Peninsula - Borchardt Road (111.1 km) to Crane Lake (127.9 km) - June 7, 2022.

 Our Hiking with Friends group has made the trek north once again for the third and final 3 day session to tackle the remainder of the Peninsula Section and, for one special hiker, a chance to put "the feather in the cap" and officially complete the Bruce Trail! We commenced our first day where we left off last trip, at Borchardt Road in North Cape Chin and hiked 17 km north to Crane Lake in the Bruce Peninsula National Park. 

A view of our route from the sky shows that we will follow the shoreline for about the first half of the walk, and then veer inland and do some road walking to finish off. This hike would take us just under 6 hours to complete and involved a modest 185 meters of climbing, most of that in small bits.

Before we start the hike however, we must talk about what quickly became known as "the crossing", an unanticipated obstacle that we encountered on our way to drop cars at our finish near Crane Lake. Hard to tell from the photo, but this depression caused by the previous night's rainfall draining from one side of the road to the other (where there really should have been a culvert), was deep and nasty. Fortunately, we were able to negotiate it and get to the parking area.

So after a fairly long delay getting ourselves sorted out, we are assembled at Borchardt Road and ready to take up the task at hand...our group for this final session has been graced by the return of Arpi, now a resident of the Collingwood area, Sandra, Barb C, Barbara K-W, Frances, Annette, Doug, guest hiker Ben (son of Steve), Steve, Brian, and myself. So let's get started!

We are greeted by a very damp morning, there was some rain the previous night and there is still a humid mist hanging about...we quickly determine that the footing is very precarious, and much like our last hike the previous trip, a high degree of concentration will be required to avoid slipping and/or falling...Brian is either doing that, or looking for his lost car keys...

Our first sign of colour on this dreary day is from a lady's slipper on the side of the trail...then we admire a somewhat muted view of the coastline shrouded in low clouds...

Our next point of interest is the short but challenging blue side trail for the Devil's Monument...most of us make the trip down to see it and the shoreline and it's well worth it...

A small waterfall which flows straight out of the rock face adds a nice auditory enhancement to this quite spectacular area..

We spend a few moments on the beach...we would love to stay longer, but we still have a long hike ahead of us...

After Doug adds one more rock to the inukshuk, we climb our way back up to the main trail to continue our journey...

 Ben seems to be enjoying his father/son time together as he heads onward...his dad has caught his attention and we can only hope he is heeding his father's experienced voice...

The terrain is certainly challenging, but we can only move forward and put our trust in every step...not much chance to look up very often...

The reward for our hard work is spectacular views like these that seem to appear at regular intervals...it is breathtaking scenery, even on a misty morning like this...

Lots of ups and downs keep the blood pumping and the ropes are certainly appreciated on the more difficult sections...

We pass the intersection of the Lillie Family Side Trail and shortly afterwards, emerge onto Britain Lake Road...

We meet a couple of other hikers on our short stretch of road walking who are doing a loop hike in the opposite direction...

Soon after, it's a right turn back into the woods and we head for the escarpment edge again...

A great moment for father and son as they stand by some profound words...

Our next side trail intersection is the Anne and Clayton Roberts Side Trail, named after "long tome trail captains par excellence"...we pause to admire Dyer's Bay...

Brian captures the rest of us in front of a natural "rock window"...there are so many fascinating formations on this coastline...erosion is a beautiful thing...

We take a short break on Dyer's Bay Road before continuing on...the weather is improving and it is starting to dry out which is a good thing for tiring hikers...

We are now on the "Laird Property" and they certainly deserve their own side trail, don't they?..

We pass through a quite pretty forest prior to turning westward and proceeding more inland...

We emerge from the meadow at Gillies Lake Road (Lindsay Road 40) and do the requisite "boot brush" at the station...it's pretty much a gravel road from here on in...a chance to stretch the legs...

But first, we need a rest and refuel...and Arpi has provided some homemade treats to give us that added energy we need for the last kilometers...mmmmm...

There aren't many buildings along this stretch of road, but a pretty red residence captures our attention...could be a former schoolhouse?

After a right turn onto Crane Lake Road, we pass a small farm and attract the attention of some horses...

We each gave our own interpretation of what this statue appeared like...bird, dinosaur, turtle?..you choose...

We reach "the crossing" and, while the water has drained somewhat, it is still a serious depression and cause for concern when we leave with our fully loaded cars...

We cross the boundary of the Bruce Peninsula National Park, spot some sand cranes (too far away to get a good picture), and reach the parking lot at Crane Lake...a tired but satisfied group who are looking forward to a hot shower and a good meal...it's been a good start to our final peninsula trip and with the weather forecast looking good, we are already anticipating tomorrow's "big one"...we'll see you then!

The End