Hike: Dyer’s Bay

October 12 – Happy Thanksgiving! After a BIG dinner we were ready for a BIG hike. Plus we were finally going to finish a section of trail that we had been putting off for ages.

We parked our car at the end of Crane Lake Road and began to retrace our steps. The colours were beautiful – from the sky, to the leaves, to the wild apples on trees along the side of the lane. Fall really is a perfect time to hike.

There was substantial flooding across the road from beaver dams, a few of us managed to keep our feet dry but of course Toby plowed straight through. The effect of the overflowing marshland was breathtaking.

We passed a small horse farm. As we admired the horses a beagle came bounding across the field towards us. She was a very friendly dog and after she and Toby had finished their formal introductions we kept hiking.

After a few minutes we realized the beagle was still with us (although usually rooting around in the tall grass). We nicely told her to “go home” – apparently not a command she understood because she kept walking with us, usually a few paces ahead but constantly checking pack to make sure we were in tow. After a while we realized that she knew the area pretty well and if she completed the hike with us, we would return her home afterwards. We even named her Barbie (at first she was Bob – but then realized our mistake).

Barbie the beagle and Toby paid little attention to each other except for the odd sniff and a few stolen kisses. As we turned left on to Lindsay Road 40, Barbie kept going. We figured this would be the end of our trip with Barbie. We stopped to take some family photos, and who should appear? Barbie, with her tail wagging and ready to be part of the action.

As we neared the point where the trail enters the bush we wondered if Barbie would keep walking with us. We didn’t have long to ponder this question as a pick up truck pulled up next to us and opened the door. There was no question that this was Barbie’s human as she jumped onto the seat next to him. After speaking to Barbie’s human we learned that she is quite the adventurer and has hiked to Dyer’s Bay many times and has even made it as far as Tobermory! As Toby bid adieu to his new friend, we has one final question, “what is her name?” The owner laughed and said – “Chase”.

With our group now down a member we entered the bush and prepared ourselves for the more difficult trail. Although the terrain was rougher than the road, it was still not the most difficult hike we had completed. Once again the views of Georgian Bay were amazing and the sound of leaves crunching under our boots and the smell of fall gave a feeling of tranquility.

We headed inland and back towards are car, thinking about the delicious chili waiting for us at the cottage.

Toby’s 13.5 kilometre hike can be viewed at Dyer’s Bay Hike – happy hiking!