Arista Ramblers: Awenda, June 11-14 2015

What an exciting weekend!!! We headed out on Thursday afternoon for an early July long weekend since the holiday falls on a Wednesday this year. We took a new route up this time to try and avoid some of the windy hilly roads. It was a great alternative and we will continue to use this route. There wasn't anyone one at the gate when we arrived so we headed to our site. The mosquitoes were very much alive and biting in the park. After a tour of the park we picked up pizza for dinner and spent the evening at camp.
We awoke to light rain showers which continued until mid afternoon. When we headed down to the beach area around noon we spotted a doe and her new fawn in the parking lot. I took a few photos through the windshield before getting out to try and get some more. Mom turned and went into a wooded area but the fawn stayed out. It walked a short distance away from me as I walked towards it on the opposite side of the parking lot. After checking out a big rock and a garbage can nearby it turned and spotted me. Without hesitation it walked directly towards me. I couldn't believe that it was standing right at my feet. I said to myself that I really shouldn't pet it but this may be the only time I get to touch a wee fawn in the wild so I went ahead and rubbed its head. What a thrill!!!
I kept an eye out for the doe as I didn't want to get hurt by her. The fawn walked a short distance from me stood there for awhile and then returned to me again. It then walked away again, stood about 10 feet away for a few minutes before going off into the edge of the woods. I was able to get over 100 photos before the fawn started to call out for mom. I thought it was best to leave so that mom would come back and reunite with her fawn. I was so excited and a little wet but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was experiencing and I wanted to enjoy every minute of it. We checked later in the day and the fawn was not around so we felt good that they had reconnected. We enjoyed some more sights of the park before heading back to camp. We had a late supper and a wonderful campfire that evening.
Saturday the sun came out and it got quite warm. We drove into Midland as we learned that the Butter Tart Festival was on. I have never seen so many tarts and there were a number of varieties. Last year they sold out of 50,000 tarts by mid afternoon. Wow! The main street was closed and there were vendors selling tarts, cookies, pies and craft items as well as live music. We sampled a few tarts along the way and picked up a selection of different kinds to enjoy over the next few day. They were so yummy and creamy and not overly sweet which I enjoyed. Now it was time to head to Victoria Harbour to have lunch with friends and go for a bit of a tour of the area with them. We had a great time. While driving back into the park I saw a deer in the woods and was able to get a number of photos as she slowly ate her way along a trail. I was about 15 feet from her most of the time. This is the doe that has an antler and is called Unicorn by the park staff. I compared the pictures I took to the ones I got a couple of years ago and I am sure it is the same one by the markings on her. After such a busy day we spent the evening relaxing in front of the fire.
Sunday was another rainy day but I was able to go for a short hike with the aid of the umbrella. While hiking the Nipissing trail there was a huge tree down over the stair section so it limited me on my hike. It looked like it was a fresh fall so I reported it to park staff who were not aware of it. We had a late breakfast and started to pack up in the pouring rain to head home. Needless to say we both needed a change of clothes before we left the park for home. I had the time of my life this weekend and I will carry those amazing moments with me forever.