Awenda, July13-15 2012

Let me introduce you to our guest for the week-end.
This is Chippy!!!

Welcome to Awenda Park. This is our second trip here and
it gets better each time we go. Our trip up is a great drive
through Hockley Valley. We stopped at the Stanton General
Store for some of the best fudge in the world and a few other
things.Another stop was just outside of Staynor for some
fresh corn, fruit and home made desserts for the week-end.
When we arrived at the park they had no record of our
booking so I had to get our reservation book and show them
our copy. With a little looking on there part they were able to
find it and we were on our way to our site.
While cooking dinner that evening we had a guest arrive
who seemed to be very friendly. It was Chippy and he
seemed to want to get to know us better. With a small
offering of peanuts the week-end friendship began.
We spent lots of time enjoying his company and he enjoying
the nuts we fed him. By Sunday morning he was there as
soon as we appeared outside but was told it was to early
and he would have to wait. He did wait and was back as
soon as we called for him. I am sure he has a good supply
of nuts to last him a while.
Saturday we headed to Penetanguishene and Midland to
check out the sights and see about taking a boat cruise on
Georgian Bay. The only cruise was a 3 1/2 hr dinner cruise
and we opted to pass as we were not planning to be in town
all day. There were hundreds of boats docked in and around
the marina's in both towns. While in Midland we drove to
the very end of Young St. just so we could say we have been at
both ends of it. If you are not aware, Young St. is the longest
street in the world. It runs from Lake Ontario in Toronto
to Georgian Bay in Midland. We had a great campfire in the
evening and headed off to bed shortly before midnight.
Sunday we were a little later getting going as we slept in a bit.
We visited with Chippy in the morning and I walked the
campground a bit to get some pic's. We headed down to the
beach after we left our site and enjoyed a nice hike to beach
#4. The water was so warm and there was lots of sand to
go for a walk out into the water. The rocks in this area were
large and spread out so you didn't need shoes on. We enjoyed
some time sitting out in the water on the rocks before we had
to head back to Arista for the drive home.
I had suggested to Duncan earlier in the day that he could
leave me and the motor home here and come back to get me
later in the week. I really was enjoying the w/e and didn't
want it to end.
P.S. I was able to get a few videos of Chippy and when I
figure out how to post them I will.

Photos of a great week-end away :o}

The red of the sunset on a log and a tree trunk on our
walk to the beach Friday evening.


Sunset through the trees near the beach.


Sunset on Georgian Bay at beach #1.


This is nature at its best. Fungus, leaves and wood.


This fungus was weeping in the heat of the day.


Fungus along the main road to our campsite.


Morning sun breaking through the trees.


The round morning sun shining on a tree
trunk with the reflection of leaves from
another tree.


Chippy our campsite friend for the week-end. If the
shells were broken open a bit he would just take the
nuts out and leave the shells behind. This way he
could take more in one trip.


His mouth is so full but still he gets more to take with
him to stash for later.


Duncan tried putting one between his toes to see if
Chippy would find it and and he did.


I had to try the toe trick. He tickled my feet when he
took them. You had to put them between your toes
while he was away or he would steal it out of your hand.


Chippy climbed right up on my lap to help himself to
some peanuts. He would eat some sitting there and
take others to his hiding spots.


This is the entrance to the house in the ground where
most of the peanuts were stashed.


This is the log he was hiding some of his peanuts in.


This seagull was hoping to join us for lunch on the
dock in Midland on Saturday afternoon. It was so
hot even he was panting.


Walking through the woods on the way to beach #4.


Sitting on a rock enjoying the view. The water here was
like bath water.


Relaxing in the warm waters of Georgian Bay at Awenda.

Port Burwell July 6-8, 2012

This was a very relaxing week-end. The weather was too
hot and humid to be doing much of anything. It was 41 C
with the humidity. Friday we enjoyed a swim in Lake Erie
before supper. We spent most of Saturday on the beach
enjoying the water and hiding under the beach umbrellas
from the sun & heat. Sunday I went for a hike in the woods
while Duncan had a rest before we headed home. We
always enjoy our week-ends at Port Burwell.

Pic's from a relaxing week-end!!!

The spiders were very busy working on their webs.


This tree is wearing its feelings on its bark.
How can we cheer you up?


Great old tree in the Port Burwell forest.


This butterfly was enjoying some rays while I hiked through
the woods.


Campsite companion for the week-end.
This was a young fella with a good appetite.


Can you find the frog hiding in the stones?

"Squircoon"

This fella was resting on the hot tub fence on a very hot
and humid day. I think that there has been some hanky,
panky going on between the squirrel population and the
racoons. This fellow has a coon tail!!!

