      306037

Cloudy start to the day, but not cold, + 8c.

After breakfast we started packing up.   Would rather stay, but things to do, and the weather is supposed to change later today, possible snow flurries by Sunday.

All packed and ready to leave about 1.00 p.m.

Took ride into Port Elgin, then Owen Sound.  Stopped for a late lunch at Montana's.  Very Good!   And a nice way to end the trip.     306142

Catch you next time, may not be until 2012, but we will be back.

OH NO !!! NOVEMBER 11th 2011

 Woke to this Winter Wonderland this morning.  This is our back yard.

Yes very pretty.  No - we are not camping, but thought you might like to see the snow.

You can see that the snow being so wet and heavy has actually broken a bough from our tree.  Luckily we had wanted to remove this bough before the winter.  So "thank You Mother Nature".

Let's hope Mother Nature removes the whole bough from the tree before the spring.

                                                 Winter Wonderland - Durham Ontario.

MAC GREGOR POINT Tuesday November 1st 2011

All packed and ready to get on the road, 11 am, 305435.
Just heading to Mac Gregor Point for a few days.  At this time of the year there are very few Parks open for camping, not that it is a problem for us, as we enjoy hiking the Mac Gregor trails.

We had only just entered the park road, about 12 noon, when we saw 6 deer.  It turned out that one of the Doe's had triplets this year.

Took a different camp site this time, #88.  Almost identical to our favorite site, # 57.

We started off by setting up our homemade
add-a-room.  Giving us an additional room
6ft 6inches by 12 ft. allowing for the picnic table to be enclosed inside for a dining room.
 
This gave us quite lot of additional room to be able to use, even though it was cool out.  We had purchased a ceramic tower heater which kept the dining room as cozy as the inside of our El Campista.

After lunch and all set up we hit the trails. 

First stop was the Park Office to see if the deer were still there, unfortunately they had left.  So we wandered along to the Turtle Pond.  At this time of the year it could be called "Chick-a-Dee" Haven.

The Chickadees, Nut Hatches and Squirrels were very happy to see us back again.

We did see a turtle sunning itself on a log, but too far away for our little camera to pick it up.

The weather, although fairly breezy, was very good for Lake Huron in November.  It was in the mid teens.   No complaints about that!

 

A great walk to the Point in brilliant sunshine.  The lake was perfectly clear once again.

Then we hiked the trail back to our site

What a great way to spend a few hours in November.

 
 Back at camp it was time to get the fire going, as by 5 p.m. the cool lake air had crept up to us, along with the squirrels.  Still a gorgeous evening though, millions of stars.

Cooked dinner over the fire, always tastes so good cooked over the wood fire.

 As it had cooled off quite  lot we ate in our new dinning room, candles, wine, soft music, excellent company - WOW - what else could a person ask for?  This is a great camping life.

Sat out chatting for a couple of hours.   Then inside for a night-cap -  Good Night!








WEDNESDAY November 2nd 2011.

Fantastic sunny day - oh yes, a little cool,   +6c.   But didn't take too long to warm up the dinning room ready for BBQ breakfast.    Then as it warmed up quite a lot we got ready for our hike.

Once again we headed towards the park office to see if any of the deer were around there again - no luck.
 Really great weather for walking.

Headed along the deer run trail where we saw many birds enjoying the weather too.  There were Chickadees, Robins, Blue Jays, Nuthatches, Wood Peckers, and even a white throated Sparrow.

Not to forget we did get to see some deer again.

 There had been a lot of storms through the area in the last month, some of them being the remnants of the hurricanes from the U.S.A. Consequently there were a great deal of trees down.   As you can see some of the trees up rooted were quite large.

 You can see there was a good amount of water in the bush area from the storms.  Luckily the trails were all good.

Another three hours had past, and quite a few kilometers too, so we headed back for lunch and a well earned rest.

After lunch we relaxed in the sunshine and caught up with some reading.

 Time to get moving again. Headed to the beach area then the turtle pond before going back to camp to light the fire for the evening.

Did nice BBQ dinner and sat in our "toasty" warm room playing dominoes.  Guess what?   I actually got beat!   Oh well. I have to let Hiker Mike win occasionally - don't I?

It did start raining while we were playing Dominoes, but out little tent dining room was perfectly dry and warm.   Sat out until bed time again.


THURSDAY November 3rd.  305521
Still raining when we got up, but supposed to clear through the morning.  This was the first time this trip we cooked in El Campista.

Then the chore of packing up ready to head home.  Luckily the rain did stop, but it was rather soggy outside.

Good ride home, back at 1.30 p.m.   305612.

Hope we get some more camping in before the New Year.  Catch you then.

INVERHURION PROVINCIAL PARK - October 5th 2011

Wednesday October 5th 2011 -   305241
The next week sounds too good to be true for the weather, so we packed up and headed to Inverhurion Provincial park until the weekend.  This weekend is Thanksgiving, so nice to spend time with family and friends.   It is also the weekend when a lot of campsites close for the season, as this one does.   We have never been to this park, but as we rode around to get a site we both know we will definitely be back.

We were lucky enough to get one of the sites (#76) with a gorgeous view, as you can see. 

Bonus, a short trail from our site takes us to the shore.  It may be takes 45 seconds!  

