Enchanted October!

We're nearly half-way through October and the fall season is in full swing here. I snapped several photos this past week showcasing some of the beauty and splendor of autumn in Ontario.

Here we are driving along the Highway 60 corridor into Algonquin Park to see the gorgeous fall colours at their peak!  We're so lucky to live just a short two-hour drive from this, the oldest provincial park in Canada!  It is one of the most picturesque places to see the fall foliage in Ontario, with the dominant colours being red and orange.  I actually stood in the middle of the highway to get this shot!  

We pulled over to breathe in the fresh air and gaze at the vibrant colours reflecting in the water.  I will never tire of this view!

Annabel, sitting and reflecting...

 Anita and I posing for a photo amidst the gorgeous scenery. We are both in our element here.  I so love this picture. In fact, we got it printed at the Algonquin Park Visitor Centre on the same day! 

These are some of the trees we saw on our hike through the "Lookout Trail".   I spent most of the day in absolute awe of our surroundings.  We were even lucky enough to spot a Mama moose and her calf walking alongside each other in the forest by the highway.  I look forward to visiting again next year! 

Photo opportunities are lurking all along the old country roads in and around our city. I couldn't help snapping a photo of this pretty scene!  Don't you just love a rail fence?

And here's one last photo of Annabel enjoying a hay ride into a local pumpkin patch last Sunday! We picked out our pumpkins to take home where we will eventually carve them for Halloween. The tractor ride back to the barn was so much fun!  We ended the visit with a cup of hot apple cider before heading home. Our annual trips to the pumpkin patch always remind me of the Peanuts episode, "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown".  And not one October goes by that I don't watch it.  It's tradition!

All the Magic and Splendor of Autumn

Hello friends!  Let me start off by wishing you a happy October and a fun, festive fall!  I am so fond of the changing seasons. Each holds its own beauty, no doubt, but for me, the most special of all is autumn.  Nothing can quite compare to the landscape of glowing red, orange, and yellow maple leaves in the autumnal light. Ahhh,  the nip in the air, sweater weather, the smell of wood smoke, cozy fires, apples, and pumpkins!  Who can resist pumpkin season? I know I can't.  Pumpkin spice anything is fine by me!

Last Friday, Nuno, took an unexpected day off work.  Our girls didn't have school that day and the local fall color report listed that the foliage at Algonquin Park was at its peak for viewing, sooo my darling husband whisked us off for a surprise overnight getaway!  If you've never heard of Algonquin Park, I can tell you that it's probably the most famous provincial park in Ontario, as well as one of the best places to admire fall foliage at its peak.  Tourists come from all over the world at this time of year to see the vibrant red and sugar maples of this region.  We are lucky we live just a wee two-hour drive away.  It makes for a perfect day trip!


I would love to take you along on our leaf peeping drive through Algonquin Park.  Would you like to join us?  There's plenty of room for all!   Nuno will drive and all we have to do is sit back and enjoy the scenery.  It's a perfect day for it; endless blue skies and warm sunshine!  You don't even need to bring your sweater; just a pair of comfortable walking shoes.  Have I convinced you?  Yes?  Well then, hop in and make yourself comfortable.  Here we gooooo!

The fall colors along both sides of the Highway 60 Corridor are so vibrant!

And through the magic of the Internet...

Here we are at the park gate, safe and sound.  Yippee!  Let's get out and have a little stretch.  That's better.  Let's make our way, shall we?

Our first stop is less than 10 km into the park.  Look at this view!  Doesn't it take your breath away? The lake is so still and smooth as glass. The sky is the prettiest shade of blue and the fall colors are spectacular, don't you agree?

Look at this splendid scene!  It looks like something out of the cover of a magazine!

I am in awe of the magnificent backdrops that surround us here!

We should probably stop a while to fully appreciate the view.  It looks like our driver has found a perfect little spot to cast his line.  

Follow us as we hike the 2 km Lookout Trail   It's a steep climb to the top, but the scenic lookout promises to be well worth it!

And so it is!  We're up so high!  Careful! Don't get too close to the edge of the cliff!
Ahh!  This incredible vista was worth the effort, don't you think?


We should probably head on back to the car now.  My feet are getting tired and I'm sure yours are too!  Thank you so much for coming along with me.  I had such a good time!  I hope you did, too!

