Northern Landscapes for a change

I spend most of my time here in southwestern Ontario, naturally, so it is a very pleasant change to see what other parts of the province look like. Our daughter and her husband live in North Bay. The 600+ kilometre trip from our house to theirs, takes us through vastly different landscapes. Recently we timed a visit to (hopefully) coincide with some impressive autumn colours.

The first leg of the trip is pretty boring.....from Chatham, through Toronto and then heading straight north. Once we get into the Barrie/Orillia area, we really start to feel we are getting there and by the time we get north of Huntsville it is the land dominated by rocks, hills, lakes and trees. This first image is just a short distance north of Huntsville, right along Hwy 11. The lake probably has a name, but I haven't investigated to find out what it is. Regardless of its name, or lack of one, it is a place I stop at briefly, sometimes venturing across 4 lanes of traffic, just to enjoy the view while numerous vehicles are impatiently heading to their respective destinations.

We like fresh spring water---a welcome treat from the municipal water---and there is an accessible spring a short distance off the highway at Novar where we stop and fill up several water jugs. However as soon as one gets off the highway and prepares to travel down this paved side road towards the spring, one sees this next scene.

This image was actually taken a couple of years ago. I was particularly pleased on that occasion to see a bright red kayak with two paddlers approaching, so I waited and got a few shots of them in action. The scene this year was similar, but without the kayak.

A little farther north again is a place that I discovered several years ago, and is one of my favourite places to take a break. It is Brooks Falls, and I have stopped numerous times over the years, in all seasons. The Magnetawan River flows here, and depending on the water flow, can look impressively powerful at least close-up. The access is via a municipal park by the name of the falls, and one can park just a few metres from the trail that takes you to several vantage points.

The day we visited this year was bright and sunny, not conducive for the best photography here. These first two images are a couple of my favourites from a previous time, one in mid-September and the other two weeks later.

Owing to the bright, contrasty conditions, I focussed on areas that were in shadow where I could capture more intimate scenes.

We made it to North Bay. In reality it isn't all that far north, being at a latitude well south of the 49th parallel, the typical southern boundary of Canada across much of this vast country. But relative to where we live in the extreme southwest, which is more or less at the same latitude of the northern California boundary, it is north! (Aside: I remember many years ago travelling through the USA, and explaining to an American traveller where we were from. His comment was quite revealing: "Oh, that is the part we didn't get from the British!")

One of my favourite places to explore while at North Bay is Laurier Woods Conservation Area. It is almost 100 hectares of natural area within the city limits of North Bay....what a concept, and what a treat! There are several kilometres of trails.

 Somewhat surprisingly, the colours this year were not as vibrant as a year ago, even though this year was a few days later. There was generally more green than I expected.

Without being all that familiar with birding hotspots of the area, I contacted a birder friend who spent several years living just south of North Bay. He recommended several spots, and so on this visit I checked out places like Sunset Point, an area protruding well out into Lake Nipissing, giving a 270 degree view of the lake.

Sunset Point Park

Sunset Point

 This next photo is also of Sunset Point, but looking northward towards the city centre. The shallow water and extensive sandy shoreline looks great for a few shorebirds and of course gulls. But it also lends itself to numerous people out walking their dogs, so maybe such birds give it a wide berth.

I also checked out the Callander Sewage Lagoon for birds, and of course Laurier Woods. Another spot at the south end of North Bay was Champlain Park, right along the lake and with a small river passing through it.

Given the time of year (second week of October) and limited time spent birding (it was primarily a family-oriented trip), I didn't see any really unexpected birds, but had a good array. Most were waterbirds, and included Common Loon, White-winged Scoter, Horned Grebe and various duck species. I think my total was about 30 species, and I dutifully entered my observations on ebird. At least now I have a better idea of where to spend birding time in the future, and have some other ideas of places to visit such as the Cranberry Trail, which goes about 2.5 km through the forest and includes marsh and lake viewing. It is nice having such extensive natural habitat within minutes of where we were staying.

While in North Bay, a visit to Duchesnay Falls is always a treat. It is located right along the highway leading out of the northwest side of the city.

Duchesnay Falls, the overview look

Duchesnay Falls, the close-up view

And just to wind things up, here is High Falls, just north of Bracebridge, located between a small roadside picnic park and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources office on the west side of Hwy 11. It is an impressive sight, but one has to pick the vantage point carefully to eliminate the bright red signs warning of danger, and the metal walkway going across the falls on the upstream side.

For many of my waterfall photos, I like slow shutter speeds (typically 0.5-6 seconds or more) to highlight the silky smooth look. However for High Falls, I chose a faster shutter speed to try to stop the action and capture the feeling of raw power of the water. It is even more effective when there is more water flowing over, as I have sometimes seen here. In this case, the shutter speed was about 1/1000 sec.

More northerly water falls

Water is falling, and it's not just liquid precipitation!