Next bonus - the weather is fantastic.

Already set for a few days, and we know we will not want to leave here very quickly.

There was a fair breeze off the lake so Mike thought it might be a good idea to try out our homemade add-a-room/wind breaker.   It certainly did a good job and stopped all the wind.  This will be a must for our late fall and winter camping.

This is the shoreline just below our campsite.

I don't think we have ever seen a lake so crystal clear.

YES.  You are looking through the water at the rocks.

Time for a moment to soak up the sun and the scenery.





From the shore we headed to the scenic drive trail, although it was only our feet and curiosity driving us.  We did hike for another couple of hours before heading back to our site to relax in the sunshine.

I couldn't help wandering down to the shore every so often to sit on the rocks and enjoy the peace and quiet of nature.  Just the sounds of the water lapping at my feet and few sea gulls floating lazily along the lake.

Must admit we did light the campfire a little earlier than we usually do.  Although a beautiful warm sunny day, the evening cooled off quickly.   That did not bother us as we cooked our dinner over the fire. Why is it food always tastes so much nicer cooked over wood coals?
 
Actually it even enhances the taste of the wine!   Cannot explain how that works either.

I did manage the very long trek down to the shore to get a picture of the sunset.

It was the kind of day and evening that you do not want to end.


However, by about 9.30 p.m. it was getting quite chilly, even by the fire.  So we retired to El Campista to play dominoes.


First game - I picked my dominoes and had 5 of my 7 dominoes with 6"s (leaving only 2 other 6 cards in the pack)  It was my "down" so I hit the table big time.  I honestly had never won a hand so quickly.  We play 5's and 3's so my score shot up at an incredible speed.   We usually play best of 3, but as I won the first two, Hiker Mike decided best of 5.  Too Bad!  I won anyway. 

OK enough gloating - Night Night!

THURSDAY OCTOBER 6th 2011.

Guess what?   Another fantastic day ahead of us, and I have already been to the shore before breakfast.

So nice outside we had a BBQ  breakfast, then we had guests join us.  Several very hungry chick-a-Dee's.

After breakfast and chores finished we sat around in the sunshine for a while planning the rest of the day.

Decided to walk the trail to the beach.  Although we were camped along the shore line the beach was a fair distance to the south of us.  Really was a beautiful beach.

There were many endangered plants growing in and around the sand dunes, consequently board walks had been built for protection.

Time to sit and take in the scenery.

From the beach the trail goes across the river to the southern tip of the park.

From there we hiked the trail back to our camp site, about a 2 hour hike.

We sat around relaxing with a late lunch, enjoying the sunshine and the entertainment, laid on by our friendly chick-a-dees.

About 3.15 p.m. it was time to get hiking again.  This time we headed to the remainder of the Scenic Drive Trail that we had not yet done.

The forest area of the trail was quite dense and actually led us along a highly fenced perimeter of the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant.

Now if we start glowing in the dark, you will all know why.

From the fenced area we ended up in a small bay of Lake Huron.  There appeared to be no wild life of any sort around here, just a lot of drift wood carried onto the shore line.   We hiked the shore for quite a ways before getting back onto the trail.

Came across this interesting road sign, similar to the one we found at Mac Gregor Point.







Oh Dear!   Guess some one didn't read the sign.

Been gone another couple of hours, so time to get back to our camp.

Cannot believe how wonderful the weather is.

Once again it cooled down very quickly so we lit our fire, had a nice BBQ dinner and a great evening telling all kinds of stories.

Another lovely sunset.

It was a very clear night and for some reason we saw lots of lights on the lake.  Don't remember them there last night.

AH! Such a good Merlot!

FRIDAY OCTOBER 7th.

Oh no, not another glorious sunny day.  That is sad, we have to leave sometime today, and this is the last weekend of the season for this park.  We cannot come back until next year, but we will definately be back.

Breakfast on BBQ again.   Then wandered a portion of the shore.   Such a shame we have to leave.  It is as good as perfect here.   As you can see we have the place to ourselves.

We left our site and parked at the beach for a while enjoying those last few minutes, or hours.  You can see El Campista parked in the distance.

Naturually we did a good walk around again.

  We found a very interestng BBQ area on our walk.   Just a few minutes from the beach.

OK, yes, we do have to leave, unfortunately.

As neither of us wanted to leave, Mike suggested we took a scenic drive into Kincardine and may be find somewhere for a late lunch.  Just to help soften the blow a little.

It was a pretty drive and we both thoroughly enjoyed The Marina at Kincardine and The Staion Beach area.

Low and behold, we found The Erie Belle.  A perfect place for our late lunch.

The fish and chips, wine and beer were great, just what we needed.   A great lunch sitting outside on the patio.

It was such fun, Mike wanted to call a friend to tell them all about it.

This has been a super way to complete a wonderful few days away.

Stopped for some groceries on the way home, and back in Durham about 5.30 p.m.  Still nice and warm so sat out on our front porch discussing our trip.

It will be difficult to beat this one, but we will give it our best shot.

Catch you all then.

305426.

Saturday October 8th. 

No we are not away camping, but we did head into Fergus to see our  favorite entertainer - Kieran - playing at O"Brien's (our old pub).  Great to see everyone who turned up - and Happy Thanksgiving to you all.