This might be my first Worldmappin travel pin in my home country of Canada. The inaugural digital pin!
Back in the late fall my wife and I did some hiking in the Guelph Lake conservation area.
The park is approximately 1600 hectares in area and surrounds a large reservoir that was created from a dam built back in the 1970s.
This isn't the actual dam by the way. That is much bigger.
The park is open year round for hiking, fishing and light water sports, like kayaking and canoeing. There is also a small modest beach and they do festivals in the area on occasion. Approximately 75,000 people visit the park each year.
There was a fee to enter that day that was about $15 CAD for the car. I wasn't happy about having to pay to get in but the area was really nice and well kempt and the hiking was pretty good by Ontario standards, so in the end I'm glad that we did it and would say that the fee was worth it to us.
From the parking lot there were several paths and trails to follow that took us through the different wooded areas.
Dogs were allowed in the park but were required to be on a leash at all times. The park was fairly busy that day, but not uncomfortably so, just busy enough that we would have kept him on a lead regardless.
The path circled a lake, which was very nice and peaceful and broke off into calm pools and gently flowing streams.
The park had a lot of great looking rock formations as well, that added to the natural beauty of the space.
The waterfall above was modest in height but was powerful and dramatic with the amount of water flowing through it and over the rocks.
We found this rocky outcropping that was like a mini cliff edge looking out over the water.
It was a nice view and great place to take photos.
There were several spots that made for good photo op locations.
This spot had great lighting for pictures with the sun shining through the trees.
This bridge boardwalk that we came across was another fun location.
It was nestled within the trees of the forest and looked very in place, almost like it was a part of the natural surroundings.
It was nice and sunny and a great day to be outside in nature.
After crossing the bridge and working our way around the lake we came to a small cave.
It didn't look like anything from the exterior. It was pretty camouflaged from the path, or maybe its just the photo, I can't remember.
It was actually fairly large on the inside when I went in though.
Another interesting thing that we came across were the ruins of an old mill that dated back to 1867, as you can see on the side of the building.
There was an information board outside of it that told of its history.
The mill was powered by the river before it was damed off and there was a general store that sold a variety of goods that could be bought or traded for commodities like sheeps wool among other things.
A fire burnt the original mill down in 1880 and it was rebuilt in the stones that you can see in these photographs.
Between 1915 and 1918 the mill made wool blankets for the army but ultimately it couldn't keep up with its competition and was forced to close its doors in 1925.
After the mill closed the family who owned the land turned it into a park and began charging admission to enter.
The park officially became a conservation area in 1963.
I don't really have anything else to say about the conservation area so I'll leave you with a few extra close up photos that I took that day. I hope that you enjoy!
Well thats it for now.
Until next time, thanks for stopping by.
Until next time, thanks for stopping by.
This is not French?! Downvoted! :OD
Looks like a great place for a walk. That cave is giant. At first I thought it was a small one till the next picture
No sadly 😔 I have no more European posts in backlog until my next vacation. My Canadian destination posts won't be as exciting but you have to make do with what you got. 😂
Yeah the cave was deceptively large on the inside.
I do love a big cave. Three are some fine ones in Spain I have been in. And Crete I think.
A bit of staycationing never did any harm!
Yeah there is something magical about an impressive cave. This one really wasn't like that though, not a true cave. To be honest the picture probably makes it seem better than it was 😅
What a place!!
Usually we tend to share content from places that are exotic for us, and we forget how amazing use to be algo our home country/city.
Amazing landscape! And you dog is so sweet!!
Yes that very true. We often take what we see everyday for granted. The hikes in my area aren't that great compared to many places that we visited in Europe but this one was pretty decent overall, a hidden gem in my opinion.
Beautiful place and that is quite amazing that this is your first Canadian pin! Thanks for taking us on this great nature hike!
Yeah it's kind of funny that I have so few Canadian pins. I do have a few destination in backlog that I'll post eventually but it's taking a little while for me
Waooo!!! What a beautiful pictures for camping 🏕 and fishing 🎣 with family or friends. Nice tour you present us @leaky20, I loved your posts, the landscapes, the nature and your experience.
Nice adventure friend !!! Greetings from cuba 🇨🇺 and happy start of the week !!! 🙏🏻😊🤗
Greetings. I'm glad you liked the post. Thanks for checking it out. It was a nice location to visit and go for a hike 😄
wow,what a beautiful place. and seeing the cave is so amazing. I really enjoy watching the photos now.
Glad you liked it. The cave was a neat thing to stumble upon
wow this is an amazing view the water dam looks calm maybe the color of the water there is black yes, it is indeed very friendly because dogs that are brought in must always be leashed
The water wasn't that clear blue that you see in the mountains or tropic regions. It was darker - yes. The people and the dogs were friendly to us indeed 😃
what a nice place., its make my eyes full of nice views. hope to see more photos of you capturing the nice places ,
The views were quite nice here. I'll have more destinations to come, it just might take me a while. I don't do as much traveling as I used to unfortunately
Scenic view of Guelph Lake, and the water falls flowing of dam is so beautifully unbreathable to experienced . You both lucky to have that place to enjoy every angle because of that beauty of nature . So amaze to see that it’s not just a place , its super majestic area you entered. Hope to travel the world to witnessed the different kind of nature and share it to all by capturing entire scoop you have been. Enjoy travelling and keep safe both of you.
Thanks. I'm glad you liked the post. I hope that you get to do all of the traveling and see all of the places you want to 😄
"Wow, leaky2078, what an incredible story! Your dedication to your family despite facing such immense loss is truly inspiring. The photos are beautiful, but it's your strength that shines through the most. Thank you for sharing your journey."
"Stunning photos! Guelph Lake Conservation Area looks absolutely breathtaking. The waterfall and the old mill ruins are particularly captivating. Thanks for sharing this beautiful escape into nature. I'm adding this to my list of places to visit!"
Sorry, I'm not sure what loss you're referring to?
Glad you liked the photos!
Wow thank you. This is amazing. We often take many things around us for Granted.
That's very true indeed
You can check out this post and your own profile on the map. Be part of the Worldmappin Community and join our Discord Channel to get in touch with other travelers, ask questions or just be updated on our latest features.
Travel Digest #2453.
Become part of our travel community:
- Join our Discord
Hiya, @lizanomadsoul here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Your post has been manually curated by the @worldmappin team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!Every detail so beautiful😍 lake, trees, castle and cave…
Glad you liked it 😄
It's understandable that the entrance fee might have been unexpected, but it's great to hear that the area was well-maintained and the hiking was enjoyable. Sometimes the experience can make the fee worth it. Thank you for sharing your visit!