My friend Nigel and I decided to head out for a bike ride on the Etobicoke Creek trail. The trail takes us along the edge of Pearson airport, although you wouldn’t know it for most of the ride. The trail takes you through some beautiful meadow and forest with the occasional glimpse of the road and airport beyond it. As we rode along I noticed that my brakes weren’t working the best and when we hit a larger hill I realized that the brakes were going to be an issue and the ride needed to end before I broke my neck…lol
Etobicoke Creek forest floor
I did make it safely to the bottom of the hill, with both front and back brakes engaged, and found this gorgeous scene to my right. It was worth the slightly stressful ride down the hill. After this we decided not to continue the ride down the path so I didn’t get any more photos from the trail. We checkout out some side trials we missed but it wasn’t too long before we were back at the car and heading home for the day. A bike ride cut too short but better to be safe. Once the brakes are fixed we will attempt the trail again.
You can find more about this portion of the trail by clicking here. (This trail is broken up into a few sections on this site to make it easier for us non-long-distance bikers.)
Yellow Bloom
Even though my bike ride was cut short I still got out for another walk later in the day in my neighbourhood and captured this lovely image above.
I discovered a new trail out in Caledon called the Alton Grange Trail. The trail is a short 4-kilometer loop that’s definitely on the easy side to hike. It’s a beautiful trail and one of my new favourites.
Alton Grange Trail
At the beginning of the trail, I was feeling all the forest vibes. Even the light was looking good, and it was only going to get better.
Tree in Ice
The trail crosses the Credit River, and I noticed this mossy tree lying in the water. I wanted to accentuate the length of the tree, so I shot from a lower position. The tree acted as a leading line to the trees in the background.
Forest Trail
My favourite image of the day was this forest trail. The light was so perfect, and I would not have noticed this image if I hadn’t turned to look back. I have to remind myself when I’m out on my hikes to remember to turn around. Today, I’m glad I did just that.
With the long cold month of February behind us, I finally came out of hibernation to go for a hike. March started as a cold and crazy windy day but it was a little calmer and slightly warmer for a walk with my friend Linda today.
A curvy line
We met at Island Lake Conservation Area and decided to start our hike along the boardwalk portion. As we passed the first boardwalk section and entered the second one I noticed these small open areas in the ice.
Holes in the Ice
We were stumped as to why these holes might be here. We also noticed by one of the holes that there were some tracks. It’s possible that some small critters were using these to get in and out of the frozen lake.
Ice Hole
It was a beautiful sunny day out but the winds were still pretty strong. There were a few spots that were quite open and we were glad to make it back into the shelter of the trees. Winter is a beautiful time of year but it’s the cold winds that get me running back indoors as quickly as possible.
In the summer, when I get out on my bike, I usually head for the Humber Recreational Trail. I’ve biked many hours here, and today I decided to head over to one of the sections to get my butt out of my regular neighbourhood.
Interlude
I headed to a section of the trail where there is a large pond. In the summer, you can usually find great blue herons and white egrets here, but with the cold weather, these birds head south. I did not find any other birds here, which in a way was lucky since I had only brought my macro lens with me. From one of the viewpoints on the pond, I saw a person by the water’s edge under a beautiful tree. I can’t say I was disappointed with this nice surprise as I quickly snapped a few photos.
The Trail
For the middle of winter, there is a lot of brown around us. We haven’t had snow since Christmas Day. This image above was quite bland when I started editing it. I wanted to give it a little spice, so I added some fog to the background and darkened up the foreground, giving it a little more atmosphere.
Incoming
As I crossed over the river on my way back to my car, a couple of ducks picked that same moment to came in for a landing. I was able to get a few shots as they came toward me. Only one photo was sharp, but that was all I needed. A very different walk than usual, but it was worth the short drive to see something different from my own backyard.
I had several errands to run today, and one of them took me up to the town of Mono. I decided to go for a short hike at Splitrock Loop Trail since it was just up the road from one of my stops. If you’ve read my other post, How Things Can Change in 4 Days, you know all about my fascination with the birch trees on this trail.
Birches
I love this grove of trees, but I can’t seem to get the photo I picture in my head. One day I will find the shot, until then, expect to see more attempts.
Grandmother Tree in Winter
And then, there is the grandmother tree. She’s even beautiful in winter. It’s fun to be able to revisit the same places in different seasons.
Whites of Winter
On the way home, I spotted this barn that stood out with this amazing blue sky behind it. The white barn would have blended in with the snow on a more typical overcast winter day. Today, however, it screamed at me to take its photo. And with that cloud, how could I not take the photo?
Barn
A little further down I spotted this barn. Both barn photos were taken at the same time, and the skies are very different. The only thing I changed was the direction I took the photo. By turning 180º the bright blue sky has disappeared, and instead, I got this golden cloudy sky.
Amazing how just turning around can give you a completely different look and feel in your photos. Don’t forget to turn around to look behind you next time you’re out photographing.
