Newmarket Break

After a couple of hours travelling on the morning of Tuesday May 19th we left the Trans Canada Trail to cut across country towards Sharon near Newmarket (just outside Toronto), initially on gravel roads..

Besides the modern rail fence shown in the above photo, it is quite common to see traditional split rail fences in this part of Canada.  The type below with rails between double posts is popular but can only be used where the soil cover is deep enough to drive in posts ....

  but one also sees the types shown below with rails supported by braced posts ...

..or built up in a zig-zag pattern.

These styles can be used where a rocky surface with thin or non existent soil cover means posts cannot be driven into the ground. 

 

A cool breezy day meant we covered over 40 kms to Zephyr quite easily.  Following advice from a young man I talked to (thank you Dale!) I found myself staying at with former educationalists Jay and Jean Hooper at their beautiful house with stunning interior design and an insect free stall in a spacious barn for Lady. 

 

Wednesday May 20th The last 30 kilometres to Sharon were mainly on metalled roads, but with Jean's help we planned out a relatively traffic free route..

Sign outside a garden centre near Sharon..

I had arranged to stay in Sharon for a few days at the lovely Quaker home of Russell and Darlene Morton, which unfortunately is due to be demolished when the area is redeveloped due to Toronto urban sprawl. .

The irrepressible Darlene is a fellow Welsh pony breeder (see Morton Stables) and had been expecting me since I contacted her about two years ago!  I had a very busy three days off, hiring a car to move my surplus baggage from Ottawa, dealing with media commitments, having my unruly mop of hair cut, trying to catch up with my blog, and planning the next stage as on Darlene's advice I had decided to cross into the USA at Sarnia-Port Huron  rather than Windsor-Detroit.  But Russell kept me fortified with his wonderful breakfast pancakes with maple syrup, and son Ray rather rashly let me have a go with his driving ponies....

The farrier also came to fit Lady with new shoes

..and at my request he welded borium onto the undersurface. 

Hard wearing borium not only provides better grip on slippery surfaces, but can considerably prolong shoe life. Lady had been through two sets of shoes since I started from Trois Rivieres as the farriers I used did not have a borium supply readily available, but hopefully this would mean the set of shoes would take me a lot further. (P.S They got me to Chicago!)

 

My one regret was that I never really had time to look properly round Darlene's lovely ponies, with which she has had considerable success.  She has imported many Welsh and British riding ponies over the years, and I was able to see their impressive Section B stallion Stockham Commander, who was imported from the UK stud of mutual friends the Fillinghams. Unfortunately their beloved imported stallion Rhoson Pasiant has only recently passed away.

From left to right - Darlene, grandson Hunter, Russell, daughter Angie.

Many thanks for providing a base and lots of help and support not to mention laughs!

Mosquitoes

   Sunday May 17th and it was a morning's ride to Peterborough.  We were not held up by the beaver ambush....

 ...but by the disappearing trail.....

 ...and once in Peterborough Lady had to accede to the attentions of her many fans...

 and negotiate a maze of streets and parks and yet another grill bridge (we could not follow the trail across a lock gate)

..but eventually we found ourselves on the trail out of town meandering through Jackson Park.

 I managed to find a barn near the trail (thank you Lydia and Russell) though the insects were troublesome both inside and out and I ended up huddled down in my sleeping bag under the stars again.

 Monday 18th and incidentally Victoria Day in Canada, which rather oddly celebrates Queen Victoria's birthday - I suppose it is any excuse for a knees up with the Canadians.

Crossing local landmark Doube's trestle bridge near Orange Corners...

It is 200 metres long (apparently reduced from 500 metres by filling in) and is suspended 29 metres above the Buttermilk valley, offering panoramic views to those without a fear of heights - I tramped across with head down and eyes firmly on the planks.

 

It was another hot and muggy day, so it was great to find this idyllic lunch spot at Reaboro with covered picnic area out of the sun and even a portaloo!  

Spring blossom on the trail...

An interesting challenge to negotiate these gates in Lindsay with saddle bags..

