Git ‘er Done!

Date of hike:  Sun. Nov. 20, 2011                             

Weather:  8C, cloudy & overcast; NW wind @ 22km/hr

Duration of hike:  1 hour 25 minutes   Section:  11  (from Clarke Rd & Kilally Rd to Highbury Ave entrance into Kilally Meadows)

Distance:  7.2 km              Cumulative distance:  86.3 km

Picking up from where we left off last
time--the turn onto Kilally Rd from
Clarke Rd.

After crossing the Clarke Road bridge over the Thames River, the trail heads west on Kilally Road to Highbury Avenue, well away from the river’s edge.  This is the second time the trail has to follow along roadways, as private land ownership doesn’t permit passage through. 

There are only a few homes built along this stretch, one of them being the very stately property known as “The Spinney”.  This country estate has been here for quite some time and was once the family home of former Ontario Premier David Peterson. 

Unlike Valleyview Road, this section offers few, if any, glimpses of the river along the way, so we had to settle for whatever hidden treasures we could find as we trudged along. 

Tree on the edge of the Spinney--completely bare of
its leaves, providing a stark contrast to the greenery
behind it.

The last of the sumac against the overcast
November sky.

The only real view of the river that we got was the one from the Highbury Avenue bridge.  Looking east, we were surprised to see the small island formation in the river; something we had never noticed before. 

After all, it isn’t easy to see over the bridge’s solid rails as you drive across it in a car.  But there it was, beautiful and completely hidden from the eyes of most people.

Kilally and Highbury--waiting to cross
and continue north on Highbury.

The turn around point--Highbury Avenue
and into Kilally Meadows.

This was the shortest hike we’ve completed to date.  We didn’t do the full distance of this section due to time constraints, but we did complete the least exciting part of it, just to get it done and out of the way.  Next time, when we complete the other part of Section 11, we will actually be able to walk from our home to the starting point, rather than driving in the car.  The trail is now getting closer to our “own backyard”, so to speak, and we will be retracing our steps on paths that we’re very familiar with.