Letchworth State Park, New York. June 29-July 3 2012

Our first trip out of Canada with Arista was lots
of fun. We stayed at Darien Lake State Park as we
were not able to book a site at Letchworth. First
I must say that we in Ontario don't know what
amazing camping facilities we have here until
you travel elsewhere. Our sites are far superior
than what we saw in New York State.
The trip down was 3 hours and the border
crossing was a breeze. We spent Saturday,
Sunday & Monday at Letchworth Park.
On Saturday we entered the park from the
southern entrance at Portageville and started
working our way north. There were many stairs
and hills to climb down and up to get to the best
viewing areas. Our legs were going to get lots of
exercise this week-end. We visited two of the Falls
areas, Inspiration Point and the Visitors Center.
On Sunday we traveled back to the park and
entered through the Castile Entrance to the park.
On the 40 min. drive to the park I started feeling
unwell and as the day progressed things just got
worse. Duncan started feeling sick but was not
as bad as I was. We think it was the eggs we had
for breakfast but are not sure. I tried my best to
see what we could but my body was in slow gear
and I was running on empty as I was not eating.
We toured around the camping facilities
and visited the most eastern parts of the
park which included Gardeau Overlook, the
Hogs-Back area and both sides of the Mount
Morris Dam area. Neither one of us had much
supper that evening and I sat wrapped in a
blanket at the campfire on this hot summer
night. It was an earlier than normal bedtime
for me.
Monday morning brought some relief but my stomach
was still feeling nauseated. We headed back through the
countryside to see the Lower Falls area on our last day
at Letchworth. The drive to and from the park was like
taking a roller coaster ride in slow motion. You would
climb a hill only to travel back down to the bottom and
into a small town or village and then climb back up again.
The views along the way were well enjoyed. Upon entering
the park we spotted a deer in the woods enjoying a late
morning treat. We hiked to the Lower Falls and explored
this area for a few hours. There were 172 stairs we had to
climb down to get to the bottom of the first section. The
view was breathtaking. To get to the Lower Footbridge
there were more stairs and pathways. It was well worth
the journey. Lets just say the trip back up was going to be
longer than the trip down. We stopped for a bite to eat
and did some more exploring before taking a longer scenic
route back to Darien Lake State Park. We enjoyed a long
campfire that evening and a good night sleep.
Monday we had to be off our site by 11 am so we headed
back to Canada but not before I had some time to shop
in Buffalo. I spent a mere $13.00. I guess I was not
feeling up to shopping. I would love to return to
Leatchworth Park in the fall. There are more than
60 miles of trails we still have to explore and it
would be breathtaking in its fall colors.

A small sample of the 330 photos I took


Come join us as we explore a small portion
of Letchworth State Park.


A train was just starting to cross the tressel
as we started our descent to the Upper Falls.


The pathway down to the Upper Falls.


One of the many stone bridges in the park.


Erosion of the Genesee River wall below
the Upper Falls


The Upper Falls with all of the mist in the left
of the photo. It felt nice on a hot day.


The Upper Falls with a view of the train tressel
from the north ridge.


This is a small waterfall by the
Glen Iris Inn. Duncan could get
up close to this one!!!


This is the former home of Wm. Letchworth.
It is now the Glen Iris Inn. We had a great
lunch here on Saturday and the view was
breathtaking. There are several rooms here
if you want to stay in the park.


Middle Falls from the upper ridge in front of
the Glen Iris Inn.


Middle Falls from the midway point on the ridge.


Viewing the Middle Falls from the lower
north side.


The Letchworth Museum at the Middle Falls.


You can rent this Stone House situated
across from Inspiration Point.


The patterns in the bark on some
of the trees were amazing.


Looking west from Inspiration
Point towards the Middle Falls.


One of the many stairways that
were built during the depression
to give men work for $1.oo a day.


Looking west from Big Bend. In photos on
display the jut in the middle looked like an
island during flooding in 1992.


Mount Morris Dry Dam at the east end of
Leatchworth Park looking south. The Dam
is used to hold water back only if there is a
threat of flooding down stream.


"The Pyramids of Letchworth"
Looking into the Gorge from the south side
at the Mount Morris Visitors Centre. During
the flooding in 1992 the water almost
overflowed the top of the dam.


Lower Falls from above on the north side.


Some of the vegetation on the north side of
the gorge at the Lower Falls.


There was much more plant growth
on the south side of the cliffs in this
area due to all the moisture seeping
through the cliffs.


Moss and plant life on the southern side of
the Genesee River.


Looking up river from the south side of the
Lower Falls. I crossed the foot bridge and
climbed up the southern side of the river.


The suns reflection from the Genesee River
on the underside of the Foot Bridge.


A view from the north side of the Lower Falls
and the scenery looking down stream.


The Lower Falls. Duncan was having a heart
attack as I was out on the ledge taking
pictures at this angle so I could capture the
rainbow from the spray. Don't worry it was not
as scary as it looks. I'm not that brave!!!


This stone barn was just outside of the town
of Attica.


A view of the countryside as we drove from
Darien Lake State Park to Letchworth State
Park.