Bearbells
By Leslie Noonan
April 18/25
I went searching for a new hiking spot, which turned out to be more difficult than I had anticipated. Trails both local as well as north and east of us, all the way past Bobcaygeon, are closed due to the trees downed from the ice storm. Those trails will have to wait, so for now my daughter and I headed south. Initially we were planning on hiking Hockley Valley, but sometimes the best laid plans go awry.
The weather was certainly not cooperating. Heavy rain kept the windshield wipers busy, and we knew that we were going to get soaked, but we were determined to continue on. We pulled into the designated parking area, but were at a loss to where the trail began. The lot was surrounded by farmer’s fields, and the eyes of curious brown and black cows watched us nearby. What should have been an informative map left us more perplexed, sending us walking down the road still trying to find the trail. After ten minutes we turned around and returned to the car. OK, no problem, that uninformative map indicated another parking area, so off we go, through the still heavy rain, to find it. Down one dirt track and up back country lanes, and a fruitless half hour drive had our GPS insisting the parking area was in the front yard of a very expansive home. I don’t think so, and the “no trespassing” sign confirmed that this was a bust.
Neither my daughter nor I was willing to drive an hour and a half with nothing to show for it, so as I headed back north my daughter looked up other areas nearby. A short drive and we pulled in behind a pickup truck parked at the entrance to the Mono Cliffs Provincial Park. Half my car was beyond the “no parking” sign, but who would be out monitoring anything in this rain. Ahem, we will get back to that. Off we headed down an easy trail surrounded by forests and rock walls. The relentless rain gave way to a light drizzle until even that stopped and the sun poked out of the grey clouds. There are several routes to take, including the section of Bruce Trail that runs through the park. The maps here are actually informative and easy to follow, unlike the one at Hockley valley, and we made a bee line for the viewing platform. Mono Cliffs are a part of the Niagara Escarpment, and view from the platform is stunning, looking out and over the valley below. Vultures soared high on thermals and down below a small pond hosted a number of ducks.
Most of the trails are rated easy, but there are more challenging sections that take you down the cliff face. Luckily there are stairs and switchbacks to make it easier, and all the stairs and boardwalks are very well maintained. We were never alone on any section of the trail, as families and people with dogs were ever present. Not something I normally like, but I found that there was so much to look at and the trails were wide enough that it never felt crowded. There was even an occasional fisherman, pole slung over his shoulder, heading down to the numerous man-made ponds. Happy from the day’s hike, we returned to our car, only to see the flashing lights of the bi-law enforcer idling next to my car. Oh boy. Luckily it turned out that he agreed with me, that most of my car was on the right side of the sign, so I squeaked by with no ticket. Actually, he was very friendly and chatted about the main entrance being so busy today, and that the ice storm damage was a mere kilometer from where we were, making me wonder where I would be able to hike next. Perhaps even further south.