One-Tank Trip for
Sept. 8/12
(c) By Jim Fox
Reality check: After
a long hot summer that started early and seemed to go on forever, the end is
near.
Ontario Parks’ fall
colours reports have started and it might be hard to believe there are signs summer
is on the wane.
 |
| The fall colours have begun to appear at Algonquin Provincial Park. (Ontario Parks photo) |
Algonquin Provincial
Park reports already up to 19 per cent of its leaves have changed colour while
earlier this week the percentage of fallen leaves is up to nine per cent at the
park near Huntsville.
Good spots to view
the colourful spectacle are the Algonquin Parkway Corridor on Highway 60, with
the best lookouts being Hardwood, Track and Tower, Centennial Ridges and
Lookout and Booth's Rock trails.
Leaf peepers in droves
Changing colours
and special activities attract more than one-million visitors to Ontario Parks in the fall,
said Lori Waldbrook, senior marketing specialist.
Mid-September to
late October is the prime time to view the flaming red maple, deep yellow
poplar and white-barked birch trees leaves.
They become the
backdrop for touring artisan studios, enjoying fall photography workshops and
hunting for great antiques.
 |
| Ontario Parks report the fall colours have just started. (Ontario Parks photo) |
It’s easy to track
the changing colours on the Ontario Parks’ website at www.parkreports.com/fall with
suggestions for the best viewing locations and links to “Great Fall Drives”
around each park.
There’s also the Ontario
Tourism's fall colour report starting soon at www.ontariotravel.net
The other
provincial parks reported the fall colours are just starting and listed their
changes all at zero to nine per cent.
Magnificent migrating monarchs
Along with leaves
in the parks this fall, there’s the Monarch Butterfly Migration Festival at
Rondeau on Sept. 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Thousands of monarch
butterflies fuel up for their trip south at the park at Morpeth, southeast of
Chatham, every fall.
 |
| Get up close to migrating Monarch butterflies at a festival at Rondeau Provincial Park. (Ontario Parks photo) |
Nature’s long-distance
marathoners fly to Mexico and this event has the Friends of Rondeau and park
staff helping to send them on their way.
There are guided
butterfly hikes, information on how to tag a butterfly and learning about
plants they like, a barbecue and local artisan wares.
Naturalists are
concerned over the drought-like conditions of the summer that have caused the
early peaking of milkweed plants that monarch caterpillars feed on.
This could result
in not enough nectar to go around during their long journey, suggested
Rondeau’s Laura Penner.
Events details at www.rondeauprovincialpark.ca;
(519) 674-1768
Look, see, paint and photos
Watercolour
painting workshops will be held at Algonquin Provincial Park on Sept. 16.
Called Look, See,
Paint, they feature artist Jeff Miller leading two half-day sessions (adults
only in the afternoon) about creating art in the park.
The nature outdoor
painting program is aimed at “connecting kids and adults to the beauty of
Algonquin Park.”
An Autumn Landscape
Photography Workshop will be held at Algonquin on Oct. 9.
The workshop is led
by Debbie Bradley to “take advantage of the current stage of the fall leaf
colour change when the forest floor and bogs are dressed in beautiful yellow
and golden hues.”
Artists and
easels will be on park trails capturing the fall colours in Killarney
Provincial Park from Sept. 20 to 23.
This park on the north shore of
Georgian Bay is where Canada's famous Group of Seven members often visited in
the fall to sketch.
This event is held for members
of the Ontario Society of Artists, marking its 140th anniversary. http://friendsofkillarneypark.ca
Take the challenge
now through Oct. 31 at Frontenac Provincial Park, north of Kingston.
The Frontenac Challenge
is to hike all 160 kilometres of the trails and receive a certificate and plaque
in the park office. www.frontenacpark.ca
Forget roughing it
New types of
accommodation are being piloted in three Ontario Parks this fall.
 |
| Go camping in style with deluxe tents at three Ontario Parks this fall. (Ontario Parks photo) |
Visitors can reserve camp
cabins and deluxe tents at Pinery Provincial Park on Lake Huron, Arrowhead
Provincial Park, north of Huntsville, and Murphys Point Provincial Park,
southwest of Ottawa.
The cabins sleep five and the
deluxe tents sleep four comfortably, with both featuring rustic-style log
furniture and screened-in porches with Muskoka chairs.
Check them out at: www.parkreports.com/parksblog/?p=2857
There are 84 parks with hiking
trails of varying distances and skill levels, with 11 of them offering overnight
backpacking trails. Go to the park locator at www.parkreports.com/locator/search.php or Ontario
Parks main site: www.ontarioparks.com
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Jim Fox can be reached
at onetanktrips@hotmail.com
For more One-Tank Trips: http://1tanktrips.blogspot.ca
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