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A Most A-moose-ing Day!

Last Friday, Nuno, the girls and I took advantage of the Good Friday holiday by day-tripping to beautiful Algonquin Park, Ontario's oldest provincial park. The last time we visited was in the Fall, to see the gorgeous fall foliage.

The reason that brought us there this time was something very different.  This time we were looking to get a peek at moose in their natural habitat.  Algonquin Park is probably the best place for seeing Moose in Ontario, and possibly in all of North America!  It is also home to many other species of animals including deer, beavers, black bears and wolves.

Since neither one of us had ever seen a real, live moose in its natural habitat, we took the two-plus hour drive in the early Friday morning hours, before sunrise.  We set the alarm clock for 5 am because we know the best time to see moose is in the early morning hours, when everything is still relatively calm and there isn't a lot of traffic on the roads.

The reward for waking up so early is watching this glorious sunrise!

"There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope." - Bern Williams

We knew we were close to our destination when we saw this sign!

 After a smooth, quiet ride and some hot morning coffee, we finally arrived!

It only took a couple minutes driving through the park to encounter our first moose!

Here he is, drinking "salt" water right by the edge of the highway.  After winter's snow melts away, the salt-deficient moose come to drink the water in the ditches that are filled with sodium-rich road salt.  Hence, the perfect opportunity for us to spot them! 

Here he is, posing pretty for the camera.  We were all in the car pulled up right beside him and he let me take as many photos as I wanted.  I was beside myself with joy! 

As you can tell from the photo, Winter has not been kind to him.  Much of his fur is missing and he looks pretty haggard, the poor thing. 

I zoomed in on his face, where he looks the prettiest.  Isn't he gorgeous?!

 He doesn't have his antlers because they shed off before Winter and only grow back in the Spring (approximately one inch per day!)   

As we continued to drive along highway 60, through Algonquin Park, we came across this female turkey (hen) walking across the road and chasing behind our car, probably looking for food. 

This is a photo of another moose we saw further along the edge of the highway.  One man actually got out of his car to take photos of the moose - up close and personal.  Doesn't he know that if a moose feels threatened, he will attack?  The man was close enough to take photos from the car, but he felt the need to go out there and put his life in danger. 

We saw one more moose along the way, but I couldn't get a good shot of him.   All in all, we were pretty lucky to see three moose on our first attempt!

  As you can see from the photo, we couldn't have picked a more beautiful Spring day- the sky was so blue and the sun was shining warm and bright.

We saw several beaver dams on the surrounding lakes, but not a glimpse of any beavers.

I was so hoping to see them.  Maybe next time, we'll get lucky and see one!

We drove through Algonquin Park's Highway 60 Corridor, from the West Gate to the East Gate, totaling 56 km.  We took the same route back, hoping to find more wildlife along the way.  The drive back was much less active.  The only animals we saw were small birds flying amongst the trees.  This only confirmed what we already knew - the best time to see the animals at their most active is at daybreak.  We will definitely be returning again, maybe later this Spring.  I would love to see a mature moose with large antlers and maybe a bear or two, who knows?

On our drive back home, we stopped in the town of Orillia for lunch (30 minutes from home).  We drove past this pretty home.  I told Nuno, "Stop the car!  I NEED to take a picture of this!".  I can't tell you how beautiful this was in person.  The photo doesn't do it justice, but it gives you an idea.  Most of the front lawn was covered in these tiny, bluish-purplish flowers.  I don't know what they're called.  Do any of you know? 

Here is a close-up of the flowers.

I think this photo exudes all the beauty of Spring.  The tree branches are bare and yet there is so much life and colour surrounding them.  It's the promise and hope of Spring!

We arrived back home before mid afternoon and enjoyed the rest of the day relaxing and doing nothing in particular.  It was pretty close to perfect as a day could get! 

There is beauty everywhere we look and we don't have to roam very far to see it.   I love road trips, discovering and experiencing new things.  For me, in the end, the most precious of those things are the ones we take most for granted - the sunrise and sunset; the cloudless blue sky; the pretty little flowers growing right under our feet.  I am thankful for these things every day!  It was a GOOD FRIDAY! 

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharial Nehru

I hope that every single day you appreciate the little things.  It is so easy to take them for granted.  I always try to remind myself!  Sending love and hugs and wishes for a wonderful rest of the week!