After a long hot and sweaty day I was relieved to find somewhere to stay at last when I noticed a neat barn with a horse head weathercock and well kept paddocks.   Shane Warner used to breed and compete barrel racing quarter horses but sadly had to sell them due to a stroke. The spotlessly clean barn was now used for storage, but wife Gladys cleared a space for a lounger to put my sleeping bag on.  I eagerly accepted the offer of a shower, cup of tea and sandwich, and enjoyed a good horsey chinwag with Shane. 

Lady had use of a large grassy paddock, but the mosquitoes came out in force that evening, and I was thankful Gladys had said I could bring her into the narrow central alleyway in the barn. When I opened the door I was hit by a tremendous buzz of insects and this lasted until well up to midnight.  By then there was also a bit of a breeze and the mosquitoes abated enough for me to turn Lady out again.

True Brits

A muggy buggy start to Saturday May 16th...

We soon reached Hastings, where I tethered Lady while I went for a coffee and delicious raspberry muffin in the cool interior at Banjo's Grill , a small intimate café with a lovely riverside location right by the bridge.  Much recommended.
The bridge turned out to have a metal grill section, and to my horror I discovered the pedestrian walkway at the side also had a metal grill rather than the usual concrete surface.  There was no alternative, and if Lady refused to cross it meant a long detour of at least a day.  Would she do it?

 .. but she proved she is worth her weight in gold again by tramping across without hesitation.

After my coffee stop it was a relief to come across a convenient convenience ....

 

 A tunnel under Highway 2 on the very well maintained Lang-Hastings trail which forms part of the Trans Canada Trail.

 

I inadvertently caused consternation to a nesting osprey when I stopped to bug spray Lady...

 ..the nest was on one of two small platforms especially placed to encourage these glorious birds of prey.
Not sure what this hirsute gentleman is up to.......

 

...but I gave this ominous individual a wide berth...



...a snapping turtle well over a foot long about to cross the trail at a swampy section.

The trail appears to be little used by horse riders, so another rider approaching was a unique sight....

...but this was Alex Winship on her daughter Katy's appaloosa gelding Everest coming to guide me in to her Barn View boarding stables.  After a week of 'winging it' I had managed to phone ahead the day before to arrange accommodation for Lady, and it was a relief to have somewhere sorted and not have to worry about where I would be staying that night.
Alex and Bob are Brits who moved over from Coventry about six years ago and are loving Canada.  They gave me a tremendous welcome and even took me for a meal at the nearby Elmhirst's Resort where I had arguably the best meal I have had in Canada so far.
Not only that but I was provided with a peaceful bedroom with views out over the rolling countryside and had the chance to shower and put all my clothes including rank socks into the washing machine, and relax with my hosts and a glass or two of wine in the gazebo.  Thank you both!

Bob, Alex and daughter Katy who had just survived a car prang!  Older daughter Charlotte had also just averted a fire at her house, so the family were looking somewhat relieved to be intact.

Amazing Grace

A frosty start to May 14th and a morning's ride through forest and swamp until we started to reach more cultivated land near Tweed.  Lakeside trail to Tweed ..

 A novel idea (!) - a little lending library at a spot by a park bench overlooking the lake....

See littlefreelibrary.org



Lady was feeling more energetic, and we continued some way past Tweed, eventually finding a place to stay near Ivanhoe with Pete and Julie Marshall, who keep pulling horses (by which I mean horses that pull) .

Pete's champion pony pulling pair, harnessed up ready for work. 

The lovely grey Molly is a Percheron mare, the other a Haflinger/quarter horse gelding.  Pete was a mine of interesting equine information, but exhausted by the previous night's lack of shut-eye, I reluctantly retired relatively early.  Pete let me use their mobile home, and I slept like a log.
May 15th and cutting across country something tells me I am travelling through Amish land..

Another little clue...

And it is not long before I come across this neat Amish farm with vegetable garden and washing hung out to dry...

..and this rural ploughing scene....

I had hoped to stop somewhere just the other side of Campbellford, but although farmland ran back to the trail, it was not until I reached a country road several miles further on that I came across a farmhouse surrounded by machinery.  It had started to rain as I knocked at the door, so I was relieved when a friendly elderly lady appeared. Grace Wynne invited me in, and when son Michael arrived Lady was put into a shed with an enormous pile of hay while I joined them for supper. To my surprise it transpired that Grace was very well travelled, having visited China, Argentina, Singapore, Malaysia, the Aegean and the UK to name but a few.  With her husband she drove all over America including Alaska and Labrador, though they failed to make South America when they ran out of road.

