Bruce Trail End to End

Toronto - Scotsdale Farm (29.7 km) to Winston Churchill Blvd. (42.8 km) - Dec. 2, 2021.

Our hike this week in the Toronto Section began at Scotsdale Farm on Trafalgar Road and wound through the Silver Creek Conservation Area and the Terra Cotta Conservation Area, and concluded at Winston Churchill Blvd., covering a distance of 14.2 km (13.16 km of main trail).

The route took approximately 4 hours and 40 minutes to complete, and, as per the topographical profile above, was relatively flat save for two major climbs, one fairly steep and one gradual. Our total ascent for the day was 282 meters.

Who would actually sign up to complete this hike you ask?..well, 13 of us did! Myself, Rhonda (welcome back!), Marleen, Fran (who recently completed the BT for her 3rd time), Ron B., Alex, Doug (contributing photographer), Arpi, Brian, Muris, Boyd, Barbara, and our leader, Steve.

A quick side note...my new boots finally arrived from the store in Vernon, BC...look how shiny and clean they are in this "before" photo...stay tuned...

A relatively dry, cool morning greeted us for our first hike of December...we set off to hook up with the main trail...

It was quickly determined that for some, icers were a good idea, as the previous days' precipitation would make the precipitous trail more perilous.

Brian had once again upped his head wear game, adopting the rarely seen "ball cap/toque/rain hood" combination...

A moment to regroup and, for some, a chance to doff a layer as we warmed to the task at hand (foot?)...

Back on the trail and dealing with the usual obstacles with varying techniques...

Every blog is enhanced when a Boyd smile is included...

The trail conditions were fairly reasonable up to this point...things would deteriorate as the morning progressed...

Always nice to have friendly posted reminders of where you are...

Muris, aka "Seawolf", discussing strategy with Doug and Boyd...while others ponder life on the trail...

Escarpment hopscotch was in play as we negotiated some tricky footing...

Pathfinders find other Pathfinders...on the path!..who knew this could happen?..heated discussions ensued as to which group was going in the right direction, but after a short delay, it was agreed that we would allow each other to pass and continue on to find our respective paths...

A trail counter embedded in a post...our group did a great job of upping the stats on this day...

I know you've been waiting for it (after last week's disappointing omission)...and here it is!...the bridge pic!..

Okay...enough of that...back to hiking...

This hill assault was a "pick your (muddy) poison" proposition...

One hiker left evidence of her downfall...

Question: Should we stop soon for Elevensies?..just a bit further?..

Wait...didn't we just cross this creek?..didn't we already do a bridge pic?..

We found the spot!..time to refuel...

The day has momentarily brightened as we continue the journey...

Barbara stands in front of an historic piece of property...I'll let her describe the background:

"Here's a photo of the farm as I remember it in the 1980's. Although derelict now, the home has heritage designation as it dates back to the early pioneers of the area and is thought to be the oldest home in the area. The farm was purchased by the Vaughn family, of the Eaton Company in the 1940's and then farmed by my fathers cousin, a Scottish immigrant. The Vaughns sold the farm to the Silver Creek Conservation Area in 1979."