I had checked and called the Credit Valley Conservation Authority and they confirmed that there was a spot in the Terra Cotta Conservation Area that Bruce Trail through-hikers could use to camp. So I packed my large backpack with my tent, sleeping bag, mattress, stove and food and headed out!
My wife drove me to my starting point at the 31.9km mark of the Caledon section of the trail. I lofted up my 28 pound pack and headed off into the woods. The sun was shining through the woods - it was beautiful!
The trail continued until the 33.7km mark where it met and crossed Eighth Line and headed into the Silver Creek Conservation Area. The Silver Creek area is highlighted by a deep, steep valley in which Silver Creek flows. The valley was carved by glacial melt water at the end of the last Ice Age. The area also is the boundary between the Carolinian and Great Lakes and St Lawrence forest regions. There is a great mixture of flora and fauna through this area. Silver Creek itself is a tributary to the Credit River. The following are some pictures through this area.
At one point on the trail I heard a loud buzz from the path and was not sure what it was until I realized it was bees or wasps at which point looked for the nest. I found it - about 20 feet up a large tree in a hole in the trunk. There was a mass of bees or wasps around the hole as well as flying in and out.
The trail crossed the Silver Creek Bridge.
At the 35.9km mark the trail crossed Fallbrook Trail road and ascended up to the edge of the Silver Creek Valley. Here are some nice shots along the escarpment and valley.
At the 38km mark the trail descended down the escarpment to the valley floor and crossed Tenth Line. There was a side trail at this point called the Walking Fern Trail. I didn't take the trail as I was running out of steam but in hindsight I wished I had walked it. I read later that the trail is named after a fairly rare fern called the Walking Fern. From what I read the fern fronds arch out and when they touch the ground they root and start a new fern so it looks like it's walking. Again, I should have walked it as I would have liked to see this fern - maybe another time.
The trail crossed Tenth Line and entered Terra Cotta Conservation Area and the following picture immediately reminded you why it's called Terra Cotta! Think terra cotta or clay pots - most of the exposed earth and rock was that familiar terra cotta colour.
The trail climbed steeply into the Conservation Area and at the 39.1km mark, as I had been instructed to, I turned left onto the Winston Churchill Side Trail and walked a few hundred meters to an open area designated for Bruce Trail through hikers to camp. Here are some shots of the campsite and my set up - it was beautiful, up on a hill with a nice breeze, not a lot of bugs - an ideal spot to camp!
Not far from the campsite was a pond with these beautiful yellow flowers that I assume are lilies of some sort. I fired up my pocket rocket stove and cooked my freeze dried "Mexican rice and chicken" and it was so good! Later as I read my book I had a cup of tea and finally about 9:30pm retired to the tent, read some more and then slept pretty soundly through the night. The pond was also full of frogs and toads so I was serenaded all night with their croaks.
The next morning I had some instant oatmeal for breakfast, packed up and moved out about 8am accessing the Bruce Trail again at the 39.1km mark and headed on through the Terra Cotta Conservation Area. The issue I quickly encountered was that I did not have a lot of drinking water left for the day ahead. I had left the day before with almost 3 liters of water but having used about 2/3 the day before and for food preparation, I realized I didn't have enough for the day and would have to look for water along the way.
At the 41.2km mark, the trail broke out of the bush onto the Caledon Trailway, a wide walk and bikeway along an old railway bed. At the intersection of the Trailway and Winston Churchill Road, I stopped to look at a map to see how far a walk it would be into the village of Terra Cotta to look for water. Up walks an older lady and her dog and asked if I needed help. I asked her if there were any stores in Terra Cotta for water and immediately she offered to walk me a 100 feet down the road to her house and refill my water bottles. We introduced ourselves and chatted - what a nice opportunity to meet and talk with someone and get the drinking water I needed - thanks Barb!
The trail continued along the Trailway for 1.8km until it hit Heritage Road at the 42.8km mark.
After walking along Heritage Road for a few hundred meters, the trail turned right into the woods again and into one of the toughest sections of trail that I have encountered so far on the Bruce Trail. The trail itself was up and down so a bit challenging but due to last winter's ice storm, there were trees and branches down all along the trail so I was continually climbing over and under trees and tree branches. Making it even more difficult was the fact that I was carrying my large and fairly heavy pack which didn't always fit under the fallen trees. Many times I had to take the pack off and on throughout this section. The weather had also turned hot and humid and along with the mosquitoes there was a number of times I was a pretty unhappy hiker. It seemed to be taking forever to get to the trail split at the 46.7km mark so when I finally got to this spot on the trail I breathed a huge sigh of relief that I was finally getting closer to my finish for the day. I came out of this section around the 47km mark onto a laneway that finally came out onto Mississauga Road. At this point I was exhausted and spent and was not sure how much further I could go - I was truly wishing for a bit of an oasis to suddenly pop up where I could grab a coffee and some proper breakfast. Low and behold, at Mississauga Road there was a sign pointing in the direction I was going along Boston Mills Road advertising a place called Spirit Tree Cidery and Bakery.
I couldn't believe my luck - I hoped that it was open. In the end it was and I settled on this as my finishing point for this 2 day hike and enjoyed several cups of coffee, quiche and a cinnamon bun on the restaurant deck. How wonderful!
I called my wife who came up and joined me for some lunch and gave me a ride back to my car.
The first 2 day through hike for me - hopefully many more through hikes as I head further north and further from home base.
Completed: 249.7km
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