Peninsula - Jacksons Cove Road (51.9 km) to Park Road/Sydney Bay Road (31.7 km) - May 10, 2022.

It's Day 2 of our first peninsula trip of the spring season AND it is my elder daughter's birthday so, for me, today's hike is for her...and it's going to be a monster. Yesterday's outing introduced us to the beauty and majesty of the peninsula...today will be all that and a bag of (hot) chips...a 21.3 km (incl. 20 km of main trail), 8 hour and 20 minute marathon on an unusually warm (high 20's) spring day that, as I referenced in my previous blog's introduction, tested our endurance like none other since my introduction to the Bruce Trail 2 1/2 years ago. 

Oh, did I mention that we also climbed a staggering 542 meters (1780 ft) as well?..this happens to also be the height of the C.N Tower...

I don't want to sound too dramatic...I appreciate that there have been tougher outings for many of you, but for me, I raised the bar on this day to a new level of what I can achieve with perseverance, fortitude, and most importantly, the support that comes when you are "hiking with friends".

Speaking of dramatic, how about this bird's eye view of the route, which essentially wound around Hope Bay and Sydney Bay...the elevation profile captures several significant elevation changes, as well as a myriad of smaller "up and downs"...

Hey look!...we are all back after a night in Owen Sound (and an excellent dinner out for some of us at our favorite Mexican restaurant)...you know us by now...so let's get started!..it's going to be a long one (as our leader Steve has dutifully warned us), but, as they say, this is what we signed up for...

Side note: you can't see my legs (yet), but I am the only (male) hiker wearing shorts...this may change during the course of the day...

A short stroll down Jackson's Cove Side Trail leads us to the white blazes we seek...

We are soon greeted by the imposing bare rock face of the escarpment...stark, prehistoric, and monolithic all at the same time...I am in awe...

The trail is technically challenging but we are fresh, and other than quick pauses to soak in the cool forest and its wonder, we do make reasonably good time through this early segment...

Some of the exposed rock exhibits signs of long past wave erosion...

 This roughly 2 km stretch was one of the most interesting I had experienced yet on the B.T...what would the rest of the day hold?..

We catch our first morning views of Hope Bay...with Bull's Landing just below...this bay, along with Sydney Bay just south of the bluff across the way, are both part of the larger Melville Sound. 

One of those spots you could just pull up a Muskoka chair and just call it a day...

But it's back to the trail for us...putting the steps in...

The sign warns us, and sure enough we encounter our next visual treat...a rather large fissure in the dolomite capstone, with its own little bridge across...that we should try standing on...said no one...

...no one except Brian that is...

Not sure if Brian has just realized where he was standing (note: it was a lot safer than the picture suggested), or is blown away by the spectacular view?.

A cool breeze off the bay causes the ripple effect...and a smile effect for increasingly warming hikers...

Oh...and see that short road waaaaaay over there?..we need to get there...at some point...you might say there was "some Hope to go around"...and we were going to need some hope...

Our work rate intensified over the next couple of hours...and it was getting warmer by the minute...it was around this point that the enormity of today's challenge began to sink in...the end of the bay was still a ways away, and there was another bluff after that...head down, keep moving...

Such a beautiful trail though...

Another really impressive area with caves and nooks...it was much cooler here as well...exposed rock is nature's refrigeration...

We've just about reached the end of the bay and we began a (thankfully) somewhat gradual descent down to the village of Hope Bay...we need a shady spot to rest soon...it's pretty hot out and that was a decent effort to get this far...

We spill out onto Water Street...shade ahead!

The hiking gods grant us our wish and the shaded porch of a yet to be opened for the season camp store offers its cedar tables and chairs up for our expropriation...

To Brian's amazement (and envy?), Doug is able to catch a quick nap during elevensie's...

Brian dips his feet in Hope Bay...

Remember that short white road we spotted way back from the other side of the bay?..well we reached it, and it was a long, hot climb up to the next trail head entrance...Brock Street, I shall not soon forget you...

Hey you hot and exhausted hiker!...come and climb these two long steep ladders to add to your enjoyment!..no extra charge!..come on, it'll be fun...

A somewhat ambiguous sign regarding First Nation's hunting trail closures in this area is followed soon after by what was interpreted by some as a rifle sound, and you can now add frayed nerves to our tiredness and overheating...

We are now on Sydney Bay Bluffs, part of the Neyaashiinigmiing Reserve No. 27...formerly called the Cape Croker area.

A look out over Hope Bay from the south...we came from over there...

Shade is at a premium and a few of us are running short of water, and energy...I don't use a lot of selfies in the blog (other than our opening group shot generally), but I thought I would record this moment when I was just about as low as I've ever been on the trail...sore feet, fatigue, upset stomach...and still at least a couple of hours of hot hiking ahead of us...I pride myself on my stamina, but my face reveals I am slipping away from the fun side of hiking and moving to the "why I am out here again?" zone.

Nothing else to do but haul ourselves up and make our way...if we get near the next bay, maybe a cooling breeze might be our saviour?..

But why not tackle a few hills first?...by the way, you may notice that there are now a couple of more male hikers who have adopted bare legs for the afternoon...smart idea...

The beauty of the forest floor does help provide a distraction to the rigours of the day...

Some of us decide to use up precious energy to venture the 100 metres or so up the Sydney Bay Bluff Lookout Side Trail for another inspiring view...it's well worth it...

I notice yet another "killed by blaze" tree on the way back to the main trail...

We need (deserve?) another rest stop a short while later...shade is still at a premium however...my smile is somewhat forced...

We reach the end of Sydney Bay, but we are quite a ways above lake level...we anticipate the upcoming descent...oh, and see that road waaaaay in the distance?...that's where our cars are...

We arrive at a set of steep stairs and begin our "de-escarpment" down to the water...important to keep your focus here...

The stairs are followed by a roughly half kilometer stretch of boulder hopping, ankle twisting, knee scraping climbing down...

...but we all made it down safely...Steve exhibits what we are all feeling...

We cross Park Road and are then greeted by a quite nicely constructed boardwalk that parallels the shoreline for a couple of kilometeres...this was a delightful respite for our feet, and helped rejuvenate us somewhat...it also was much cooler in the shade!

We paused by the water to rest again and then it was time to push for the finish...

The boardwalk was beautifully adorned by bright yellow flowers...

The last stretch of today's hike took us through Cape Croker Park...as we emerged from the campground area, we happened upon this small store which was open!...and, they had water, and ice cream!..it was an oasis in the desert and it literally saved our day...there was still a couple of kilometers of road walking ahead (which I did not record as by this time, I did not even have the energy to pull my phone out), but I want this shot to be your last memory for this day...eight hiking friends stuck it out together for over eight hours on the trail...and ate ice cream together at...

The End