A few weeks ago (March 8) I posted about some of my favourite waterfalls in southern and southwestern Ontario. I gave a bit of detail on how I go about photographing the various falls, and some of the danger to be aware of.

On this post I want to share some of the waterfalls a bit farther east and north.

This first one is High Falls, northeast of Peterborough. Several years ago I went in with others to see it. It was at least a kilometre from the road and I don't think I could get to it again since it wasn't along any particular access trail.

More than one waterfall is called High Falls. This is one also known as High Falls, in the Bracebridge area, another municipality which like Hamilton, has a lot of waterfalls in the vicinity. It has a large volume of water going over it most of the time. A small park and picnic area is nearby.

Also in the greater Bracebridge area is Wilson's Falls. It isn't as impressive from a distance, but a trail leads right to the falls itself.

A short distance north of Huntsville is one of the more accessible and impressive falls that one can get quite intimate with. I visit it several times a year in various seasons.

Brooks Falls in February

Brooks Falls in October

A short distance downstream from Brooks Falls proper

 If you go to Manitoulin Island and come from the north via Espanola, you actually drive over these next falls, which are not visible from the highway. You have to get off at the small community of Whitefish Falls to find it. Once you get onto Manitoulin, at the village of Kagawong, is the impressive plunge falls known as Bridal Veil Falls. You can walk right around it, and even swim in the plunge pool.

Whitefish Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Just west of Espanola, at the village of Massey, is Chutes Provincial Park. The numerous waterfalls there are mostly not plunge type, but more likely to be the cascade type, as shown in the next two images. Cascade types are longer but do not usually have as much of a vertical drop.

A bit northeast of Sudbury is Onaping Falls, which drops about 150 feet in a series of drops. One of the Group Of Seven, A. Y. Jackson, used this site for the subject of a painting on canvas. The next image was taken from the A. Y. Jackson lookout.

East of North Bay, half way to Mattawa is the Eau Claire Gorge Conservation Area, which features the Eau Claire waterfall. It is difficult to photograph, since about the only vantage point is right at the top and much of the cascade goes too close and under the viewing point. Nonetheless it is impressive to see, especially with a large volume of water flowing.

In the North Bay area is a very impressive and accessible falls, known as Duchesnay Falls. It is visible from the Trans Canada Highway, but it much more appreciated from the trail system.

View from the highway

Spring flow at Duchesnay Falls

 This next one is actually one of my favourite parts of Duchesnay Falls, but it is most impressive when the larger falls has a large volume of water, which spills over to this smaller side falls.

Something a little different

A few days ago we re-visited parts of central Ontario and the southern range of northern Ontario. We do this 2-3 times a year, since our daughter and hubby live in North Bay.

It is always a treat to experience a landscape where forest, hills, lakes and rocks dominate instead of the flatlands of the extreme southwest.

We were hoping to catch some of the brilliant colours of autumn, knowing that the predominant hardwoods would have more colour in the southern parts compared to the more subdued colours of predominantly conifers of the more northern extent of our travels.

The weather was generally overcast, with occasional days of rain. I think during the 6 days we were away, the sun only came out for a few hours on two of those days. But the overcast conditions provided some saturated colours to enjoy.

Brooks Falls, a few kilometers north of Huntsville, and even fewer kilometers east of Hwy 11, is a favourite stop along the way. The Magnetawan River tumbles over and through a series of rocky rapids, including one drop of about 3-4 metres. It is very accessible, and one can park just a few metres from where your first glimpse of the falls can be had. This first image was taken more or less from the edge of the parking area. There was a light rain at the time.

Brooks Falls

 A fairly steep trail leads from the edge of the parking area to almost the water level, with several spots along the way to capture the falls. When the trail is wet and/or covered with leaves and needles, it can be difficult to navigate, so extreme care is needed especially when one has lots of expensive photo equipment to carry!

Our main destination was North Bay. Fortunately there are a few places to explore close at hand. One of my favourites is the 97 hectare (240 acre) Laurier Woods Conservation Area, right within the city limits. It can be good for birding as well as giving one vistas of a typical northern landscape. Being within the city, and very close to the traffic of Hwy 11, traffic noise is always present to some degree, but it gets buffered by the forest vegetation. A few scenes from along the several kilometres of trail follow.

There are two small lakes within the conservation area, one of which is maintained by beavers. From the lookout for the image below, I noted Common Merganser, Mallard, Wood Duck, Green-winged Teal and Hooded Merganser.

Birds elsewhere along the trail were few, but included White-throated Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, American Robin, Common Raven and Downy Woodpecker. Migrant warblers were non-existent at the time I was there, but maybe if I had spent more time looking through my binoculars instead of through my landscape camera viewfinder, I might have seen some :-).

Another natural feature worth visiting while in the North Bay area is Duchesnay Falls. It is immediately adjacent to Hwy 17 at the western edge of the city. A trail runs along both sides of the falls and river, providing excellent views. The first image was taken from the Hwy 17 road allowance.

