Sun, Sep 10 2006 - Forks of the Credit/Cataract - Jo's Group (View Original Event Details)
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This was certainly a hike to remember! On a gorgeous sunny day, two groups, one early starting, and one late starting, combined to make one large group of 32 people and two dogs. This was a bit of an experiment to see what it would be like hiking with that many. The jury's still out, but it certainly provided an opportunity to meet many people.
Our two dogs, Simba and Hogan, were quite a couple! Simba the Maltese puppy was surprisingly energetic and a great hiker, as long as Cordelia could give him a rest now and again by carrying him. Hogan the chocolate Lab seemed to be quite excited by all the people in his "pack" but never lost sight of where his "mom" (Val) was. Both behaved very well and will be most welcome on future TOC hikes.
We were working from maps that were not entirely clear - Jo had lost her much clearer Bruce Trail reference map somewhere between Downsview and the park. So we experienced a slight "detour" where we stopped for lunch. Luckily, a local put us back on the right track. The route involved walking on roads, and it was hard to believe that the long uphill on busy Mississauga Road was actually part of the suggested route (It was!). For future hikes to the Forks, we'll go another way. The Elora-Cataract Trailway was very pleasant, and full of hikers, cyclists and evidence of horses.
Sights included the actual "Forks" of the Credit river, and the remains of an old mill at the Cataract, where the rivers drops into a small waterfall. Jo stayed with the back of the group, while Jason stayed near the front. There are many advantages to taking a leisurely pace. Jennifer, Dan and Rebecca found a harvest of apples and pears from old orchard trees. We also came upon a porcupine in the meadow - only a couple of metres away from us. It looked us over and turned around to show its impressive quills.
Once finished, we were all tired and happy to get off our feet. We didn't have the usual get together afterwards due to the volunteer meeting that night, but a few of us stopped at Tim's in Snelgrove for some refreshment on the way home.
All in all, an exhausting but very pleasant hike (except for Mississauga Road!). There were many interesting conversations and it was great talking to new TOC members in "Jo's group" like Neil, Val, Dan, Rebecca and Cordelia. Since there were two coordinators on this hike, I recommend you also take a look at Jason (El Rey)'s writeup. It's a literary masterpiece, contains a poem, and has tons of photos.
Have some photos from this event that you'd like to share in our photo album? Please forward them to Erik Sonstenes at photos@torontooutdoorclub.com. Please note that we prefer to receive the photos in approximately 640x480 or 750x500 pixels - do NOT send original high-res photos. If you have a LOT of photos, please submit up to twenty of your favorites (only) for a day event, or up to forty of your favourites for a multi-day event. Thank you.