 Grace with some of the twenty seven barn cats she feeds...

Night on a park bench

Canada geese on the Centenntial Frontenac Trail near Maberley May 12th ....

After passing through Sharbot Lake, where I stopped for lunch at a little café overlooking the lake, we re-joined the Trans Canada Trail.  This section was quite flooded in parts...

Flooding on the trails are quite often caused by the activities of beavers, who build some impressive dams such as this one ..

We disturb an osprey on its nest....

The platform is man made.  

  A little way further down the trail I encountered a pick-up driven by a genial bear of a man.  "I've been looking for you for days" he announced.  Mike Hawley invited me to stay at his house just down the trail, and although it was a bit early in the day I decided to take advantage of his offer.  A good decision as Lady needed a rest, and I crashed out for two hours immediately on arrival!  It was an excellent opportunity for us both to chill out, and I was spoilt by Bob and wife Norah, shown below in front of their characterful old cedar house in the middle of nowhere.

Bob has a large extended family in the area, and by chance the next morning May 13th I bumped into his twin sisters Arlene and Marlene gathering plants on the trail for a bird sanctuary in Mountain Grove...

Another stunning section of trail...

....and well maintained if flooded in parts. 

 

The woodland floor was sometimes dotted with pretty white flowers..

..and it turned out these were trillium, the Ontario provincial emblem.  Like the tulip n Kazakhstan, they only last for a couple of weeks, so I was lucky to see them.

After miles of riding through uninhabited forest, I arrived at Kaladar.  I could not find anywhere for Lady, and she ended up tethered behind the community centre, though the cooler weather meant the mosquitoes were minimal.  I curled up in my bivi and sleeping bags in my airy bedroom...

Not very restful as lorries thundered past all night on the Trans Canada Highway which passes through Kaladar.

 

Beating the Bugs

10th May and Mother's Day in Canada!  The Trans Canada rail trail ended at Carleton Place, so I cut across country via small roads towards Perth.  Annoyingly my cell phone package ran out, and as feared it proved impossible to extend it via the phone in spite of the previous assurances of the assistants at Bell.  Happily I was stopped by John Hopkinson formerly from Brighton, an ex Brit who has lived in Canada since the 1950s, and we were soon joined by Maureen and teenage daughter Cherish - I immediately took advantage of her youthful nonce to tackle the intricacies of Bell technology, but it still took over an hour to sort it out.

 

Cherish succeeds in communicating with a live person while Maureen acts as groom and John adds moral support. We then had to use Maureen's credit card to pay (I reimbursed her with cash) as Bell would not accept my debit card.   But I had a working phone at last and we parted like old friends!
A little further down the road a couple in a car stopped and offered me a place to stay for the night conveniently just where I was aiming for.  Psychoanalyst Arthur Leonoff and wife Linda (a multi-birth consultant) lived in a beautiful old stone house built by one of the many Campbells who have inhabited the area since the early 1800s.

Lady had a huge field and I retired to a luxurious bedroom after being wined and dined.

Cheerful walking buddies Kathy and Renee who I met on the road the following morning May 11th.

They turned up in a car later to donate a flashing road light for me to use!
Soon after I reached the lovely Centennial Frontenac Trail which follows an abandoned railway line from Perth to Sharbot Lake past woods and lakes... 

I was now expecting to spend a few days crossing a region of forest and swamp, and with temperatures rising, was concerned about the onset of the insect season.  A few mosquitoes had already been making their presence felt and I did not want to get caught in the middle of the wilds tormented by bugs and with no shelter.  Hopefully I would make it to the other side without too much trouble, but I hoped to find buildings for Lady where necessary.

I didn't wait to see if this was dead or alive....

I was aiming for Sharbot Lake, but Lady was feeling a bit off colour so I decided to look for somewhere near Maberley with shelter for Lady, and was taken in by the lovely Sue Howlett, shown here with her horses before leaving for work on the morning of May 12th...

Lady spent the night in the barn with a large pile of hay though the mosquitoes were not too bad.