This next image shows the eastern offshoot of the main falls, which is worth visiting all in itself.

The main falls is featured in this short video clip, with a stopped action shot of this same site immediately below. (The original video clip was ~50 mb in size, but I got it re-sized to 2.4 mb to include here. However the quality does not show the clarity that the original does. But uploading a 50mb file here isn't an option. If anyone has suggestions, I'm open!)

 This next photo shows the shallow but busy set of rapids just upstream from the main falls, and are attractive in their own right.

I have always been interested in old growth forest. There is something very appealing to me about exploring a forest that is about as pristine as it gets, at least for the time we live in. One can read the descriptions of the early explorers to get a feel for the magnitude of the forests they encountered. Unfortunately the opportunities are few and far between to even get a basic feel for such forest conditions any more, and one has to actively search out the small remnants.

I acquired a recently published book entitled Ontario's Old Growth Forests, and take the opportunity to check out some that are highlighted in this book whenever I am in an area where they persist. One such site is just north of Marten River Provincial Park, which is about 60 km north of North Bay. An Eastern White Pine reported to be 127 cm in diameter has been seen in this small strip of forest a short distance from the highway. Other lesser sized pines are also present, as well as large, mature Yellow Birch. A forest reserve occurs along the eastern side of the highway, both north and south of Marten River PP. I took the opportunity to explore this for an hour or so, trying to take in the characteristics of what an old growth forest of this type can look like.

The White Pine in the centre of this image didn't measure 127 cm, but was in the 100 cm range as far as I could tell.

Old growth forest is more than just large trees, although large trees are often a primary characteristic. I plan to devote an entire blog (or maybe two?) to old growth forest in the future.

A little more of the north

As mentioned in my previous post, I spent a few days in North Bay recently. It was hardly an opportunity for much exploring out of doors, but the relatively unaltered landscape is all around so I was able to take in the views from afar. I did get out to enjoy one of my favourite locations in the North Bay area.....Duchesnay Falls. It is just off of the Trans Canada corridor at the west edge of the city, and only a short walk from a small parking lot.

This first photo is just a few hundred metres from the parking lot, as one approaches the lower falls.

There was a lot of water flowing this day, due to the spring melt as well as recent precipitation. This next photo is a close-up of the lower falls.

While I was standing at the base of these lower falls, I noticed a medium-sized Snapping Turtle on the rocks nearby. This female had apparently recently emerged from the water, no doubt looking for a place to lay her clutch of eggs. A few moments after I took this photo, she proceeded to crawl through the froth and along the rocks. She had a lot of rocks to climb over before she would get to a place where she could dig, and most places in this immediate vicinity were quite shady, so I don't know how her eggs would develop or even survive. Perhaps their only contribution to the ecology of this area would be as a meal for a local raccoon.

A snapper this size in the north is likely quite a bit older than a similarly sized one in southern Ontario. The season is shorter, with cooler air and water temperatures on average, making the growth and development of such cold-blooded creatures slower in the north. Snappers can live 60 years or more.

I proceeded to climb over the rocks as well, and perhaps had greater success getting to my destination than the snapper. This next photo shows the upper falls view, where the torrents of water come raging through the narrow gorge. Normally I like slow shutter speeds to give a soft appearance to waterfalls, but due to the raging water, it spoke very loudly for me to capture its power and fury using a faster shutter speed.

During times of little waterflow, these main falls are the ones carrying the flow. However during times of peak runoff, there is an additional flow route which is less visible, but impressive due to its gentle setting. While the noisy torrents were passing by a short distance away, I felt I was in another small world with this quiet and sheltered place presenting a calmness, whereupon I promptly reverted to my choice of a slow shutter speed to capture the gentleness I felt here.

On the way to and from North Bay, we usually have a few chosen stops along the way. Sometimes it is to another accessible waterfall, but almost always it includes a short detour off the main highway to a natural spring. Natural spring water is so much tastier, and healthier than what we get from the municipal water treatment sources, so we relish such natural water sources. They contain more healthy minerals that we all need, and fewer chemicals and pharmaceuticals that invariably are not removed by the regular water treatment facilities which focus primarily on removing organic material while adding such chemicals as chlorine and fluoride.

One of these springs is near the small village of Novar, a few kilometres north of Huntsville. On this side trip, I noticed a medium sized Black Bear taking shelter from the heavy rainfall in a copse of poplar trees. I didn't get, or even try for a photo. But I did take a few shots of an attractive lookout along this secondary road.

As was typical during the entire time we were away, the skies were mostly cloudy even when it wasn't raining, which gave nice saturation to the photos, but unattractive skies.

The gravelly roadsides host a few wildflowers which are colourful and attractive, but very few of the ones visible at this time of year are native.

King Devil

Orange Hawkweed a.k.a Devil's Paintbrush

Orange Hawkweed